Alpine to use new Lotus EV platform for next A110

The E-Sports platform has huge implications for the future of Lotus’s own line-up, but it will also find its way into models from other manufacturers

The firm’s consultancy arm, Lotus Engineering, is already talking to interested parties, but only Renault-owned Alpine has publicly declared its intention to use Lotus-fettled underpinnings. Alpine is collaborating with Hethel on chassis development with a view to launching an EV successor to the A110 coupé.

Alpine’s sibling model to the Type 135, Lotus MD Matt Windle hinted, is likely to have a shorter wheelbase (the current A110’s wheelbase is 120mm shorter than the Evora’s, for reference) and recent comments by Alpine technical chief Gilles Le Borgne suggest it will, like Lotus’s car, maintain a commitment to agility over outright pace.

“For us, it’s more important to keep the right balance between power and agility. That’s what performance means when you talk about Alpine: it’s our DNA,” he told DrivesToday, echoing the pledge made by Windle. He also, like Windle, suggested that torque-vectoring functionality will play a role.

Alpine has yet to confirm a launch date for the electric A110 successor but will begin its all-out electrification push with a hot Alpine-badged version of Renault’s new 5 super-mini in 2024 and go on to launch a four-wheel-drive SUV-coupé with “really amazing handling performance” among its core characteristics.

Electric A110 successor is likely to be shorter than Type 135