Alpine shows off all-aluminium construction

Renault's resurrected Alpine brand has teased a single picture of the all-new lightweight aluminium architecture that will form the basis of a whole range of sports cars.

Releasing a single pic of the still to be officially named A120's underpinnings, the car-maker confirmed its mid-engine coupe will come with a chassis and body made from aluminium.

The lightweight material, Alpine says, has been key for it to realise internal targets for performance.

Those targets were recently revealed on Alpine's own website Alpinecars.com, which declared the A120 will reach 100km/h in just 4.5 seconds.

It's thought the Alpine could be among the lightest in its class, potentially tipping the scales at around 1100kg -- more than 200kg lighter than a Porsche Cayman.

Under the bonnet it's thought the A120 will come powered by a mid-mounted 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine developed by Renaultsport that should generate up to 225kW and most likely be matched to a dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Priced between €55,000-€60,000 ($A75,000-$A84,000) in France inclusive of tax, perspective buyers have already been invited to place a €2000 ($A2800) deposit via a downloadable Alpine app to reserve one of the 1955 Premiere Edition coupes that will help launch the brand.

If you order now, Alpine says deliveries will begin in Europe “towards the end of 2017” while right-hand drive markets like Australia, Japan and the UK will see deliveries knocked back to 2018.

The production version of the Alpine A120 will be officially revealed this March at the Geneva motor show.