Alfa Romeo’s teaser campaign for the Tonale is in full swing, with a new episode confirming there will be a Veloce version. It could very well serve as the range-topping trim level considering a more potent Quadrifoglio has already been ruled out. Ahead of its official debut on February 8, the compact crossover shows its Misano Blue paint shared with the Giulia Veloce and Stelvio Veloce.
The sedan and larger SUV in the Veloce specification have the most powerful engine available, outside of the Quadrifoglio. This tells us it will be the same story with the Tonale as the Veloce-spec model will employ the most potent powertrain. According to previous reports, the plug-in hybrid is going to have the most oomph, courtesy of a combustion engine working together with an electric motor.
The PHEV setup is said to be good for 240 horsepower channeled to both axles exclusively via an automatic transmission. It is believed the electrified setup will be borrowed from the Jeep Compass 4xe, but reconfigured to deliver more performance as one would expect from an Alfa Romeo. In addition, the FCA Small Wide 4×4 architecture will be shared, meaning the Tonale is also going to be related to the Fiat 500X and the Jeep Renegade.
The Veloce badging on the tailgate denotes the trim level’s positioning in the range, while the LED lightbar split into two by the Alfa Romeo badge will be standard across the range. The sporty crossover named after an Italian mountain pass will enter production in the coming months. Below the PHEV version, there will be regular gasoline and diesel engines with less power and more attainable prices.
It will initially go on sale in Europe by mid-2022 and should make the trip to the United States by the end of the year or early 2023. The sub-Stelvio model could be followed by a third crossover, an even smaller one. Rumored to go by the name of Brennero, the model is said to be offered as a pure EV built in Poland on the eCMP platform from 2024.
Source: Alfa Romeo / Facebook
