£276k Alpine A110 R Ultime gets inspiration from F1

Superlatives are thrown around a lot in the car industry, but when it comes to the ultimate version of the Alpine A110 R Ultime, the product more than justifies the name.

That’s because not only is it the fastest and most focused version of one of the best sports cars currently on sale, but it could be Alpine’s combustion engined swansong before the film switches to electric cars.

The A110 R Ultime accelerates from 0-62mph in 3.8sec – 0.1sec quicker than the regular A110 R, and is a remarkable 20 seconds faster on a lap of the Nürburgring race track in Germany.

There’s more than just more power behind the Ultime, though, even if 345bhp is around 50bhp more than the standard R. The car was initially developed by a ‘skunkworks’ team of engineers leaning on Alpine’s knowhow in Formula one and GT4 sportscar racing.

Alpine’s engineers have redesigned significant parts of the engine, chassis, brakes and aerodynamics and the car is fitted with a new six-speed automatic gearbox to handle the increase in power.

The suspension comes from race specialists Ohlins, and adjusts for height and firmness, and the new lightweight alloy wheels measure 18in at the front and 19in at the rear and come wrapped in bespoke Michelin tyres, developed specifically for the A110 R Ultime. The car’s aerodynamics have been optimised for track use.

Significant improvements have been made to the turbocharger, and the car has been optimised for use on high-octane 102 RON race fuel. So fed, it will produce 345bhp, although using regular 98 RON super unleaded, power is pegged at 325bhp.

Just 110 examples of the Ultime will be produced, and according to project leader Jean-Pascal Dauce, almost all of the allocation has been earmarked for owners.

Nevertheless, as with the limited-production Renault 5 Turbo 3E, sister brand Alpine will offer an almost limitless range of customisation options for the A110 Ultime through its Atelier Sur-Mesure programme. New combinations of exterior and interior hues include 28 shades of paintwork, 14 shades of Alcantara and 10 shades of leather.

And as with the Renault 5 Turbo 3E, the price for the A110 swansong will be heady. While the regular A110 R costs around £90,000, the Ultime will start at £209,000 – with the possibility to spend a further £70,000 on options. It may well be the ultimate model, then, but also attracts the ultimate price tag.

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