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2027 Alpine A110 EV Prototype Previews an Electric Sports Car That Refuses to Forget What Made the Original Great

The gasoline-powered Alpine A110 has taken its final bow. After eight years in production and 28,701 examples built, the lightweight French coupe has officially rolled off the assembly line in Dieppe for the last time, bringing the second-generation model to a close. But Alpine isn’t letting its most celebrated nameplate fade into history.

Instead, it’s reinventing it.

Meet the A110 Future—a development prototype that previews the third-generation A110 due to arrive in 2027. While it wears familiar bodywork, this isn’t simply yesterday’s sports car with a battery stuffed where the engine used to live. Underneath, Alpine has started with a clean sheet of paper, developing an entirely new electric sports car around its dedicated Alpine Performance Platform (APP).

And unlike many manufacturers making the leap to electrification, Alpine insists it isn’t willing to sacrifice the characteristics that made the A110 such a standout in the first place.

At first glance, the prototype doesn’t appear radically different from the outgoing coupe. That’s intentional. Like many early test mules, it combines existing body panels with new hardware hidden beneath. Look closer, though, and the changes become obvious. Wider fenders hint at substantially broader front and rear tracks, while the familiar rear-mounted 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder—an engine whose roots trace back to the Renault Megane RS—has disappeared entirely.

In its place are two electric motors driving the rear wheels.

Keeping rear-wheel drive rather than adopting the increasingly common all-wheel-drive layout suggests Alpine remains committed to preserving the playful handling balance that has defined the A110 since its revival in 2017. The dual-motor setup promises significantly more torque than the outgoing gasoline model, although Alpine has yet to reveal power figures.

The real engineering story, however, lies beneath the floor.

Rather than installing a conventional skateboard battery stretching from axle to axle, Alpine has developed a split battery arrangement positioned toward the rear of the chassis. The goal is to achieve a 40:60 front-to-rear weight distribution, helping the electric coupe maintain the agility expected of a proper driver’s car.

Weight, of course, remains the elephant in every EV sports car discussion.

The outgoing A110 tipped the scales at just 1,102 kilograms (2,430 pounds), making it one of the lightest sports cars on sale. Matching that figure with a battery-powered replacement borders on impossible, but Alpine appears determined to keep the increase under control. The company says the battery uses high-energy-density cells combined with a cell-to-pack design that integrates the cells directly into the battery structure, reducing unnecessary mass and improving packaging efficiency.

The platform itself also relies heavily on aluminum, while an all-aluminum suspension is designed to trim every unnecessary kilogram.

Efficiency has received equal attention. Alpine confirms the A110 Future uses a silicon carbide (SiC) inverter, allowing greater power density while reducing electrical losses and weight. An 800-volt electrical architecture also forms part of the package, promising the kind of ultra-fast DC charging increasingly becoming standard among high-performance EVs.

If Alpine’s engineering ambitions sound lofty, its marketing claims go even further.

The company describes the upcoming A110 as “the world’s first true electric sports car” and says it will possess everything necessary to outperform today’s finest internal-combustion sports cars. Those are bold promises in a segment populated by machines with decades of development behind them, but Alpine has built its reputation on prioritizing handling finesse over outright horsepower.

If it can translate that philosophy into the electric era, the new A110 could become one of the few EVs that enthusiasts genuinely want to drive rather than simply admire on a specification sheet.

The production model remains several years away, and Alpine continues to keep most of the technical details under wraps. Exact output, battery capacity, driving range, acceleration figures, and curb weight all remain unanswered questions.

Still, the direction is becoming clear.

The next A110 won’t attempt to imitate its predecessor by pretending batteries don’t exist. Instead, Alpine is embracing electrification while engineering around its biggest compromises. Rear-wheel drive, careful weight distribution, lightweight materials, and chassis-first development suggest the company understands that sports cars are defined by feel as much as speed.

The A110 Future will make its public debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next week before evolving into the production model scheduled to reach customers in 2027. Beyond that, Alpine has already confirmed plans for a larger 2+2 electric sports coupe that will revive the A310 name for the first time since 1984.

For a company built on lightweight driving machines, the electric era represents its biggest challenge yet. Whether the next A110 becomes the benchmark Alpine promises remains to be seen—but at least it appears determined to tackle that challenge on its own terms.

Source: Alpine

News

Audi’s Electric 4×4 Dream Isn’t Dead Yet

Audi has always flirted with the edges of its own identity. It builds supercars, it builds sensible crossovers, it builds everything in between—but one thing it’s never quite committed to is a proper, mud-slinging, ladder-frame (or at least convincingly rugged) off-roader. That may be about to change.

At Audi’s annual media conference, CEO Gernot Döllner did everything short of confirming it outright: Ingolstadt is, once again, circling the idea of a fully electric luxury 4×4 aimed squarely at the establishment—namely the Land Rover Defender and Mercedes-Benz G-Class. And while the company line remains carefully noncommittal, the subtext is loud and clear: Audi wants in.

“There has always been speculation,” Döllner said, in the kind of statement that usually precedes a reveal by about 18 months. More telling, though, was his framing of Audi’s breadth: from entry-level EVs to sports cars to “rugged SUVs.” That last category has always felt like a missing tooth in the brand’s otherwise polished smile.

This isn’t a new idea. The notion of a flagship Audi 4×4 has been floating around since at least 2023, when then–design boss Marc Lichte pointed out the obvious: in a segment dominated by two premium heavyweights, there’s room—and profit—for a third. Audi, despite its quattro heritage, has never truly capitalized on that lineage in the hardcore off-road space. Instead, it’s spent decades making all-wheel-drive cars that look adventurous but rarely venture far beyond a gravel driveway.

The timing now, however, feels different. Audi is deep into its electric transition, and an EV off-roader offers something more than just another body style—it’s an opportunity to redefine capability. Instant torque, precise motor control, and software-defined drivetrains could give Audi a technical edge, even if it lacks the decades of off-road credibility its rivals trade on.

There’s also a strategic angle, and it’s spelled U-S-A.

Döllner made no secret of Audi’s renewed focus on the American market, where big, expensive SUVs aren’t just popular—they’re practically a requirement. The upcoming Q9, set to become the brand’s largest and most luxurious SUV yet, is being developed with U.S. buyers front of mind and will even launch there first. That alone signals a shift in priorities for a company that historically designed from Europe outward.

An electric off-roader would slot neatly into that playbook. It’s the kind of halo product that resonates in the U.S., where image and capability go hand in hand, even if most examples will spend their lives commuting between Whole Foods and a ski lodge.

And then there’s the production question. With shifting tariffs and geopolitical pressures complicating imports, Audi is actively exploring the idea of building cars locally in the United States. A niche, high-margin model like a luxury electric 4×4 could justify that investment—especially if it shares bones with other Volkswagen Group projects, like the upcoming Scout-branded SUV and pickup being prepped for a South Carolina factory.

Still, there’s an apparent contradiction here. Döllner has also been vocal about simplifying Audi’s lineup, trimming complexity, and focusing on core models. So where does a low-volume, high-cost off-roader fit into that vision?

Paradoxically, it fits perfectly.

As Döllner himself put it, these kinds of “niche” vehicles aren’t distractions—they’re incubators. They build brand image, showcase new technology, and allow ideas to trickle down into the mainstream lineup. Think of it less as a side project and more as a rolling laboratory with leather seats and a six-figure price tag.

And perhaps that’s the most compelling reason to believe this thing is real. Audi doesn’t just need another SUV—it needs a statement. Something that says its electric future isn’t just about efficiency and screens, but about capability, presence, and maybe even a bit of attitude.

For now, the company remains coy. No name, no timeline, no official green light. Just a carefully chosen line from the CEO himself: “Don’t give up on that dream.”

In the world of automotive corporate speak, that’s about as close to a promise as you’re going to get.

Source: Autocar

NEW CARS

Bentley Doubles Down on EVs While Rivals Hedge Their Bets

Bentley is not hedging its bets. While rivals scramble to retrofit their electric ambitions with a safety net of combustion, Crewe is doubling down—quietly, confidently, and perhaps a little defiantly.

At a time when Lotus Cars has pivoted midstream—reengineering its Lotus Eletre X to accommodate a range-extending combustion setup amid cooling demand—Bentley Motors is choosing a different path. Its forthcoming “Luxury Urban EV,” set to debut in the second half of this year, will remain exactly what it was always meant to be: fully electric, no backup plan required.

CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser doesn’t sound like a man interested in engineering compromises. Retrofitting an internal combustion engine—or even a plug-in hybrid system—into Bentley’s new EV platform isn’t just off the table; it’s fundamentally incompatible. The PPE architecture underpinning the car simply wasn’t designed for such duality. And more to the point, Bentley doesn’t want it to be.

That’s a notable stance in a segment that’s showing early signs of hesitation. Premium EV adoption hasn’t exactly stalled, but it has lost some of its initial inevitability. Walliser himself admits that one of the key challenges ahead lies in figuring out just how large the market really is—and who, exactly, is ready to spend six figures on silent propulsion.

Bentley’s answer isn’t to dilute the product. Instead, it’s to diversify the showroom. The plug-in hybrid Bentley Bentayga remains in play as the brand’s bridge to combustion loyalists, ensuring that the new EV doesn’t have to be all things to all buyers. “We’re not here to force anyone,” Walliser effectively says. Translation: if you’re not ready for electric, Bentley still has something for you. If you are, they’re building something entirely new.

And that’s the interesting bit. Bentley insists this isn’t a replacement, but an expansion—a strategic reach toward a different kind of customer. Which raises the question: what exactly is a Bentley EV supposed to be?

Clues are thin, but not nonexistent. The new model will share key underpinnings with the upcoming Porsche Cayenne Electric, suggesting serious hardware. Think dual motors, all-wheel drive, and outputs that could climb into four-digit horsepower territory. If Porsche’s numbers hold—up to 1140 hp and nearly 400 miles of range from a 113 kWh battery—Bentley’s version won’t be lacking in muscle or stamina.

But performance alone doesn’t define a Bentley. According to Matthias Rabe, the goal is something more nuanced: “very comfortable like a Flying Spur and agile like a Continental GT.” That’s a tall order—melding limousine ride quality with grand-tourer sharpness—but if achieved, it could mark a new kind of flagship. Not just electric, but distinctly Bentley.

Rabe goes further, promising blistering acceleration figures and, perhaps most boldly, calling it “the best Bentley on the road.” That’s either marketing bravado or a sign that Crewe sees this car as more than a compliance exercise.

So while others hedge, Bentley commits. No hybrids, no range extenders, no safety nets. Just a clean-sheet EV aimed at buyers who don’t need convincing—or at least, don’t want compromise.

In a market still figuring itself out, that kind of clarity might be the biggest luxury of all.

Source: Bentley