As EVs arrive in showrooms in ever-increasing numbers on a monthly basis, there is one niche that looks to be neglected: the hot hatchback. Now French sports car maker Alpine is having a crack with this, the A290 GTS. A fully electric hot hatch boasting quick performance, a taut chassis, and enough practicality so you can use it every day. Exactly what a hot hatch should be.
It’s got its work cut out though, as fans of the genre are likely to refer to EVs as boring or white goods that are nothing more than appliances. To date, the Hyundai Ioniq 5N is the only solid entry to the hot hatch genre, with models like the Abarth 500e falling way short.
Its aim? Simple. To take all of that Alpine brilliance we’ve seen instilled into its brilliant A110 coupe in a small, compact, hot hatchback that’s fun to drive. But is the A290 good enough to tempt diehard petrolheads away from ICE hot hatchbacks? Read on to find out.
Wait, it looks quite familiar?
It is, of course, based on a Renault 5 E-Tech, the winner of the SGMW’s Car of the Year title in our 2026 New Year’s Honours. Alpine takes the ordinary 5 and jazzes it up with a punchier powertrain, sportier looks, and a stiffer chassis. It still sits on the same AmpR small platform, which is also used in the Renault 4 EV, and retains the compact dimensions of the car it’s based on, measuring in at 3,997mm long, 1,823mm wide, and 1.512mm tall. Meaning it sits firmly in the supermini sector.
Here though, Alpine has firmly put its stamp on the exterior with sportier-looking front and rear bumpers, larger alloy wheels, and very cool-looking ‘X’-stamped rally-style daytime running lights on the nose. The only other major difference is a pair of creases in the rear doors, completing the go-faster look. In the metal, I think it looks really good. With a distinctive sportiness about it that separates it from its Renault sibling.
But does it go like a hot hatchback?
Absolutely, yes. 0-62mph comes about in 6.4 seconds, a figure that plonks it firmly within the territory occupied by the Ford Fiesta ST (0-62mph in 6.5 seconds) and the Hyundai i20 N (0-62 mph in 6.2 seconds).
This is down to its 216bhp electric powertrain, which incorporates a larger electric motor on the rear axle. This setup is standard in the top-spec GTS I tested, as well as the GT Performance spec car. There is also a lesser 178bhp variant available too in the GT and GT Premium specs, and this runs the 0-62mph sprint in 7.5 seconds.
Pffffft, small EVs don’t offer enough range
Not quite; while the 225-mile range figure of the GTS isn’t the best in class (the Renault 5 E-Tech can manage up to 252 miles), it’s still pretty decent. All A290s use the same 52kWh battery pack, and if you opt for the lower-powered model, the range increases to 235 miles. As I said, while neither figure is exactly groundbreaking, a 200-mile-plus range figure should make the A290 easy to live with.
All versions are equipped with a heat pump, which will help eke out more range in colder temperatures. When connected to a rapid charger, charging speeds top out at 100kW, meaning a 10-80 per cent top-up takes around 30 minutes. Plenty of time to pick up a coffee at a motorway service station. When charging at home, a top-up will take a little over 8 hours.
Can an electric hot hatchback be as good to drive as an ICE-powered one?
Having driven the Renault 5, the A290 takes all of that brilliance and adds a sporty edge to it with a slightly firmer ride that is never uncomfortable. This pays dividends on the road, though, where it feels far quicker in the corners than the car it’s based on, with a sophisticated and agile feel about it that encourages you to drive it hard. Alpine has made the axles 60mm wider than the 5, which undoubtedly helps with the planted feel on the road.
The steering is a bit on the numb side, but it does have a little more weight compared to the 5. The level of engagement is also stronger here, as it feels more involving to drive on fast twisty roads, and the increased power output gives more oomph to get up to speed with a continually smooth torque curve.
Like in most EVs, there are four levels of regen for the braking, which are operated by the ‘recharge’ dial, and while the brake pedal lacks feel, the brakes do feel powerful enough when you stand on them, allowing you to pull off late braking into corners with ease. That aside, and this is very much a hot hatch thing, the A290’s driving position felt a little bit upright for me, as while the seat can go quite low, it doesn’t go all the way to the floor as I would have liked.
But is it as fun to drive as the benchmark in this class, the Fiesta ST? No, but it’s not far away from it at all. The combination of the powertrain and slick chassis setup made it great fun to drive for me, leaving me grinning after just a few corners.
What about the inside?
Inside, the A290 sports a very similar cabin design to what you’ll find inside the 5, except here, it’s been given the Alpine treatment. There are the two-tone synthetic leather-trimmed seats, and instead of the column-mounted gear shifter, Alpine has fitted a button-operated selector in the centre console, a design that reminded me of the one found in the Aston Martin DB9.
A 10.25-inch digital dial cluster sits alongside a 10.1-inch infotainment screen. Both feature Alpine-specific colour schemes and graphics and are powered by the same Google-based OS. Here, Alpine has added its own sporty readouts, including a G-force meter in case you want to know how many G’s you’re pulling on the way to the shops, and a lap timer so you can lord it over friends by bragging about how fast you managed to get around Brands Hatch. As with the 5, operating either screen is simple to do with an intuitive layout and easy-to-read menus.
In terms of space, no surprise, it’s a Renault 5, which is decent but not exactly huge inside. Still, my 6ft 3inch frame managed to fit just fine with a bit of seat adjustment, and I even managed to squeeze myself into the rear seats behind my driving position. Although I wouldn’t recommend the latter for anything other than shorter journeys.
Practicality is reasonable as well, with 326 litres of boot space, meaning you can put things in it and drive to places. However, with the rear seats in place, the boot is triangular in shape, meaning larger items will be harder to stow. Notably, the A290 thrashes its electric competition into the weeds for storage space when compared to the 185 litres on offer in the Abarth 500e and the 210 litres available in the MINI Cooper E.
Verdict: The Alpine A290 is absolutely worthy of the ‘hot hatch’ moniker
The Alpine A290 is fun, fast, and engaging to drive, exactly what you’d want from a hot hatchback. With a starting price of around £34,000 for the top-spec GTS model here (after the EV grant deduction), it’s keenly priced against its nearest rivals. Adding to its appeal are its practicality and cheap running costs, as it will cost peanuts to charge it at home. Alpine has done a great job with the styling and chassis makeover, which makes it great to look at and to drive, and I have to say, this little Alpine is one of the most fun to drive EVs yet. A real electric hot hatchback that is easy to live with on a daily basis.
Alpine A290 GTS: gallery
