readies – All about car

Alpine has launched a rally-spec version of its A110 sports car aimed at competing in events at an international level. Underpinned by the same lightweight aluminium chassis as the track-oriented GT4 and Cup variants, the A110 Rally has been developed with the help of Signatech, which also runs Alpine’s sports car programme. The machine packs produces more than 296bhp from an uprated version of the standard A110’s 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Further performance modifications come in the form of three-way hydraulic suspension, Brembo brakes, a limited-slip differential and a sequential six-speed gearbox. A new steering wheel, featuring an integrated telemetry display and paddle shifters, has been fitted. The A110 Rally also features safety equipment such as a six-point harness system, roll cage and FIA-approved competition fuel cell, and the firm is in the process of obtaining FIA R-GT homologation status, which would allow it to be used on international events. Alpine claims the car will be certified in the coming weeks, with customer deliveries beginning in early 2020 in time for its scheduled competition debut. The original Alpine A110 was a successful rally car, claiming the top six positions in the inaugural World Rally Championship in 1973, and taking victory in that year’s Monte Carlo Rally. Régis Fricotté, Alpine commercial and competition director, said: “This return to rallying is highly anticipated as Alpine made history when it won the first-ever World Rally Championship in 1973. “To ensure the success of this new adventure, we have entrusted the research and development, production and commercialisation of the Alpine A110 Rally to Signatech, our partner as well in the FIA World Endurance Championship and around the Cup and GT4 programmes. The Alpine A110 Rally looks set to be a very fine car to drive and amazingly efficient.” Prices for the competition model start from €150,000 (£134,518), in Europe, with no word yet on when a right-hand-drive variant can be expected. Options include an advanced data acquisition software package and Alpine’s trademark blue paint, as available on the road-going variant. The launch of the new model comes as Alpine welcomes Patrick Marinoff as the firm’s new managing director. A long-time Daimler employee, Marinoff has previously acted as global brand manager for Maybach, head of brand appearance for Mercedes-Benz, and, most recently, head of sales at
Origin: Alpine readies rally-spec A110 for international competition

BMW’s M performance car division is finalising development of a lightweight version of its highly acclaimed M2. Carrying the German company’s CS name into production in early 2020, the new coupé builds on developments brought to the 2018 M2 Competition in a move that is expected to make it challenge the new Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 for dynamic ability. The new M model, which is set to be priced at over £60,000 in the UK, will act as a swansong for the existing first-generation M2 ahead of the launch of a new rear-wheel-drive successor model in 2021. Among the changes brought to the M2 CS is a revised aerodynamic package consisting of a deeper front bumper that features a more pronounced lower lip, revised side sills, larger rear deck spoiler and reprofiled rear bumper. More significant, however, is the replacement of the M2 Competition’s steel roof with a carbonfibre one, already optionally available through BMW’s M Performance catalogue. It reduces the weight of the new car by only 5kg, but the reduction is made at the highest point of the M2 CS, giving it a lower centre of gravity than its standard sibling. Together with the new roof, there’s also a series of weight-saving initiatives concentrated within the interior, which is described by BMW M insiders as being ‘pared back to essentials only”. All up, the new junior M car is claimed to weigh no more than 1540kg. Although rumours have suggested the M2 CS will run BMW M’s new S58 engine, as used by the X3 M and X4 M, Autocar sources contend it will retain the older S55 powerplant from the M2 Competition, complete with a particulate filter and other recent upgrades. In the M2 Competition, the S55 unit develops 404bhp between 5250rpm and 7000rpm. While the focus of the M2 CS is more on handling agility than outright power, it is expected to gain 16bhp to take the output of the latest M car up to 420bhp and provide it with a power-to-weight ratio beyond the 261bhp per tonne of its standard sibling. Buyers will get the choice of two gearboxes: a standard six-speed manual or optional seven-speed dual-clutch unit with a race start function. Further tweaks are focused on the chassis, which uses MacPherson struts up front and a five-link arrangement at the rear. Alongside a more direct steering ratio, the M2 CS is set to receive firmer springs and dampers, larger-diameter anti-roll bars, new bushings within the front end and reduced ride height. The prototypes being tested at the Nürburgring confirm the top-of-the-line M2 is being developed exclusively on 19in wheels shod with the latest generation of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tyres. Further evident changes include the adoption of M carbon-ceramic brakes from the M3 and M4. At the front, they measure 410mm in diameter and boast six-piston calipers, while the rear measures 396mm in diameter and uses single-piston calipers. As well as providing added stopping ability, the new brakes bring a weight saving of more than 4kg at each wheel, significantly reducing the unsprung masses of the M2 CS in comparison with the standard M2
Origin: Hardcore new BMW M2 CS readies for 2020 debut