GTP Cool Wall: 2017+ Alpine A110

[Suzumiya]

>sports car

I schleep

>French

REAL ****?!

 

[Turbo]

You've definitely become an expert on Renault's 1980s endeavours in the 36 hours it took before you were made aware that they even existed.

What makes you think I never knew they existed? Just pointing it out, I've known about that long before this thread was made.

Also:

What does that even mean?

It means they were basically dreadful cars. They were hopelessly underpowered, under engineered, and very unreliable. I'm not implying that these cars themselves are similar to the Cadillac Cimarron, but they are notoriously awful, just like the Cimarron.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

Fiat and Alfa have an advantage over Renault at reentering the American market, and it's easy to see why. During Renault's stay in the American market, starting in the 50s, the brand was known for producing arguably the most unreliable and problematic pre-fuel crisis car in America (the Dauphine). This caused the brand to have a bad rap, and unsurprisingly, Renault departed the US shortly after the Dauphine fiasco. When they came back in the 80s, it wasn't much better; the two economy cars they were selling, Encore and Alliance, were nothing more than appalling, almost as bad as a Cadillac Cimarron. And then there was the comically stupid "Le Car", which failed due to it's gimmicky marketing campaigns and being too radically styled for the typical American consumer of the time. On the contrary, Fiat never messed up when they were present in the US market during the 60s and 70s; they were known for their cute and fun roadster, the 124.

Plenty of grey market makes have had bad raps over the years. This doesn't at all deter them from still selling or returning to the market. So my original point to your statement still holds. All you've done is regurgitated a wiki like mass of info on a history, not on a justification for the modern Renault.

 

[05XR8]

How about the X1/9? Smaller than a 914 and MR2. Fiat did sell a fair amount though. However, wasn't the best in practicality and reliability.

Renault did try with the Fuego, but the Alfa GTV stole that "sports coupe's" thunder. I guarantee, if the 3rd-gen Megane RS, alone, sold in the states, it would have revitalised the brand there. Especially against Scirocco and TT.

 

[Tornado]

What makes you think I never knew they existed?

Because you said this:

Other than car enthusiasts, Americans have likely never heard of the Renault brand, let alone Alpine. It would take a lot of work to develop a whole new brand and image, in a new market.

They wouldn't need to develop a whole new brand and image. They would need to actively shed both things from the very well publicized attempt to break into the American market that ended only 30 years ago.
"Americans", meaning people who actually have the means to purchase a new car and thus are of a certain age range, are likely aware of when Renault bought the 4th largest American automaker and quickly replaced its entire model lineup with French-based designs after already selling its cars in America for several years. Even people who never bought one would have been aware at the time, if for no other reason than because the US government threatened to block the sale because of AMC's role as a major defense contractor.

It means they were basically dreadful cars. They were hopelessly underpowered, under engineered, and very unreliable. I'm not implying that these cars themselves are similar to the Cadillac Cimarron, but they are notoriously awful, just like the Cimarron.

Can we have the Jalopnik article you copied this from that specifically marks the AMC/Renault designs as being dramatically worse by those metrics circa 1983 than the original Escort, or the VW Rabbit, or (most infamously) the Citation?

 

[Tyger]

I voted cool due to the manufacture name. I like saying Alpine and it's also one of the better modern-retro designed cars out there in my opinion.

It's arguably pronounced Al-peen though...