Alpine A310
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| Alpine A310 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Alpine |
| Production | 1971–1984[1] |
| Assembly | Dieppe, France |
| Designer | Michel Beligond, Yves Legal, Trevor Fiore Robert Opron, Peter Stevens (restyling) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Sports car |
| Body style | 2-door Coupé |
| Layout | RR layout |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | |
| Transmission | 5-speed manual |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2,270 mm (89.4 in) |
| Length | 4,180 mm (164.6 in) |
| Width | 1,640 mm (64.6 in) |
| Height | 1,150 mm (45.3 in) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Alpine A110 |
| Successor | Renault Alpine GTA/A610 |
The Alpine A310 is a sports car built by French manufacturer Alpine from 1971 to 1984.
History
[edit]Dieppe-based Alpine, once an independent company specialising in faster Renaults, later a Renault subsidiary, established a fine competition history with the Alpine A110 winning the 1973 Monte Carlo Rally and World Rally Championship. The successor was the Alpine A310, initially powered by tuned 17TS/Gordini four-cylinder engine, still rear-mounted. The maximum power reaches 127 PS (93 kW; 125 hp), thanks to the use of two twin-barrel 45 DCOE Weber carburetors.
The first model of the A310, built 1971-1976, was a car with a four-cylinder engine and six headlights. Being larger, heavier, and no more powerful than its predecessor, the A310 was generally considered underpowered.[2] The car was first shown at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show. The prototype A310 had louvres across the rear windscreen; these were not carried over to the production model.[3] Early models had a NACA duct mounted near the window atop the left front fender, later four-cylinder cars received two, mounted closer to the front of the car. In 1976, to help flagging sales, the lower-cost A310 SX was presented. This model has a 95 PS (70 kW; 94 hp) version of the Renault 16/17's 1647 cc inline-four and simplified equipment.
The basis of the A310 was a hefty tubular steel backbone chassis, clothed in a fiberglass shell. As for the previous A110 the entire body was molded in a single piece.[4] Like the ill-fated DeLorean, which used the same PRV powertrain, the engine was mounted longitudinally in the rear, driving forward to the wheels through a manual five-speed gearbox. The driving position was low and sporty, although the front wheelwells encroached on the occupants' feet, pointing them towards the centre of the car.[3] The A310 was labor-intensive, having been developed for small-scale artisanal production - a car took 130 hours to build from start to finish.[5] The front axle also came in for some criticism, although in 1974 the balljoint mountings were replaced by rubber/steel bushings (silent-blocs) which somewhat improved durability.[3] While many components of the A310 came from the Renault parts shelf as expected, others are more surprising - the steering rack is from the Peugeot 504, while the turn signals are Simca 1301 units.[6]
A310 V6
[edit]
In 1976 the A310 was restyled by Robert Opron and fitted with the more powerful and newly developed 90-degree 2664 cc V6 PRV engine, as used in some Renaults, Volvos and Peugeots. The later V6 received a black plastic rear spoiler as well, useful for keeping the tail planted but somewhat marring the purity of the original's lines. With 150 PS (110 kW; 148 hp) on tap, the A310 PRV V6 was Renault's performance flagship capable of 220 km/h (137 mph) and acceptable acceleration. The tail-heavy weight distribution gave handling characteristics similar to the contemporary Porsche 911. Sales did pick up, more than doubling those of the four-cylinder predecessor, but then tapered off as production continued without any updates to make it a serious Porsche competitor in the marketplace. Sales were predominantly in France, with 781 cars sold in its home market in 1979 (its best year). By 1984 less than five hundred Alpines were sold in France, while Porsche sold about 1600 in spite of industrial strikes in Germany.[7]
Beginning with model year 1981 (in late 1980), the rear suspension was shared with the mid-engined Renault 5 Turbo. Rather than the previous three-lug wheels, the A310 also received the alloys used for the 5 Turbo, albeit without the painted elements.[8]
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In the later models (1983-1984) of the A310 a "Pack GT" which was inspired from the Group 4 A310 racing cars would be developed, it gained wheel arches and larger spoilers front and rear. A few Alpine A310 V6 Pack GT Kit Boulogne were built (27 examples), here the PRV V6 was bored out to 2.9 litres and was then further modified by Alpine, fitted with triple Weber 42DCNF carburetors that pushed power to 193 PS (142 kW; 190 hp).
Competition
[edit]In 1973 the A310 was designated to replace the A110 in the World Rally Championship, where it saw mixed success. The A310 also had great success in French motorsport as a Group 4 car. In 1977 Guy Fréquelin (Alpine Renault A 310-V6) won the French Rally championship. In 1983 the car was moved to the Group B rally stage.
Production
[edit]| A310 four-cylinder | Production |
| 1971 | 120 units |
| 1972 | 575 units |
| 1973 | 666 units |
| 1974 | 344 units |
| 1975 | 306 units |
| 1976 | 329 units |
| TOTAL | 2 340 units |
| A310 V6 | Production |
| 1976 | 140 units |
| 1977 | 1 220 units |
| 1978 | 1 216 units |
| 1979 | 1 381 units |
| 1980 | 1 138 units |
| 1981 | 1 284 units |
| 1982 | 1 095 units |
| 1983 | 1 139 units |
| 1984 | 663 units |
| TOTAL | 9 276 units |
Production models
[edit]A310 4-cylinder model variants
[edit]1971–1976
[edit]A310 1600 Series 1 (55 L fuel tank, 3 stud suspension, four-cylinder engine, 5-speed transmission)
| Model | Years | Engine | Transmission | Power | Admission | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VE | 1971–1973 | 1605 cc (R17TS Injection) | type 365-10 | 124 PS (91 kW; 122 hp) DIN at 6000 rpm | carburetors - twin 45 DCOE weber | 840 kg (1,852 lb) |
| VF | 1974–1976 | 1605 cc (R17TS Injection/Gordini) | type 365-10 | 127 PS (93 kW; 125 hp) DIN at 6450 rpm | Injection - electronic direct Bosch D-Jetronic | 825 kg (1,819 lb) |
| VG | 1976 | 1647 cc (R17 Gordini) | type 365-24 | 95 PS (70 kW; 94 hp) DIN at 6000 rpm | carburetors - single weber, double throat 32 Weber DAR7 | 825 kg (1,819 lb) |
A310 V6 model variants
[edit]1977–1984
[edit]| Model | Years | Engine | Transmission | Power | Admission | Weight | Fuel capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A310 V6 Series 1 | 1977–1980 | 2664 cc (R30 TS) V6 | manual transmission 4-speed (type 367-05) 5-speed (type 369-02) |
150 PS (110 kW) DIN at 6000 rpm |
1 carburetor single throat Solex 34 TBIA and 1 carburetor double throat Solex 35 CEEI 3 stud R30 inspired suspension. |
980 kg (2,161 lb) | 62 L |
| A310 V6 Series 2 | 1981–1985 | 2664 cc (R30 TS) V6 | manual transmission 5-speed (type 369-02) | 1 carburetor single throat Solex 34 TBIA and 1 carburetor double throat Solex 35 CEEI. 4 stud R5 Turbo inspired suspension, restyled exterior, new bumpers |
980 kg (2,161 lb) | ||
| A310 V6 "Pack GT" | 1982–1985 | 2664 cc (R30 TS) V6 | manual transmission 5-speed (type 369-02) | 1 carburetor single throat Solex 34 TBIA and 1 carburetor double throat Solex 35 CEEI. 4 stud R5 Turbo inspired suspension, flared arches, aerodynamic kit, larger wheels etc. |
980 kg (2,161 lb) | ||
| A310 V6 "Pack GT Boulogne" | 1982–1985 | 2849 cc (PRV) V6 | manual transmission 5-speed (type 369-02) | 193 PS (142 kW) DIN at 6000 rpm |
2 carburetor triple throat vertical Weber 46 IDA. 4 stud R5 Turbo inspired suspension, flared arches, aerodynamic kit, larger wheels, etc |
Production numbers
[edit]| Modelyear | Engine | Model | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 4-cylinder twin-carb | 1600 VE | 001 | 0010 |
| 1972 | 4-cylinder twin-carb | 1600 VE | 0011 | 0550 |
| 1973 | 4-cylinder twin-carb | 1600 VE | 0551 | 1200 |
| 1974 | 4-cylinder injection | 1600 VF | 21185 | 21750 |
| 1975 | 4-cylinder injection | 1600 VF | 21751 | 22016 |
| 1976 | 4-cylinder injection | 1600 VF | 22017 | 22137 |
| 1976 | 4-cylinder single carb | 1600 VG | 40000 | 40386 |
| 1977 | V6 | 2700 VA | 43015 | 43795 |
| 1978 | V6 | 2700 VA | 43796 | 45089 |
| 1979 | V6 | 2700 VA | 45090 | 46355 |
| V6 GR IV | ||||
| 1980 | V6 | 2700 VA | 46356 | 47683 |
| 1981 | V6 | 2700 VA | 47710 | 48847 |
| 1982 | V6 | 2700 VA | 48848 | 49960 |
| 1983 | V6 | 2700 VA | 49961 | 52093 |
| V6 GT | 2700 VAA | |||
| 1984 | V6 | 2700 VA | E0000001 | E0001781 |
| V6 GT | 2700 VAA | |||
| 1985 | V6 | 2700 VA | F0000324 | F0001874 |
| V6 GT | 2700 VAA |
References
[edit]- ^ Barbaza, Pierre (April 1985). "L'usine Alpine: renaissance ou révolution?" [The Alpine works: renaissance or revolution?]. Echappement (in French) (198). Paris, France: Michael Hommell: 86.
- ^ Beyl, Tobias (July 2017). "12 bezahlbare Sportwagen" [12 affordable sports cars]. Motor Klassik (in German). Stuttgart, Germany: Motor Presse Stuttgart. p. 22. ISSN 0177-8862.
- ^ a b c Barbaza, Pierre (April 1985). "Antimémoires: Alpine A310 1600 - L'héritière" [Anti-memoir: The heir]. Echappement (in French) (198). Paris, France: Michael Hommell: 94.
- ^ Barbaza (L'usine), p. 88
- ^ Barbaza (L'usine), p. 89
- ^ Barbaza (Antimémoires), p. 95
- ^ Cornaert, Jean-Jacques (1985-01-24). "La renaissance" [The rebirth]. Le Moniteur de l'Automobile (in French). 36 (813). Brussels, Belgium: Editions Auto-Magazine: 13.
- ^ Costa, André & Georges-Michel Fraichard, ed. (September 1981). "none". Salon 1981: Toutes les Voitures du Monde. l'Auto Journal (in French) (14 & 15). Paris: Homme N°1: 119.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Renault Alpine A310 at Wikimedia Commons
