Alpine A390 coupe-crossover steps out in a winter wonderland Arctic test

Published: 27 January 2025

► New Alpine A390 ‘sport fastback’ spied
► Previewed by A390_β show car
► Production e-crossover due this year

These new spyshots afford our best glimpse yet of the new 2025 Alpine A390 – a sporting, coupe-flavoured crossover that’ll stretch the French brand further away from its lightweight sports car roots.

Our spies caught the family-focused EV on test in northern Sweden as French engineers hone the electric powertrain of the newcomer in cold-weather testing. This procedure is even more important for EVs, as battery performance deteriorates as the mercury plummets.

It’s the production iteration of the Alpine A390_β concept that bowed in at last autumn’s 2024 Paris motor show. The show car previewed what it is calling the ‘sport fastback’ A390, which is expected to launch for customers later this year.

It’s the latest arrival in Alpine’s ‘dream garage,’ acting as the more spacious family car to sit above the combustion-engined A110 sports car and all-electric A290 hatchback. The A390 is around 4.7 metres long, about the same as an Audi Q6.

Our latest spy photos from the Arctic prove that talk of a fastback silhouette is accurate; although still heavily disguised, the A390 appears to be a more dynamic shape that’ll appease those worried that Alpines should not be boxy and squared-off. It’s not quite as low-slung as the Alpine A390_β concept car (which was 1.5m tall), but it’s certainly inspired by it.

Alpine A390 EV undergoing winter testing in the Arctic

Will such a teardrop profile impinge on practicality though? Stay tuned as we follow the A390’s development through to production… We sat in the concept car and found it roomier inside than it looks from outside.

The swooping roofline is consistent with the prototypes we’ve spied undergoing shakedown tests. BMW X6: you have much to answer for…

How much of the Alpine A390 concept car will survive into production?

Conceptually, 2024’s concept shows the direction of travel – but you can safely strike off the handclap doors and illuminated wheel centres.

Alpine A390_β: a new fastback EV crossover

Bosses claim the concept car is 85% production-ready. ‘It’s all about duality,’ design chief Antony Villain told CAR magazine. ‘It’s a racing car in a tuxedo.’

Alpine’s next model, which will be built in Dieppe, Alpine’s spiritual French home, marks the expansion of the niche brand into a new, bigger-selling segment. But it won’t desert its sporting roots: the A390 will launch with a tri-motor package to ensure high-performance creds remain intact.

Sovany Ang, Alpine’s product performance boss, says the A290 and upcoming A390 are ‘designed to give [Alpine] a proposition to redefine the sportiness that we believe in at Alpine. We are increasing the brand footprint beyond the two-seater coupe segment.’

Remind me about Alpine’s naming strategy…

Like the A290 electric hot hatchback’s nomenclature, the first digit implies the size of the car while the ‘90’ part points to ‘the brand’s versatile and everyday-use vehicles.’

We know that the production A390 will feature a revised version of Alpine’s day-running light (DRL) signature at the front and what looks to be a sleek profile to inject some dynamism into the design.

Papped: the new 2025 Alpine A390 crossover

It’s very likely that the A390 could use some engineering derived from Renault Group’s Ampr Medium (formerly CMF-EV) platform, the same one used by the Renault Scenic and Nissan Ariya. But, like the A290’s modifications and upgrades versus a standard Renault 5’s Ampr Small platform, expect some Alpine-spec engineering to be applied to the new A390.

By Tim Pollard

Director of Content – Digital, car news magnet, crafter of words

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