Alpine A290 - A True Electric Hot Hatch

Alpine A290 or Renault 5?

The Renault 5 is, if I’m honest, going to be hard to top. Not only is it ace to look at, it’s quick enough, efficient enough (in the warm), easy to drive, easy to park, and easy to fall for; it’s quite cheap. It’s the EV that people have been waiting for, as evidenced by not only how many you see, but by how many you excitedly point out and tell people about. How on earth can it be topped? How’s about more power, foglamps, side strakes, and a button made JUST for overtaking? That sounds an awful lot like the Alpine A290, the Alpine-ised Renault 5 made for the hot hatch crowd. 

A290 - Alpine’s second single

Alpine’s growing these days. The A110 sports car relaunched the brand, but nearly a decade on, there’s finally a second model, the A290 hot hatch. It’s based on the Renault 5, but you only get the 52kWh battery option - it’s a sporty car after all. Depending on whether you go for the GT/GT Premium, or higher GT Performance/GTS spec, you’ll either have 180 or 220hp and 210 or 221lb ft sent to the front wheels. 0-62mph takes 7.4 or 6.4 seconds, and it’ll top out at 99 or 105mph. The numbers look sort of hot hatch-y, but not so stellar they’ll blow your face off - we’re in a world of 400hp+ VW Golfs, so 180 horses looks a bit naff.

The Alpine has another thing going against it. This isn’t the first time someone’s tried an EV hot hatch. The Cupra Born, in one of its many trims, promised to be a hot EV, and while it was quick, it still felt like a large-ish, heavy car. Let’s not forget the electric Abarths, or the JCW MINI… But, as mentioned earlier, the car that lives underneath the A290 is really, really good. 

Exterior

Even if you have a passing knowledge of new cars, you can tell that Alpine’s designers had a fixed canvas upon which to do their work. The Renault 5’s basic shape couldn’t change, but the stuff on it very much could. That means fun headlamps with a faux motorsport cross on them, some side strakes that don’t appear to have any sporting advantage but do look natty, aggressive air vents up front, a spoiler on the back, and a mean-looking diffuser sitting under its bum. You can also have the Alpine in the marque’s hallmark blue - there’s no zany yellow or green here. 

Interior

Inside, there are a few differences to note, but not many. The button-pro gear selector from the A110 is in the centre console, which admittedly takes up a bit of space but is a lot cooler than a stick, so it gets a pass. On the ‘wheel there are three new things. The first is the regen knob - it looks like the sort of thing you’ll find on the ‘wheel of the firm’s AXXX Le Mans hypercar. Twist it, and the amount of energy is recuperated when you lift off the throttle changes. It’s very cool and fun to fiddle with while you’re haring around the countryside.

The second is the mod select button. There are a handful of modes to play with - Save, Normal, Sport, Perso - and the way to adjust them is either through the infotainment screen or by pressing the ‘wheel-mounted button. The former is faff, the latter… oddly flaccid. You sort of stab and hope. I’d have preferred an affirmative ‘YOU HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE HERE’ click. A minor thing, but it takes the shine off a bit. The final addition is the best: the OV button. A little red slab that pokes out over the right ‘wheel spoke, and just big enough for your thumb to prod, it has a very specific purpose. That purpose is showing off. Or dispatching Honda Jazzes with ease. Essentially a boost button, it gives you full pelt without having to bury your foot. Pin it while OV is pressed and the A290 becomes a touch more urgent (unless you’re flat out already). It’s childish fun, and I loved it. 

With OV pressed, the instrument binnacle’s triangle-themed graphics go into a sort of hyperspace mode and everything gets all whooshy. There’s even what sounds like a revvy four-pot-aping noise played in the cabin. 

Driving experience

In town, its smallish size and slabbish sides make it easy to navigate tight streets, car parks, and other cityish things. Decent torque means getting away from the lights is easy, too. It’s what your mum would call ‘a bit nippy’ in the city. The boot isn’t the biggest in the world (326 litres for all bar GTS, which gets 300 litres), and charge cables eat a bit of it, but you can fit a weekend bag or two in there, and more on the back seats. A weekly shop won’t be an issue. The ride is a touch hard, so potholes aren’t your friend. 

On the motorway, it does well, too. There’s a bit of wind noise and a hint of tyre noise, but nothing too egregious that you’d complain about it. CarPlay works well to kill the monotony, and the A290’s sound system is more than potent enough to play Driven so loud you can hear every glottle stop clearly. It functions well as A Car, but what about a hot hatch? 

Find a road with bends, and you’re in for a treat. Sport mode makes it more aggressive and you FLY. It’ll whip you up to the speed limit in no time at all, and then all you need to do is point it at an apex to realise that Alpine’s engineers didn’t simply put some fog lamps on the front and call it a day. Oh no. It bounds from corner to corner with the sort of glee that old school hot hatches used to give. It’s fizzy and fun, and you end up doing big grins every time you give it a tickle. It’s not as light as the hot hatches of old, though. At 1479kgs it’s light for an EV, but you do feel it when you’re having some fun. 

Range

Alpine says the GTS will manage 226 miles on a charge, or 4.3 miles per kWh, but that’s under the watchful eye of WLTP sorcerers. In the real world, with mixed driving, and roads, I managed an average of 3.5 miles per kWh. Not too bad, though the motorway was a real killer as you’d expect. 

Which to choose?

It has a tough competitor on the market, though: the Renault 5. See, the A290 is £33,500 for the base car, and £37,500 for the GTS I joyfully tested for a week. The Renault 5 might not have the same power or set up, but it’s still quick, still fun, and comes in lurid colours for less money.. A hot hatch it is not, but it makes the A290 a trickier proposition. 

If it were my money, I’d go for the Renault 5 and probably miss the OV button something rotten. But if you’re looking for a true electric hot hatch, your Alpine is waiting for you. 

REVIEW | Renault 5 - It's 'Just Right'

words: Alex Goy
pictures: Alpine