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The Alpine A110 was the best-selling sports car in France in 2022, with sales of 3,500 and beating the German Porsche.

The car, known for its distinctive blue versions, as pictured, is partly handmade at a factory in Dieppe in Seine-Maritime.

The site took on an extra 10 workers last year to cope with demand.

With a four-cylinder, 1.8l petrol engine with turbo chargers, the Alpine does not have as much power as the Porsche Cayman, its closest rival, but its light weight of 1.1 tonnes means it takes just 4.5 seconds to get to 100km/h for the basic model, equal to the Porsche.

It is rear-wheel drive and has relatively good fuel consumption, at between 6.7-7 litres per 100km. Prices range from 鈧�105,000 for the ultra-sporty R version where aluminium is replaced by carbon fibre for the boot, bonnet and some other parts, down to 鈧�59,500 for the basic model.

Special edition models include a fast interceptor car for the gendarmerie which is starting to be used on autoroutes.

In spite of its success, the petrol A110, which went on sale in 2018, will probably end production in 2026 when an electric version will take its place.

鈥淓ight years is a good run for a car without significant changes,鈥� an Alpine spokeswoman said.

鈥淲e are very happy.鈥�

Other more 鈥榤ass market鈥� models are expected in 2026, as well as the electric replacement.

Alpine is owned by the Renault group.

With the A110 entirely made in France, apart from some electronics chips, it has not suffered from the long production delays some models have had.

Even so, waiting lists for delivery are between four and seven months, depending on the version and options.

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