PUSHING ALL THE RIGHT BUTTONS
It’s full speed ahead for Alfa Romeo Tonale as firm plans electric future
The Italians like their starting buttons on the steering wheel – that is where you will find them in Ferraris, for example, oh and on this car I am driving, the Alfa Romeo Tonale Veloce.
It is the kind of little design feature that makes you smile because, of course, while a Ferrari might be beyond the reach of many of us, this compact SUV crossover with its hanging button is not.
Take the kids to school, go for the shopping, drive to the football – each time you press that button you can pretend you are in a Ferrari.
And when you shift the driving mode into Dynamic, you could be forgiven for dreaming even further.
Alfa’s driving modes are named DNA for Dynamic, the default Normal and A for Advanced Efficiency, which prioritises fuel economy.
But, for me, putting this car into D and just leaving it there was the best choice by far. It tightens everything up, adds a bit of push and makes it a demon on the bends. The car is smart and very Alfa, very Italian. It has a bold front end with the triangular- shaped grille and offset number plate, a very Alfa signature. The daytime running lights look like sleepy eyelashes, mirrored at the rear in the tail lights.
On the roof there’s a shark’s fin antenna and the whole lot in this Veloce model (Veloce means speed in Italian) sits on 19in alloys.
On the inside the black perforated Alcantara with contrasting red showcases the stunning Alfa Romeoembroidered logo on the headrests, offering a very upmarket-looking interior.
This is continued with the soft- touch materials and the tech, which features a 10.25in touchscreen with radio, USB, Bluetooth, audio streaming and voice controls.
The ne a r b y 1 2 . 3 i n instrument cluster can be personalised to whichever information that you f ind preferable.
The interior is comfortable and the high seat height delivers an excellent view of the road ahead.
The rear three seats have their own USB socket and there are 12v sockets in the front of the car and the boot. Storage there is 500 litres and you can take this to 1550 with the rear seats down. They can be lowered individually and the boot floor has two levels for maximum flexibility.
The Tonale is Alfa’s f irst electrified car, although many more can be expected over the next couple of years and, to be fair, it is only a mild hybrid, offering an added boost to the 1.5- litre petrol engine when needed.
Having said that, the mpg is not bad – far better than a Ferrari – but that will probably get even better this year when Alfa brings out its plug- in Tonale hybrid. An electric car is also in the pipeline.
Alfa Romeo is now part of the growing Stellantis group led by Carlos Tavares, who does not seem to ever put a foot wrong. Each brand he has turned his attention to has got better and better.
The Tonale, w ith its Italian sense of style and performance, does not look like breaking that mould.