Say hello to the Abt Cupra Formentor, a 365bhp crossover that wants you to forget about the humble hot hatch.

The Cupra Formentor is the latest VAG product to be treated to an Abt makeover. Having already received a bespoke platform on which it was built, the Cupra Formentor boasted 306bhp from the famous EA888 engine.

Similar to the Cupra Ateca and the rest of its family members, though, a touch of fettling with the ECU has resulted in a horsepower increase of 59bhp and with that an extra 37ft lb of torque, too.

Abt quotes that the Cupra Formentor will now accelerate from 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds, shaving 0.3 seconds off of the factory time.

It’s not just an increase in performance, though, as Abt has treated the Cupra Formentor to a set of new springs to sit alongside the car’s adaptive suspension. This now drops the ride height by some 35mm, helping to fill the arch gap that was already being attacked by a new set of 20-inch wheels. Both a 19-inch set and 20-inch set of wheels are available as options.

Cupra and Abt continue to work closely as the pair partner on a new team that will compete in the inaugural Extreme E series later in 2021. For now, no prices have been confirmed for the power hike but given on other Cupra products the same power hike costs around £500, you should expect the same.

You can check out our video review of the Limited Edition Abt Cupra Ateca below.

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These are words I didn’t expect and certainly wished I’d never have to write, but it’s with great sadness to announce that Ricky Parker-Morris passed away last week.

Obituary written by Jules Truss. 

Tricky, as he’s known in Fast Car, will need no introduction to old-school readers, as he was the magazine’s main photographer and technical writer from the mid-nineties until the late noughties. For the new school? Well, just mention his name in car culture circles and you’ll be blessed with smiles and stories.

I first met Trick back in 2002 when he came into Fast Car HQ to shoot the products. Being an aspiring photographer and long-time reader of the magazine, he was somewhat of an idol of mine, and I was genuinely nervous to meet him. Did I need to be? Absolutely not! He treated me as a mate from day one, like he did with everyone he met.

Tricky loved a wind-up. You’d learn to never fall asleep while in the passenger seat during a road trip and if you did, you’d probably wake up with whiplash or hypothermia. On the days you finished a shoot early, he’d insist on going to the pub instead of going back to the office. You’d then get a mysterious phone call from the boss asking where you were, unaware that he’d sent a sneaky picture of you enjoying your pint.

One of the fondest memories I have is of a Pirelli press trip to Rome. We were given the keys to an Impreza WRX in the morning and by the time we’d stopped for pizza in the afternoon, the brakes had pretty much caught fire. The memories we made will last a lifetime and everyone he worked with will say the same. I have so many more stories to tell, but they just aren’t suitable for print!

Despite all the silliness, Tricky’s passion for the magazine was infectious. He was on top of his game and produced stunning images that helped propel Fast Car to pole position. Even though his last commission was a decade ago, he’ll always be associated with FC and remained an ambassador for the brand up until his passing; his race car still wears the Fast Car livery today. A race car he built with his brother in the early 90s as a Fast Car project and successfully resurrected a few years back to take class and overall wins in the Special Saloons series.

Before Ricky worked on FC, he was an engineer, then a race driver instructor at Brands Hatch. He then worked tirelessly as a site manager refitting hospitals after his stint on the mag came to an end. His spare time would be spent with his family, racing his 309 with his brother and being a Classic Sports Car Club Committee Member and Driver Representative for the Special Saloons and Modsport Series.

Tricky was a top photographer, a talented wheelman, and a guy who could party with the best of them, but more than that, he was the best bloody bloke you could ever meet, a loving brother to Danny, a dedicated son to Helena, an amazing dad to Bailey–D and a caring husband to Toni.

We’ll see you on the other side Trick; I know you’ll have a beer or white wine spritzer waiting for us! ‘Ave it LARGE up there fella; we love and miss you!

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As part of a wider restructuring strategy, Renault is set to replace the Alpine A110 with an electric sports car co-developed with Lotus.

We already know that Renault is keen to plaster the Alpine nameplate on anything performance-orientated going forward. This restructuring started with the Renault Sport F1 team namesake being replaced by Alpine.

We also know that when it comes to road cars, the famous Renault Sport badging will also be replaced and instead with Alpine. This looks likely to start with a reimagined Renault 5 hot-hatch that would come under the Alpine bannering. This car is penned to be fully-electric. The next piece of the puzzle comes in the form of a new partnership with none other than Lotus, with the two planning to co-develop a new electric sports car to replace the Alpine A110.

First look at the Alpine F1 car. This is an interim winter livery before the official look is revealed.

Laurent Rossie, CEO of Alpine, spoke on the collaboration: “The signing of this MoU with Lotus shows the lean and smart approach we’re implementing as part of the new Alpine brand strategy. Both brands have an amazing legacy and we are most excited to start this work together, from engineering tailored solutions to developing a next-generation EV sports car. This collaboration along with our transformation mark the beginning of a new era in which we’ll be taking the Alpine name and line-up to the future. We’re putting F1 at the heart of our business, leveraging our in-house expertise and best-in-class partners such as Lotus to inject our cars with leading-edge performance, technology and motorisation”.

Lotus CEO, Phil Popham, also commented on the new partnership: “Today’s announcement is the first step in what is set to be a hugely rewarding collaboration between our iconic brands. We are proud to be working with Groupe Renault in this collaboration – sharing Lotus’ technical expertise and abilities, and leveraging our long track record of successful collaborations.  Our companies have much in common – from a pioneering pedigree in light-weighting, to championship-winning sportscars which perform as impressively on the road as they do in the motorsports arena. It is a natural fit in many ways and the co-development of an EV sportscar is hugely exciting for our companies, our fans and customers around the world.  The joint-services element of our agreement will additionally make our engineering expertise available to those wishing to engage our innovations.”

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