Cars

Alpine A110 E-ternite Is Full of French Innovation

There's even a version with body parts made from flax.

Andrew Krok

Cars are Andrew's jam, as is strawberry. After spending years as a regular ol' car fanatic, he started working his way through the echelons of the automotive industry, starting out as social-media director of a small European-focused garage outside of Chicago. From there, he moved to the editorial side, penning several written features in Total 911 Magazine before becoming a full-time auto writer, first for a local Chicago outlet and then for CNET Cars.

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Andrew Krok

July 22, 2022 9:04 a.m. PT

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Alpine this week unveiled the A110 E-ternite.

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This prototype show car isn't necessarily destined for production; instead, it stands as a sort of test bed for the future of Alpine as automakers shift toward electrification.

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The A110 E-ternite's 12 battery modules are split up, with four at the front of the car and the remaining eight at the rear.

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A single electric motor at the rear provides 239 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque, and it uses a two-speed dual-clutch transmission that was developed solely for this vehicle.

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Range is estimated at 261 miles on the European WLTP cycle.

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While the standard A110 is a coupe, the A110 E-ternite is a convertible.

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Its carbon roof features a removable panel, and engineers tweaked the vehicle to ensure that the new roof didn't compromise overall rigidity.

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The addition of a more complex roof and a fully electric powertrain did incur an overall weight gain, with the A110 E-ternite weighing about 570 pounds more than a standard A110.

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Instead of a traditional infotainment system built into the dashboard, the Alpine A110 E-ternite uses the owner's own tablet for telematics, giving the driver a little extra sense of familiarity.