on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Alfa Romeo finalizes 2024 Tonale EPA fuel economy, EV range

Alfa Romeo announced Wednesday that the 2024 Tonale plug-in-hybrid achieved 29 mpg combined in EPA testing, coming in at 77 MPGe with a total EV range of 33 miles. The plug-in hybrid powertrain is the only one offered in the 2024 Tonale and is shared with the 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T, which is essentially the same car only in weekend casual.  "We are happy to announce the official EPA electric range of 33 miles and 77 MPGe for the Alfa Romeo Tonale, which will allow many of our customers to drive their daily commutes without tapping the fuel tank," said Larry Dominique, SVP, Head of Alfa Romeo North America. "The Alfa Romeo Tonale represents the beginning of our transformation to greater electrification while staying true to the performance characteristics our customers expect from the brand, including a best-in-class 285 horsepower." The electric range of 33 miles puts the 2024 Tonale smack in between the 2023 Lincoln Corsair PHEV (28 miles) and Lexus NX 450h+ (38 miles). The Lincoln is also a close match in MPGe, coming in at 78, but the Lexus handily eclipses both 84 MPGe. So if fuel EV range and fuel efficiency are all you crave, the Lexus is your go-to, even if the Alfa is thousands cheaper. The Tonale Sprint starts at $44,590 (with destination). After the $7,500 federal electric vehicle credit is factored in (which requires you to lease since the Tonale is built Italy) you’re looking at just $37,090. Both the Lexus and Lincoln start north of $50,000 before subsidies, but the Louisville-built Lincoln can benefit from tax credits whether you lease or purchase.  Related Video 2023 Dodge Hornet R/T

2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia First Drive | All about the little things

ALBEROBELLO, Italy – Little things can make a big difference. And for the 2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia, it's the little things that have been addressed, those that have been causing reviewers to kvetch and customers to look elsewhere. The cupholders that cause bottles to bang into the HVAC controls. The shifter and knobs made of cheap plastic that wobble about in your hand. The backwoods entertainment system that makes an Audi's look like it's been beamed in from the far-flung future.  The big things? They've been left untouched, almost entirely for the best. The Giulia's exceptional driving credentials have been well-documented with multiple awards and much gushing about divine steering and an astute chassis. For 2020, they're unchanged apart from some imperceptible tweaks to the steering that iron out an occasional low-speed refinement issue. Even when driven on the regrettably non-winding roads of southern Italy's "heel," the Giulia continues to come across as something different and special. That steering is pleasingly quick and full of feeling, friendly to both those who yearn for man-machine connection and those who'd rather not get an upper body workout when parking at Kroger. The Giulia feels light and playful, with a stiff chassis and adeptly tuned suspension. When people talk about sport sedans losing their edge (cough BMW 3 Series), it can still be found in the Giulia. At the same time, the adaptive dampers available in the Ti trim's Performance package impressively sops up nasty bumps, of which there are a great many around Italy's heel (AKA Puglia). Cars with such a sporting "edge" are often given a pass when it comes to ride quality, as a sore back and kidneys bruised by the seat bolsters are considered par for the course. The Giulia needs no such handicap. If there's a meh moment, it's the engine. Much is rightly made about the Quadrifoglio's 2.9-liter turbo V6 derived from Ferrari and possibly divine intervention. By contrast, the standard 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four doesn't offer much in the way of zest. Oh, its 280 horsepower and 306 pound-feet of torque are class-leading, and its 5.1-second estimated 0-60 time is exceptional. In sound, however, it's just another turbo-four, and most disappointingly, its 5,500-rpm redline is a real buzzkill. It's not exactly diesel-like, but it's close.

Alfa Romeo is bringing something deliciously loud to Geneva

Alfa Romeo will risk running afoul of Switzerland's engine noise regulations by bringing something deliciously loud to the 2020 Geneva Motor Show. The preview video it posted on Twitter asks more questions than it answers. The seven-second flick announces that Alfa Romeo, one of Italy's oldest automakers, is about to make "a momentous comeback." It displays the company's logo, notes the location of its booth in the Palexpo convention center, and ends on the sound of what we're pretty sure is a V6 engine exploring the upper echelons of its rev range. There's no mention of which car the six-cylinder is in, let alone whether it's new or updated. sound on See you at #GIMSSWISS. #AlfaRomeo pic.twitter.com/yIUPYEiTkj — Alfa_Romeo (@alfa_romeo) February 22, 2020 This is where facts end and speculation begins. Alfa planned to expand its range with a two-door version of the Giulia that would have resurrected the GTV name and a flagship sports car tentatively called 8C, but both models were allegedly canceled in 2019. The 4C is nearing the end of life cycle, so the odds of seeing a new variant of it are low. Besides, its engine bay is far too small to house a six-cylinder engine like the Giulia's 2.9-liter unit. Before the teaser video emerged, we expected Alfa's next new model would be the production version of the Tonale concept unveiled at the 2019 edition of the Geneva show. The crossover is well on its way to production, and its front end has changed quite a bit in the past 12 months, but we don't think it will reach showrooms with a race car-like exhaust note; electrified technology will likely make it one of the quieter members of the Alfa lineup. This leaves us with two credible possibilities. First, rumors of a more powerful Giulia positioned above the Quadrifoglio model have floated around the internet for years and they plainly refuse to die. It would likely wear the heritage-packed GTA nameplate and arrive as a more track-oriented sedan in the vein of Mercedes-AMG's Black Series cars. If that's the case, expect copious carbon fiber, a stripped-out interior, and a full body kit. Second, Alfa could simply kick off its 110th birthday celebrations in Geneva by showing a concept built to mark the occasion. We'll know for sure when the show opens its doors to the press on March 3. Related Video:     Geneva Motor Show Alfa Romeo Luxury Performance