This Is Not A Drill: Alpine Is Crash-Testing The Next-Generation A110 For The U.S. Market

Folks, it might actually be happening. We may really be getting the Alpine A110 here in the United States. At least, things look to be headed in that direction, because the A110 is currently undergoing U.S.-market crash tests — our specific crash tests are typically one of the biggest hurdles for foreign automakers to sell cars here. Alpine's plans for the States are still in flux, to say the least, but there's a potential world where the little A110 serves as an alternative to the initially planned larger electric crossover that was slated for sale over here.

Right now, there's no word on which variant of the A110 we'd get in the States. It could be the combustion engine car. It could be the electric car. Hell, it could even be both of them. Alpine CEO Philippe Krief is playing his cards close to his chest and won't say which variant would head to the U.S. first, according to Automotive News. As we reported, Alpine is full-steam-ahead with the electric second-generation A110, but if people don't dig it, the French automaker will be ready at a moment's notice to introduce a gas-powered variant that'll run on the same platform.

Initially, Alpine planned to enter the U.S. market by 2028-ish with two large electric crossovers, one of which was slated to possibly rival the Porsche Cayenne EV, but that plan was put on ice last year as customers over here said "no, thank you" to EVs and the Trump administration pushed tariffs on nations across the globe, AutoNews reports. It was originally conceived by then-CEO Luca de Meo, who was replaced by Krief. He recently signaled that Alpine's U.S. plans aren't totally dead, and the A110 — the car we actually wanted from Alpine all along — might be what saves them.

It always struck me as weird that Alpine never gave selling the first-generation A110 in the U.S. a go. Everyone who has driven it seems to love it, and it's a car that would cut squarely into a niche that is almost entirely owned by the Porsche Cayman (and Lotus Emira, to a lesser extent) right now. Krief told AutoNews that the U.S. accounts for 50% of the global market for sporty cars, while Europe is ust 25%. To me, that sounds like as good a reason as any to bring the car over here, no?

Clearly, Krief and Alpine think so — at least to some degree. Renault, the automaker's parent company, has been in talks with the AutoNation dealer network over U.S. distribution. That's a great way to get your foot in the door if you're Alpine. I mean, AutoNation has over 320 dealers across the country at its disposal.

There's no word on whether Alpine's other models, like the A290 electric hot hatchback (which is based on the cool-as-hell Renault 5) or electric A390 crossover, would make the jump across the Atlantic as well, but I sure would like them to. I know it's a super unlikely thing, but the U.S. needs more French cars. I think it would help with the general vibe we've got going on over here, because right now it's sort of trash. A happy little French hatchback that just so happens to have 220 horsepower and a sub-6.5-second 0-60 would help tremendously — as would a small, lightweight sports coupe like the A110.