Alpine is owned by Renault, Alpine started making cars in 1955 & in the sixties it made the famous A110, since then they only made one other car in 1995, the A610 before this new Alpine A110 was brought to the market. The Alpine A110’s competitors are the Alfa 4C and the Porsche Cayman, price wise it’s in a similar price bracket as an Audi TT RS. The A110 is a bit smaller than the Porsche Cayman. You can get the A110 in the same blue as the old famous A110 from the sixties for that full retro look.

The engine on the A110 is mid mounted which is fed with air near the rear pillars. The A110 is powered by a 4-cylinder 1.8 litre turbo charged engine with 250hp, 0-100 km/h according to Alpine comes at 4.5 seconds. The cars double wishbone suspension is not stiff at all and doesn’t need to be because the car is very light at 1100kilos. The A110 is 300 kilos lighter than a Cayman due to its aluminium body panels plus the racing seats that only weigh 12 kilos each. The only gearbox option is a seven-speed dual clutch automatic with steering column fixed paddles behind the steering wheel. The upshifts are sharp and responsive but not as responsive in the down shifts. The A110 doesn’t get a mechanical limited slip differential (LSD) like most sports cars, it relies on the on-board computer to use the ABS feature to pulsate the brakes to control wheel spin.

The interior looks like a special place to be with quilted stitching, body coloured tops of the doors, however there is some cheap plastics and fake carbon fibre parts that let the interior down. You get racing inspired metal pedals and a passenger metal brace plate. The fixed Sabelt racing seats look good with a mix of quilted leather and alcantara fabrics. Storage inside the cabin is like the 4C, non-existent with one cup holder between the seats in the back, no glovebox or side pockets in the doors. The infotainment system doesn’t include Apply Car play or the Android version. The satellite navigation system is average compared to others on the market in cars with a similar price point.

So, if you were a fan like me of the original A110 from the sixties, would you buy a lightweight retro version of such an iconic car?