It’s signed! 26 copies of Alpine A110 will join the ranks of the National Gendarmerie, more than 50 years after the entry into service of the first generations of berlinettes. The Ministry of the Interior will have its copies modified at Durisotti’s. The coupes should circulate from mid-2022.
[Mis à jour le 13/10/2021] To replace the Mégane 3 RS of the Gendarmerie at the end of the race, the idea of the Alpine A110 has often been mentioned. After all, the first generation of this berlinetta had been one of the first mounts of the rapid intervention brigade (BRI), taking over from the Matra Djet 5S in 1967. As a bonus, this sports car had the merit of be made in France, in Dieppe (Seine-Maritime). Finally, to top it off, blue is the favorite color of the brand and the Gendarmerie! But the police had finally rather set their sights, at the end of 2020, on a Seat Leon Cupra, both more practical and much less expensive.
TO READ. Gendarmerie reserves: a look back at the summer saga of L’argus
26 copies of the Berlinette ordered
However, since then, the cards have been reshuffled, and the A110 will integrate well into the ranks of the Army. The rumor relayed by the Lesalpinistes website has been verified. This October 13, the Home Office announced that it had ordered 26 copies of A110 Pure. The copies will be transformed, as often, at the coachbuilder Durisotti, in Sallaumines, near Lens (Pas-de-Calais). Renault has signed a four-year contract with the State.
These 26 A110 Pure will be used in particular for motorway interventions involving high-speed infringing cars, as part of road safety or judicial police missions (drug trafficking, for example). Two copies will be reserved for rapid response training. They will likely enter service in mid-2022.
Leon Cupra deliveries quickly stopped
The Alpine A110 will gradually replace the aging Mégane RS and recent Leon Cupra, which had caused controversy, and whose deliveries were prematurely interrupted. It was above all the nationality of the model that was criticized. During most of its existence, the brigade has, in fact, favored French brands … even if we remember the precedent of the Subaru WRX or the Spanish manufacture of the Mégane RS.
Opting for the A110 corrects that. But as the arrival of hybrid models had also been mentioned, one would have thought that the Peugeot 508 PSE would have been preferred. Especially since it was also more practical to store the bulky equipment necessary for the gendarmes. maybe the fear of ending up with an empty battery in the middle of a highway chase will have dissuaded the BRI from opting for this trendy wagon, whose power sometimes lacks consistency …
TO HAVE. Gendarmerie reserves. A look back at the summer saga of L’argus