Forgotten Classic: Alpine Renault A310

I happened to be on an off-season, low-budget vacation in Southern France when the 1974 Tour de France Auto* ended in September on rain-drenched streets edging the blue Mediterranean.  When I found these photos it reminded me I'd always wanted an Alpine Renault coupe, especially an A310.  But wait, you ask, isn't this metallic blue car an A110?

Well, it is, but it's helpful to remember that if Jean Rédélé's tidy little rear-engined Renault-powered A110 coupes had not been so successful on European rally circuits during the late 60s and early 70s, there probably wouldn't have been an A310.  The fiberglass-bodied A110 with its rigid backbone chassis (think of a Lotus Elan with the engine at the wrong end) was developed from the similar-looking A108 and appeared in 1961. Available in a variety of engine sizes (1300s and 1600s were popular) and with disc brakes all around, the A110 filled a need for a GT car with a good perfomance / price ratio, and one that was small enough to be fuel-efficient and escape the punitive French taxes based on engine size. The car hit some kind of sweet spot, and stayed in production for 16 years, winning the French Rally Championship in '68 & '69, the European one in 1970, the International Championship in '71 (beating the new Porsche 914-6 even at Monte Carlo), and winning the first World Rally Championship in 1973, with another win at Monte Carlo.  Not bad for a design a dozen years old. The sleek Michelotti-designed coupes were finally dethroned by the new mid-engined Lancia Stratos in 1974...

By then Rédélé's Dieppe-based firm had introduced the more modern-looking, slightly larger A310 with 2 + 2 seating at the Geneva show in 1971. The A310 was  based on the same backbone chassis design, but now with fuel-injected 1.6 liter inline fours making 122 to 125 hp. For a modern comparison, the car made about the same power as the first Mazda Miata, but weighed about 300 pounds less.  The 89.4 inch wheelbase matched that of the Porsche 911, and was nearly 7 inches longer than the A110.  Still, it had some rally success, making the zero to 60 run in just over 8 seconds, with a top speed of 131.  The A310 below finished that rainy Tour de France in 1974... 

The body design, with its creased flanks, tapered ends, and dropped side window sills, reflected the influence of Italy's Giorgetto Giugiaro, but the most similar car visually was the mid-engined Monteverdi 450SS*. This was not a coincidence, as both body designs were the work of Englishman Trevor Fiore.  The six lights marching across the nose under transparent covers signalled that Alpine Renault was still catering to the needs of rally drivers, and made the car unmistakable from the front.  Unlike the Citroen SM that appeared the previous year, none of the lights turned with the front wheels.

Prototypes and early cars had the louvered engine hatch shown above, while most production A310s were outfitted with the curved glass over a separate interior lid, as shown below.  

On early cars one, and later two, NACA ducts were mounted on the cowl ahead of the windshield.  Later versions of the Series 1 four-cylinder cars had the twin ducts mounted closer to the nose, as below...

The instruments and controls were neatly arrayed around the driver, with added space for  the adjacent passenger, and room for children, or uncomfortable adults, in the rear.  

Despite the aluminum block fuel injected engines and the available 5-speed gearbox, the  A310 was not as nimble or competitive in rallies as the A110.  Still, there were successes, and Renault took a 55% stake in Alpine during 1973.  During the fuel crisis a lower cost, carbureted version of the 4-cylinder car was introduced, and then in 1976 Alpine Renault released a Series 2 with the new PRV (Peugeot-Renault-Volvo) 90 degree, 2.7 liter V6 with 150 hp initially.  Acceleration and top speed improved, but the prow design lost the distinctive six lights while gaining an air dam...

From the side, the new V6 could be identified by the new wheel design, with 3 radial slots. At the rear a spoiler spanned the backlight.  Despite the added expense and the upward trend in fuel prices, the V6 cars outsold the 4 cylinder models, with production overlapping in 1976 and the V6 ending production after 1984.  There were 2,340 four-cylinder Series 1 cars, and 9,276 V6s.  Before the transition to the new GTA, a few cars were offered with GT Pack body kits for wider wheels, and 27 cars were built with 3 liter engines.  Some cars in this late style were imported to the USA by a privateer; in the meantime Alpine Renault won Le Mans in 1978 with the A442.  But that's another car, and another story...

*Footnote: That '74 Tour de France Auto was won by Gérard Larrousse and J-P Nicolas in a Ligier JS2, a car featured in this blog in "Forgotten Classic: Ligier JS1 & JS2" posted November 15, 2020.  Monteverdi and MBM automobiles were featured here in "The Etceterini Files Part 20:  Monteverdi and MBM---Outsourcing and Branding", posted on July 9, 2019.

Photo Credits:
Top and 4th from top:  the author

2nd & 3rd: Wikimedia

5th:  youtube.com
6th thru 9th:  Alpine Renault, posted on lotusespritturbo.com
10th & 11th:  bringatrailer.com
Bottom:  Wikimedia