June 7: What might have been

Dead? Buried?

One is never too sure in the world of big business, automobile or otherwise, but the latest headlines say that Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) has walked away from their offer to partner with Renault. This would have been an excellent arrangement for both companies (even FCA still says so), but it appears that something got in the way? Ego? Unreasonableness? A bad dream? Who knows?

Further to my blog last week about what treats from the Renault catalogue might eventually appear in our North American showrooms, I have one more that could have been. This one hurts.

Ever heard of the Renault Alpine? Sure, as car enthusiasts you must have. This sports car made a name for itself on the rally circuit and with the possible merger, it may have found its way to our shores.

Started way back in 1955.........

 

......these lumpy coupes bore the Alpine name, but they were definitely not what made it famous. No, it was the third generation that stoked the fires of sportscar enthusiasts. This hot to trot rally rough houser is the version that captured the gonads of red blooded car folks........

 

Tough enough even for the gendarmes of the French highways, who managed to fit themselves into its tight confines to chase down scofflaws driving those other European hot rods. This almost comical photo shows two coppers ready to shoehorn themselves into their Renault Alpine to catch that errant BMW driver. No wonder they look so grim...... 

So, yes, this car got respect on the Continent. Followed by a bit more conventional looking model.......

And then the next generation, which was bigger and more like a GT cruiser, not a famous rally bruiser (it rhymes!)........

 

 Losing its way as it drove into the '90's. It also lost its appeal and by mid decade was a name for the history books.

Now about that name, Alpine. Initially, none of the Renault Alpines could be sold in England under that name, since Sunbeam (not the appliance company) had had a model using that name for many years. So, why in the world did this French company chose that name? All I can say is that it must be a French thing.

Car people love history, so going into the 2000's Renault found that car folks still had a fond spot for the Alpine. Back as far as 2007, there were rumours, that the name would return as another fire breathing sportscar, maybe with Japanese underpinnings from a Nissan hot rod (does the Toyota Supra come to mind?).

Thus is what came to pass just a couple of years ago...........

 

 A virtual reboot of the early rally warrior and all for a reasonable $60-$70,000 USD, but of course, only available in Europe. They even have a version that can race and re-establish the old Alpine cred. It was being offered at a slightly more hefty $250,000 USD........

Might we have had the Renault Alpine show up on our shores? Who knows and maybe we'll never know.

Dead for now, but maybe not dead for good?

Until next time......