It was back in July that we had the opportunity to grace our eyes upon a rather unique and futuristic sports car coming from French automaker, Renault; who rolled out their dashingly blue stead – the Alpine A110-50 concept that’s supposedly going to mark the revival of the Alpine name. Today, though, Renault has signed an agreement for a partnership with UK-based Caterham to build high-end sports cars at Renault’s Alpine plant in Dieppe, Normandy France.
Upon signing the documents, Caterham will now own a 50% stake within the new entity that is now known as Societe des Automobiles Alpine Caterham (SAAC).
“This innovative partnership with Caterham embodies a longstanding ambition: the creation of a sports car with the Alpine DNA,” said Renault Chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn in a press release, “And it carries both opportunities for the Dieppe plant and the development of its historic know-how.”
There aren’t many details to be had at the moment, except for an interesting coupé that closely resembles the A110-50 concept and both companies will now combine their skills to build models in both large and small series. In doing so, it would help to widen their positioning on the sports vehicle market with both sides now looking four years or sooner into the future to release a model and produce it in the thousands per annum.
There was even talk of Formula 1 possibilities since Renault’s involvement is limited to engine provision instead of a full works team, which includes Caterham F1.
During the meeting, Caterham Chairman Tony Fernandes said, “If you look at Formula One, there’s only Ferrari and McLaren, which are extremely expensive. We’ll produce a car that many more people can afford with F1 technology.”
Right now, it could be the beginning of a wonderful relationship and time will only tell as to what sort of creation will bode from the amalgamation of these two corporations. Only time will tell.
