- The French carmaker plans to launch seven EVs by 2030.
- A tri-motor setup with complex torque vectoring is planned for future Alpine models.
- The Alpine A290 GT recently premiered as the brand’s first EV.
Alpine made a name for itself with lightweight sports cars, but as it transforms into a brand of electric vehicles, the French company will have to get creative to make it feel light.
Seven EVs will be launched by Alpine by 2030, and among them will be a production version of the A390_β concept unveiled earlier in the month. That sleek electric fastback crossover is significantly larger, and much heavier than the outgoing Alpine A110 sports car, but benefits from a trick electric powertrain that, according to Alpine chief executive Philippe Krief, gives it a feeling of “perceived lightness.”
Read: Alpine A390_β Previews 2025 Electric Fastback That Really Doesn’t Want To Be An SUV
Helping the brand achieve a light feeling with its new models will be a tri-motor setup as featured under the A390_β concept’s skin, Autocar reports. This setup is thought to consist of two motors at the rear axle and a single motor at the front, although some sources suggest it’s the other way around – one motor at the rear and two at the front. Whatever the case may be, complex torque vectoring promises to make the car feel very dynamic.
According to Krief, varying the power delivery of the three motors means “you can generate a quite immediate response time – it’s like the behavior of a light car.” Krief added the A390 is “not a light car, but it seems to be. “It’s so quick; it’s so natural and so integrated. When you have professional drivers testing your cars and they tested with the systems on because they wanted it that way, you understand that it’s good. This is the ultimate test.”
In addition to using trick technologies to make its vehicles feel light, Alpine is working to ensure its forthcoming EVs are lighter than the equivalent Nissan and Renault models they’re based on.
Alpine’s first new EV is the 2025 A290 GT. The car is based around the Renault 5 E-Tech and features a single electric motor with 217 hp and 221 lb-ft (300 Nm) of torque, allowing it to hit 62 mph (100 km/h) in 6.4 seconds.
