Alfa Romeo Tonale (2022) debuts with 275 hp plug-in hybrid

(Motorsport-Total.com/Motor1) - Believe it or not, this is really and truly the production version of the Alfa Romeo Tonale. A good three years after the presentation of the study at the Geneva Motor Show 2019 and countless shifts, Alfa's first compact crossover is finally ready.

Alfa Romeo Tonale Zoom

It comes as a plug-in hybrid, mild hybrid petrol engine and diesel, gets very modern infotainment, should of course deliver the best handling in its class and is the first car in the world to receive an NFT certificate (non-fungible token), so use it hyper fancy blockchain technology. We will now tell you what all this means in detail.

Design/Dimensions

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You really have to give it to the gentlemen at Centro StileAlfa Romeo - the production version of the Tonale (buy Alfa Romeo Tonale used cars now) is not far from the rather spectacular 2019 study (in the gallery below this paragraph). The fact that the Italo version of a Jeep Compass is driving here has been concealed pretty well in any case. The sexy sibling of the American SUV is 4.53 meters long, 1.84 meters wide and 1.60 meters high. This means that the Tonale is not that far off its big brother Stelvio (4.68 metres).

The provisional top model is the plug-in hybrid with 275 hp and all-wheel drive. This is an optimized variant of the PHEV drive from the Jeep Compass 4xe (maximum 240 hp system output). The combo consists of a 1.3-liter turbo petrol engine, an electric motor in the rear and a 6-speed automatic transmission. The battery has a capacity of 15.5 kWh. With the 7.4 kW fast charger, a full charge of the battery takes a good 2.5 hours, according to Alfa.

The Tonale with a plug is said to accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 6.2 seconds and cover a distance of more than 60 kilometers purely electrically in the combined cycle. In the urban cycle, it should be up to 80 kilometers. According to the manufacturer, these are the best values in the segment.

driving dynamics

Here the Italians promise quite unconceitedly the best in class. Blame "a perfect weight distribution between the axles", which probably means a 50:50 balance, and the most direct steering in the segment (ratio 13.6:1). In addition, there are electronically controlled adaptive dampers and, for the front-wheel drive vehicles, the aforementioned E-locking diff on the front axle.

Alfa Romeo Tonale (2022) debuts with 275 hp plug-in hybrid

Photo gallery: Alfa Romeo Tonale (2022) debuts with 275 hp plug-in hybrid

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The Tonale has an integrated braking system (the electromechanical system combines the functions of the electronic stability control with the mechanical brake). Nothing is mentioned about possible recuperation with the plug-in hybrid. Brembo contributes a four-piston brake system with ventilated discs at the front.

interior

As befits a true compact crossover, the interior design is aimed at "young, metropolitan and dynamic customers". We are more happy about the nice little sports steering wheel with the aluminum shift paddles known from the Giulia and Stelvio.

Cockpit of the Alfa Romeo TonaleZoom

Behind it - for the first time in an Alfa - is a digital instrument display with 12.3 inches. The infotainment touchscreen measures 10.25 inches. Alfa says no one else in the segment has more combined inches. Good: There seems to be correct buttons for the climate control. Even better: a turn-push switch is also on board.

On the center tunnel we see the automatic selector lever and the typical DNA switch for changing the driving modes. In tonal terms, this can be done in the levels All-Weather, Normal, Dynamic and ESC off.

The SUV comes standard with a scalable Android operating system and 4G connectivity with over-the-air updates, Amazon Alexa voice capabilities, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Up to eight end devices can use the car's Internet connection.

Alfa Romeo tonal studyZoom

The (partly optional) comfort features include dual-zone air conditioning, ventilated and heated front seats, ambient lighting and a Harman/Kardon sound system with 14 speakers. There is also a semi-automatic parking system that displays an available parking space and, if desired, automatically maneuvers into and out of a parking space, an electrically operated tailgate and a wireless charging station for smartphones.

The Tonale enables level 2 autonomous driving. Blind Spot Assist, rear lateral movement detection and a 360° camera are available as options.

For the crypto geeks

The Tonale is the first car to feature NFT (Non-Fungible Token) technology. Alfa Romeo is thus the first manufacturer to equip a vehicle with a forgery-proof, digital certificate. The technology is based on the concept of blockchain.

With the NFT - with the consent of the owner - the most important stages in the life of the vehicle are recorded in an access-protected and non-modifiable manner, including, for example, the proper maintenance of the vehicle. This should represent an additional safety feature on the used car market, which owners or dealers can rely on and which could also increase the residual value of the used car.