In 2012 French automaker Renault and British track car specialist and Formula One team Caterham confirmed plans to develop a new sports car platform that would spawn separate models for the two parties in 2016. Renault was to launch its sports car under a revived Alpine brand while Caterham’s model was to spearhead the arrival of several new road cars for the British brand.

According to Autocar, the two parties have decided to go their separate ways, though both are said to remain committed to launching respective sports car models by the promised 2016 date. It’s not clear if the new sports cars would still share a platform, although given the looming release date it seems likely. It’s also not clear if the two cars will still be produced at Renault’s Dieppe plant in France, as originally envisaged, though it seems unlikely if the two are in fact going their separate ways.

Neither party has confirmed the news, although there have been claims of tension within the project following a decision by Renault to change the design of its car slightly. The Renault-Alpine A110-50 concept car from 2012 is thought to preview the look of Renault’s sports car.

Last August we saw the first test mules for the new sports car platform, which was being tested using the makeshift body of a Lotus. The target for engineers, both in terms of performance and pricing, was the Porsche Cayman and Alfa Romeo 4C.

Stay tuned for an update.

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