[Justin]

Alpine is bringing the Premiere Edition to combat the 718. They will only be producing 1955 cars apparently however. It'll be mid-engined, 1.8L Turbo 4 banger that produces approximately 250bhp. Said to be 660lbs lighter than the 718 which is definitely a large amount. 0-62 in 4.5 seconds.

The pricing will cost between €55,000 to €60,0000. ~$58k to ~$63k

RHD deliveries should start around the beginning of 2018.

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[DriveInHouston]

A blast from the past!... I lived in Europe as a teenager and I remember the glory days of Monte Carlo rally won by Ove Andersson, Jean Claude Andruet and so many other rallies. It is a pity they do not import them in the US, not that I am interested...

 

[Schredder]

Good comparison, but I the think the Porsche has a better interior

 

[Semitone]

660 lbs is a lot of weight. Wonder where it comes from. You're not going to get that weight reduction by using more expensive, hi tech materials at this price point, IMO.

 

[Chris NZ]

Weight saving was one of the core principles when designing the car and was a key factor in just about every choice made. Hence the all-aluminium construction, passive suspension, one gear box choice, light weight one-piece seats with no 18 way motorised adjustment etc. This would also be one of the reasons the 718 has a 'better interior'.

The Chief Designer, David Twohig said “The biggest battle for the past five years has been weight management. It’s so easy to say ‘let add 300 grammes here or there’, but then you get into a vicious spiral, where you need bigger brakes, stiffer springs, and then the car gets heavier and all of a sudden a 1.8-litre engine is not enough".

 

[Calimerus]

I've seen one live at Monte Carlo.

Gorgeous :x


But.. it's not a Porsche


If I had to chose between a Lotus Elise or an Alfa 4C, I would have preferred the Alpine.

 

[DriveInHouston]

...

If I had to chose between a Lotus Elise or an Alfa 4C, I would have preferred the Alpine.

Are you sure you are Italian sir?

 

[Calimerus]

Are you sure you are Italian sir?

Yes I'm sure


I've already had 7 Alfas.....

 

[4802]

Whereas the original was pretty, I can't really say I'm a huge fan of its looks & in the U.K the Premiere Edition apparently has a price tag of £51,805. If that's correct (& I'm just going by car mags for my info), then I personally think it's way too expensive. To put it into some perspective, the current U.K basic price of a 718 Cayman is £44,074 & even the Cayman S is only £53,030. There's no way I'd choose that over a 718, though some would clearly disagree, as by all accounts it's already sold out.

 

[982CS]

They are allegedly a great drive, but I just find them plain ugly. And it always amuses me when folk berate those paying £50k for a 4 pot Porsche, and yet don’t even bat an eyelid at some paying the same price for a Renault. I know, it’s not a Renault, it’s an Alpine. But it’s built at their factory and uses their engine.

 

[Schredder]

Don't get me wrong. I think it is a sweet car. I would choose it over an Elise. Between it and an Alpha 4c , it would be a tough one. The Alpha looks more exotic. But between them all , the Cayman GTS I just bought

 

[DriveInHouston]

There is no argument here! Between the Alpine, the Alfa 4C and the 718, I would buy the 718. Now owning the 718 CS, if I rented for a weekend, I would rent the Alpine!

 

[Chris NZ]

There is a reason this car came second in evo's eCOTY, even beating the GT2 RS into third place. Renaultsport are renowned for getting the fundamentals right, especially in the chassis and handling department, and their engines are pretty good too. Yes the car is expensive but it is hand built has an all aluminium body, aluminium engine block etc... While it does not have the brand prestige of a Porsche it is fundamentally a car built by drivers for drivers.

 

[Viffermike]

... While it does not have the brand prestige of a Porsche it is fundamentally a car built by drivers for drivers.

And, sadly, this are the biggest two reasons why the U.S.A. ain't gettin' it ...

... and two of the three biggest reasons why Renault never gained a foothold here. (The missing one? Same as Alfa: Reliability issues. At least Alfa has always had the first two in mind when trying to sell cars here ... )

 

[nineball]

ok, is it just me or does everyone see the almost blatant copying of the design cues from the 718? the exhaust tip, the headlights, the tail lights, the grille? it reminds of of when hyundai or kia, i forget which, was patterning their cars after jaguars in the not too distant past.

But.. it's not a Porsche


If I had to chose between a Lotus Elise or an Alfa 4C, I would have preferred the Alpine.

i've driven them all and the 718 is the winner hands down. i honestly like the looks of all of them (but NOT the alpine!) but each had it's drawbacks. the elise was a decent car but much too small for me, and despite the nice lines it always was a "girl car". i don't mean that in a derogatory way, just that the car seemed to appeal to women more so than men (you male boxster owners know what i am talking about, right? ). the 4c's automatic transmission left a lot to be desired imo and sucked on track but again, great body and all the CF!


none of them can hold a candle to my 718 Cayman S though. it's not even fair to try to compare them. the comparison seems like asking someone to try some really great champagne and then passing off sparkling apple juice and asking how they were - sure, they are both carbonated drinks that sorta look similar but that is as far as it goes.

 

[Chris NZ]

ok, is it just me or does everyone see the almost blatant copying of the design cues from the 718? the exhaust tip, the headlights, the tail lights, the grille? it reminds of of when hyundai or kia, i forget which, was patterning their cars after jaguars in the not too distant past.

The design is actually based on/a homage to a car that made it's debut in the early Sixties - the original Alpine A110.

 

[DriveInHouston]

The design is actually based on/a homage to a car that made it's debut in the early Sixties - the original Alpine A110.

...and a beautiful and very capable rallye car it was!

 

[nineball]

The design is actually based on/a homage to a car that made it's debut in the early Sixties - the original Alpine A110.

i know, but the features i pointed out are dramatically similar

 

[Chris NZ]

i know, but the features i pointed out are dramatically similar

Would hardly call it blatant copying though.

I've never thought of Porsche as being at the forefront of automotive design and think their design language is quite conservative. French manufacturers on the other had are known for pushing the envelope with their design studies.

So I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree

 

[CupraLeon]

Renault Sport/Alpine knows how to make good handling cars, drove te megane RS with the cup chassis and it was hands down better than my Cupra R. The Alpine is handling wise on par with the 718, the only difference to me is the build quality in the interior, where Alpine uses Renault bin parts. On practicality/interior quality the 718 wins. This is just my opinion.
Dē gustibus et colōribus nōn est disputandum.