Alpine's hydrogen V6 hypercar could make production

Alpine is exploring the possibility of putting the extreme Alpenglow concept into limited production as a road-going supercar with a hydrogen-combustion engine. First shown in 2022, the Alpenglow recently nudged closer to a potential production car when it became the Hy4 – a rolling prototype fitted with the French brand's first hydrogen combustion engine. It was due to conduct its first public demonstration at the recent World Endurance Championship round at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, but failed to start. This was due to an electrical fault, Alpine said. Related articles Speaking to Autocar before the ill-fated test, Alpine design chief Antony Villain strongly hinted at the prospect of it becoming a production car. “When we designed the [Alpenglow] we had two fields in mind: the production car and the racing car,” said Villain. He explained that the concept was initially designed in parallel with the firm’s Le Mans Hypercar racer, the A424, but has become even more road-focused in its most recent evolution. For example, the Hy4 ditched the original single-seat interior in favour of a more conventional two-seat configuration. This is because the new car is underpinned by a Ligier LMP3 racing chassis, rather than the concept’s bespoke frame. Commenting on the Alpenglow’s prospects of making it to production, Villain said: “Why not? Why not have that on the roads? We want to keep both ways [hydrogen-combustion and battery-electric] possible. Maybe we could do a little series of these cars for the road. That could be just right.” Villain added that the process of turning the Alpenglow into a viable production car had been considered from the outset of the project. “We have already got these steps in mind, and the next steps,” he said. He added that “it’s more of a programme rather than a car” and that “the next one will be another evolution, styling-wise, with more and more credibility”.