Alpine A390 crossover to be revealed on 27 May

The Alpine A390 will be unveiled on 27 May as the French performance brand's first electric crossover.

Previewed by the A390 Beta concept that was displayed at last year's Paris motor show, it has been conceived as “a bigger A110 for five” that pairs a futuristic fastback design with what Alpine believes to be best-in-class driving dynamics. 

It will use the Renault Group’s Ampr Medium EV platform (making it a relation of the Renault Megane E-Tech) and be positioned as a rival to the likes of the BMW iX2 and Tesla Model Y.

Alpine has benchmarked the Porsche Macan-sized crossover against its own four-cylinder sports coupé and claims its tri-motor powertrain (one at the front and two at the rear) combines with active torque vectoring to give the “driving dynamic of a lightweight car”. This set-up, confirmed Alpine CEO Philippe Krief, will also be adopted by the upcoming A110 EV.

Chief designer Antony Villain said: “Most EVs are about just driving straight. Here the driving sensation is developed similar to the A110. This is mainly down to the torque vectoring.”

The A390 Beta – inspired by the 2022 Alpenglow concept that serves as “the mother of all future Alpine cars” – is described as 80% production-ready, with Villain confirming the front end will remain relatively unchanged, including the Le Mans-inspired central fin.

Elsewhere, the concept’s alloys, designed in the shape of a snowflake (“both strong and light”), will light up blue when active torque vectoring is occurring. It has been confirmed that this will make production.

Radical elements that won’t make production include the rear-hinged doors, the rear light strip-cum-spoiler (which can extend by up to 80mm to reduce drag) and the radical Formula 1-inspired interior – although these all point to “the future of the brand”, said Villain.