Why Alfa Romeo picked Lexus as the Tonale's quality benchmark

Alfa Romeo's overall benchmark has been BMW since the creation of Stellantis last year from the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group. However, when it comes to quality, the Italian brand's boss picked another rival to emulate.

"My quality benchmark is Lexus," Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato said on the sidelines of a recent test drive event for compact SUV near Italy's Lake Como.

The quality-first mantra was repeated often by all Alfa executives at the event because Imparato has made it a priority for a brand to improve in that area, in which it often ranks near the bottom of independent studies.

Alfa ranked No. 28 out of 32 brands in J.D. Power's 2021 U.S. Initial Quality Study with 204 problems per 100 vehicles. Lexus ranked No. 3 in that same study with 144 problems.

Shortly after being appointed Alfa CEO in January 2021, Imparato decided to push back the Tonale's launch by 12 weeks, from March to June.

"I wanted to be sure that the Tonale's quality was perfect from Day 1, but also that we offered a state-of-the-art connectivity and user interface," Imparato said.

The Tonale, which will start being delivered to customers in Italy next month, is built on the FCA Small Wide platform, which also underpins the Jeep Compass and Renegade. The Tonale is assembled at Stellantis' factory in Pomigliano, southern Italy.

The Tonale will debut with a choice of two mild hybrid powertrains, one with 128 hp and the other with 158 hp. Both feature a 1.5-liter, four-cylinder gasoline engine combined with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, in which a 48-volt electric motor is integrated.

The 158-hp version features a variable-geometry turbocharger, a first for Stellantis, said Maria Grazia Lisbona, who is a propulsion systems engineer with the brand. Some benefits of a variable-geometry turbocharger include improved low-speed torque and less turbo lag and a much cleaner burning engine to help reduce emissions.

In a two-hour test drive of the 158-hp version, the Tonale's electric motor was able to propel the car during low-speed maneuvers, but it is too small to offer significant help during acceleration.

A 128-hp diesel will be available later this year in some European markets, including Italy.

Production rhythm of the Tonale was recently doubled to 250 units per week (50 a day), Imparato said. Head of marketing Francesco Calcara said 1,200 orders have already been placed for the 128-hp mild-hybrid version.

Alfa's first plug-in hybrid

When it arrives in early 2023 the Tonale plug-in hybrid variant will have all-wheel drive and produce a total of 271 hp from a 177 hp, four-cylinder gasoline engine and a 100 kilowatt electric motor powering the rear axle.

The variant's full-electric range will be 60 km (about 37 miles) in Europe's WLTP cycle, Alfa Romeo said, with up to 50 percent of urban driving in EV-only mode.

While the SUV's plug-in hybrid powertrain is still undergoing the homologation processed, Alfa Romeo engineers aim to reach CO2 emissions of 32 grams per km.

Imparato said the plug-in hybrid will give Alfa for markets that penalize cars with high CO2 emissions, such as France. By 2023 the CEO expects the plug-in variant to account for 40 percent of the Tonale's total sales.

When asked about exporting the car to China, Imparato said: "Alfa Romeo will bring the Tonale to that market because if we want to be global we have to be everywhere."

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said at the car's launch event that the company has "a lot of work to do to improve the position of the Alfa Romeo brand in China."

Tavares said the Tonale will be the cornerstone of Alfa Romeo relaunch and praised Imparato for bringing Alfa Romeo back to profit without the help of new models, relying on "rigorous management" get into the black instead.

"Alfa Romeo's per-unit margins are already in the right band for a premium brand," Tavares added.

‘Zero to zero'

The Tonale plug-in hybrid is the brand's first step in its so-called "zero to zero" process, Imparato said, explaining that the motto come from Alfa Romeo effort to move from having zero electric vehicles in the range to achieving zero emissions from its fleet in five years' time.

The Tonale will be joined in 2024 by a small SUV that is expected to be called the Brennero, which will be part of a model family that includes Alfa Romeo's first full-electric variant. The small SUV will be followed by the brand's first electric-only vehicle in 2025.