Alpine A390 Review: Price, Specs, Availability
The A390’s electric motors are manufactured in a dedicated factory in Cléon, the NMC batteries come from the Verkor company, but with modules produced in Dunkirk and assembled in the Renault group factory in Douai. The chassis, meanwhile, was designed and built at the company’s factory in Le Mans.
As with the smaller A290 and as with various Renaults (the 4, the 5 and the new Twingo), this is an electric vehicle for the committed Francophile. Alpine is not just leveraging its original past, it is an avatar of the technical prowess of the Group as a whole.
The platform is an evolution of the AmpR Medium architecture which is already in service under the Megane E-Tech and Scenic, as well as under Nissan’s Arya and Leaf, a necessary synergy given the considerable cost of developing these elements. But notable efforts have been made here in order to differentiate the A390 and justify Porsche’s investments and aspirations.
“The driving force behind the dynamics of the A390 was to make it as fast and agile as the A110,” says Robert Bonetto, vice president of vehicle projects. “To achieve this, we had to eliminate the impact of battery weight with a technical solution to improve the perceived lightness.”
Courtesy of Thomas Cortesi/Alpine
“Perceived” being the key word here. The A110 is popular with die-hard car enthusiasts because it weighs just 1,140kg, a remarkable feat these days. The A390 is approximately double that, inevitable given its mode of propulsion, but remains as close as possible to Alpine’s original recipe. The 89 kWh battery uses new chemistry and cooling system for more sustained power and performance, as well as more efficient charging and discharging.
The A390 is also unique in this segment by having three motors, one spool on the front axle and two permanent synchronous motors on each of the rear wheels, for a total power of 396 hp in GT version, rising to 463 hp in GTS version.
