Alfa Romeo: The tonale beats the pass to Stelvio

Everything sounds much better in Italian. The change that Alfa Romeo undergoing his own statement is running under the motto "La Metamorfosi". And is accompanied by words, which also sound very much in the German, very big: nothing less than "a new era of connectivity and electrification" is the speech, from a "whole universe with innovative services" and of them, "sportiness in the style of the 21st century to reinvent ".

• Scudetto on the face
• Always with double-clutch transmission
• Digital certificate
• Start as "Edizione Speciale"
• Electrical "Brennero"

An important role comes to the tonal. The new compact SUV can not drive through electricity. At least, however, his drives have ever been predominantly electrified. Moreover, there is a gap in the model program - time it has become for Alfa, finally to name an opponent for VW Tiguan & Co..

Scudetto on the face

4.35 meters measures the tonal in length, 1.84 meters in width and 1.60 meters in height. The platform-related relationship to the Jeep Compass is optically successful: The tonale looks like that, as you can expect from an Alfa Romeo, it starts with the famous "Trilobo" (as the face of Scudetto radiator grille is called with double-sided air intakes) The long bonnet to the crunchy tail.

Tonal interior: Start button on the steering wheel, Italian flag on the center console. manufacturer

The driver-oriented cockpit confronts with today's usual combination of digital driver troubles and central infotainment touchscreen. The former calls Alfa "Cannocchiale" (telescope), in the latter, an Android operating system accompanied by Amazon's Alexa. The smartphone finds wireless access. Thankfully, there are still various analog controls, a pretty detail is the small green-white-red Italian tricolors on the center console. Less chic radiates the pretty widespread black plastic.

According to his characteristic as a sporty SUV, the tonale positions his driver or the driver rather deep and binds him / she also spatially tight, of course without it tweaking and smuggling. The Hinterbänkler enjoys not outstanding, but ordinary freedom of movement, the trunk is dimensioned with 500 liters load-friendly.

Always with double-clutch transmission

But now to what drives the tonale: the basic work takes over a 48-volt system mild hybridized 1,5-l four-cylinder gasoline engine with 96 kW / 130 hp and 240 Newton meters torque. The stronger expansion stage makes 118 kW / 160 hp. Both variants are front-driven and cooperate with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, integrated is a small electric motor with 15 kW / 20 hp and 55 Newton meters of torque. However, purely electric driving is possible only at very low speeds, for example when parking or starting.

For long-distance riders, there is still a diesel, concretely a 1,6-l four-cylinder with 96 kW / 130 hp and 320 Newton meters torque, but the double-clutch transmission built here has only six driving steps.

Greatest in the bundle: As a plug-in hybrid, the tonale brings on a system performance of 275 hp. manufacturer

As a top model, the plug-in hybrid acts, by the way, the first partial circulator from Alfa. He tenses a 1,3-L turbo gasoline with an electric motor, former drives the front wheels, the latter the rear axle, four-wheel drive so. The system performance is 202 kW / 275 hp. A 15.5 kWh battery should make around 60 kilometers of electric driving possible. Loading is using a 7.4 kW onboard charger, after two and a half hours on the wallbox or charging column, the battery is fit again, as it is said.

The assistance systems are to say that, in addition to an intelligent adaptive temporary, an extended tracking and traffic assistant will operate. This then looks so that the speed and position of the vehicle in the middle of the track is held automatically, at the same time a certain distance remains to be preserved to the front man.

Digital certificate

Trademark: Zierrat of this kind love the Alfisti. manufacturer

With the tonal, Alfa also introduces a kind of digital certificate whose contents go beyond that of the usual service booklet. "Non-Fungible Token" means the technology, short NFT: it records the most important data in the life of the vehicle - how often it has been loaded, for example, which drives it was exposed or how and when the maintenance has happened. When reselling, dealers or buying interests can then be based on the information. In terms of privacy, a very sensitive matter, as well as the senior product manager Anco van Driel knows and assures that Alfa himself could not see the data and the tonal owner with the recording must be actively agreed.

Start as "Edizione Speciale"

The tonal can be ordered from April and as a special model "Edizione Speciale". The new compact SUV then goes to the dealer in June. Prices are not known yet, but it could go with a good 30,000 euros. The basic equipment is called "super", the better levels "ti", "sprint" and "veloce".

Electrical "Brennero"

In 2024 the tonale should then beat another pass, in the direction of "Brennero". Thus, rumor alfa's first pure electricity is called - a SUV that still fails a number smaller than the tonal and narrow kinship cares for future electro-jeep. Especially in the German-speaking world, the name may not be a very happy choice, the conceivable incorrect association on the "burner". Some things sound better in Italian.

Ulla ellmer

Alfa Romeo Tonale shortly:

When he comes: orderable from April, deliveries from June

Who he takes to seek: VW Tiguan, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage, Seat Ateca, Skoda Kodiaq etc.

What drives it: 1,5-L four-cylinder gasoline with 96 kW / 130 hp and 118 kW / 160 hp and 48 volt mild hybrid system. 1,6-L four-cylinder diesel with 96 kW / 130 hp. Plug-in hybrid drive with 202 kW / 275 hp system performance.

What he costs: not yet known