An Alpine A110 rally car, first used as a factory mule in 1973 and subsequently entered in the race by private teams, will be auctioned on October 24, 2021 in Paris by Artcurial.
The Artcurial house is preparing its annual auction on the Champs-Elysées, the 2021 edition of which will be held on October 24. Among the cars on offer, each more exclusive than the last, will feature some prestigious rally cars. Among them will be an Alpine A110 used as a mule in the 1970s.
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A real factory car
In 1973, in the Thiron-Gardais (Eure-et-Loir) plant which supported the Dieppe plant, Alpine produced a handful of 1600 VC type A110s fitted with a 1.8 engine. Some were intended for rally racing. Others, mules like the example in question here, to the recognition of these same tests. Very little differentiated racing cars from mules, including the tachometer and tank. In 1973, this reconnaissance car was initially reinforced for the tracks of the rally of Morocco. It was then used on other equally difficult tracks in the championship that year, the first official WRC at the end of which Alpine won with the A110 1800. The mule in question was driven by factory drivers like Bernard Darniche or Jean-Luc Thérier, unofficial champion of the season who did not yet offer a “drivers” title.
An A110 with multiple lives
Between 1974 and 1975, the car passed into the hands of several teams and was notably entered in competition, before being taken over by Alpine. In 1976, it was bought by the pilot Jean-Pierre Nicolas who had taken over his father’s garage. It is probably there that its engine was replaced by the 1.6 L unit which it still equips today, associated with a “Monte Carlo” gearbox. Apart from that, the car always displays its latest racing configuration: double oil cooler, double fan, wide fenders, reinforced underpinnings … It must be said that it was stored for 38 years, until its acquisition in 2014 by its current owner., a Renault dealer who also owns an A110 1600S. In the meantime, some parts whose rims were stolen. The berlinetta was then completely restored and is now in its finest form. It is estimated between € 220,000 and € 280,000.
