Alpine reveals stunning A390_β concept

Just when it seemed like large, cool French cars were done, Alpine to the rescue

So here it is then, part deux of the Alpine Dream Garage. We’ve seen the A290 hot hatch already (and are desperate to drive it), an electric A110 will follow at some point, and here’s what the family Alpine - the A390 - will look like. While officially just a Beta concept for now, we know from the A290 equivalent that these previews tend to have a fairly strong foundation in the real thing. Which is encouraging.

Indeed, while there is plenty of show car silliness that we’ll get to - from 23-inch wheels to headrests designed to evoke the curves of winding Alpine slopes - there’s plenty of production intent in the Beta. Rest assured, something resembling this ‘genuine sculpture’ is coming to the road. In fact, Alpine reckons it’s 85 per cent representative of the real thing, and has already shared the fact that the showroom model will ride on an adapted version of the Ampere (Renault’s EV subdivision) AmpR Medium platform.

Consequently, we're expecting a tri-motor car, with a single unit up front and twin-motor rear axle, for a host of torque vectoring possibilities and non-permanent all-wheel drive. Alpine even goes so far as to say the tech gives this car ‘the lightweight feel of an A110’, which really would be clever. But then it also says that three motors and EV torque vectoring is typically the preserve of hypercars, sort of overlooking cars like the Audi SQ8 e-tron that have boasted two motors out back for a few years. It remains fairly rare in this class of car, though - we’re guessing this is BMW i4-sized, perhaps it’s closer to a Taycan - so worth shouting about.

Alpine has also confirmed that the battery of its sports fastback will be under the passenger compartment (as if it’d be anywhere else) and that the tyres will come from Michelin for the production car. A Devialet stereo, just like the A290, will feature as well. Production will commence in 2025 at Dieppe, with batteries assembled in Douai and motors from the Cléon Megafactory.

If perhaps a tad more SUV in appearance than we'd hoped (however much Alpine wants to talk about French savoir-faire and Alpenglow inspiration) there are some really lovely details to take in with this show car. The wheels, for example, snowflake-style as part of an Alps theme that runs through the 390, really are jaw-dropping. The Bleu Specular isn’t half bad, either. And it wouldn’t be a motor show concept without a light show fit for an Olympic opening ceremony. ‘Cosmic Dust’ is the latest buzz phrase, which is the herd of illuminated triangles (mountains again) under both light bars that should bring to mind ‘a comet piercing the atmosphere’. They don’t look so far fetched to not be production viable; the light bars that ‘split the air like a blade’ feel almost guaranteed, because an EV is seemingly incomplete without them.

The dramatic rear end, which Alpine concedes is ‘more conceptual’, features a shark fin like the Le Mans racers and the ability to extend the light strip to create a longtail - almost like the Zagato A110. Don’t expect that to make the real thing, even if it is said to improve range - but it’ll look fun on Instagram over the next few days.

Alpine reckons that the interior of this A390 concept demonstrates ‘spectacular duality’, with a driver focused front half of the cabin and a ‘snowy cocoon’ in the second row. Probably only the ‘OV’ button on the steering wheel, like an A290, will make the real thing, but it’s nice to see a concept with Sabelt harnesses, a driver’s seat inspired by an F1 chair, and an ice crystal for a key. It’s not clear yet whether the A390 will go without a B-pillar, though expect plenty of fuss to be made about the rear seats of Alpine’s first big car. Back there is much more important here than in an A290, so maybe more of the snowflake theme will make it.

Alpine believes that sport fastback must combine ‘fluidity and sportiness with spaciousness’, so expect some proper room for those in the back at least. Just perhaps not speakers encased in ice blocks for the seats, or Stratasys crystals, or memory foam seats. Should the F1 influence make it, expect a negligible impact on the A390, as per pretty much every car that’s claimed any association with top tier motorsport. But as previews go, it surely ranks as one of the more encouraging. Especially given the precedent set by the A290.

Alpine CEO Philippe Krief said: “A390_β previews the future Alpine sport fastback, which we have designed like an A110 with five seats. The duality between the racing spirit and the refinement of this show car embodies the performance and driving experience that we will deliver from 2025 onwards in our production vehicle, produced in France at the historic Dieppe Manufacture. More than the promise of a 100 per cent Alpine experience, it is a genuine commitment.” Nothing if not confident, which you could argue Krief has a right to be. If - and it’s a significant ‘if’ - the A390 can shake up EV fastbacks - currently a world of Polestar 2s, Ford Capris, BMW i4s - as it did sports cars with the A110, then the Dream Garage really will be up and running. Next year can’t come soon enough.

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Iamnotkloot

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