Alpine A290 Rallye Could Be UK-Bound Soon

After seeing the Alpine A290 Rallye take on the hillclimb at Goodwood Festival of Speed 2025, complete with a hydraulic handbrake, special Michelin Pilot Sport A tyres and stripped out interior, we were left more than a little curious. So, when we got the chance to sit down with UK MD of Alpine by day, classic MG racer by night, Nic Burnside, we leapt at the opportunity to ask some tough questions, including when the Rallye is coming to Britain.

The bad news is that the Rallye is launching in France and, for the time being, staying there. Alongside the A290 Rallye, Alpine is also launching its very own A290 Trophy series, with the first rally event taking place on the 8th and 9th of November this year at the Rallye National de l’Indre before several events to come in 2026. 

All very exciting stuff, but we want to know if and when it’ll come to the UK. So, we asked, and Burnside had this to say: “I have also been exploring that question. The plan for the Rallye version of the A290 is to establish, first of all, in France. Then, the plan, hopefully, is to explore bringing it outside of France. And, I think the UK would be a fantastic market to bring that car into.”

The push towards EV sports cars is a challenge that each marque is tackling a little differently; Hyundai has engineered fun with simulated gears, and Porsche stuck to the German laser focus on outright pace and handling. It’s no secret that part of what made the A110 so great was its status as a featherweight that punched far above its class. EVs are inherently much heavier, and yet Alpine sees EV power as an advantage rather than a compromise, especially in motorsport. 

When asked about the trade-offs and bonuses involved, Burnside said: “Alpine is a brand that’s built on the engineering in the cars, the capability of the cars and the enjoyment that they provide in terms of driving. EV [power] plays a part in terms of the hybrid technology that exists in F1 and also in endurance. We use the best technology for the situation.” We were also reminded in a presentation a little later in the day that the roadgoing A290 GTS weighs just 1554kg, just ~100kg more than a 718 Porsche Cayman GT4, making it a light car not only for an EV, but also by wider modern car standards. Looking at you, G90 BMW M5.

A lot of the pushback we get when talking to friends about some of the brilliance Renault and Alpine have cooked up in the Renault 5 and A290, comes from the lack of motorsport credentials for either car. So, in light of the Rallye and accompanying Trophy series being launched, we posed the question to Burnside, will that help build a reputation with some of the more traditional enthusiasts out there? To which she said: “The Alpine brand and the Alpine name in motorsport give us some credibility and enable us to start that conversation.  For us, it’s not about EV or combustion, it's about engineering and how much enjoyment you get driving.” 

So, Burnside and Alpine seem confident in the A290 as a proposition to hot hatch enjoyers, enthusiasts and racers alike. Having driven the GTS for our review, we’re inclined to agree. So, my last question came more as a conscience check: If Jean Rédélé could see the A290 Rallye, what do you think his thoughts would be? To which she said: “I think he would be really pleased with the fact that the brand is still about pioneering development; looking at where we can take things [by] blending motorsport and road cars together. And the Rallye does that perfectly. Taking the latest technology and what started as a road car and turning it back into something that’s dedicated to a rally series. So, I think he would say that really is the true ethos of the brand.”

When all is said and done, then, we’re still just as excited about the A290 Rallye as when we first laid eyes on it. Especially now we know that Burnside is actively exploring the possibility of letting us British customers get our grubby hands on some of our own.