RE: Alpine GTA/A610: PH Used Buying Guide
Discussion
Not a pic from mine, but whilst the outside has aged well the interior in the GTA struggles, I always loved the stereo though.
Door handles were great too - I guess they knew the electric ones on the doors would break so there's a cabled one on the sill. I remember a friend not knowing this and when borrowing mine having to climb out the window
Door handles were great too - I guess they knew the electric ones on the doors would break so there's a cabled one on the sill. I remember a friend not knowing this and when borrowing mine having to climb out the window
entwistlecymru said:
There's been one sitting outside an old pub in Maenclochog, Pembrokeshire for 20 odd years, very much unloved. Such a waste for a lovely car 
This one then:https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.9114534,-4.78791...
Finally a car I'm an expert in. I've had 6, still own 3. An original press fleet Atmo with 18K from new, running fuel injection for reliability and economy. An '89 Turbo with 3.0 Turbo and comfortably over 300 bhp - owned since 1990 and a 70% finished project with a 500 BHP LS3 in it. To add some more info to buying used.
Performance wise there isn't that much real world performance between a properly sorted atmo and a standard turbo. They run a twin solex set up which is notoriously unreliable unless meticulously maintained and much heavier on fuel than a turbo. Turbos have much more midrange thrust but are trickier to launch and don't rev as well. They don't respond that well to extra boost as the turbos are very small and the ECUs (with the exception of the handful of catalysed cars) didn't have a mappable eprom. RATS can modify the ECU so it can be mapped but it isn't a simple 'chip change'. They a do a nice well proven package of turbo, injectors and modded ECU that gives a well proven 260 BHP. They are very light and go extremely well at that power level. JL Engineering run a very trick car with over 300bhp with Fleischman body kit that is beautifully presented. Myself and another club member both run 3.0 set ups using the Safrane Biturbo base engine.
Atmos respond well to cam and carb set ups but expensive and parts are hard to get.
There are suspension kits from GAZ, Spax and AVO available which help dial out some of the power understeer they suffer from.
Uprated discs and pads and big brake kits are available. The standard set up is just about adequate for a standard car so a good mod to make.
Renault discontinued parts provision about a year ago. RAOCs Steve Dell has large stocks as it bought much of the right hand drive parts from the factory. Besides Simon Autos , Mecaparts are another good source.
Worse parts to source are rear lights. They are too complicated to retool for and new stocks are pretty much exhausted. £500 being asked for mint secondhand ones. Plastic exterior trims are usually poor but I've seen very good results hydrodipping these. Most interior trim is flimsy and easily damaged but there is a fair bit of decent secondhand stuff around if you know who to ask. Rear turrets, subframes and A pillars all need careful checking for rust - and the steering rack mounting is hidden in a sealed box section that you have to cut open to check.
Tyre wise the rear 255/40s are hard to come buy as they only seem to make a batch every few years now but 225/50s fit perfectly and look fine . Many cars were changed to AZEVs in 16/17 and occasionally 18 inch and tyres are plentiful for those.
Make sure you find one with good paint as they are a hard car to paint with the pressure moulded plastic panels flexibility and unfamiliarity to most painters often meaning substandard repaints. Trim is also hard to remove without breaking and hard to source if you do.
I know these cars inside out and would 100% say buy the best you can afford. They are very expensive to put right. Mechanics are robust and simple but rebuild parts - especially for the turbo are very expensive now as it was bespoke to the car. They still represent fantastic value for a very good one at around the £15k mark - an equivalent condition left hooker in France is worth getting on for double that. If you have to buy a project - buy one needing mechanical work over cosmetic. Paint and lights all round will be over 5k before you start
A good one is a fantastic driving car , steering is superb and they handle brilliantly , especially with tweaked suspension and some sticky front tyres. The turbos with decent mods will embarrass many a modern car - at last years club test day a car with about 315 bhp ran 10.6 to 100 and a couple of others weren't far behind. Quick even by todays standards.
Hope this of use to any potential owners. A few pics of mine below.
Performance wise there isn't that much real world performance between a properly sorted atmo and a standard turbo. They run a twin solex set up which is notoriously unreliable unless meticulously maintained and much heavier on fuel than a turbo. Turbos have much more midrange thrust but are trickier to launch and don't rev as well. They don't respond that well to extra boost as the turbos are very small and the ECUs (with the exception of the handful of catalysed cars) didn't have a mappable eprom. RATS can modify the ECU so it can be mapped but it isn't a simple 'chip change'. They a do a nice well proven package of turbo, injectors and modded ECU that gives a well proven 260 BHP. They are very light and go extremely well at that power level. JL Engineering run a very trick car with over 300bhp with Fleischman body kit that is beautifully presented. Myself and another club member both run 3.0 set ups using the Safrane Biturbo base engine.
Atmos respond well to cam and carb set ups but expensive and parts are hard to get.
There are suspension kits from GAZ, Spax and AVO available which help dial out some of the power understeer they suffer from.
Uprated discs and pads and big brake kits are available. The standard set up is just about adequate for a standard car so a good mod to make.
Renault discontinued parts provision about a year ago. RAOCs Steve Dell has large stocks as it bought much of the right hand drive parts from the factory. Besides Simon Autos , Mecaparts are another good source.
Worse parts to source are rear lights. They are too complicated to retool for and new stocks are pretty much exhausted. £500 being asked for mint secondhand ones. Plastic exterior trims are usually poor but I've seen very good results hydrodipping these. Most interior trim is flimsy and easily damaged but there is a fair bit of decent secondhand stuff around if you know who to ask. Rear turrets, subframes and A pillars all need careful checking for rust - and the steering rack mounting is hidden in a sealed box section that you have to cut open to check.
Tyre wise the rear 255/40s are hard to come buy as they only seem to make a batch every few years now but 225/50s fit perfectly and look fine . Many cars were changed to AZEVs in 16/17 and occasionally 18 inch and tyres are plentiful for those.
Make sure you find one with good paint as they are a hard car to paint with the pressure moulded plastic panels flexibility and unfamiliarity to most painters often meaning substandard repaints. Trim is also hard to remove without breaking and hard to source if you do.
I know these cars inside out and would 100% say buy the best you can afford. They are very expensive to put right. Mechanics are robust and simple but rebuild parts - especially for the turbo are very expensive now as it was bespoke to the car. They still represent fantastic value for a very good one at around the £15k mark - an equivalent condition left hooker in France is worth getting on for double that. If you have to buy a project - buy one needing mechanical work over cosmetic. Paint and lights all round will be over 5k before you start
A good one is a fantastic driving car , steering is superb and they handle brilliantly , especially with tweaked suspension and some sticky front tyres. The turbos with decent mods will embarrass many a modern car - at last years club test day a car with about 315 bhp ran 10.6 to 100 and a couple of others weren't far behind. Quick even by todays standards.
Hope this of use to any potential owners. A few pics of mine below.
Lewis Kingston said:
The GTA was my dad's; I was considering buying it but, upon looking at the link I sent him, he hit 'buy it now' and landed it instead.
mattrsd said:
Notanotherturbo said:
ps: thanks for the detailed explanations; like being guided through an unknown (to me) universe
The A610 is a fantastic car, here is a picture of mine with my late Esprit V8. In 2012 I travelled in convoy down to the Classic Lemans with the RAOC (a great bunch of guys) and managed to drive the 'parade laps' in the A610 around the full LeMans track. The car performed faultlessly and I managed to get it flat out down the Mulsanne Straight on three occasions. Out of the two cars the A610 got a lot more use.
Nearly bought a good Le Mans in 2000 for 7.5k, but I was skint at the time and opted for an absolutely immaculate Porsche 924S for 3.5k. I loved the Porsche, and sold it for more than I paid for it after 4 years.
The alpine was very much more ‘grown up’ in terms of performance, but as I say, it was just a bit too expensive for me, and (sorry) while I loved the exterior and the performance, I hated the interior!
The alpine was very much more ‘grown up’ in terms of performance, but as I say, it was just a bit too expensive for me, and (sorry) while I loved the exterior and the performance, I hated the interior!
My parents had a string of Renaults when we were kids. Being car mad I always used to leave with a load of brochures and none had me more excited than this. I'm not sure I've ever actually seen one.
Ultimate French cool and would love to have one some day.
Ultimate French cool and would love to have one some day.
Edited by Paddy78 on Friday 2nd February 07:18
And look what happened to Clarkson when he paid £8250 for one back in 2007.
The only one for sale on PH is £34,995!!
https://youtu.be/LWGchdsJaA0
The only one for sale on PH is £34,995!!
https://youtu.be/LWGchdsJaA0
A picture of my Le Mans - I have to say, despite the expense, I feel very privileged to own this car. It is one of 26 right hand drive Le Mans built and the only blue one. I have owned it since 2009, prior to that I had a 2.8 non-turbo from 1992 to 2003.
John Law (JL Engineering) has coaxed 199 BHP out of it so not too far down on power from a standard Turbo - it has a nice turn of speed with its light weight. Handling is brilliant and buckets of character. Get a structurally sound car and look after the cooling and you will be rewards by a fast, surprisingly practical car that turns heads wherever you go.
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