The Alpine A110 R Ultime Demands McLaren Money And Then Some

The Alpine A110 is one of the few affordable mid-engine sports cars in its class and has undergone a few changes since its introduction in 2017. This is Alpine’s sports car that focuses on handling and being lightweight instead of horsepower. This is the same philosophy that makes Lotus cars some of the best-handling sports cars on the planet, without the need for an overcomplicated suspension.

The Alpine A110 has had multiple iterations, each getting better and lighter with slight power increments. The latest creation has pushed Alpine’s engineering team to the limits, resulting in the ultimate version of the Alpine A110. But its price tag puts it in the league of some of the world’s best supercars.

An Alpine That Costs More Than A McLaren

The Alpine A110 R Ultime was revealed at the latest Paris Motor Show as the best version of the lightweight A110. This means Alpine engineers have put all of their knowledge into building the best sports car that they can. The final result is a no-holds-barred race car for the road that challenges some of the best sports cars in the word, but this comes at a hefty price.

The A110 R Ultime has a price tag of approximately $360,000 (€265,000 MSRP) which is an absurd amount of money for a hardcore version of a vehicle that starts at around $70,000. This is an absurd price when you consider that it’s more expensive than most series-production supercars that are faster and more exotic. A great example is the McLaren 750S which is faster, has a V8 and butterfly doors, but starts at $318,000. For more comparison, other supercars that cost less than the A110 R Ultime include;

• 2024 Lamborghini Huracán $249,865
• 2025 Porsche 911 Turbo $199,195
• 2025 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 $113,795
• 2024 Maserati MC20 $276,995

The A110’s pricing puts it in the same price bracket as these world-class supercars, but it is limited to only 110 cars and Alpine has made extensive changes to the A110 Ultime.

Upgrades Over The Standard A110

The engine makes almost 100 horsepower more than the standard A110, which had 250 horsepower. The last A110 R made 300 horsepower, while this latest car is making 345 horsepower from the same turbocharged inline-four engine. But there are other extensive suspension and aero changes.

Engine Specifications

Other changes to the A110 R include;

• A new six-speed DCT transmission
• Akrapovic titanium exhaust system
• Ohlins adjustable dampers
• Bespoke AP Racing brake setup
• 18-inch forged wheels at the front and 19-inch at the rear
• Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires
• Aero upgrades include; new bumper, new hood, dive planes, larger front splitter, larger rear diffuser, larger manually adjustable rear wing etc.

These extensive changes were also made to the interior, with lightweight bucket seats. All of these changes make sure that this car will be a weapon on the track, it may not have as much power as supercars in this segment, but it only weighs around 2,400 pounds. Alpine also offers exclusive customization for this car through its Atelier program. This includes 27 exterior colors, four interior Alcántara colors, including Grey, Red, Blue, and Orange, and extensive customization through the Atelier Sur-Mesure program.

Topspeed’s Take On the Alpine A110R Ultime

Alpine has built the ultimate version of its car in limited numbers and offers a host of bespoke customization for lucky customers. But with a price tag of $360,000, there may be other cars that would be worth your time. Alpine has its sights set on taking Porsche’s market share, but Alpine does not have the brand power that Porsche or the other brands have. When a limited car is more expensive than a Porsche 911 GT3, it must be very good to justify its high price.