Lotus could build new Alpine

The new Renault Alpine and a production version of the widely acclaimed Infiniti Emerg-e supercar concept could be built for the two companies by Lotus.

Infiniti has yet to confirm that it will go ahead with the supercar, which in prototype form is based on the Lotus Evora 414E concept, but design chief Shiro Nakamura has suggested that it “could be built in Britain”, adding it would make sense given that the concept has mostly been developed in the UK.

Meanwhile, Renault marketing boss Steve Norman has confirmed that a new Alpine would be mid or rear-engined. He has previously said the project “probably needs more than the Renault-Nissan Alliance on its own”.

Basing both models on the Lotus Evora platform would make sense. The Emerg-e is currently being developed as a running prototype using the Evora platform and Lotus’s experimental 414E range-extender drivetrain. The same layout would suit an Alpine Renault, given its history of rear-engined models such as the A110 and the GTA.

Sharing an existing platform would dramatically improve the business case for the Alpine and the Emerg-e, while Lotus needs the business, given its current disastrously low sales. 

Both cars would be relatively low volume. The French brand reckons on annual sales of just a few thousand.