Following the launch of the Tonale concept car by Alfa Romeo at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2019, announcing to the outside world that the Italian car manufacturer is about to enter the small luxury SUV market, after a few years, the brand finally officially released its mass production commercial version, and the opponent directly targeted the German Audi Q3, BMW X1 and Mercedes-Benz GLA, on the one hand, it brought a variety of power options such as gasoline and diesel, oil and electricity, PHEV, etc., becoming a brand electrified model. Of course, for Alfa Romeo, it also hopes to boost brand morale with this entry-level SUV, and shake off the sluggish market sales performance in recent years (last year's sales volume fell by 30% compared with 2020).
The Alfa Romeo Tonale is sized 4,530x1,600x1,840mm. The wheelbase is 2,636mm. The exterior styling is almost directly transplanted from the concept version 3 years ago, but the narrow three-eye LED matrix headlamp silhouette is less aggressive (inspired by SZ Zagato), the shape is more rounded, with the signature inverted triangle water tank guard, and the large black mesh lower air intake, which is highly recognizable.
The side of the car also shows the replacement of the hidden door handles of the original concept car with the traditional style, combined with the telephone-like carousel shape aluminum ring (optional 17 to 20 inches), and the Brembo front facing four-piston red brake calipers to create a good visual tension. The rear of the car echoes the design of the front of the car to introduce U-shaped LED light guide bars, and directly runs through the two sides of the rear, and the Tonale inscription plate is also added below the central Alfa Romeo factory emblem to highlight the identity. The suspension comes standard with Koni shock absorbers, and consumers can opt for an active suspension system that balances handling and comfort.
The driver-oriented interior design smells the full Alfa flavor, such as the round shape of the air-conditioned air outlet and the huge metal paddles behind the three steering wheels, plus the red factory emblem embroidery on the double front seat headrests, the Alcantara suede seat surface, and the red stitching located on the side door panels, center console and seats, which can be said to be quite successful in creating a performance atmosphere. Other comforts include ventilated and heated front seats, room mood lights, 14 sets of Harman Kardon speakers, wireless charging stations for mobile phones and more.
Among them, the dual-ring periscope instrument adopts a 12.5-inch LCD display style, and the 10.25-inch car touch screen with the built-in Amazon Alexa intelligent voice assistant is visible on the right (supports wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto mobile phone connection, OTA update), and others such as DNA driving mode selector are also included (can change the throttle, steering and active suspension characteristics). The ADAS Advanced Driver Assistance System also includes IACC active cruise control and LC lane centering to achieve Level 2 semi-autonomous driving. Others such as automatic emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, blind spot detection, rear lateral traffic warning, 360-degree surround view imagery, etc. are listed as standard.
In terms of power, the first wave offers a wide range of power options such as conventional gasoline and diesel, oil and electricity, and PHEV plug-in oil and electricity. The 48V petro-electric front-drive version offers two output specifications, one of which is a 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine, driven by a belt, 21PS start-up motor generator (BSG) and a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, which can create a maximum output of 130PS, while the advanced version also uses a 1.5-liter engine, but with the help of VGT's variable geometry turbocharger, the output reaches the 160PS level. One of its major features is that it can drive the vehicle in pure electric mode at high speed cruising and low speed creeping, and according to the original manufacturer, its fuel economy is comparable to that of the diesel-powered version.
Q4 PHEV plug-in oil-electric power version, in addition to the four-wheel drive setting, the internal combustion engine with a smaller displacement of the 1.3-liter MultiAir family engine, with the rear axle of electric motors, can create 275PS comprehensive output, and can pay 6.2 seconds of static breakthrough speed. In terms of pure electric mileage, combined with a 15.5kWh lithium battery pack, it brings about 80km of endurance (City Cycle). In the North American market, the original plant also brought a 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline turbo-powered model, which can pay a maximum output of 260PS/40.8kgm when combined with a nine-speed transmission and AWD four-wheel drive system. Some European markets such as Italy also offer 1.6-liter four-cylinder diesel turbo power (130PS) for consumers to choose from.