To be welcome, even invited, to drive flat out over an alpine pass in a raging blizzard at night-that’s priceless
To be welcome, even invited, to drive flat out over an alpine pass in a raging blizzard at night-that’s priceless
This ex-Works car, fitted with a Mignotet-built and -tuned engine, started its racing career in the 1968 Tour de Corse driven by Jean-Francois Piot. The rally was won by Jean-Claude Andruet in a sister car. Next year “our car” won the Rallye des Routes du Nord with Jean Vinatier and Marcel Callewaert on snow-covered roads-one of only twelve finishers out of 65 starters.
Two weeks later, Vinatier was second at the Neige et Glace rally on dry and sunny roads behind the powerful Larousse Porsche 911R. If the Porsche had been uncatchable on the fastest stages, Vinatier was supreme on the snow-covered climbing road of the Revard. In good form since the beginning of the season, Vinatier won the Lyon-Charbonniéres rally with the same car in front of Chassault (911T) and Andruet (Alpine 1440). With the introduction of the new 1600S models, the 1440s were retired and stored away.
In the late 1970s, Alain Bernardet, future editor of Sport Auto magazine, often visited Marc Mignotet’s workshop, where he went through a course of instruction. Mignotet offered him one of the four complete 1440 engines remaining, which were no longer competitive for top-level racing.
At the same time, Bernard Pierangeli-the Alpine sales manager and head of the Centre Alpine at Boulogne-offered an ex-Works A110, which could be fitted with this engine. It is important to note that at that time Alpine used to sell its racing cars fitted with stock engines in order to fund other projects. The 1440 engine was installed in the car still registered 4842GG76, which corresponded with its racing condition in the 1968 and 1969 seasons.
Never restored, the 1968 Renault A110 Coupe now shows 46,000 kilometers (28,500 miles) on the clock. The engine, stamped 1440CCN4M (M for Mignotet), is still in the car, like the specific 5-speed transmission. The interior is still absolutely original, including the bucket seats and the Moto-Lita wheel. The lightweight body shows some scars from the racing events in which it participated.
This is a very important A110 Coupe not only in the Alpine story but in the history of French motorsport in the late 1960s. Few racing Alpine A110s are in such original condition and without modifications, and even fewer can boast such an important race record. These two factors make it one of the most sought-after Alpine 110s we have ever offered and without a doubt a Holy Grail for the keen Alpiniste.
