CARS OF THE WORLD

Alfa Romeo Tonale 2023.

Production Alfa Romeo Tonale has been presented: a new compact crossover.

Alfa Romeo has officially unveiled the Tonale, the concept version of which was shown to the public back in 2019.

Like the crossover Stelvio, the novelty is named after the pass of the same name in the Alps.

Interestingly, the series Alfa Romeo Tonale exterior design was almost an exact copy of the mentioned concept, that is, on the way to the series significantly simplify the appearance of the model Italians did not.

In particular, the crossover retained frowning three-sectional headlights, visually united by the branded «beak» of the radiator grille.

By the way, such a decision is a reference to the classic sports cars Alfa Romeo Brera and SZ.

Depending on the version, the car may have 17- to 20-inch wheels. The top versions have very specific wheels — their design is stylized under the dials of analog telephones (as on the photo).

Such wheels are not new — they were invented in the 1960s.

The interior has much in common with the prototype. Alfa Romeo Tonale has a virtual 12.3-inch dashboard with several modes of information display.

For example, if you select the «Heritage» preset the screen will show classic scales.

The car gets 10.25-inch multimedia with the function of updating «through the air», and the central console is a rotary selector of the system DNA, which switches the driving modes.

In turn, the engine start button is located on the steering wheel.
The new Alfa Romeo Tonale is based on the FCA Small Wide front-drive platform with a transverse arrangement of the engine, familiar from the Jeep Compass.

The Italian crossover reaches a length of 4,528 mm, a width of 1,835, a height of 1,604, and its wheelbase is 2,636 millimeters.

The crossover has a spring suspension with McPherson struts on the front and rear axles.

By default, the chassis design uses Koni amplitude-dependent shock absorbers, and you can order adaptive ones for an extra charge.

A wide range of power units is offered for the new Italian Parkett, and the developers refused the use of manual transmission.

In the base the automobile is equipped with a 1,6-liter turbodiesel capacity of 130 hp, a six-band robot and a front drive.

These cars will be sold only in some European countries. Thus, Tonale became the first Alfa Romeo’s model which received hybrid power-unit.

Technically this version of the crossover is largely unified with Jeep e-Hybrid. Its power plant consists of a 1.5-liter «turbo four» of GSE (Global Small Engine) family, working on an economical Miller’s cycle.

This unit has direct fuel injection at 350 bar and a compression ratio of 12.5:1.

It also has a belt-driven starter-generator and turbocharger.

The entry-level hybrid produces 130 horsepower, while the more advanced version has 160 horsepower (thanks to a more sophisticated turbocharger).

Gasoline-electric versions of the model are equipped with a seven-band dual-clutch robot, with a 48-volt electric motor rated at 20 hp and 55 Nm.

The latter performs best when starting off from a standstill and driving at low speeds.

By the way, on a parking place or in a crawling traffic jam such hybrid crossover can move exclusively on electric traction, but in process of speed increase the internal combustion engine is connected to work.

It is known that the two-engine version has front drive with electronically controlled differential lock.

There is no data on the traction battery put it yet. And in the USA the crossover will be sold with a 2,0-liter «turbo four» for 256 powers, a nine-speed automatic ZF and Q4 full drive, implying use of a muff on the rear axis.

The «Chinese» Jeep Grand Commander has similar stuffing. Absolute flagship of the lineup will be Alfa Romeo Tonale PHEV, that is a full recharged hybrid with a power-unit from Jeep Compass 4xe.

A 1,3-liter turbo-quarter MultiAir from the same series GSE is responsible for rotation of front wheels.

Works the latter paired with a classic six-speed automatic, while the rear wheels are set in motion a separate 122-horsepower electric motor.

At its peak, these units produce 275 «horses», allowing the parkette to accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 6.2 seconds.

It is known that the units of traction battery on PHEV-version are located both in the central tunnel, as well as under the rear couch.

They have a total capacity of 15.5 kWh. In the mixed cycle, the car can travel up to 60 km, and it will take about 2.5 hours to fully charge the battery.

The new Alfa Romeo Tonale has «the sharpest steering wheel in the class». Gear ratio of the mechanism is 13.6:1.

The crossover is also equipped with a new braking system, working exclusively «by wire». For an additional fee, four-piston Brembo brakes can be installed at the front.

On the market, the model will be offered in two configurations — Super and Ti (Turismo internazionale), the names of which are considered historic. Plus customers will be able to order option packages Sprint and Veloce.

Different versions of the model differ from each other not only in equipment, but also in decor.

For the car will also be offered a number of individual options, including adaptive cruise control with lane-holding function and matrix headlights.

Series production of Alfa Romeo Tonale will be set up at the Italian plant in Pomigliano d’Arco, which since two thousand eleven was engaged exclusively in the assembly of hatchbacks Fiat Panda.

The company is positioning the novelty as the successor of the hatchback Giulietta (taken off the assembly line in 220th).

Thus, we see potentially the most accessible and mass model of the Italian brand, which is designed to impose competition to such crossovers, as Audi Q3, BMW X1 and Volvo XC40.

Sales of the parkette in Europe should begin in the autumn of the twenty-second, and the U.S. The car will get only in the twenty-third.