The French automaker has removed the wraps from a production car based on its Alpenglow Concept created two years ago. Unlike that one, the new car utilizes a prototype hydrogen powertrain. It will be taking part in the 6 Hours of Spa Francorchamps later today and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in mid-June.
Compared to the original design, the new one looks decidedly more grounded in reality with slightly revised proportions and a two-seat cockpit instead of a single-seat one. According to Alpine, the designers wanted it to look like the company’s latest-and-greatest car while also making sure it had enough room for two hydrogen tanks at the sides.
There is little known about the powertrain itself. We are told that is based on a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine that combusts hydrogen gas for 340 PS (335 hp / 250 kW).
Alpine says it is confident that in the future, hydrogen fuel will find proper use both in motorsports and in road-legal cars, and the prototype racer aims to prove that. In late 2024, the company plans to unveil another variant of the same car packing a larger V6 instead of a four-pot. It is also looking into fuel-cell-based propulsion systems and is targeting a portfolio of seven zero-emission vehicles by early 2030s.
