Alfa Romeo has added a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of its Tonale small SUV to the hybrid variants that arrived here last year.
It sits below the mid-sized Stelvio SUV and joins the Giulia sedan in Alfa’s limited Australian range.
Tonale Plug-In Hybrid Q4 is a major step in Alfa’s electrification process with the Italian carmaker targeting 2016 for its first-ever fully-electric vehicle.
Tonale PHEV is the most efficient Alfa Romeo ever, with approximately 60 km of all-electric range and 34 g/km of CO2 emissions.
The Tonale Plug-In Hybrid Q4 system combines a four-cylinder 1.3-litre MultiAir turbocharged petrol engine with outputs of 132kW and 270Nm with 90kW and 250 Nm from the electric motor for a combined peak power output of 206kW.
The Q4 in its name indicates the Tonale PHEV is all-wheel drive with the petrol engine driving the front wheels and the battery the rears.
Transmission is through a six-speed automatic.
Zero to 100km/h acceleration as tested is 6.2 seconds.
The Tonale Plug-In Hybrid Q4’s 306-volt, 15.5kWh lithium-ion battery supplies an electric range of 60km.
Equipped with a 7.4kW AC on board charger and a Type 2 Smart Charging Port, that enables simple domestical AC charging and public AC charging, it takes less than 2.5 hours to fully charge the battery when the 7.4kW onboard charger is in use
Colours available in Alfa White, Alfa Red, Alfa Black, Vesuvio Grey Metallic, Misano Blue Metallic and – we’re delighted to say – the spectacular Montreal Green that we recently tested in the Giulia.
There are four drive modes: Advanced Efficiency, Natural, Dynamic and ESC OFF. A regenerative braking system recovers energy during passive driving phases (such as deceleration of light braking) in all driving modes.
Additionally, the system switches in Natural mode when the battery reaches the minimum charge level regardless of the selected mode.
Standard exterior features include a sunroof, automatic full LED matrix headlights with Adaptive Driving Beam and dynamic turn indicator, Dark Miron front grille finish and body kit, privacy glass, Brembo red brake calipers, and 19-Inch diamond cut alloy wheels.
Inside there are perforated black leather-accented seats with the embroidered Alfa Romeo logo, dark grey double stitching on the seats and interior accents, aluminium door sills, gear shift paddles and pedals.
The front seats are powered, heated and ventilated.
Safety features include six airbags, front, rear and side parking sensors, 360-degree camera, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, adaptive cruise control with stop and go, high beam assist, forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, lane support system, driver behaviour warning and traffic sign recognition and intelligent speed control.
Infotainment uses a 10.25-inch touchscreen and 12.3-inch TFT instrument cluster.
Components include satellite navigation, DAB+ digital radio, wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, 14-Speaker 465-watt Harmon Kardon sound system, wireless smartphone charging pad, Alfa Connect Services and front and rear USB ports.
Advance orders can be placed now ahead of Tonale PHEV’s arrival in October. It will come in a single Veloce variant priced from $77,500 plus on-road costs.
With the equivalent Veloce hybrid costing from $56,400 that’s a huge mark-up for the benefit of 60 km of EV range.
We’ll be testing both the Tonale Ti and Veloce hybrid models shortly and do the same thing when the PHEV Veloce arrives later in the year.
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