Alpine A290, the hot hatch for the electric age
Alpine ushers in a new era with the launch of the A290—the era of the electric sports car in Alpine mode, respecting the brand’s three pillars: performance, agility and lightweight, as well as French savoir-faire. The A290 is a new entry point into the Alpine world and inaugurates Alpine’s 100% electric Dream Garage. A GT CCrossover and the new A110 will join the A290.
The A290 incorporates all the sensations so appreciated behind the wheel of the A110 into an urban sportscar. Developed in perfect keeping with Alpine’s DNA, the A290 is compact and agile, offering easy-to-use high performance while guaranteeing comfortable everyday use. Its Ampere-derived electric platform and energy services to optimise home recharging, including Mobilize Power and bi-directional V2G recharging, make it part of a complete electrical ecosystem offering the best possible experience.
With its cutting-edge design, first-class technical features, ultra-complete connectivity and numerous possibilities for personalising driving, the Alpine A290 is a true Alpine, a new generation designed to embrace the electric era. It has been designed to appeal to a new range of male and female customers, some of whom will be performance-oriented, while others will be more focused on style. The A290 is assembled at the Manufacture in Douai, within ElectriCity. The electric motor is also built in France at the Megafactory in Cléon. The battery will be produced in France beginning in the summer of 2025.
Philippe Krief, CEO Alpine, said: “Our Alpine A290 is the first model of a new electric generation, inaugurating our Dream Garage in the finest possible way. This urban sportscar marks the introduction of Alpine to a broader public and resurrects a forgotten category, the hot hatch, so much loved for the driving pleasure it delivers.”
An exterior design as a pure expression of sportiness
Proportions play a fundamental role in giving such a small urban car of less than 4 metres a muscular appearance commensurate with the performance it delivers. The AmpR Small platform provides an excellent basis for this, reinforced by a 60mm widening of the track to achieve the visual presence desired by the Antony Villain-led Alpine design team. As a result, the A290 can offer the attitude of a muscular hot hatch ready to spring into action. Its dimensions remain very compact: length 3,990 mm, width 1,820 mm, height 1,520 mm, wheelbase 2,530 mm.
The A290 had to offer a distinctive character in the tradition of Jean Rédélé’s creations... A character made first and foremost by its unique lighting signature, recognisable from afar and comprising four headlamps, as on all Alpine models. In this case, they feature X-shaped motifs reminiscent of rally cars and automatically display a welcome animation when the hands-free card is detected as the owner approaches.
The list of elements that contribute to the bold expression of this body is long: the wide wings, the side skirts incorporating a subtle body-coloured edging that refines them, the aluminium roof edge (or anodised blue as standard on specific versions), the optional French flag on the C-pillar, the black shark antenna (standard), the wing logos (depending on version), the black lacquered body surround and wings, the distinctive line animating the rear door and, finally, the diffuser on the rear bumper. At the front, Alpine is spelt out, and a typical snowflake motif is integrated into the exclusive sports bumper.
The catalogue includes four body colours, including a new Alpine Vision Blue, a signature colour that has been given particular depth to provide greater contrast between light and dark areas. The A290 is also available in Deep Black, Nival White and Matte Tornado Grey. A limited Première Edition of 1,955 will be available at launch in 4 versions: Première Édition, Beta, La Bleue, La Grise.
Interior design: cockpit atmosphere
The cockpit focuses on sport in an exclusive ambience, typical of the Alpine world, with the choice of a Deep Blue tone. The driveroriented cockpit and its passenger side sights, where the car’s name is displayed in backlighting, are complemented by adjustable ambient lighting. The steering wheel, console and seats invite you to hit the road. The A290 is a lively small saloon, with 5 doors for easy access to its 5 seats and a generous 326-litre boot capacity.
First, the exclusive three-spoke sports steering wheel, with a flattened mid-point, is covered in Nappa leather. Highly sculpted and modern, it is designed with accentuated piping to underline its sporty character and a wide steering wheel hoop for better grip. It includes several specific aluminium buttons inspired by the world of Formula 1 racing, with the RCH (for Recharge) rotary knob on the left, to set the regeneration level, the various driving modes on the right, and the immediately recognisable red OV (for Overtake) button above. The steering wheel also includes controls for the driving aids, telephone, voice assistant and instrument display mode. There is also a bespoke audio control pod.
A sport pedal and footrest complete the ergonomics of the A290’s sporty driving position. The 10.1-inch central screen is angled towards the driver, and the physical air-conditionning controls can be adjusted without taking your eyes off the road.
The high centre console between the two seats is inspired by the A110’s iconic design and incorporates the RND transmission controls. Every detail of this area has been carefully considered, with the car’s name embossed on the central armrest, Alpine ‘Snowflake’ grain on the key slot, and the console upholstered in top-of-the-range Nappa leather.
Platform and dynamic features: accessible sportiness
Driving pleasure and the thrill of driving a hot hatch were at the top of the A290 development engineers’ list of priorities. In this first Alpine of a new era, electric propulsion enhances sportiness without compromising everyday comfort.
Using a platform specific to electric power, such as the AmpR Small, offers considerable advantages when designing a sporty model. This platform optimises weight distribution (less weight on the front axle) and lowers the centre of gravity. The battery contributes to the car’s rigidity, and its positioning maximises interior space. The skateboard-style architecture and smaller engine mean that the front end is compact. Naturally, this provides a favourable environment to seek perfect balance, with a short wheelbase offering greater liveliness. At the same time, the wide tracks enhance
stability and allow for the use of larger tires.
The adoption of a multi-link rear suspension, rare in this category, enables particularly fine adjustment of wheel position, giving the A290 top-of-the-range handling and providing a highly directional front end. It also contributes to stability when cornering at high speeds, which has enabled aerodynamic work to focus on drag, a critical factor in efficiency.
The A290’s chassis settings aim to recapture the sporty feel that is part of Alpine’s DNA, with a compromise between agility and stability designed to achieve handling that is both responsive and controllable. Bespoke front and rear anti-roll bars contribute to this balance. The aim is for the driver to feel at ease with the car and for it to be fun for everyone to drive. The result: a sporty road feel, with an incisive front axle that keeps everything nice and tidy. The rear axle is sufficiently mobile when lifting off the accelerator on winding stretches of road while remaining controllable at all times. It offers excellent stability in fast bends, reinforcing the feeling of safety and control.
A button on the steering wheel activates the four different Alpine driving modes: Save, Normal, Sport and Personal. The latter allows independent adjustment of the level of steering assistance, throttle response, lighting ambience and Alpine Drive Sound. As a result, drivers can confidently explore the limits by simply adjusting the pivot point for front-to-rear balance, with a slight lift off the accelerator pedal to tighten the trajectory gradually. Electronic
Stability Control (ESC) can be deactivated entirely.
The A290’s 26 driver assistance systems (ADAS) include driver attention monitoring, automatic emergency braking when reversing, forward and rearward detection with emergency lane correction and safe occupant exit. A new My Safety Switch button, located on the left-hand side of the steering wheel, allows drivers to select their ADAS setting preferences in a single gesture, choosing, for example, whether to switch ADAS on or off, the level of intervention and the presence of audible alerts. In addition, an adaptive cruise control system with a stop-go function and a lane departure function to allow two-wheel vehicles, for example, to pass, are standard features on the A290.
Powertrains: performance and efficiency
Depending on the finition, the Alpine A290’s engine has two power levels: 180 bhp in the base version and the GT Premium, and 220 bhp in the GT Performance and GTS. In both cases, the throttle response is calibrated to make the A290 a genuine sports car that is easy to control despite its electric motor’s high levels of power and torque. Its sportiness is best expressed by the right amount of power applied to the pedal. Progressive acceleration must be possible, as is the case with the A110, the reference setup here. The A290 is not intended to caricature but simply demonstrative, usable and efficient. Depending on the driving mode selected, the response range will shift, but it will remain in line with the same principle of progressiveness, which ultimately leads to greater driving pleasure and performance.
The very substantial instant torque of an electric motor (300 Nm in this case) has to be controlled to optimise traction. That’s why the A290’s development engineers have developed a sophisticated upstream torque management system, Alpine Torque Technology, which makes it possible to finely adjust the delivery of optimum torque, in addition to the action on the brakes to maximise traction.
The A290’s first-rate performance is engineered to be easily repeated, with no power loss even when battery capacity drops. Its top versions accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.4 seconds, putting it at the top of its category.
An Overtake function controlled from the steering wheel by a red button (called OV) delivers extra power for the time it is pressed, and for up to 10 seconds. A recharge time of 30 seconds is required before it can be fully used again. However, after 15 seconds, activating the boost for 5 seconds is possible. This function is taken directly from motorsport and the gaming world has been patented. When this extra energy is released, the instrument screen displays an animation symbolising speed and a display of the time remaining, while a dynamic animation appears on the central Alpine Telemetrics screen.
Regeneration power can be adjusted from the steering wheel in four levels using a physical button marked RCH (for Recharge). The first position leaves the car in complete freewheel mode.
Level 1 corresponds to engine braking similar to that found in the A110, and levels 2 and 3 progressively increase the level of regenerative braking, allowing the driver to choose the regeneration mode best suited to their tastes, driving style, or driving conditions.
The A290 features a launch control function. This provides the best possible acceleration from a standing start and is triggered by a very simple procedure. The resulting acceleration is coupled with a spectacular special animation on the instrument screen.
Live Data displays driving data according to four different themes:
1) Agility: lateral and longitudinal Gs, ABS/ESC activation, Overtake boost.
2) Power: monitoring of acceleration and braking (regenerative or hydraulic), battery recharging and Overtake boost potential.
3) Endurance: consumption, accumulated energy and battery status.
4) Circuit: lap times, car data (engine and battery temperature, tire pressure and temperature, brake temperature), video recording on a smartphone with driving data display. A button allows the entire session to be recorded on the Alpine Telemetrics smartphone application.
Battery and recharging: a complete ecosystem
The Alpine A290 comes as standard with a 52 kWh battery, giving a WLTP range of up to about 380 km (final data to be confirmed by homologation). A heat pump is included to optimise cabin temperature and preserve range. The A290’s 100 kW DC fast-charging system enables it to go from 15 to 80% charge in 30 minutes or to recover up to 150 km WLTP in 15 minutes. At an AC charging point, its onboard 11 kW charger enables the vehicle to be recharged from 50% to 80% in 1 hour 20 minutes, or 70 km WLTP in one hour, or 3 hours 20 minutes to recover from 10% to 80% charge. This charger incorporates a bi-directional function that lets you use V2L (vehicle-to-load) functions to connect a device via the charging socket. It is also V2G (vehicle-to-grid) compatible, so you can save money on charging at home using the Mobilize Power service.
Google Maps GPS navigation includes the electric route planner, which considers the route, charge level, battery temperature, real-time consumption and automatic preconditioning of the traction battery to calculate the best route by optimising the recharging stages.
Encadré: A290 GTS Premiere Edition: 1,955 exceptional examples
The ‘Premiere Edition’ limited series, which will be available from the launch of the Alpine A290, will be offered in the Premiere Edition version as well as in three exclusive versions: Beta, inspired by the A290_β show car with contrasting white and black colours, La Grise and La Bleue. A total of 1,955 examples will be produced, a symbolic number evoking the creation of the Alpine brand by Jean Rédélé. What they all have in common is an exclusive livery, extra equipment, and a limited-edition plate on the centre console.