Lot 193 - 1978 Alpine A310

Alpine, once an independent company specialising in faster Renaults, and later a Renault subsidiary, established a fine competition history with the stunning Alpine A110, winning the 1973 Monte-Carlo Rally and World Championship. The successor was the Alpine A310 that was initially powered by a tuned 17TS/Gordini four-cylinder engine, the six-cylinder 2,664cc V6 option arriving in 1976. The A310 was labour intensive, having been developed for small-scale artisanal production, the basis being a hefty tubular steel backbone chassis clothed in a fibreglass shell. The engine was mounted longitudinally in the rear driving the wheels through a manual five-speed gearbox. With the weight a mere 980kg, the Renault Alpine was a fine performer indeed.

This rare example, which began life as a standard A310,  was the subject of a large article in Classic Cars magazine June 2019 edition. It is presented in white with black leather interior which was trimmed by a Renault specialist some years ago and looks great. The car was sold new to its first owner in France in November 1978, who transformed it into GT specification and in the history file is the original sale brochure which came with the car, albeit in French! Like so many seventies supercars, the massive wheel arch extensions were part of a Group 4 homologation overhaul intended to accommodate a new kind of motor sport-bred tyre, in this case, the Pirelli P7. Its all alloy wide angle 2.7 litre V6 is directly related to a Le Mans winner and fed by a bizarre looking combination of single and twin choke Solex carburettors. Its Alpine Fleschmann Nogano alloys were made exclusively for the GT pack by PLS and look superb on this ultra-rare French sports car. These Alpines were known for their steering which enabled drivers to use it to great success on Rallies and Hillclimbs throughout Europe. Its black leather interior also combines one or two hints that it was used at some point in its history for timed rallies with the presence of twin stopwatches and a timing device, although there is no suggestion or proof that it competed competitively in period or since! This is a superb opportunity to acquire a rare and exciting sports car from the 1970s which still looks very cool!

Interested parties please note that this Alpine is a standard A310 and not a GT as described. It was changed to GT specification in the late 1970s by a previous owner in France.