Alfa Romeo, a small SUV is coming. Surprise: the name has changed

The future of Alfa Romeo also passes through the new small SUV, that little Tonale which will have to compete in the B segment of the European market, which is super competitive and large in number. Fundamental for Alfa Romeo which practically does not exist outside our borders: it is true that it doubled the numbers of 2021, but at the end of October the overall market share was 0.4%. The compact SUV, which will be produced in Poland together with the Jeep Avenger and a Fiat crossover of which details are not yet available), will be the first electric model in the history of Alfa Romeo. At its side there will be a petrol variant with a mild hybrid system. The surprise was announced by Jean-Philippe Imparato – CEO of the Arese company – in an interview with the English magazine Car: We are in a world where not everyone can afford to pay 40,000 euros for a car. Thus, we will have a hybrid version in parallel with the electric one.

The hybrid with a 1.2 petrol

The platform of the model will be e-CMP of the Stellantis group, aiming to create the mild-hybrid so that it costs around 10 thousand euros less than the model with batteries only. Easy to think – as the basis of the hybrid solution – to the ubiquitous 1.2-litre PureTech three-cylinder petrol from the Stellantis group. There is a business similarity with the Avenger itself which will be available with a petrol engine only for the Italian and Spanish markets. After all, Imparato underlined to Car that with the new SUV, Alfa Romeo must make ends meet even better after having brought the accounts back to balance in 2021 and created margins in 2022. Only in this way can I go to Mr. Tavares (ed, Ceo of Stellantis) to ask for a budget for projects up to 2030, he stressed.

Even with all-wheel drive

With the new Jeep Avenger will share the 51 kWh battery pack and 154 horsepower electric motor: at launch, the small SUV will be front-wheel drive, but there is a good chance that Alfa Romeo will introduce a more powerful all-wheel drive variant in the future. Jeep has already teased an Avenger 44 concept, which means the technology is available and compatible with the chassis. Autonomy declared 250 kilometers which rise to 340 kilometers in a predominantly urban use. The offer will be rather simplified: Two engines, two trim levels, two packages and five options that are the same on each market, the transalpine manager anticipated, underlining that the debut is scheduled for 2024.

The mystery of the name

The other surprise contained in the interview on the name of the model: yet to be decided, but the name Brennero was excluded, which seemed safe for a couple of years thinking of a philological sequel to Tonale. Apparently he was fishing in the past, Imparato joked with the interlocutor by ratting off the names of some old models of the Arese company, emphasizing that we must not get out of history. From now on, we’ll have a much more past-respect driven naming strategy. We have to be very precise when we are really returning to the market: we are Alfa Romeo. We’re Italian. We have a sporting spirit, commented Imparato.