Renault Planning Alpine Sports Car to Rival Audi TT, Porsche Boxster

9 years, 6 months ago - 15 May 2015, Autoblog

The return of the Alpine brand to European showrooms might be inching closer to actually happening. A partnership with Caterham was supposed to bring the world a revival by the end of 2015, but that deal fell through last year.

Development hasn't stopped though, and this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans in June could be the possible location for a new concept to debut.

According to Automotive News Europe, the rumor about the concept first appeared in the French magazine Challenges. It also suggested a future production version with 250 horsepower and priced at 30,000 to 35,000 euros ($34,000 to $40,000) to take on the Audi TT and Porsche Boxster.

Alpine owner Renault already confirmed the development of the new model, but only a few details have leaked out so far. The lightweight, two-seat sports car is reportedly called the AS1, and like the brand's historic vehicles, it might feature a rear-mounted engine. According to an unnamed insider speaking to Automotive News Europe, engineers are also taking advantage of technologies from Nissan and Daimler. The production version is rumored to go on sale in 2017.