Renault Alpine GTA/A610

The Renault Alpine GTA and the succeeding A610^[1] was a sports coupe automobile produced by the Renault-owned French manufacturer Alpine between late 1984 and 1995. The car underwent a substantive redesign in 1991, which is also when the new model name A610 was given.

First generation

Renault Alpine GTA
Overview
Manufacturer	Renault Alpine
Also called	Renault Alpine V6 GT Renault Alpine V6 Turbo Renault GTA (UK)
Production	November 1984-February 1991
Assembly	Dieppe, France
Body and chassis
Class	Sports car
Body style	2+2, 2-door coupe
Layout	RR layout
Powertrain
Engine	2458 cc PRV Z7U turbo V6 2849 cc PRV Z6W V6
Chronology
Predecessor	Alpine A310
Successor	Alpine A610

It was the first car launched by Alpine under Renault ownership (though Alpine had been affiliated with Renault for many years, with its earlier models using many Renault parts). It effectively updated the design of its predecessor, the Alpine A310, updating that car's silhouette with modern design features like body-integrated bumpers and a triangular C pillar with large rear windshield. It used the PRV V6 engine in a rear-engined layout, with extensive use of Polyester plastics and fibreglass for the body panels making it considerably lighter and quicker than rivals such as the Porsche 944. It was one of the most aerodynamic cars of its time, the naturally aspirated version achieved a world record 0.28 drag coefficient in its class. The GTA name, used to denote the entire range of this generation, stands for "Grand Tourisme Alpine" but in most markets the car was marketed as the Renault Alpine V6 GT or as the Renault Alpine V6 Turbo.^[2] In Great Britain it was sold simply as the Renault GTA,^[3] as Sunbeam (and then Chrysler/Talbot) had been using the "Alpine" badge since the 1950s.

1988 Renault GTA Turbo (UK), rear view

Rather than being moulded in a single piece as for the preceding A310, the new Alpine's body was moulded in a large number of small separate panels.^[2] This required a major overhaul of the Alpine plant, leaving only the sandblasting machinery intact. The car was also considerably more efficient to manufacture, with the time necessary to build a finished car dropping from 130 to 77 hours - still a long time, but acceptable for a small-scale specialty car.^[4] The PRV engine in the naturally aspirated model was identical to the version used in the Renault 25, a 2849 cc unit producing 160 PS (118 kW). Also available was the smaller (2.5 litres) turbocharged model.

The central backbone chassis (with outriggers for side impact protection) was built by Heuliez and then transferred to Dieppe - aside from the body, most of the car was subcontracted to various suppliers.^[4] The drivetrain was mounted on a separate subframe, meaning it can be removed in as little as two hours.^[5] At the time of introduction, daily production was ten cars.^[6] This soon dropped considerably, as the somewhat less than prestigious Renault had a hard time in the sports car marketplace. The average production for the six full years of production was just above 1000 per annum, or just above three per day.

Models

Renault Alpine Le Mans (1990-1991)

The first model introduced was the naturally aspirated V6 GT (D 500), which entered production in November 1984, although press photos had been released in September 1984.^[7] The car was first shown at the 1985 Amsterdam Rai, immediately after which it also went on sale.^[8] In July 1985 the Europa Cup model appeared; this limited edition model was intended for a single-make racing championship and 69 cars were built (54 in 1985 and 15 more in 1987).^[9] In September 1985 the turbo model (D 501) followed, which increased the power of the PRV unit to 200 PS (147 kW). Sales of the naturally aspirated model were always sluggish, but with the more powerful turbo, things picked up considerably.^[5] At the 1986 Birmingham Show the right-hand-drive version was presented and UK sales, as the Renault GTA, commenced.^[8]

In early 1987 a catalyzed version appeared, with fifteen less horsepower. This meant that the Turbo could finally be sold in Switzerland, and later in other European countries such as Germany and the Netherlands when they adopted stricter legislation. The catalyzed model had lower gearing in fourth and fifth gears, in order to somewhat mask its power deficit.^[10] In 1988 anti-lock brakes became available.^[11] For the 1989 model year the Mille Miles version appeared. With the non-catalyzed engine, this model heralded a re-focus on the Alpine name. The Renault logo was gone from the car, with an alpine logo up front and a large "Alpine" print appearing between the taillights. However, as the name 'Alpine' could not be used in the UK the name Alpine was removed from cars destined for the UK; there was no large print at the back of these cars and a UK specific logo was fitted to the front of the car. The Mille Miles, a limited edition of 100 cars, also featured a special dark red metallic paintjob, polished aluminium wheels, and a large slver gray triangular stripe with the Alpine "A" across the left side of the front.^[11]

In February 1990 the limited edition Le Mans arrived, this car had a more aggressive body kit with polyester wheel arch extensions and a one piece front with smaller headlights. Wheels were 3 piece BBS style produced by ACT, 8x16" front & 10x17" rear. Many of these changes were adopted for the succeeeding A610. The regular V6 GT and V6 Turbo ended production during 1990, while the Le Mans version continued to be produced until February 1991. 325 of these were built in total. Also in 1990, Renault was forced to install the less powerful catalyzed engine in cars destined for the home market, leading to grumbling amongst Alpine enthusiasts about the loss of power (down to 185 PS or 136 kW) while the 25 Turbo saloon actually gained power when it became catalyzed. In response Danielson SA, a famous French tuner, created an upgraded version of the Le Mans with 210 PS (154 kW).

Renault had planned a federalized version of the Alpine V6 Turbo all along, but development proceeded slowly. The US model had an emissions cleaned engine with 180 PS (132 kW), bigger bumpers, and flip-up headlamps (photo). Various crash safety improvements were also carried out. In 1987, however, Renault withdrew from the US market. By then 21 pre-series cars had been finished. 12 of these were sold by Alpine directly to specially selected customers at home.

Specifications

Alpine A610

Alpine A610
Overview
Manufacturer	Alpine
Production	1991–1995
Assembly	Dieppe, France[12]
Body and chassis
Class	Sports car
Body style	2+2, 2-door coupe
Layout	RR layout
Powertrain
Engine	2975 cc PRV[13] turbo V6
Chronology
Predecessor	Alpine GTA

The Alpine A610 was a coupe automobile produced by the Renault-owned French manufacturer Alpine. It was launched in 1991.^[14] Due to a limited budget at the beginning of the project, its appearance does not differ much from the GTA, and it looks quite similar to the USA GTA with its pop-up headlights (this was believed to be because the Alpine, when viewed head-on, strongly resembled mid-80s versions of the Ford Sierra; but the actual reason for that and for the batteries to be in the front was to better balance the weight between the front and the back). Nonetheless it is a completely different car, sharing only the windows with the GTA. The basic concepts of all Alpine cars are there (e.g. the rear engine, and the steel backbone chassis that all Alpines since the A110 have had). The car was solely branded as an Alpine, as linking Alpine and Renault together (first as Alpine-Renault then Renault-Alpine) seemed to detract from the Alpine brand's sporty image. The PRV engine remained, but it was enlarged to 3 litres,^[14] which enabled it to produce 250 PS (184 kW; 247 hp)^[14] and 350 N·m (260 lb·ft) of torque.^[15]

The A610 Albertville 92 was presented in 1991 for the Olympic Games. 2 samples, and other Renault cars, were used to drive VIPs, before being sold as occasion. They had a specific color (Gardenia White) and interior, but used the same engine and had the same technical specifications.

The A610 Magny-Cours was created for the Williams-Renault Formula One victory in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours in July 1991. 31 cars were built, with specific color and interior.

The A610 did not result in an improvement in sales over the commercially disappointing GTA and the car was discontinued in 1995, despite acclaim from the motoring press, and approval from the British car show Top Gear. The A610 was to be the last car so far to carry the Alpine name; after production of the A610 ended, the Alpine factory in Dieppe produced the Renault Spider.

Specifications

References

External links

Media related to Renault Alpine A610/GTA at Wikimedia Commons