The history of the Alpine brand is intrinsically linked with racing and rallying.

Clever weight-saving techniques and extracting maximum power from small capacity production engines were key to the racing ethos of Jean Rédelé.

The Dieppe-based French rally enthusiast and Renault concessionaire established Société des Automobiles Alpine SAS—or Alpine, named for the driver’s fondness of the Coupe des Alpes—in 1955.

An intimate relationship with Renault and its products meant Rédelé’s first cars were derived from the workaday 4CV, yet sustained momentum behind the Alpine brand led to the two companies combining to achieve greatness with exciting road cars and world-beating rally machines.

The Alpine A110 typified the dynamic approach employed by the marque’s earliest cars.

Like its two predecessors, the A106 and A108, the A110 was underpinned by Renault components and clothed in a glass-fibre body to keep weight to a minimum.

The two-door coupé also maintained Alpine’s preference fo...