More seasoned journalists can tell a fair amount about a car by the order at which its various attributes get detailed at the technical presentation which inevitably takes place before we get thrown the keys for our first go behind the wheel. So it proved with the Alfa Romeo Tonale, the sub-Stelvio crossover to be the latest in a long line of new models charged with turning around Alfa's faded fortunes.
The conference took place in the spectacular Temple Voltiano on the shores of Lake Como in Italy - Alessandro Volta having been the pioneering physicist who invented the battery, and who has the unit for measuring electrical potential named after him. This gave an obvious connection to the fact the Tonale will launch as a hybrid and become increasingly electrified as time goes on, ultimately spawning a pure EV version.
But the new car's engine was well down the list of attributes under discussion, coming below the debut of Alfa's new UI system - this apparently having both the fastest processor and highest resolution screen in the segment - Alexa voice activation, support for level two autonomy and even the fact it will be possible to store the car's history within the digital wrapper of one of those Non Fungible Tokens that gets Tech bros frothy.
Only when the Powerpoints eventually turned to powertrains did the reason for the reticence become obvious: while a 270hp all-wheel driven plug-in hybrid version will arrive next year, the Tonale is set to be launched with two 1.5-litre turbocharged four-pots, both boasting a modest amount of 48-Volt hybrid assistance, but with even the most powerful only creating a peak of 158hp. This will reach the road through a double-clutch gearbox and front-wheel drive only. Even the most passionate Alfisti is unlikely to get too het up by the prospect of a car that, in its fastest debut version, takes 8.8-secs to get from 0-62mph.
I'll reverse the order of the discussion points here to follow Douglas Adam's fine example in sparing any risk of stress or nervous tension from an excess of suspense. Despite the modest novelties of running on the Miller cycle to boost economy, and having a new variable geometry turbocharger, the new engine isn't any more exciting in real life than it is on paper. It is subdued under gentle use, but develops a harsh voice when worked hard, it doesn't seem to enjoy being revved and - on both the cars I drove - suffered from strangely inconsistent throttle response. The double-clutcher also seemed to often lack the smarts necessary to keep the motor in its happy place when left in Drive, and there were some awkward pauses in the switchover between electric and combustion propulsion. Even after one drive I'm confident this 1.5-litre isn't going to ever get close to the long list of great Alfa engines.
Yet, with that out of the way, I can also report that the rest of the car is much better, showing some genuine promise for the more exciting versions that will follow.
Design is a definite strong point. You'll forgive a good looking car much more than an ugly one, a principle Alfa has tested to breaking point at several times in the past. Yes, many will still regard the idea of the company's famous badge on a mid-sized crossover as heresy - although the market has definitely spoken on that one. But after spending much of a day staring at numerous examples I was liking it more and more. The Tonale really is more handsome and better proportioned than the Stelvio, which is already one of the higher points of SUV design. The new car's basic form is close to that of a tall hatchback; most of the visual off-roadness comes from the black lower body trim and slightly raised ride height. But the triple headlight elements, wraparound rear screen and telephone dial alloys all worked for me.
The interior is good, too. With the Stelvio and especially the Giulia it felt as if Alfa had fully spent the cars' development budgets before starting serious work on their cabins. But the Tonale's materials feel much more rugged and better screwed together, with the Italian-spec cars on the launch featuring nicely stitched dash facings and an impressively high level of ergonomic thought. The seats are both comfortable and supportive, there's a good range of driving position adjustment and the digital instruments and that high-definition central 10.25-inch touchscreen does indeed look good, although a fair bit of its headline size is eaten up by thick black bezels. The new UI seemed reasonably intuitive, too - and Alexa could be given broad orders like "play 'seventies disco" or "take me to a pizzeria."
Although the steering wheel has to accommodate lots of controls for menu scrolling and cruise control, Alfa has taken the sensible decision to keep conventional heating and ventilation buttons on the centre console rather than try to integrate them into the touchscreen. Posher versions will also come with sizeable metal gearchange paddles behind the steering wheel, these having a weighty tactile operation nice enough to encourage entirely gratuitous use.
The Tonale is refined as well. The cabin is snug and quiet, even when cruising the Autostrada at an adventurous speed. The car's structure feels firm, too - I can honestly report that I didn't hear a single squeak or rattle from the trim during four hours of driving. (For contrast, the first time I drove a carefully press-fettled Alfa 156, the glovebox handle came off in my hand.) New Alfa CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato has promised to make quality his top priority, and the Tonale suggests that mission is well underway.
Yet while design and the car's basic structure both seem impressively well sorted, the rest of the driving experience still felt a fair way short of being finished. Beyond its limited urge and thrashy top-end soundtrack, the Hybrid engine also had an odd-feeling throttle calibration, one with a delay on lifting off rather than application. This wasn't a long one - a few fractions of a second - but it was noticeable and, until I got used to it, felt slightly alarming, as if the engine was running on.
The 48-Volt hybrid system uses a 20hp electric motor which can drive the car slowly by itself - slow speed operation and manoeuvring is almost all done as an EV. But there is often an obvious gap between electric and combustion power, especially with sudden demands for thrust - like the ones necessary to exploit the small gaps typically available in Italian traffic. Selecting the punchier 'Dynamic' vehicle mode through the DNA controller reduced this, although it moves most of the throttle response to the top of the accelerator pedal's travel. But moving the DNA selector to A, now rebranded as 'Advanced Efficiency', made the Tonale so laid back that there was a good two second gap between pressing the accelerator at a gentle cruise and feeling any increase in speed.
Alfa is proud of the Tonale's fast-geared steering - the rack's ratio is a rapid 13.6:1 - and it does indeed have sharper front-end responses than are common in the segment. It resists understeer competently, too, with the P-Zeroes finding plenty of grip and hanging on well in tighter turns. Steering feel is muted through the electrical assistance, although more so in the car I drove that rode on passive dampers, with the optional active shocks giving a noticeable improvement in sensation. Regardless of dampers (or setting), the ride felt firm enough to trigger doubts as to how well the Tonale will cope with choppy British tarmac, although all the cars on the launch rode on the biggest 20-inch wheels. The e-boosted brakes felt more natural than Alfa's previous offerings, but there was still a slight hesitancy that highlighted the absence of a direct connection.
None of these dynamic issues felt particularly egregious by themselves, but together they made the Tonale feel some way short of being fully sorted. The good news is that the basics are much better than those of any other recent Alfa - the Tonale feels like a much higher quality offering than the Giulia or Stelvio straight out of the box, and it looks great, too. Presuming it is competitively priced when it reaches the UK later this year it is hard not to see it rapidly becoming Alfa's best-selling model, especially as other powertrains follow the mild Hybrids.
And yet on first impressions, the Tonale is going to need more polish if it is going to become that thing many of us have spent our lives waiting for - an Alfa Romeo you don't need to make any excuses for.
Specification | Alfa Romeo Tonale 1.5 Hybrid
Engine: 1469cc four-cylinder, turbocharged, hybridized
Transmission: Seven-speed dual clutch, front wheel drive
Power (hp): 158 hp @ 5750rpm
Torque (lb ft): 176b-ft @ 1500rpm
0-62mph: 8.8-sec
Top speed: 130mph
Weight: 1525kg
MPG: 44.8 mpg
CO2: 144g/km
Price: TBC
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