Alpine A290; The Future of the Hot Hatch?

After a prolonged teaser campaign, Alpine has finally dropped the much anticipated A290 EV. Does this 220 bhp hot hatch have the dynamics and fun factor to win over the ICE die-hards? Craig Toone assesses the difficulty of the task and the technology involved.

Out of all the challenges the automotive industry faces in the transition to the EV, creating an authentic hot hatch experience must be one of, in not the toughest. Naturally, a hot hatch must be fun to drive above all else, but underneath the showbusiness it also needs to be practical, economical, cheap to run and affordable.

An EV being cheap to run is a given. So far Abarth, SEAT and MG have all offered hot hatches built on dedicated EV ‘skateboard’ platforms, yet all have come up short in various ways. The closest execution has been Mini with the impressive F56 generation Cooper SE, however that car is based upon an ICE platform with the batteries and motors filling the void left by the fossil fuel grubbins. Limited space means limited battery capacity and thus range.

You can see the conundrum. A hot hatch majors on agility; in order to deliver it must be relatively light weight and offer a small footprint, the antithesis to the demands of an EV.

Small and lightweight are the two identifying signatures of the Alpine A110 sportscar. The entire ethos of the brand is built upon these pillars, so an electric hot hatch is the last thing you’d expect to be produced by Dieppe, yet here we are with the launch of the Renault 5 based Alpine A290.

Still, if you were to choose one company to break the mould, Alpine might just be it. Because as we all know, the French firm has recently absorbed the Renaultsport division, responsible for some of the greatest hot hatches of all time. And Renaultsport has been toying with the idea of an EV hatch ever since the Zoe e-sport concept of 2017, which even resulted in a full working prototype feasibility study. As far as head starts go, it’s a promising one.

Another advantage is taking advantage of the Renault 5, which leans heavily on its retro inspired styling to deliver possibly the sharpest looking production EV yet. Despite all this though, reading through the press release shows one glaring omission – Alpine does not make a single reference to the words hot and hatch in tandem. Alpine’s preferred terminology for the A290 is ‘urban sportscar’. Whatever that means.

Could it be a lack of confidence? Or could it just be plain old corporate speak as Alpine is desperate to position itself as a premium brand?

I’m pleased to confirm it’s a case of the latter, with Alpine CEO Philippe Krief unable to help himself by stating the A290 “Resurrects a forgotten category, the hot hatch, so much loved for the driving pleasure it delivers.”

Antony Villain, Alpine Design Director concurs “We conceived the A290 in the purest style of small sports cars or hot hatches. A small Alpine with a character that, at first glance, expresses its potential for driving pleasure to appeal to styling fans and performance enthusiasts alike.” It seems those who matter know the score.

So what exactly are we looking at with the A290? We know the Renault 5 platform is a 52kWh EV. We also know that despite the name, the car will sport 180 bhp in GT trim, and 220 bhp in the GT Performance and GTS variants, which also offer 221 lb-ft of torque.

As I’ve mentioned, weight is the enemy of the EV hot hatch, and the A290 will tip the scales at 1,479 kg thanks to its all-aluminium design – just like the A110. The claimed 0-62 mph time is 6.4s, which is plenty fast enough and a match for the quickest B-segment hot hatches being phased out. Let’s also be honest, in the real world off the line EVs prove significantly quicker than ICE cars with matching power-to-weight ratios – at least until speeds become ban inducing.

But making an EV that pulls hard away from the traffic lights is the easy part. The hard part is making one truly fun to drive. Hyundai is proving there is a future for spirited driving in an EV with the Ioniq 5 N which is winning rave reviews, however that car is priced north of £50,000 and thus has the margin to incorporate technology that’s too expensive to filter down into a £36,000 ‘urban sportscar’.

So what does the A290 offer to spice up the driving experience? To put it bluntly, coaching. Yes, the A290 claims to be able to make you a better driver via a downloadable app that’ll encourage the dark arts of controlling lift-off oversteer, improve your reflexes and teach you how to look ‘down the road’ when driving quickly. Alpine promises “the rear axle is sufficiently mobile when lifting off the accelerator on winding stretches”.

Such handling characteristics are de rigueur of the classic, nose-heavy ICE hot hatch. But an EV is a far more stable platform with the batteries essentially offering a 50:50 weight distribution. A much lower centre of gravity also restricts any roll induced oversteer. To help, the A290 offers bespoke suspension settings with rally-style hydraulic bump stops, as well as new anti roll bars front and rear. The A290’s handling also benefits from multi-link rear suspension, rare in this category.

Three A290 specific 19-inch tires (two summer and one winter) have also been developed with long term Renaultsport partner Michelin, with the aim to offer a customer the choice between all-out dynamics (bespoke Pilot Sport S5), sportiness and range (Pilot Sport EV) or low temperature performance (Pilot Alpin 5).

Further encouraging mischief is the ‘Overtake’ button on the steering wheel. Depress it and you’ll be treated to a 10 second power boost. How much extra power the button musters is currently a mystery, with the press release choosing to omit the figure. More software engineering comes in the form of four levels of scavenging for the regen braking, variable steering weights and if desired, two versions of synthetic ‘engine’ noise. The 10-inch infotainment screens can also display a myriad of information; G-force, throttle or brake pedal pressure, temperatures, pressures. Lap times can also be recorded and of course, Apple CarPlay features.

On the flipside are the list of ‘challenges’ built into the touchscreen, teaching you hypermiling and the optimum lift’n coast opportunities to maximise range – 236 miles is the current WLTP claim obtained in the A290’s most efficient of it’s four driving modes, titled ‘Save’.

As ever, range remains dependent on many factors. Perhaps that’s why the A290 will come in multiple flavours, based to suit customer needs. There is the base GT with the EV tyres and 180 bhp. The ‘Premium’ model will tip the character of the car towards comfort and a more luxurious specification, whilst the ‘Performance’ will unlock the full 220 bhp and S5 tyres, concentrating on the sharper driving experience. Combining the two is the top of the range GTS, packing all the power and all the bells and whistles. Expect this to cost in the region of £40,000.

The A290 also mirrors the A110 in one further area by offering a launch spec ‘Premiere Edition’ with a further three subdivisions; Beta, La Grise and La Bleue, each with a distinct styling character. A total of 1,955 examples will be produced – a number which marks the founding year of the marque.

Whilst it might be too soon to predict the Alpine A290 as the saviour of the hot hatch, the prognosis is certainly promising enough to have us hoping the EV hot hatch has turned a corner – hopefully in the manner of an old-school ICE ancestor…perhaps not on three wheels, but at least sporting a bit of angle.

Revised 2025 Volkswagen Golf R MK8.5 unveiled

VW is aiming to re-establish the Golf R as the benchmark family super hatch. Will the revisions to the 2025 MK8.5 model sharpen up the oft criticised fun factor? And will the updated infotainment make the Golf easier to live with?

Completing the high-performance Golf offering, the new Volkswagen Golf R returns to its perch at the top of the model range. The reworked hatch and estate have been through a raft of updates above and below the skin, with the headline tweaks being found under the bonnet.

2025 Volkswagen Golf R: Performance, Powertrain and Handling Improvements

The 2024 Mk 8.5 facelift continues to use the powertrain that has set the template for the modern hot hatch: a 2.0 litre engine driving all four wheels through a twin-clutch automatic transmission. Never to be left behind, the well known EA888 engine has received a 14 bhp increase, with outputs now at 328 bhp and 310 lb ft (420 Nm), matching the recently revised Audi S3 and outperforming the new BMW M135.

The long serving engine gains a new coolant regulator which allows for reduced warm-up times, and benefits from a reworked throttle map and updated wastegate that holds on to boost pressure for longer after you’ve lifted off. The resting boost pressure has also been raised, which will mean quicker responses at low revs and under gentle loads. The result of these changes isn’t quite an anti-lag system, but it will make the car easier to drive when traffic is heavy and quicker to respond when you’ve got the road all to yourself.

Acceleration has been improved too, with the hatch taking 4.6 seconds to reach 62 mph, and the estate needing an extra 0.2 seconds. Both cars have a limited top speed of 155 mph as standard, although this can be raised to 168 mph with the optional R-Performance package. The option includes a GPS lap timer and G-force metre, along with an extra pair of driving modes: Drift and Special. Drift mode does what it says on the tin, allowing for the famously planted hot hatch to break traction, while Special mode is a setup tuned for the mixture of elevation changes and cambers found on the Nurburgring, which sounds like it’d be perfect for a British B-road.

The standard passive suspension setup features MacPherson struts at the front with a four-link rear axle. DCC adaptive suspension is available once more, but now it works in conjunction with a new Vehicle Dynamics Manager system that can continuously vary the damping, brake-based torque vectoring, and electronic differential lock in line with the selected driving mode. Volkswagen says that understeer should be a thing of the past, and that the car will be able to find a good middle ground between being comfortable and engaging in everyday use, but quick to react and able to stay well composed when pressing on. Changing from sensible to swift driving modes can be done quickly with a dedicated button on the steering wheel marked with a blue R.

2025 Volkswagen Golf R: Styling Tweaks and Infotainment Upgrades

Those are the key changes to the chassis and drivetrain, but no facelift would be complete without some styling tweaks. The Mk 8.5 Golf R certainly looks purposeful with its large, almost full-width open grille dominating the front end. Would I call it particularly pretty though? No. That said, it is nice to see a fully functional grille, with radiators visible at either side of the bumper. The upturned body coloured trim returns, but moves towards the centre of the grille, giving a clear visual separation from the GTI and GTI Clubsport models. At the rear, four exhaust tips flank the four-strake diffuser. The standard exhaust system contains controllable flaps to increase or decrease the amount of noise on offer, however I expect the optional Akrapovic titanium exhaust to be incredibly popular in the UK.

Both the hatch and estate get a subtle tailgate-mounted spoiler as standard, but this can be enlarged to a higher-standing wraparound wing as part of the R-Performance package. I’m still not the biggest fan of wings on hatchbacks, but the one on offer for the Golf R looks like it was actually designed to be there. The new Golf R wears 18” wheels as standard, with two flavours of 19” rims available as options. The Estoril 5-Y-spoke wheels can be selected, along with Vermenau forged wheels that double the spoke-count and look great in the standard silver/grey finish, but they are also available in black.

It may take a keen eye to spot the final R-specific touches of the R badges on the front doors and wheel hubs, blue brake callipers, modified side skirts and mirror caps, but the new rear light design and standard-fit illuminated badge on the nose will be impossible to miss.

The updated infotainment that has been moving across the Volkswagen range is something of a known quantity now, so it’s the details of the cabin – aside from the enlarged 12.9” central display with updated hardware, new software and illuminated trackpads as opposed to physical buttons for controlling the volume and air conditioning at the base of the screen – that I’m interested in here. Performance Golfs all get checked fabrics in designs that I would happily see on trousers in my wardrobe and the new Golf R is no different.

The blue colour seen on the brake callipers is the hue of choice for the trim, upholstery, stitching and ambient lighting, as opposed to the red-fest found in the GTI Clubsport. The two-piece seats are clad in a mixture of grey suede, checked fabric and black velour in addition to the R logo, contrasting strips and piping in blue, of course.

The flat-bottomed steering wheel looks like a wonderful item to hold, especially with the huge gearshift paddles attached to them; when the transmission is locked into its manual mode, kickdown and automatic change-ups are deactivated, putting the task of nailing the perfect shift squarely on the driver. Behind the wheel is a 10.2” driver’s display that has R-specific digital dials.

With the Performance package equipped, more display styles including a horizontal rev counter and gearshift recommendations can appear on screen, along with a timer that can record 0-62 mph, 50-75 mph and standing quarter mile times. We know what the 0-62 mph times are for the new Golf R, but to find out the other stats, we’ll have to get ourselves behind the wheel!

2025 Volkswagen Golf R: Estate, Pricing and Deliveries

Naturally, a huge part of the Golf R’s appeal in hatch or estate form is the practicality on offer. The pair of five-door models have room for five people, ISOFIX points for child seats available and enough room for a large greyhound to fit in the boot of the hatch, so I’m told. Naturally, the estate has room for two greyhounds, with a maximum capacity of 1,642 litres with the rear seats folded. For the first time, the hatchback is available with a tow bar and both models can pull up to 1,900 kg braked, if you’d like the quickest B-road tow car available.

The new 2024 Volkswagen Golf R is on sale, with prices starting at £44,535 for the hatchback. An extra £1,250 for the Black Edition turns the Golf R into the average UK-spec with black trim, 19″ wheels, brake callipers, badges and exhaust pipes. The estate is priced from £45,970.

Over 250,000 Golfs carrying the R-badge have been sold since the original R32 of 2002, and Volkswagen will be hoping that the Mk 8.5 can return the model to the benchmark position that the Mk 7 and 7.5 enjoyed.

With strong competition from Audi, BMW, CUPRA and Mercedes-AMG I think it has a tough task on its hands, but the driver-focussed tweaks to the facelifted Golf R may give it an edge.