The French auto maker Renault and UK based lightweight sports car manufacturer, Caterham Cars have entered into a 50-50 Joint Venture (JV) partnership, and will jointly manufacture products under the brand name 'Alpine.' According to reports, Caterham Cars will purchase a whopping 50 per cent stake in the completely owned subsidiary of Renault - Alpine Automobiles.
Evidently, Renault has been working hard towards refurbishing the Alpine brand and making it more popular among the sport car aficionados present across the globe. Further, at the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix, the French auto player showcased the enticing Renault Alpine A110-50 concept car.
Reportedly, automobile designers representing the two sides of English Channel are believed to blend their ideas into a coming-of-age and radical new sports car, which is anticipated to hit the commercial market by the end of 2016. The final denouement via the amalgamation of Renault - Caterham engineering and design, will be an enchanting new sports car and will be assembled at Alpine's Dieppe production unit.
Informing about the latest development, a spokesman for Caterham Cars, said, “The new Caterhams will be a little bigger, and little more comfortable, but will still be two-seaters and won’t move a million miles away from the present designs. Production of the Seven will very much remain at Dartford. There’s strong demand for that model and new editions to the Seven range will be announced soon, so jobs are safe and business as usual in that respect.”
Expressing his delight at the new JV partnership, Carlos Ghosn, Chairman, Renault, said, “This innovative partnership with Caterham embodies a longstanding ambition: the creation of a sports car with the Alpine DNA. It carries both opportunities for the Dieppe plant and the development of its historic know-how.”
Reportedly, the JV partnership will be called Societe des Automobiles Alpine Caterham, and all the official formalities are expected to be done by the New Year. The latest development heaves a new lease of life to the famous old Alpine racing name, which the French auto giant Renault bought in 1973.
