A number of supercar rumors have been have been spreading throughout the auto industry.
The Infiniti Emerg-E concept supercar had already made a number of appearances since it was first unveiled at the Geneva Auto Show earlier this year. Although the concept was last seen at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Infiniti has yet to confirm (nor deny) whether it will green light the concept for production.
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the legendary 1961 Alpine 110 this year, the Nissan-Infiniti parent company Renault unveiled its stunning Alpine A110-50 Concept and also invited former factory rally driver Jean Ragnotti to pilot the prototype for a promo teaser video of the car. As we would expect, Renault has not confirmed the production of the A110-50 either. However, speaking hypothetically, marketing boss Steve Norman said that a new Alpine would be mid or rear-engined and that the project, "probably needs more than the Renault-Nissan Alliance on its own".
While the Emerg-E and A110-50 concept cars are visual polar opposites, its layout and dimensions are actually quite similar. As the Infiniti Emerg-E rides on a Lotus Evora 414E concept platform, industry observers have suggested the possibility of a Lotus Evora-based Renault Alpine as well.
Forget about Lotus' participation for a second; a production Infiniti Emerg-E or Renault A110-50 alone are already no better than vaporware. Now we're supposed to believe that both examples will be slated for production AND Lotus is going to make it possible?! Yes.
Apparently, the best chance the Emerg-E and A110-50 have is to really form a triumvirate effort with Lotus. The most immediate benefit will be the sharing of an existing platform, which will allow a healthy drop in R&D costs for Renault-Nissan.
Really, it's Lotus that stands to gain the most out of the partnership. As poor sales and horrendous management of business operations continue to lead the British sports car towards insolvency, a joint project with industry titans with deep pockets is exactly what Lotus needs to stay alive.
Stay tuned as Renault-Infiniti-Lotus developments continue.
[Source: AutoCar]
