Alpine A290

Alpine offers some old-fashioned charms in this otherwise high-tech, zero-emissions hatchback Alpine has won plenty of adulation among driving enthusiasts and critics since its modern reinvention, but converting that into bums on seats, and cars on driveways, has proven tougher.Although such a challenge was probably to be expected given that the company’s relaunch model was the Alpine A110 sports car, what came next was intended to redress the balance. Few performance cars have more universal appeal than hot hatchbacks, and in creating one for the electric age, Dieppe clearly hoped to hit on a car with broader reach. But in its first full calendar year of UK sales, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders, the resulting Alpine A290 was outsold by its sister car, the Renault 5, by between five and six examples to one. We named the A290 our Best Fun EV at the 2025 Autocar Awards; but evidently many potential customers have needed a little more convincing.Pricing might now make the difference for some. All versions of the A290 now qualify for the UK government’s £3750 Electric Car Grant in full. So what might a new £30k entry price do to kick-start the wider adoption of a car almost single-handedly attempting to put sporty savoir-faire into affordable electric motoring?