France Surrenders In Its American Automotive Invasion Before It Even Begins

French performance brand Alpine’s plans to bring its small and light sports car to the US have just slammed on the brakes. During the Renault Group’s first-quarter earnings call, the company’s CFO said that major shifts and instability in the US market were behind the change. He said that it wasn’t the right time to spend money to enter the country, putting the plan on hold for now, if not permanently.

Not The Right Time, Said CFO

He called the decision a “perfectly normal” one, as he said that the group is trying to reduce costs. The Renault Group reported a 3.0 percent decline in automotive revenues for the quarter. Sales at Alpine were up 96.4 percent, though that was almost entirely due to the release of the A290 – an electric hot hatch not likely to make it Stateside.

Renault has long had big plans for the Alpine performance vehicle brand. While it currently sells just a few thousand vehicles per year, Renault had planned to see it expand to 150,000 vehicles per year by 2030. That growth was to be driven by electric models, including crossovers, targeting models such as the Porsche Macan EV and Porsche Cayenne. The automaker intended to bring seven models to the US.

The automaker said it would put some smaller projects on hold in an effort to cut costs as it fears a worldwide economic slowdown and reduced sales. Alpine’s American plans are one of those projects.

Minto didn’t rule out the expansion plans entirely; he just said that there would be a delay. While his comments clearly refer to the 25 percent tariffs on vehicles imported into the US, he also likely is referring to the lack of demand for electric models. While EV sales in the US (other than Tesla) continue to grow, the growth has not reached the levels automakers had expected by now.

Renault had been in talks with dealer group AutoNation to sell its vehicles. The group operates 325 new vehicle franchises in the US, selling 31 different brands and bringing in $13 billion last year in new vehicle sales.

We don’t know much about Alpine’s SUV product plans, but we were always highly interested in its lightweight sports cars. The A110 has always been a forbidden fruit for American sports car lovers and was due for replacement in the next few years. Originally, Alpine was working with Lotus on a lightweight platform, but the partnership fell through in 2023. Alpine has instead been going it alone, leveraging development from parent company Renault, with certain Nissan EVs – like the new Micra – sharing platforms and componentry to reduce costs. The A110, meanwhile, has come to the end of its lifespan, and a replacement isn’t guaranteed.

Related

Alpine’s First SUV Looks Like It’s Have The Sports Car DNA That Made The Brand Famous

The A390 will be loads of fun to drive, and its interior looks pretty good too.

The A290 electric hot hatch is based on the all-new and electric Renault 5. This version makes 220 horsepower. Despite its electric battery pack, the car weighs in at 3,260 pounds. Not exactly light by hot hatch standards, but certainly light for an EV. The problem is that Renault has an even hotter version of the same car; the Renault 5 Turbo 3E packs 500 hp into a widebody, RWD-only package. It costs an arm and a leg, but it flies in the face of the Alpine brand being the performance arm, while Renault was meant to focus on mainstream models.

For most American buyers, the news of Alpine’s pause on its American ambitions won’t really change much, but for those who believe variety is the spice of life, the news is particularly sad.