we don't need more range from less size and weight. We need less weight to get better efficiency from smaller batteries. this will translate into lower costs, maintenance and availability.
Not sure about those ultra Low profile and no doubt very expensive to replace tyres for UK roads. More compliance needed to take strain of suspension components on uneven B roads
Remember that back in 1989 you were probably excited about the prospect of sex around 25-40 times per day, to the point that a farmer could pull your shorts down, grab you by your ankles and plough a pretty large field with the help of said natural excitement in no time. My point is, that excitement for anything will never reach those levels again. New music? Nope. Going to the cinema, meh. Going bonkers at the local scene for a tiny rock group absolutely nobody has heard of, not very likely. Seeing a young lady showing off all her skin on her way to the pub, give some friendly advice about avoiding the common cold by wearing sensible clothing and shoes, before starting the obligatory lecture about pubs being better before, music being better before, cars being better before, humour being better before, football being better before, parties and festivals being better before (insert topic of interest). To quote the film Shortbus: "I used to wanna change the world. Now I just wanna leave the room with a little dignity." It happens to every generation that has ever lived and as we know from our own upbringing, nobody at age "excited" should listen to people our age. 😁
What were you expecting it to cost? Some expectations need to be applied - It's 2024 where all cars cost much more and it's an Alpine which add specialness & cost. To me £38k (about £400 per month) is about right, when compared to other cars on the market
@@ohyesitsme - Wouldn't say 'rush', I've been interested in these for over a year, following the developments and news. It's basically £400 per month, which includes insurance, maintenance and tyres for 3 years, 10k miles per year.
Sorry but £40k for a Renault 5 with a battery up it’s ass is extortionate, just as it was asking folks to part with that much for a fiat 500 with a flippin battery nailed to it too! Yes ok all cars are overpriced nowadays (as is everything else), but ev’s take it to another level being even more expensive! I can still remember when you could get a brand new civic type r for about £17k!!
@ - yep, I remember that too. The problem is inflation, that £17k in 2002, is now worth £32k in 2024. Show me another new car with this performance and special interior for £38k 🤔? [A CTR is now over £50k!]
This looks great in white with a black roof but the standard R5 EV in white would have enough performance for me. However, the Renault website is a complete pain as any attempt to establish the specifications of the R4 or R5 EVs are met with moving images containing the information they want to convey, not what I want to find. Sometimes less is more.
Good to see a manufacturer making a drivers EV rather than chasing outright 0-60 mph dominance. The A110 follows the same philosophy and is all the better for it.
Thank you, that was a cool video and great review. Its refreshing to see a new car which focuses on feeback, lightness, and cornering. A true everyman's sports car is not meant to do 0-60 in 3 seconds. We have super amd hyper cars for that. A Lotus Elan was never a dragster, yet it's a legendary sports car. So let's enjoy the Alpine A290 for what it is.
" On paper it looks a little underwhelming but after two days driving this car on the roads of Mallorca and on track I came to realise this car is not about the numbers." reading between the lines its dissapointing but i dont want to upset alpine.
Every time that someone says that a 1479kg car is lightweight, Gordon Murray's right eye twitches and Colin Chapman makes a full rotation in his grave. It's not even lightweight by NASCAR standards, the minimum weight for the New Gen car is 1451kg and that's with driver and fuel included! 1000kg is lightweight for production car standards, 1.5 tonnes is more or less the weight of a 993 Porsche 911 Turbo.
“Relative lightweight for an EV”, was what was said… which it is.. I’ll hold judgement until I drive one, and feel how it handles and if the weight is negated by the low centre of gravity and grip.
@@pashton76 a Renault Clio R.S. 200 Trophy from 12 years ago would probably overall be faster around a track than this, especially over a 10 lap period. 220hp and 1100kg vs 217hp and 1479kg isn't really a competition. The Alpine could make up time in sheer acceleration, but would be left behind in the braking zones and ruin its tires and brakes a lot quicker. Relatively speaking, a racing truck weighs 5000kg, which is relatively lightweight compared to a road going truck at 8000kg, but it still weighs 5 tonnes. You just can't beat physics.
@@Stuntman175 CC makes a full rotation when he sees what pass as lightweight now...but, I honestly think he wants to removed himself from the history when he sees what is a Lotus in 2024. Both Lotus and Alpine were some awesome driver's car brands with real driver's cars in lineup....and both of them now have zero connection with what their core values used to be; now, it is all about mundane platforms made to be (much)more expensive.
It's the same as my last proper hot hatch weighed, a 2007 Mazda 3 Mps. I think it's damn impressive that they can make an EV of not dissimilar interior space and only slight lesss power weigh the same. Most EV hatches are 2-300kg more. They offset the penalty to a large extent with more torque and a better weight distribution than a front engined car.
@@Stuntman175 You make a valid point, weight is king with hot hatches to make them feel nimble and decent straight line performance. The EDC Clio Trophy is closer to 1300kg wet and would struggle to keep up on track with a manual Clio RS197/200 which were just sub 1200kg or even a RS 182 at 1080kg. Weight goes up by adding safety features, refinement, or in an EV case bigger battery for range and everything else has to be beefed up to cope, bigger heavier brakes, wheels, tyres, anti roll bars, the list goes on. The Alpine is a decent weight for an EV, the list price is high though but give them a year or two and used examples will be closer to £20k than £40k and maybe I'd consider one as a second car but I'm not convinced yet by the EV saving the planet brigade. Burning natural gas is still required to produce at least 43% of UK electricity, add in nuclear to that and it's not exactly clean and that's without an EV's carbon footprint to build requiring it to complete 30,000 miles to get on a level playing field with ICE for Co2 on a new build.
Same figures as my Megane Etech. 220hp and 300nm, but Megane is slightly heavier at 1700kg and has the 60kwh battery under the floor. Megane is plenty quick enough for me and handles great.
I can see it's appeal but we won't be cancelling the order for our R5 I'm afraid. For the price of this you can get an R5 AND a very decent used MX5 or Fiesta ST and not kid yourself that a small sporty car weighing over 1500kg wet is fun. I don't think we'll be seeing many of these on UK roads, somehow. Good test though Ped and thanks
I think this should have been the Renault 5GT or Turbo... The Alpine model should have been more extreme, like the Ioniq 5N. With fully adjustable suspension, multi power modes and more bhp.
@@PetrolPed I have a very good friend who is a UA-camr with 500k+ followers who earns a very good living without the ads interfering. Just giving some constructive feedback as a viewer that it is too difficult to watch but if your target is purely people who have premium then that is fine.
@@PetrolPed Sorry I stopped watching the free one half way through for this reason, this was constructive criticism as a free viewer, it's ok if your target is premium users only but it's just too much for me. My good friend is a UA-camr with 500k+ subscribers, he does very well financially on it without the ads interfering throughout🤷♀
@@markchristy7418 you can use youtube premium..., use the family option and split the monthly fee on 4 accounts(recruit 3 buddies) and it is one or two beer money per month.
@@markchristy7418your friend has 300000 more subs then him so he makes more then Sir Pete. Ads help him. Commercials happen on radio and tv. Are ya gonna give those up just because ads?? Just silly
Blue is typical Alpine. That grey looks ace with a black roof and some decals, Maybe a big Petrol Ped sticker that fills the entire roof.... Liked the video. Very nice and balanced.
Much as these overseas first drive events are informative, I await your UK review. That rear door design means car park knocks are going to be an expensive repair.
@@thierrylerinckx1340 Not in the short term. Your MX-5 is still c.400kg lighter. And Mazda is reported to be developing an electric roadster (not clear if it will carry the MX-5 name). I’d be tempted to wait…
@@craighudson6684 Indeed I agree. But honestly I wouldn't like to be in the shoes of the Mazda engineers in charge of electrifying the MX5 without screwing it up . Look at the MG Cyberster: from lightweight roadster to great heavy powerful cruiser..... fun?
I had the same thought about the name. In sporty Renaults 'of old' it would signify the BHP. I wondered if Alpine had greater performance aspirations when they created the prototype and named it? This is clearly a 'watered down' development in comparison to the prototype..
Pete amazing quality video as usual one thing I love about your videos. Car looks fantastic especially in the blue spec but it's that big but bloody electric again spoiled the car straight away for me if it has a proper engine and that sound . Even if it was a fhev it would be much better and the mileage is ridiculous. That's just my opinion. But part from that great video .
Confused about the motor. You say it's a motor from "a Clio E-Tech", but the only Clio E-Tech I can find is a 1.6L hybrid motor. Is this an EV motor that is destined for a future, not-yet-released Clio E-Tech? Can you elaborate on the motor design? Is it an Externally Excited Synchronous Motor? Did you mean the Megane E-Tech BEV that does use an EESM and has 218hp?
Nice car and I am having had the A110 an Alpine fan. However, no matter how you stack it up, that range is a non starter for me and really resigns it to town use and occasional motorway trips with the attributable range anxiety issues. Wonder if they will do a petrol version……
..of course they won't... the EV agenda and financial penalties for high percentage ICE production mean this and the R5 are 'balancing the books' against other models
Wltp of 236 miles sounds fine to me. Our ID3 has 260 and we take it everywhere, to Europe etc without hassle. I think 236 WLTP range (probably 150-200 real world year round) is more than ejough and worth accepting as a trade off against reduced weight. 220bhp with a 1400kg car is plenty on a B road too. I had a 2007 Mazda 3 MPS that weighed the same and only had 30bhp more; that was a brilliant hot hatch and went like a rocket ship. £10k over a Renault 5 is a big hike though.
I think these little cars look 👀 great!! Not something I’d spend that kind of money on but I could definitely understand the appeal of them. Great review Sir Pete!!!
here's a short review: 1stly: can we start a petition for all the "all the cars are great and there are only positive aspects to them" type of youtube videos?, it is sort of a cringe, isn't it?, everything is beautiful, there is world peace and *every* car is the best ever, in its own special way.😊😊😊; like really, that should stop. 2ndly: come on man, that car understeered on a mountain road at moderate speeds; on the track, in understeered like a pig and everyone who'd ever drove a car at speed can recognise that(it was also very audible!) and 3rdly(and final comment): it looked like you were really trying...like *really really* trying; I don't know if it is because you like the car or maybe you have a 'special relation' with someone at renault but, either way, if it is a commercial in the form of a video vlog, an advertorial(how they used to be called in written media) or just some simple lobbying for renault, please marked it as such; I, personally, and probably most of us don't want to see love letters to cars that are a little above average at the best of times and mediocre at the rest. cheers!(, I said I wouldn't comment anymore on your videos but, Alpine is such a sensitive thing for me and close to my heart that it physically pains me to see a legacy brand like Alpine being transformed into some sort of Cupra/RenaultSport hybrid type of brand - aka, sporty cars on mundane platforms(no specifically designed sports car platforms)#"thank you" Luca de Meo!) P.S. I know you will delete this comment but, maybe before(or after) consider for a little bit everything I have written above. signed, an enthusiast of(for) real Alpine sports cars!(not rebadged renaults and that alpine spirit nonsense)
Did you watch Peter’s video to the end and his summary in the final 5 minutes before you wrote your review? If you did not..or even if you did, watch it again then reconsider what you have posted. Of course all You Tube reviews are influenced by the involvement of the manufacturers….Peter tries really hard to report objectively as do many others….he is reviewing a brisk, small family EV that is clearly fun to drive in the real World and that looks vastly better than anything else in its Class…it is not a hard faced racing machine that is hard work everywhere and few drive properly despite their inflated self belief in their driving abilities. His review is fair and honest….not something you can say of reviews in the 1950/60/70’s…I was reading them at the time!
@@HQBProductions I certainly watched the review and Ped's Summary. There is "What he is saying" and "What you feel he would like to be saying but can't" - as it may impact his future involvement with the Manufacturer. It's called "reading between the lines" and the message is (typically) painfully obvious. Ped, Rory Reid and various other YT Motoring Reviewers all do the same. They have an eye on their future income stream and do not wish to upset anyone by being critical. I totally understand this but I don't have to be taken in by their kind words. This A290 is a pale immitation of the prototype and, thus, what it could have been. It's a nicely trimmed car but is mainly a cosmetic upgrade compared to the standard R5 EV. As such, it's a bit of a Sheep in Wolf's clothing. Not in the slightest bit necessary for a short/mid-range commute or urban driving. Wholly compromised by weight/lack of performance in 'spirited' driving. The standard R5 is the better purchase and £10K cheaper
@@ThePedroDB Right…well best that you give up watching reviews then. I suspect most people will like the 290 because it looks a bit different and goes well and they can afford the extra money. It may not be wonderful value but cars never are! 🤔🙂
@@HQBProductions it is not the driver's car renault is trying to portray and push youtubers to keep mention it 10000 times per video; a driver's car is something else, something renault are not interested in producing atm.
@@HQBProductions I always hope for a review but (sadly) a lot of reviews these days are glorified advertisements. I really wanted to like the A290. I've been eagerly awaiting it's launch. I still rather like the standard R5 but the Alpine doesn't appear to offer a lot more. All cars have suddenly become severely over-priced over the last couple of years and EVs have yet to become mass-market affordable. The R5 is one of the first. Sad that the A290 had to push the price from mid-20's to 40K. Badge engineering. Did you watch the TopGear review of the A290? A couple of laps and the brakes were almost on fire.
I note that you can turn off the Speed awareness display easily. I wonder what an Insurance company will say if you are in a collision with the speed indicator turned off, and your on board computers data recorder show that you were exceeding the limit at the time.
They'll say you weren't being made aware of the National Speed Limit by the car, rather than totally ignoring the speed limit warnings. That's all they can say. Either way, it is the responsibility of the Driver to be aware of and drive within speed limits. Reason for speeding at point of collision is not available from this limited data but could easily be that the Driver was attempting to take avoiding action prior to the collision. If the recorded speed could be used in any way to avoid making a pay-out, you can bet many insurance companies would use it to do so. Fortunately, Insurance companies should have no access to this information... Will the Police be able to prosecute retrospectively and add 3 points and a fine to the Driver's woes? In theory, this information can only be released to the Police if a crime has been committed and it is relevant to their investigation. My car has a Speed Limit Warning system built in and it reads wrong a good 20% of the time. It's easy to join a 60MPH section of road from a 30MPH road and not see a Speed Limit sign for some time. The car thinks you're still in a 30. Absolute rubbish. I'm constantly being tracked by GPS for the Sat Nav, so it should be possible to be far more accurate than that... Big Brother is constantly monitoring modern cars. Individual (phone carrying) citizens likewise.
@@PetrolPed Insurance companies very often try to avoid paying out. Do you remember the protracted case of a Jaguar driver who was refused a payout due to fitting tyres with a lower speed rating than recommended even though speed was not a factor in the collsion? The tyres were completely legal but not the recommended rating. Turning off a safety warning could be interpreted as indicating a state of mind regarding driving styles, etc, in the same way as not wearing a seat belt is used to reduce compensation payouts.
Now we are talking a good looking EV hot hatch and tapping into the looks of my formative years. I love the bvlue colour, the wheels and tyre design are on point. Top spec car for me always is the way to go. Now all we need is a mk1 Escort Mexico with flared wheel arches and spots as an EV and we could recreate Scalextrix for big boys.
Talking for myself only. I'd nowadays much rather drive/ride a small engine that can be pushed, rather than a big one I can only tickle. The fun factor plays a big part, but so do the risks of fines and losing your licence, as well as insurance costs and purchase price. I can't exploit 600bhp on the road, so why lug myself with it? Yes a quick set-off the light is fun, but then what? It's like having a 6-BED house for 2: a waste. If I were on the market for a car today, I'd get the 3S: Suzuki Swift Sport. Fugly, but real fun. Bike-wise, a 400 or 500cc bike, the ZX4 RR or Aprilia 457. Anyway, the A290 looks good and may be fun to drive too. It's electric though. 😁
It’s the instant 300 nm of torque that raises the smiles. My Megane Etech has the same figures. Come out of a roundabout at 25mph, plant the accelerator and it will wheel spin leaving 11s down the road. Superb acceleration when needed and rapid uphill.
Power to Weight ratio is the real issue. The 1996 WRX weighed 1240Kg. The outgoing Hyundai i20N was 201BHP and 1190Kg - it's not a lightweight compared to some Hot Hatches of the past but it's carrying rather a lot of modern safety tech
I like the fact that it's light (for an EV) but it's really only going to sell to wealthy people who perhaps have nostalgia for the original R5. The range is disappointing too but that's the price of the smaller (lighter) battery. Maybe Renault should have made that 17 concept and made it with a bigger battery, the relaunch of a coupe would have been exciting and the styling of that car was beautiful in my opinion.
Great review and one that I have been eagerly waiting for as I have an Alpine A290 Premier Edition on order with Hendys, your favourite dealer. If I tell you that my last three cars have been a Mini Cooper S, a BMW i3s and currently a Renault Megane E-Tech you will understand why I had hoped that the A290 would tick all my boxes. Your video confirms that I think I have made the right choice. I know that the battery size and range is not huge but bigger batteries only add often unnecessary range and cost. Having driven EVs for 10 years, a 200 mile range is perfectly adequate unless you do long overseas trips for which a Tesla is probably the best solution. From my experience the instant torque you get with an EV is more addictive than the 0-60 mph acceleration or ultimate performance. It gives you greater confidence overtaking and pulling into traffic because you never have to worry about the car momentarily hesitating whilst the car finds the right gear. Whilst some may think the price of the A290 is quite a premium on the R5 I think it is still really very competitive against the Mini SE. A L2 Mini 3 door Cooper hatch with metallic paint comes to a whisker under £40,000. I am relieved that the A290 price will be below the £40k higher VED threshold as I feared that I may have either have had to compromise by opting for the lower powered 180 GT model or the standard trim level. The nappa leather looks lovely and lifts the interior ambience. I like the matt grey paint but I think Blue or White would be a more sensible choice. I am not a great fan of minimalist interiors with virtually all functions having to be activated through the touch screen. The A290 follows the R5 and the Megane in striking IMHO a better balance with physical buttons, dials and switches. It is also great that Alpine (Renault) have a switch to quickly turn off intrusive warning systems which are unnecessary for most daily driving. The Android Automotive/Google SatNav/Infotainment system on modern Renault’s is also terrific - even if it sometimes clashes with Siri. One question that I thought that your video didn’t really answer was how compliant the ride was. After the hard crashy ride of my previous Mini and i3 I have come to appreciate the refinement and greater comfort of my Megane. I hope that the tight handling of the A290 is not at the expense of an uncomfortable ride. I live in a rural location so a lot of my driving is on potholed patched B roads that really make for a jiggly and tiring ride. It is because I drive on narrow roads I much prefer a compact nimble car that I can thread though the lanes. I moved away from 3 Series BMW company cars because they got wider and wider with every generation. It is good to hear that the A290 has great brakes because driving on roads where you can meet a wider vehicle coming in the opposite direction around a corner on a wet slippery road requires confidence in knowing your can pull up quickly . I admire Alpine for their thorough reworking of the R5 to come up with the right attributes of an EV hot hatch. It would have been all too easy to put in a more powerful motor, a bigger battery and adding 4 wheel drive but that is not what a hot hatch should be. I want I drive a car that is fun every time I get into it. I hope people start to reappraise Renaults as I think their recent models do represent a transformation from their rather indistinguishable past. The brand should bear comparison with some of the more aspirational brands. I am pleased that Renault is giving us a positive reason not to buy a Chinese EV. Thanks again for the terrific report.
This is a smashing looking little car, I think it’ll cost a bit too much for some, but there’s always the R5. Shame there isn’t an ICE version, but that’s where we’re heading now and this is probably the most intriguing electric car so far, can’t wait to see one in person. I have an 80 mile commute, but get the train a couple of days a week, I think it would work as a daily but I’m not quite brave enough to ditch my petrol car just yet. Great review as ever!
You have to remember that the 10k extra compared to the r5 is if you get the top trim. The base model A290 is only 3k more than a similarly specced R5 and you still get a nice power bump, the better suspensions, wheels, brakes and road feel. Looking it that way, this car looks way more appetizing
My kind of car is more just the R5 that is an absolute blast in country roads but this is not chasing stupid power or 0-60 times. It’s just fun and looks fantastic and a hatch. Brilliant Renault………👍
Appreciate them taming the power. We've got to walk back the silly acceleration of EVs which outside of experienced drivers and tracks, is potentially dangerous and getting more so every year.
It's got that modern, cool, clean look without pretending to be something it ain't. Imagine if the dull suits at Ford had the balls to build an XR2e with fog lights and cheese hole wheels
I’d be interested to see it pitted against an Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce (similar philosophy) rather than the new electric Mini or a Seat Cupra Born as suggested on the Electrifying review. What do you think Pete. I think you were a fan of that one too?
I love that they've focused on it's hot hatchness - my Golf GTI has similar power and weight and is oodles of fun when I want it to be. Also, love it's on marked S5's #tyretalk
I really like the look of this and the R5. As you briefly touched on this Pete, with regards to power and range. This is a small car and inherently small cars just stay around towns and on the edge of towns so a range of 220 or so miles is ample. If you want more range buy a bigger EV car. The power this car has seems more than adequate for the weight and size to. I like the blue nappa leather too, different from hum-drum black. This or the R5 is currently the only EV I would think about buying of if I wanted to go EV. The only other being the VW I.D.2 GTi.
Standard R5 would be more than adequate 99% of the time in such driving conditions. Save £10K in the process. Add a set of coil-overs if required. I'll take mine in Yellow or Green
been waiting for this for weeks....Alpine let all the smallest channels release videos ten days ago...interesting policy - guess you're one of the big boys....
On the too much power and non 4wd question, there have been a few videos on Korean sites showing a potential prototype Hyundai or Kia. No body shell but apparently has the motor from the ioniq 5n plus 4wd and is much smaller in size
There seems to be several new EVs in the small car category being released at the moment and as I am not knowledgeable on EVs; it would be good to have a benchmark car to compare. The BMW i3 has been around a while is this the best option for this purpose? Thanks.
@ Just looked at the report I took the information off and it was dated 2021 when the Mini may have had a much smaller battery and according to my calculations each extra kW = 4kg plus it will now have increased weight for all the electrical safety kit
I know Apline's colour is blue but I think white for me. Not sure i would be allowd one as you cant get a dog grste in the rear. Agree its good that companies are starting to make electric drivers cars
Pete, as a man who recommended the Defender and I bought a 110 and love it, I now want to replace my Abarth Comp and don’t like the Abarth E … so is this the car you think could be that replacement as for me the Abarth is about the drive and feel but want the same but with more creature comforts.
It’s a great looking car externally. Not keen on what seems to be a huge bezel around the instrument cluster behind the steering wheel though. And no cup holders? The price point for the top version is so close to a Tesla model 3, which is quicker, more range, and more practical. I know they’re not in the same segment, but the Alpine will certainly be a heart over head purchase decision. I’m looking forward to test driving it.
I was expecting a dual motor with 325-350hp with a load of torque,clever torque vectoring and power distribution with wide rear arches .. but who knows,maybe they'll add a hotter version
Do you think it's worth £15k more than your i20N cost new? Then factor in the depreciation of an EV when a 2-3yr old Audi Etron costing £65k new can be bought with 15-20k miles for £25k
I would be impresed if it would have de 1,8 l turbo from A110 and AWD like GR Yaris rally rival. În the EV specification îs not a sport car at all but a lifestyle Barbie device.
Totally 'on point' comment. I suspect that's what Alpine would have really liked to make. This is a somewhat diluted cosmetic makeover and not that different from the standard R5 EV
The best thing about the car is it may support keeping the Alpine A110 in production for a few more years.......after 9 months in a BMW i4 with 340hp (after owning a BMW 320d) I can't imagine being blown away by any "performance" EV. If I had an Alpine A110 with 252hp I'd be going out for a hoon every weekend, but I'm afraid the A290 would be sitting on its charging cable all weekend, unless the missus wanted to go to the shops. By the way, if you could get one, a Gen2 Toyota GR Yaris would only be £6k more, 200Kg less with plenty more horses.
Nahhh Hyundai N should be copied on ALL bevs including every manufacturer. Having a simulation of "gears" and sound is what is missing from ALL bevs. Cheers for the video
Nobody else find those lights distracting. Just the vid i'm sure but..... Although this car looks good it would've been so much better about 18" shorter (like the original) Shame but that's regs and progress for you.
I currently have an i4 M50, had it for 3 years and need a replacement. Am over the instant speed of the m50 and want to have some fun again (and its me alone most of the time and im a business owner so EVs are a no brainer). Ive spent a lot of time in an Alpine A110 and think this and the Hyundai ioniq 5 N are the only 2 cars to consider and honestly, the Alpine A290 price is like a Golf GTI and I think could be a perfect fit. I shall be trying one.
Maybe light for a EV but it's not light power to weight ratio it's just not special in any department. What's happened to project MINI not seen anything for months?
Great video Pete. I like the concept but if only they'd put a petrol engine in it. Here in Spain, where everything is far away, the range would be a real problem. Not a problem in Mallorca though!
If you want some fun…Get an S1 Elise for £20k…mimimal fuel consumption, minimal wear on brakes & tyres, cheap as chips to run and track. Had one for 8 years and it’s been ultra reliable and HUGE fun! Everything this Alpine is not. It’s a no from me too 😀
That’s a great looking car all three colours bring a different look to the exterior and then when you get inside that is a fantastic looking interior. Renault are certainly spoiling you with cars to review lately Ped!
@PetrolPed 50k as a second car! Wish I was in that position! This would be my only transport except I have no off road parking for a charger. I'll stick with my current ICE cars I think 🤔
Will you be changing the design on your garage floor to incorporate an 'E'?
Small EVs desperately need a big leap in battery technology such as solid state to give more range from less size and weight.
we don't need more range from less size and weight. We need less weight to get better efficiency from smaller batteries. this will translate into lower costs, maintenance and availability.
It’s the same size weight and cost as a golf gti.
Not sure about those ultra Low profile and no doubt very expensive to replace tyres for UK roads. More compliance needed to take strain of suspension components on uneven B roads
Still way too expensive for what it is - and I agree re some of the other comments below, for that power and range, it's even less of a good buy.
Does not fill me with the emotions I felt picking up my new R5 GT Turbo in 1989. This will be as successful as Abarth’s excuse.
@@grandprix1337 I agree but you are hard pressed to find any modern cars fill you with emotions other than boredom.
Remember that back in 1989 you were probably excited about the prospect of sex around 25-40 times per day, to the point that a farmer could pull your shorts down, grab you by your ankles and plough a pretty large field with the help of said natural excitement in no time.
My point is, that excitement for anything will never reach those levels again. New music? Nope. Going to the cinema, meh. Going bonkers at the local scene for a tiny rock group absolutely nobody has heard of, not very likely. Seeing a young lady showing off all her skin on her way to the pub, give some friendly advice about avoiding the common cold by wearing sensible clothing and shoes, before starting the obligatory lecture about pubs being better before, music being better before, cars being better before, humour being better before, football being better before, parties and festivals being better before (insert topic of interest).
To quote the film Shortbus: "I used to wanna change the world. Now I just wanna leave the room with a little dignity."
It happens to every generation that has ever lived and as we know from our own upbringing, nobody at age "excited" should listen to people our age. 😁
@glacieractivity so true.👍🙂
@@glacieractivity👏🏽
Hi there car you are driving is small area is good for going to shop or something like picking up the kids from school.
I was interested- then I heard the price🤷♂️😆
What were you expecting it to cost?
Some expectations need to be applied - It's 2024 where all cars cost much more and it's an Alpine which add specialness & cost. To me £38k (about £400 per month) is about right, when compared to other cars on the market
@@SDK2006b So you are going to rush out and buy one then.
@@ohyesitsme - Wouldn't say 'rush', I've been interested in these for over a year, following the developments and news.
It's basically £400 per month, which includes insurance, maintenance and tyres for 3 years, 10k miles per year.
Sorry but £40k for a Renault 5 with a battery up it’s ass is extortionate, just as it was asking folks to part with that much for a fiat 500 with a flippin battery nailed to it too! Yes ok all cars are overpriced nowadays (as is everything else), but ev’s take it to another level being even more expensive! I can still remember when you could get a brand new civic type r for about £17k!!
@ - yep, I remember that too. The problem is inflation, that £17k in 2002, is now worth £32k in 2024.
Show me another new car with this performance and special interior for £38k 🤔? [A CTR is now over £50k!]
This looks great in white with a black roof but the standard R5 EV in white would have enough performance for me.
However, the Renault website is a complete pain as any attempt to establish the specifications of the R4 or R5 EVs are met with moving images containing the information they want to convey, not what I want to find. Sometimes less is more.
Good to see a manufacturer making a drivers EV rather than chasing outright 0-60 mph dominance. The A110 follows the same philosophy and is all the better for it.
Indeed 👍
Liked the look of the car, but that range and the lack of power….no way.
Thank you, that was a cool video and great review. Its refreshing to see a new car which focuses on feeback, lightness, and cornering. A true everyman's sports car is not meant to do 0-60 in 3 seconds. We have super amd hyper cars for that. A Lotus Elan was never a dragster, yet it's a legendary sports car. So let's enjoy the Alpine A290 for what it is.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Does it hold up well on track without overheating and cooking the brakes? If so, I’ll buy one
See the Top Gear review. The brakes were almost on fire after a few laps
@@ThePedroDB thank you. Its a shame these youtubers hide those flaws in their reviews.
As I said in the video. They got very hot but didn’t fade that much 👍
@jc74435 No hiding. I said exactly how how they got but also said they didn’t really fade. Which is true 🤷♂️
" On paper it looks a little underwhelming but after two days driving this car on the roads of Mallorca and on track I came to realise this car is not about the numbers." reading between the lines its dissapointing but i dont want to upset alpine.
@@jayb2617 corect
@@jayb2617 who payed for funny voaiaje
No. I’d say the same thing about the Hyundai i20N. Only 200hp but one of the most fun cars to take down a B Road 🤷♂️
Every time that someone says that a 1479kg car is lightweight, Gordon Murray's right eye twitches and Colin Chapman makes a full rotation in his grave. It's not even lightweight by NASCAR standards, the minimum weight for the New Gen car is 1451kg and that's with driver and fuel included!
1000kg is lightweight for production car standards, 1.5 tonnes is more or less the weight of a 993 Porsche 911 Turbo.
“Relative lightweight for an EV”, was what was said… which it is..
I’ll hold judgement until I drive one, and feel how it handles and if the weight is negated by the low centre of gravity and grip.
@@pashton76 a Renault Clio R.S. 200 Trophy from 12 years ago would probably overall be faster around a track than this, especially over a 10 lap period. 220hp and 1100kg vs 217hp and 1479kg isn't really a competition. The Alpine could make up time in sheer acceleration, but would be left behind in the braking zones and ruin its tires and brakes a lot quicker.
Relatively speaking, a racing truck weighs 5000kg, which is relatively lightweight compared to a road going truck at 8000kg, but it still weighs 5 tonnes.
You just can't beat physics.
@@Stuntman175 CC makes a full rotation when he sees what pass as lightweight now...but, I honestly think he wants to removed himself from the history when he sees what is a Lotus in 2024. Both Lotus and Alpine were some awesome driver's car brands with real driver's cars in lineup....and both of them now have zero connection with what their core values used to be; now, it is all about mundane platforms made to be (much)more expensive.
It's the same as my last proper hot hatch weighed, a 2007 Mazda 3 Mps. I think it's damn impressive that they can make an EV of not dissimilar interior space and only slight lesss power weigh the same. Most EV hatches are 2-300kg more. They offset the penalty to a large extent with more torque and a better weight distribution than a front engined car.
@@Stuntman175 You make a valid point, weight is king with hot hatches to make them feel nimble and decent straight line performance. The EDC Clio Trophy is closer to 1300kg wet and would struggle to keep up on track with a manual Clio RS197/200 which were just sub 1200kg or even a RS 182 at 1080kg.
Weight goes up by adding safety features, refinement, or in an EV case bigger battery for range and everything else has to be beefed up to cope, bigger heavier brakes, wheels, tyres, anti roll bars, the list goes on.
The Alpine is a decent weight for an EV, the list price is high though but give them a year or two and used examples will be closer to £20k than £40k and maybe I'd consider one as a second car but I'm not convinced yet by the EV saving the planet brigade. Burning natural gas is still required to produce at least 43% of UK electricity, add in nuclear to that and it's not exactly clean and that's without an EV's carbon footprint to build requiring it to complete 30,000 miles to get on a level playing field with ICE for Co2 on a new build.
Same figures as my Megane Etech. 220hp and 300nm, but Megane is slightly heavier at 1700kg and has the 60kwh battery under the floor. Megane is plenty quick enough for me and handles great.
Thanks for the info!
I can see it's appeal but we won't be cancelling the order for our R5 I'm afraid. For the price of this you can get an R5 AND a very decent used MX5 or Fiesta ST and not kid yourself that a small sporty car weighing over 1500kg wet is fun. I don't think we'll be seeing many of these on UK roads, somehow. Good test though Ped and thanks
Yeah a bit disappointed with pricing, but i get they want seperation or people wont buy the 5 maybe?
Enjoy the R5 👌
1500kg EV is not the same feeling like 1500kg ice. Im pro petrol, but i would like to try this.
I think this should have been the Renault 5GT or Turbo... The Alpine model should have been more extreme, like the Ioniq 5N. With fully adjustable suspension, multi power modes and more bhp.
But the Renault 5 Turbo was actually the extreme one 😂
And Alpine built it. This makes sense as is.
The amount of Ads has just got so annoying that I can't watch any more😬
But you watched for free though right 🤷♂️ You could always use UA-cam Premium. I need to fund the making of the free content you enjoy somehow 🙄
@@PetrolPed I have a very good friend who is a UA-camr with 500k+ followers who earns a very good living without the ads interfering. Just giving some constructive feedback as a viewer that it is too difficult to watch but if your target is purely people who have premium then that is fine.
@@PetrolPed Sorry I stopped watching the free one half way through for this reason, this was constructive criticism as a free viewer, it's ok if your target is premium users only but it's just too much for me. My good friend is a UA-camr with 500k+ subscribers, he does very well financially on it without the ads interfering throughout🤷♀
@@markchristy7418 you can use youtube premium..., use the family option and split the monthly fee on 4 accounts(recruit 3 buddies) and it is one or two beer money per month.
@@markchristy7418your friend has 300000 more subs then him so he makes more then Sir Pete. Ads help him. Commercials happen on radio and tv. Are ya gonna give those up just because ads?? Just silly
Probably 7-10k too much.This or a model 3 for almost the same money.
I definitely have the alpine at the lower price.
Blue is typical Alpine. That grey looks ace with a black roof and some decals, Maybe a big Petrol Ped sticker that fills the entire roof.... Liked the video. Very nice and balanced.
Much as these overseas first drive events are informative, I await your UK review. That rear door design means car park knocks are going to be an expensive repair.
Great vid. Alpine following the MX-5 formula. Finally an EV Hatch that weighs around the same as a petrol Golf GTI
Yes but I won't sell my MX-5 to buy this one, or should I ?
@@thierrylerinckx1340
Not in the short term. Your MX-5 is still c.400kg lighter. And Mazda is reported to be developing an electric roadster (not clear if it will carry the MX-5 name). I’d be tempted to wait…
@@craighudson6684 Indeed I agree. But honestly I wouldn't like to be in the shoes of the Mazda engineers in charge of electrifying the MX5 without screwing it up . Look at the MG Cyberster: from lightweight roadster to great heavy powerful cruiser..... fun?
With the DNR - if the battery goes flat - do you send it to the morgue? Why is it called a 290? Looks nice a bit pricey and the R5 is a better price.
I had the same thought about the name. In sporty Renaults 'of old' it would signify the BHP. I wondered if Alpine had greater performance aspirations when they created the prototype and named it? This is clearly a 'watered down' development in comparison to the prototype..
Pete amazing quality video as usual one thing I love about your videos. Car looks fantastic especially in the blue spec but it's that big but bloody electric again spoiled the car straight away for me if it has a proper engine and that sound . Even if it was a fhev it would be much better and the mileage is ridiculous. That's just my opinion. But part from that great video .
It’s the world we live in 🤷♂️
@PetrolPed yes unfortunately
No cup holder.. deal breaker ! :)
There is an optional baguette holder though 🤷♂️ easier to eat bread than drink coffee on track.
Confused about the motor. You say it's a motor from "a Clio E-Tech", but the only Clio E-Tech I can find is a 1.6L hybrid motor. Is this an EV motor that is destined for a future, not-yet-released Clio E-Tech? Can you elaborate on the motor design? Is it an Externally Excited Synchronous Motor? Did you mean the Megane E-Tech BEV that does use an EESM and has 218hp?
@@karlInSanDiego its the motor from Scenic electric
Megane ETech I think.
Nice car and I am having had the A110 an Alpine fan. However, no matter how you stack it up, that range is a non starter for me and really resigns it to town use and occasional motorway trips with the attributable range anxiety issues. Wonder if they will do a petrol version……
..of course they won't... the EV agenda and financial penalties for high percentage ICE production mean this and the R5 are 'balancing the books' against other models
Not designed as a petrol car 👎
Definitely blue. it looks great. As you say, it's about driving, not power. Like to try o e and see for myself
Check out the grey one too
Exactly!
Oh dear, a brand devalued, much like the Mustang E-Mach.
Let's hope the owner doesn't drink coffee as there are no cupholders!!!
Looks like the little cubby under the armrest could be used as an improvised one?
...nor Baguette holder! 😱
Wltp of 236 miles sounds fine to me. Our ID3 has 260 and we take it everywhere, to Europe etc without hassle. I think 236 WLTP range (probably 150-200 real world year round) is more than ejough and worth accepting as a trade off against reduced weight. 220bhp with a 1400kg car is plenty on a B road too. I had a 2007 Mazda 3 MPS that weighed the same and only had 30bhp more; that was a brilliant hot hatch and went like a rocket ship.
£10k over a Renault 5 is a big hike though.
I think these little cars look 👀 great!! Not something I’d spend that kind of money on but I could definitely understand the appeal of them. Great review Sir Pete!!!
here's a short review:
1stly: can we start a petition for all the "all the cars are great and there are only positive aspects to them" type of youtube videos?, it is sort of a cringe, isn't it?, everything is beautiful, there is world peace and *every* car is the best ever, in its own special way.😊😊😊; like really, that should stop.
2ndly: come on man, that car understeered on a mountain road at moderate speeds; on the track, in understeered like a pig and everyone who'd ever drove a car at speed can recognise that(it was also very audible!)
and 3rdly(and final comment): it looked like you were really trying...like *really really* trying; I don't know if it is because you like the car or maybe you have a 'special relation' with someone at renault but, either way, if it is a commercial in the form of a video vlog, an advertorial(how they used to be called in written media) or just some simple lobbying for renault, please marked it as such; I, personally, and probably most of us don't want to see love letters to cars that are a little above average at the best of times and mediocre at the rest.
cheers!(, I said I wouldn't comment anymore on your videos but, Alpine is such a sensitive thing for me and close to my heart that it physically pains me to see a legacy brand like Alpine being transformed into some sort of Cupra/RenaultSport hybrid type of brand - aka, sporty cars on mundane platforms(no specifically designed sports car platforms)#"thank you" Luca de Meo!)
P.S. I know you will delete this comment but, maybe before(or after) consider for a little bit everything I have written above.
signed, an enthusiast of(for) real Alpine sports cars!(not rebadged renaults and that alpine spirit nonsense)
Did you watch Peter’s video to the end and his summary in the final 5 minutes before you wrote your review? If you did not..or even if you did, watch it again then reconsider what you have posted. Of course all You Tube reviews are influenced by the involvement of the manufacturers….Peter tries really hard to report objectively as do many others….he is reviewing a brisk, small family EV that is clearly fun to drive in the real World and that looks vastly better than anything else in its Class…it is not a hard faced racing machine that is hard work everywhere and few drive properly despite their inflated self belief in their driving abilities. His review is fair and honest….not something you can say of reviews in the 1950/60/70’s…I was reading them at the time!
@@HQBProductions I certainly watched the review and Ped's Summary. There is "What he is saying" and "What you feel he would like to be saying but can't" - as it may impact his future involvement with the Manufacturer. It's called "reading between the lines" and the message is (typically) painfully obvious. Ped, Rory Reid and various other YT Motoring Reviewers all do the same. They have an eye on their future income stream and do not wish to upset anyone by being critical. I totally understand this but I don't have to be taken in by their kind words.
This A290 is a pale immitation of the prototype and, thus, what it could have been. It's a nicely trimmed car but is mainly a cosmetic upgrade compared to the standard R5 EV. As such, it's a bit of a Sheep in Wolf's clothing. Not in the slightest bit necessary for a short/mid-range commute or urban driving. Wholly compromised by weight/lack of performance in 'spirited' driving. The standard R5 is the better purchase and £10K cheaper
@@ThePedroDB Right…well best that you give up watching reviews then. I suspect most people will like the 290 because it looks a bit different and goes well and they can afford the extra money. It may not be wonderful value but cars never are! 🤔🙂
@@HQBProductions it is not the driver's car renault is trying to portray and push youtubers to keep mention it 10000 times per video; a driver's car is something else, something renault are not interested in producing atm.
@@HQBProductions I always hope for a review but (sadly) a lot of reviews these days are glorified advertisements. I really wanted to like the A290. I've been eagerly awaiting it's launch. I still rather like the standard R5 but the Alpine doesn't appear to offer a lot more. All cars have suddenly become severely over-priced over the last couple of years and EVs have yet to become mass-market affordable. The R5 is one of the first. Sad that the A290 had to push the price from mid-20's to 40K. Badge engineering.
Did you watch the TopGear review of the A290? A couple of laps and the brakes were almost on fire.
I note that you can turn off the Speed awareness display easily. I wonder what an Insurance company will say if you are in a collision with the speed indicator turned off, and your on board computers data recorder show that you were exceeding the limit at the time.
They’ll say nothing as you can turn them off on all cars. Just not as easily as in this car. They’re not mandatory, they’re just safety aides.
They'll say you weren't being made aware of the National Speed Limit by the car, rather than totally ignoring the speed limit warnings. That's all they can say. Either way, it is the responsibility of the Driver to be aware of and drive within speed limits. Reason for speeding at point of collision is not available from this limited data but could easily be that the Driver was attempting to take avoiding action prior to the collision.
If the recorded speed could be used in any way to avoid making a pay-out, you can bet many insurance companies would use it to do so. Fortunately, Insurance companies should have no access to this information...
Will the Police be able to prosecute retrospectively and add 3 points and a fine to the Driver's woes? In theory, this information can only be released to the Police if a crime has been committed and it is relevant to their investigation.
My car has a Speed Limit Warning system built in and it reads wrong a good 20% of the time. It's easy to join a 60MPH section of road from a 30MPH road and not see a Speed Limit sign for some time. The car thinks you're still in a 30. Absolute rubbish. I'm constantly being tracked by GPS for the Sat Nav, so it should be possible to be far more accurate than that...
Big Brother is constantly monitoring modern cars. Individual (phone carrying) citizens likewise.
It’s a legislative requirement to have it in the car not a legal one. It’s perfectly legal to turn it off so the insurance won’t say a thing 👍
@@PetrolPed Insurance companies very often try to avoid paying out. Do you remember the protracted case of a Jaguar driver who was refused a payout due to fitting tyres with a lower speed rating than recommended even though speed was not a factor in the collsion? The tyres were completely legal but not the recommended rating. Turning off a safety warning could be interpreted as indicating a state of mind regarding driving styles, etc, in the same way as not wearing a seat belt is used to reduce compensation payouts.
I love how the video was presented, but I think it needed more power, I think you do too mate.
I understand why it hasn’t but agree it would be fun with more 👍
All of that interior Piano Black is gonna be a scratch magnet!
Now we are talking a good looking EV hot hatch and tapping into the looks of my formative years. I love the bvlue colour, the wheels and tyre design are on point. Top spec car for me always is the way to go. Now all we need is a mk1 Escort Mexico with flared wheel arches and spots as an EV and we could recreate Scalextrix for big boys.
👍
I really like it, if only we could get away with a small car again...
Talking for myself only. I'd nowadays much rather drive/ride a small engine that can be pushed, rather than a big one I can only tickle. The fun factor plays a big part, but so do the risks of fines and losing your licence, as well as insurance costs and purchase price. I can't exploit 600bhp on the road, so why lug myself with it? Yes a quick set-off the light is fun, but then what?
It's like having a 6-BED house for 2: a waste.
If I were on the market for a car today, I'd get the 3S: Suzuki Swift Sport. Fugly, but real fun. Bike-wise, a 400 or 500cc bike, the ZX4 RR or Aprilia 457.
Anyway, the A290 looks good and may be fun to drive too. It's electric though. 😁
its ONLY got 220bhp, lol, 25 years ago when i sold new Subaru Impreza's from a main dealer.....its got 220 bhp was a selling point. haha, times change
It’s the instant 300 nm of torque that raises the smiles. My Megane Etech has the same figures. Come out of a roundabout at 25mph, plant the accelerator and it will wheel spin leaving 11s down the road. Superb acceleration when needed and rapid uphill.
Power to Weight ratio is the real issue. The 1996 WRX weighed 1240Kg. The outgoing Hyundai i20N was 201BHP and 1190Kg - it's not a lightweight compared to some Hot Hatches of the past but it's carrying rather a lot of modern safety tech
I know right 😬
I like the fact that it's light (for an EV) but it's really only going to sell to wealthy people who perhaps have nostalgia for the original R5.
The range is disappointing too but that's the price of the smaller (lighter) battery.
Maybe Renault should have made that 17 concept and made it with a bigger battery, the relaunch of a coupe would have been exciting and the styling of that car was beautiful in my opinion.
Great shoes, Pete. I have the same, only in blue. Red shoes are for middle aged men, who desperately try to look cool. A bit sad, really. 😁😁😁
What does blue say about you 🤔😂😂
@@PetrolPed the same, of course. I am also a middle aged man, trying to look cool. It takes one, to know one 😁
Great review and one that I have been eagerly waiting for as I have an Alpine A290 Premier Edition on order with Hendys, your favourite dealer.
If I tell you that my last three cars have been a Mini Cooper S, a BMW i3s and currently a Renault Megane E-Tech you will understand why I had hoped that the A290 would tick all my boxes. Your video confirms that I think I have made the right choice. I know that the battery size and range is not huge but bigger batteries only add often unnecessary range and cost. Having driven EVs for 10 years, a 200 mile range is perfectly adequate unless you do long overseas trips for which a Tesla is probably the best solution.
From my experience the instant torque you get with an EV is more addictive than the 0-60 mph acceleration or ultimate performance. It gives you greater confidence overtaking and pulling into traffic because you never have to worry about the car momentarily hesitating whilst the car finds the right gear.
Whilst some may think the price of the A290 is quite a premium on the R5 I think it is still really very competitive against the Mini SE. A L2 Mini 3 door Cooper hatch with metallic paint comes to a whisker under £40,000. I am relieved that the A290 price will be below the £40k higher VED threshold as I feared that I may have either have had to compromise by opting for the lower powered 180 GT model or the standard trim level. The nappa leather looks lovely and lifts the interior ambience. I like the matt grey paint but I think Blue or White would be a more sensible choice. I am not a great fan of minimalist interiors with virtually all functions having to be activated through the touch screen. The A290 follows the R5 and the Megane in striking IMHO a better balance with physical buttons, dials and switches. It is also great that Alpine (Renault) have a switch to quickly turn off intrusive warning systems which are unnecessary for most daily driving. The Android Automotive/Google SatNav/Infotainment system on modern Renault’s is also terrific - even if it sometimes clashes with Siri.
One question that I thought that your video didn’t really answer was how compliant the ride was. After the hard crashy ride of my previous Mini and i3 I have come to appreciate the refinement and greater comfort of my Megane. I hope that the tight handling of the A290 is not at the expense of an uncomfortable ride. I live in a rural location so a lot of my driving is on potholed patched B roads that really make for a jiggly and tiring ride. It is because I drive on narrow roads I much prefer a compact nimble car that I can thread though the lanes. I moved away from 3 Series BMW company cars because they got wider and wider with every generation. It is good to hear that the A290 has great brakes because driving on roads where you can meet a wider vehicle coming in the opposite direction around a corner on a wet slippery road requires confidence in knowing your can pull up quickly .
I admire Alpine for their thorough reworking of the R5 to come up with the right attributes of an EV hot hatch. It would have been all too easy to put in a more powerful motor, a bigger battery and adding 4 wheel drive but that is not what a hot hatch should be. I want I drive a car that is fun every time I get into it.
I hope people start to reappraise Renaults as I think their recent models do represent a transformation from their rather indistinguishable past. The brand should bear comparison with some of the more aspirational brands. I am pleased that Renault is giving us a positive reason not to buy a Chinese EV.
Thanks again for the terrific report.
War and peace length post!
Thanks for this 👍
The car looks cool except for the black wheel arches.
I wish they were body colored, it would just make the cars look so much more elegant.
This is a smashing looking little car, I think it’ll cost a bit too much for some, but there’s always the R5. Shame there isn’t an ICE version, but that’s where we’re heading now and this is probably the most intriguing electric car so far, can’t wait to see one in person. I have an 80 mile commute, but get the train a couple of days a week, I think it would work as a daily but I’m not quite brave enough to ditch my petrol car just yet. Great review as ever!
👍
Quite sure you enjoy riding there more than driving there 😂 such a cycling paradise there especially towards the north west
You have to remember that the 10k extra compared to the r5 is if you get the top trim. The base model A290 is only 3k more than a similarly specced R5 and you still get a nice power bump, the better suspensions, wheels, brakes and road feel. Looking it that way, this car looks way more appetizing
Good point!
My kind of car is more just the R5 that is an absolute blast in country roads but this is not chasing stupid power or 0-60 times. It’s just fun and looks fantastic and a hatch. Brilliant Renault………👍
Good gosh! Mallorca now? That's some globetrotting! Good on ya!
Looks like it's trying to be a performance-spec Renault 5, this one. Not a bad thing!
Bikini FM 😂 That adds 5hp in driver enthusiasm alone.
Great review Pete, me looking at you summing up the drive at the end I would go for the white one with those wheels.
Good choice!
looks a great little car, pity about the Nappa Leather, so much for sustainability
I’ve seen these at the fair ground they’ve been around for years only difference is this one ain’t got a pole on the back
😂
Looks fantastic, guessing more will be bringing the classics back in ev form
Appreciate them taming the power. We've got to walk back the silly acceleration of EVs which outside of experienced drivers and tracks, is potentially dangerous and getting more so every year.
It's got that modern, cool, clean look without pretending to be something it ain't. Imagine if the dull suits at Ford had the balls to build an XR2e with fog lights and cheese hole wheels
Some guys get all the fun. Cheers
Yep 🙏🏻
I’d be interested to see it pitted against an Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce (similar philosophy) rather than the new electric Mini or a Seat Cupra Born as suggested on the Electrifying review. What do you think Pete. I think you were a fan of that one too?
Both great fun 👌
I love that they've focused on it's hot hatchness - my Golf GTI has similar power and weight and is oodles of fun when I want it to be. Also, love it's on marked S5's #tyretalk
Indeed 👍
Very nice... let's just compare it to the VW id2 GTi! 😉
I really like the look of this and the R5. As you briefly touched on this Pete, with regards to power and range. This is a small car and inherently small cars just stay around towns and on the edge of towns so a range of 220 or so miles is ample. If you want more range buy a bigger EV car. The power this car has seems more than adequate for the weight and size to. I like the blue nappa leather too, different from hum-drum black. This or the R5 is currently the only EV I would think about buying of if I wanted to go EV. The only other being the VW I.D.2 GTi.
Standard R5 would be more than adequate 99% of the time in such driving conditions. Save £10K in the process. Add a set of coil-overs if required. I'll take mine in Yellow or Green
I agree 👍
@@ThePedroDB @petrolped consumer advice right there
Hi great video. When you going to do a video on the new cupra born vz?
Soon I hope 👍
Get mine hopefully in jan
been waiting for this for weeks....Alpine let all the smallest channels release videos ten days ago...interesting policy - guess you're one of the big boys....
That was just channels from Ireland. For some reason they had a different embargo. Not impressed 😡
Have you driven the Volkswagen ID.3 GTX Performance with 340 PS?
I think Alpine has struck the right balance with power & weight in the A290.
Not yet 👎
Morning Pedlerz happy Wednesday
Hi 👋
How does this compare to to the new cooper se sport ?
Not driven the electric Cooper yet 😬
Its weight makes it a great hothatch. Under 1500kg. Something just fun to chuck about on the road.
Indeed 👍
On the too much power and non 4wd question, there have been a few videos on Korean sites showing a potential prototype Hyundai or Kia. No body shell but apparently has the motor from the ioniq 5n plus 4wd and is much smaller in size
I’ve seen those too 👍
There seems to be several new EVs in the small car category being released at the moment and as I am not knowledgeable on EVs; it would be good to have a benchmark car to compare. The BMW i3 has been around a while is this the best option for this purpose? Thanks.
I think it is still heavier than the latest Mini EV but as the A290 was not listed I could not compare the kW per kg
The A290 is 200kg lighter that the Mini 👍
@ Just looked at the report I took the information off and it was dated 2021 when the Mini may have had a much smaller battery and according to my calculations each extra kW = 4kg plus it will now have increased weight for all the electrical safety kit
I know Apline's colour is blue but I think white for me. Not sure i would be allowd one as you cant get a dog grste in the rear. Agree its good that companies are starting to make electric drivers cars
A more hardcore A290 GTR version coming in the future perhaps?!
Boat. Missed... (see prototype for details...)
Great review Peter, how does it compare dynamically to Hyundai i20N?
Morning Pedro 👍
Morning!
Pete, as a man who recommended the Defender and I bought a 110 and love it, I now want to replace my Abarth Comp and don’t like the Abarth E … so is this the car you think could be that replacement as for me the Abarth is about the drive and feel but want the same but with more creature comforts.
Way more comfy than an Abarth 👍
It’s a great looking car externally. Not keen on what seems to be a huge bezel around the instrument cluster behind the steering wheel though. And no cup holders? The price point for the top version is so close to a Tesla model 3, which is quicker, more range, and more practical. I know they’re not in the same segment, but the Alpine will certainly be a heart over head purchase decision. I’m looking forward to test driving it.
I was expecting a dual motor with 325-350hp with a load of torque,clever torque vectoring and power distribution with wide rear arches .. but who knows,maybe they'll add a hotter version
That’s not very Alpine 😬
Could it replace my i20N school run and fun that expires late next year?
God no.
Do you think it's worth £15k more than your i20N cost new? Then factor in the depreciation of an EV when a 2-3yr old Audi Etron costing £65k new can be bought with 15-20k miles for £25k
I'd keep your i20N. I'm keeping mine..
Exactly and the i20N only has 200hp 👍
I love it......Finally an EV I could live with. Plus you can bleed the brakes without taking the wheels off! 😉
I think you need to add road tax cost to all your electric test going forward
Why only for the EVs? Why not on ICE vehicles too?
Unfortunately road tax hikes are coming to all of us, no matter what powers our vehicles😢
EV VED (road tax) only adds about £22 per month to the cost of a running EV. This doesn't need to be mentioned in every video !
I would be impresed if it would have de 1,8 l turbo from A110 and AWD like GR Yaris rally rival. În the EV specification îs not a sport car at all but a lifestyle Barbie device.
I just think in this electric day and age the A290 should have 290hp to go along with the handling prowess.
Totally 'on point' comment. I suspect that's what Alpine would have really liked to make. This is a somewhat diluted cosmetic makeover and not that different from the standard R5 EV
With the platform they had that was tricky. Would have been cool though 👍
you constantly repeat yourself
Because he loves the car.
I like a car a bit more ragged.
Like to see a R5 Alpine to compare?
Make it AWD with 300-350hp and a drift mode and I'm interested!
The best thing about the car is it may support keeping the Alpine A110 in production for a few more years.......after 9 months in a BMW i4 with 340hp (after owning a BMW 320d) I can't imagine being blown away by any "performance" EV. If I had an Alpine A110 with 252hp I'd be going out for a hoon every weekend, but I'm afraid the A290 would be sitting on its charging cable all weekend, unless the missus wanted to go to the shops. By the way, if you could get one, a Gen2 Toyota GR Yaris would only be £6k more, 200Kg less with plenty more horses.
Nahhh Hyundai N should be copied on ALL bevs including every manufacturer. Having a simulation of "gears" and sound is what is missing from ALL bevs. Cheers for the video
Nobody else find those lights distracting. Just the vid i'm sure but..... Although this car looks good it would've been so much better about 18" shorter (like the original) Shame but that's regs and progress for you.
They don’t flash 👍
It’s a no from me. 🚙🔥🗑
Yawn
I currently have an i4 M50, had it for 3 years and need a replacement. Am over the instant speed of the m50 and want to have some fun again (and its me alone most of the time and im a business owner so EVs are a no brainer). Ive spent a lot of time in an Alpine A110 and think this and the Hyundai ioniq 5 N are the only 2 cars to consider and honestly, the Alpine A290 price is like a Golf GTI and I think could be a perfect fit. I shall be trying one.
A290 or MINI JCW?
Not driven the electric JCW yet 🤔
Maybe light for a EV but it's not light power to weight ratio it's just not special in any department.
What's happened to project MINI not seen anything for months?
Massive delays with the trimmer. Update coming soon I promise 👍
Great video Pete. I like the concept but if only they'd put a petrol engine in it. Here in Spain, where everything is far away, the range would be a real problem. Not a problem in Mallorca though!
Hi Mate. Yeah that would be an issue 😢
Those ridiculous flashing X lights on the front! I had to look away whilst the front of the car was in view! They can’t be legal can they?
They don’t flash. That is just because of the shutter speed of the camera 👍
I hoped batteries would allow them to design much better looking small cars
Rake and REACH not tilt
If you want some fun…Get an S1 Elise for £20k…mimimal fuel consumption, minimal wear on brakes & tyres, cheap as chips to run and track. Had one for 8 years and it’s been ultra reliable and HUGE fun! Everything this Alpine is not. It’s a no from me too 😀
I had one too and it’s fabulous on the right road on the right day but it’s not for daily driving. It sat in the garage most of the year.
That’s a great looking car all three colours bring a different look to the exterior and then when you get inside that is a fantastic looking interior. Renault are certainly spoiling you with cars to review lately Ped!
Couldn't agree more!
Everyone will make positive comments, noone will buy it.
Speak for yourself !
I will be ordering one as a 2nd EV for our family
@@SDK2006b Join the depreciation club.
@@ohyesitsme - yeah shock, all new cars deprecate🤷♂
@@SDK2006b not at that rate.
They don't need to sell many and they will sell all of them easily.
Ped great review of the ONLY EV I have any interest in whatsoever! I would ask you this though Would you buy one yourself? 🤔
Good question. As a second car I would be very tempted 👍
@PetrolPed 50k as a second car! Wish I was in that position! This would be my only transport except I have no off road parking for a charger. I'll stick with my current ICE cars I think 🤔