Alfa Romeo Tonale 2023 long-term test

Why we’re moving it: To spot however good Alfa’s caller PHEV tiny SUV balances rationality and emotion 

Month 1 - Specs

Life with a Tonale PHEV: Month 1

Welcoming the Tonale to the fleet - 20 September 2023

Here’s a potted caller past of Alfa Romeo: it was loss-making until genitor institution Fiat Chrysler was subsumed into a caller conglomerate, Stellantis, which rapidly made it profitable, nether the watchful oculus of Jean-Philippe Imparato, already esteemed for his affirmative interaction connected Peugeot.

New cars person been sparse, and portion the Giulia saloon is well-liked by america and others and the Stelvio is simply a talented SUV (albeit an ageing 1 with nary electrified powertrains), the instauration of a tiny SUV was good overdue. 

Enter the Tonale. Luxury marque oregon not, if you don’t person a compact SUV connected your books these days, you’re dormant successful the water. The Tonale was revealed successful 2019, but aft Imparato joined successful aboriginal 2021, it was delayed earlier arriving past year.

Why? Well, arsenic a perfectionist and a existent Alfista, the Frenchman wasn’t blessed with the electric-only scope of the plug-in hybrid, nor the “Alfa Romeo interaction and feel” of the mild hybrid. Those are the 2 variants present available, with our caller long-termer being the plug-in hybrid.

One of the reasons that Imparato wanted that EV scope to beryllium decent was to guarantee it appealed to fleet customers. After all, it’s the astir fleet-relevant car that Alfa has made successful donkey’s years. Just implicit fractional of Tonale income are to fleets,

and the SUV unsurprisingly already accounts for two-thirds of the brand’s UK sales, truthful it’s a sizeable measurement that is going to businesses.

For now, the 1.5-litre MHEV is inactive the much fashionable powertrain, making up 58% of sales, but Alfa expects the equilibrium to flip arsenic afloat availability of the 1.3-litre PHEV comes into play successful the UK.

That volition besides amended Alfa’s wide income lasting here, which is down 7.6% twelvemonth to date. The shaper says that’s a effect of it moving distant from interior combustion cars and the hold successful the PHEV arrival.

Anyhow, the summary is that the Tonale mightiness not beryllium the Alfa of your dreams, but it is the Alfa that the institution desperately needs.

So to ours. First, that colour! Already recovered connected the Giulia, it made maine grin erstwhile I archetypal potted it connected my street. Regular readers mightiness callback that I'm not 1 for agleam colours (although I wouldn't accidental nary to a yellowish McLaren if offered, obviously), but this Montreal Green - a £1500 enactment - is connected the large broadside without being garish. Maybe it conscionable feels, well, precise Italian, and precise Alfa.

The different 2 options connected our car are the Mode 3 charging cable, which helpfully connects your car to a charging station, and the autonomous driving L2 pack, which is simply a fancy sanction for immoderate assisted driving functions arsenic intelligent adaptive cruise control, precocious lane keeping assistance and a front-facing camera. 

Included arsenic modular connected Veloce trim (the mediate and astir popular) are a 10.25in touchscreen strategy with a DAB radio, sat-nav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, positive a wireless smartphone charging pad and hands-free footwear opening. 

The powertrain is an uprated mentation of the 1 recovered successful the Jeep Compass 4xe (although Alfa doesn't similar that reference). It has the aforesaid 177bhp four-cylinder turbo petrol motor driving the beforehand wheels done a six-speed automatic gearbox, but the electrical motors are much almighty than the Jeep's, astatine 121bhp. That each delivers four-wheel thrust and a 0-62mph clip of 6.2sec. 

It has a bigger artillery too, with a capableness of 15.5kWh, which promises up to 48 miles of electrical range. Time volition tell, but I'm hopeful that I tin comfortably get much than 30 miles of scope successful the existent world. 

As you tin spot from our roadworthy trial editor's comments (below), the PHEV powertrain hasn't been arsenic good received arsenic Alfa mightiness person hoped, mostly due to the fact that of its bequest arsenic a sporting brand. But surviving with a car is precise antithetic to an intensive roadworthy test, truthful let's spot however I travel to consciousness astir it implicit the adjacent fewer months. 

I proceed to beryllium amazed by however costly cars are these days, but to beryllium just to Alfa, the Tonale is connected par price-wise with cardinal rivals including the BMW X2 and the Jaguar E-Pace. 

It's an breathtaking clip for Alfa: money-making erstwhile again and capable to warrant making genuinely breathtaking cars specified arsenic the recently-revealed 33 Stradale supercar. Now is my accidental to spot if the Tonale offers immoderate clues astir wherever the marque is heading. 

Second Opinion

When I compared a Tonale with an equivalent Audi Q3 earlier this year, Alfa’s inexperience with PHEVs was made wide by a comparative uncouthness astir its powertrain. However, determination was besides overmuch to similar astir the newcomer, not slightest its amazingly agile handling.  

SECOND OPINION AUTHOR HERE

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Alfa Romeo Tonale 1.3 PHEV 280 Veloce specification

Specs: Price New £48,495 Price arsenic tested £51,595 Options Autonomous driving L2 battalion £1250, PHEV Mode 3 charging cablegram £350, Montreal Green overgarment £1500 

Test Data: Engine 4 cyls successful line, 1332cc, turbo, petrol, positive 15.5kWh artillery and rear-mounted electrical motor Power 276bhp Torque 347lb ft Kerb weight 1835kg Top speed 128bhp 0-62mph 6.2sec Fuel economy 217.3mpg CO2 29-33g/km Faults None Expenses None

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