Renault’s Alpine Wants to Sell Electric SUVs in the US by 2027
The fledgling sports car brand has eyes for the U.S. to meet its targets and that could mean a return for Renault.
French automaker Renault may return to the United States by 2027 via its sporty Alpine brand. Automotive News reported Alpine's CEO Laurent Rossi told media this week that two electric vehicles will hopefully be sold stateside by the end of the decade. That is in line with Alpine's plans to expand its lineup well beyond the A110, a gasoline-powered sports car it builds in small quantities and sells in Europe.
The two vehicles are slated to be crossovers, roughly analogous to Porsche's Macan and Cayenne Coupe. They are still in the very early stages of development. Rossi told the media that the French automaker is still shopping around for a platform to underpin these two vehicles, and it's not particularly picky. Alpine may prefer working with its close automotive partner Nissan, although working with Geely or another conglomerate that could offer "the best solutions and best collaborations" is also on the table.
Other vehicles, like an electric successor to the A110, an electric hot hatchback, and a small sporty electric crossover will also be built, but they will not be sold in the United States.
Renault last sold vehicles stateside in the early 1990s. French cars have never been extremely popular in the United States, although America is a huge car market. European brands of all stripes have long attempted to capitalize on this with varying degrees of success. Let's hope Renault's efforts turn out more like BMW's than Fiat's or Alfa Romeo's.
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