"La Berlinette" the Heydays of the 70s - a great time!
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The Alpine success story began in 1946. Jean Rédélé, born in May 1922 in Dieppe, a small town in Normandy, took over the Renault workshop from his father, Emile, when he was just 24 years old. Jean was very fond of speedy transportation and rallying, so it was only natural that he should give the French Volkswagen Renault 4CV of the time a run for its money. In 1950, Jean took part in the Monte Carlo Rally with his private 4CV - heavy snowfall prevented him from finishing in the front. A few months later, his home race in Dieppe followed and here he was the winner with his tuned 4CV. Renault already took notice of the "young savage" at this time.
In 1955, after class victories in the Coupe des Alpes and the Monte, Jean Rédélé founded his own company - the Alpine brand, based on his rally successes in the Alps, was born!
Jean Rédélé built and sold his own vehicles based on Renault models - initially with aluminum bodies, and shortly afterwards with GRP plastic bodies. A rather exotic material in vehicle construction in the 1950s, but relatively easy to manufacture and above all extremely light...
After the A106 and 108, the A110 was presented in 1962. Initially with 1,100 cm3 technology from the Renault 8, later followed by 1.3 and 1.6 liter engines from the R12 and R16, in Group 4/5 the Alpine's had 1800 to sometimes even 1,950 cm3.
Successes on the race tracks, in hill climbs and above all in rallies soon followed. The Berlinetta's were really successful in the early 1970s, culminating in 1973 with the overall victory in the one-make world rally championship. In addition to many national private drivers, big names such as Jean-Claude Andruet, Jean-Pierre Nicolas, Bernard Darniche, the Swede Ove Andersson, Gerard Larousse, Jean-Luc Therier and a certain Michelle Mouton, the 1982 World Rally Vice-Champion in an Audi Quattro, earned her first spurs in the 1970s in an A110.
At the end of 1973, the majority of Alpine's shares were transferred to Renault - in 1978, Jean Rédélé also sold his remaining shares to Renault. The rest is history - after the A110, the A310, A610, GT Turbo etc. followed until the Alpine brand went somewhat quiet in the 1990s. The new version of the A110 was launched in 2017. Slim, light, extremely agile and still beautiful - just like back then...
The history of our 1600S, which we offer here, begins in 1972 in the south of Austria, in beautiful Carinthia. First delivered to a Renault dealer based there, an employed mechanic took over the 110 after a few years. Over the years, he developed enormous expertise and skill on the Alpine's, both for the brand and for motorsport. In this country, the scene soon ennobled him as the "Alpine Pope" of Austria. At some point, the standard 1600S apparently seemed too staid, and so the car was converted to Group 4. Widened fenders, front spoiler, 3-piece alloys, 7.5x13 wide at the front, 8.5x13 wide at the rear, chassis, engine slightly tuned, but with the same displacement of 1,553 cc to maintain stability. Of course, a roll bar and H-belts were also included for safety. With these modifications, the A110 was granted individual approval in 1998.
In 2012, the Berlinette was sold to Salzburg. To a real petrolhead and friend of somewhat unusual, sporty means of transportation. The original plan to properly service and optimize the Alpine after a long period of downtime turned into an extensive body-off restoration, although the car was in above-average condition. The vehicle was completely dismantled - body lifted off the frame, frame and axles blasted, partially galvanized, everything repainted, new wheel bearings, engine dismantled, checked, sealed, all lines, sleeves, axle rubbers, brakes, etc. redone. The notoriously lousy original on-board electrics were completely renewed and fitted with relays and proper fuse boxes. This ensured that the Alpine met the requirements of the new owner and that it really worked and could be used.
As it happens in life - after a few years, more precisely in 2017, after only about 1,500 kilometers driven, the interests changed and we were allowed to take over the Alpine for sale at that time. It wasn't long before an enthusiast from the west of Austria was so impressed by the fast flounder and the exceptionally good condition of the car that the Alpine quickly moved into his garage in Tyrol. He also treated the beautiful Berlinette with the utmost care and had it serviced by professionals, even though it had only been driven 1,000 kilometers in 7 years.
As it is a driving car and not a "stationary vehicle", the beautiful Alpine is now coming back to us, and we have the honor of finding a new home for this very special piece of sports equipment.
The vehicle is still in excellent condition after restoration in 2012/13, and has only covered approx. 2,500 km since then. It (the Berlinette) has been perfectly maintained on an ongoing basis, has not been raced and has only been used at a few regularity events.
Pure driving pleasure is guaranteed - just under 800 kg dead weight, around 140 hp - what more could a sports driver's heart want...?
119'000.- EUR
Price in your currency: approx. CHF 114'240 (Rate: 0.96)
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