Let’s admit it – the Alpine A110 doesn’t really get the credit it deserves. This is a small sports car with a very light construction and a powerful turbocharged engine under the hood. You can’t beat this formula, especially when it’s designed, developed and built by motorsport experts like the engineers at Renault. In its austere version, the A110 is more than a worthy rival to the Porsche 718 Cayman. Don’t believe us?
The video at the top of this page shows the Alpine A110 R in top speed filmed on the Autobahn. The vehicle in question is the most powerful and upgraded version of the sports coupe, which was launched in October last year. While power certainly matters a lot here, there’s one figure that’s even more impressive, at least to our eyes – the car weighs just 2,385 pounds (1,082 kilograms). That’s made possible thanks to the carbon fiber diet, which shaves about 75 lbs (34 kg) from the car’s weight.
The carbon package includes several exterior components, such as a carbon fiber hood with dual air intakes and carbon fiber wheels, which cut 27.5 lbs (12.5 kg) of fat compared to the facelifted A110 S, on which the R version is based. Perhaps the highlight of the improvement from the lightweight materials is the engine cowl at the rear, where the windshield was removed to save a few pounds on the car’s total weight.
Under the hood of the new carbon fiber engine sits a 1.8-liter turbocharged engine, which in this application produces 300 horsepower (224 kilowatts) and 251 pound-feet (340 Newton-meters) of torque between 2,000 and 6,400 rpm. On paper, acceleration from 0 to 62 miles per hour (0-100 kilometers per hour) takes just 3.9 seconds, while the top speed is 177 mph (285 kph). Could it actually reach this speed on the road?
This video takes us to an unrestricted section of German highways where a sports car from France unleashes its full potential. Its top speed was 167 mph (270 kph), slightly below the factory mark. Drivers say you’ll need a very long straight section with no traffic if you want to hit the speed limiter.
