Alfa Romeo Tonale 2024 review: Veloce PHEV long-term | Part 2

I’ve now been living with the 2024 Alfa Romeo Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4 for two months, which have been eventful to say the least.

There’s a lot to wrap your head around when it comes to living with a plug-in hybrid like this Alfa. I’ve never spent longer than a week driving a PHEV, so this extended period of time has been educational.

More than anything, it’s all about establishing new routines if you plan on extracting the best performance from a PHEV. And I’m not just talking about fuel consumption. But as promised, I’ll reveal my driving impressions of the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4 in the third and final instalment of this long-term EV Guide review.

Before I get to the two main topics of this second part, I want to share a quick update on the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4’s petrol usage this past month. I averaged 6.1L/100km over 801km of driving, which was 0.9L/100km less than month one's consumption.

This marked improvement came down to me moving apartment in the last week of this reporting period, with my new car space located directly next to a domestic power socket, meaning I have finally been able to take advantage of the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4’s onboard three-pin to Type 2 charging cable. For reference, this combination takes about 7.5 hours to charge the 15.5kWh battery from empty to full. An overnight job, then.

Alfa Romeo is known for its stunning exterior designs

Point being, my fuel consumption quickly began falling from 7.0L/100km as I began to almost exclusively drive on electric power, mainly commuting from home to the office and back in heavy traffic. Again, the benefits of PHEV ownership can be experienced if you find a way to charge regularly, which is easier said than done for many drivers.

Overall, 31 per cent of my driving this month was electric-only. Needless to say, I’m quite excited to see how much higher I can go in month three, but I still don’t expect to come close to the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4’s fuel consumption claim of 1.5L/100km on the combined-cycle test (ADR 81/02). Either way, stay tuned.

Another Italian supermodel

How good looking is the Tonale? Seriously. I’ve only spoken to one person who doesn’t think it is drop dead gorgeous (hello, Byron Mathioudakis).

Alfa Romeo is known for its stunning exterior designs and the Tonale is no different. Yes, styling is subjective, but when the opinion is damn near universal, you know you’re onto a good thing.

I think what works so well about the Tonale is it successfully translates so many of Alfa Romeo’s signature styling flourishes to a small SUV package. Point being, a non-enthusiast can easily identify at a glance.

Up front, the iconic 'trefoil' grille is there, as are the three-section LED headlights and DRLs and offset number-plate holder. But the Tonale mixes it up with its ‘pinched forward’ interpretation, which gives it the impression of an athletic vehicle that leaps out at you... if you get what I mean. Simply put, it looks very sporty.

Around the side, the Tonale is less remarkable, but the Veloce PHEV Q4 does get 19-inch alloy wheels with Alfa Romeo’s famous 'Teledial' design. The sloped-back treatment also reveals itself here, with a clear attempt made at wooing the ‘coupe’ SUV crowd. And if you look closely you’ll notice zxthe Italian flag colours integrated below the indicators.

In my opinion, the Tonale is sexiest at the rear. The three-section design is also applied to the LED tail-lights, which are linked with a light bar that’s only interrupted by the Alfa Romeo badge. This element is a knockout signature. The elegance is heightened by the ‘Tonale’ script below, while the chunky diffuser is finished in black and houses dual tailpipes.

Inside, the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4 arguably looks sportier, but I don’t think that necessarily means it’s more ‘beautiful’ than the exterior. The dashboard is full of interest, even if it’s not flawless in its execution. The tiered design is present with turbine-style air vents bookending, while the 10.25-inch touchscreen ‘floats’ at the top of the centre stack and the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster is housed in the dual semi-circle driver’s binnacle.

The Veloce PHEV Q4 gets 19-inch alloy wheels

However, the 'Uconnect 5' multimedia system powering these two displays leaves a lot to be desired. While it supports wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, the smartphone mirroring is inset and, therefore, squashed, meaning tapping the right button becomes trickier than it should be with a 10.25-inch unit. And that’s only after you wait the two or three minutes it often requires to reconnect after the ignition is switched on.

Another gripe with Uconnect 5 is that a version of it for right-hand-drive markets like Australia clearly hasn’t been created, as all the permanent shortcut buttons are on the left-hand side of the touchscreen, which is the opposite of where they should be located, of course. It means some stretching is required when switching between the radio controls and smartphone mirroring, for example. Annoying and potentially unsafe either way.

That said, the Tonale gets points for its simple row of physical climate controls below. The importance of actual buttons cannot be understated, especially from a safety point-of-view. We’re increasingly in the era of such interactions exclusively taking place via touchscreens, so Alfa Romeo should be commended for doing the sensible and safe thing. Bravo.

Inside, the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4 looks sportier

The materials used throughout the Tonale Veloce PHEV Q4’s cabin are a mixed bag, with genuine leather only trimming the flat-bottom steering wheel and gear knob. But an appropriate Neoprene-style upholstery is applied to the armrests, door and dashboard inserts and shift boot.

What I like less are the ‘soft-touch’ plastics used, with the upper dashboard only squishy when warm, while the front door shoulders are rock hard – contrary to the brochure's claims. The textured, gunmetal accents on the centre console, air-vents and door-handle surrounds are nice, though. So too are the cheese grater speaker grilles.

Less practical than you’d think

The Tonale is on the large side for a small SUV, measuring 4528mm long (with a 2636mm wheelbase), 1835mm wide and 1601mm tall. But that near-Mazda CX-5 size doesn’t translate into strong practicality due to relatively poor packaging.

Firstly, the cabin feels rather narrow, as if it’s inset from the body more than usual. As a result, the driver and front passenger get quite cosy. In fact, the driving position is very high, even with the seat at its lowest for an 184cm human like myself. As a result, I find headroom tight.

But what I find more annoying is the first row’s centre armrest being positioned noticeably higher than the door armrests, which themselves are unnaturally far away from the front passengers. This means you end up uncomfortably angling your body if you rest your elbows.

Another classic Italian detail is the column-mounted paddle-shifters. They are possibly my favourite looking and feeling aspect of the Tonale PHEV Veloce Q4. While the aluminium used is suitably high-quality, they’re so tall you have to reach around to operate the stalks hidden behind. It’s one of those things you’ll get used to over time, but it’s an adjustment at first.

Another quirk is the compromised front-side visibility due the combination of chunky A-pillars and closely mounted side mirrors. In fact, in my driving position, the left-hand side mirror is partially concealed by that particular A-pillar. Rearward visibility also takes a significant hit due to the upright rear seat headrests, which are frustratingly fixed in position when the second row is in use.

That said, the first-row storage spaces and amenities are mostly good, with the front door bins able to accommodate one regular bottle each, while there are two cupholders positioned ahead of the lidded central storage bin that’s deep, albeit with a small aperture.

Behind my driving position I have 2 inches of legroom

Ahead of the gear selector is an open cubby for the wireless smartphone charger, which has been very slow with my phone. Good news, then, that single USB-A and -C ports are located above alongside a 12V power outlet. Also, the glove box is deep and tall but not super wide.

In the second row, there are directional air vents located at the rear of the centre console, with single USB-A and -C power sockets below. Map pockets are affixed to the front seat backrests, while the door bins each swallow a regular bottle. Two further cupholders are hidden in the fold-down armrest.

Behind my 184cm driving position, I have a welcome two inches of legroom, while toe room is decent owing to the high-set front seats. But the aforementioned sloping roofline is felt here, with my head making contact with it when upright. Despite the low but wide central tunnel, three adults will struggle to sit abreast due to the narrow packaging. That said, child seats are supported by three top-tether and two ISOFIX anchorage points.

The glove box is deep and tall but not super wide.

Finally, the Veloce PHEV Q4’s boot capacity is 385L, which is especially underwhelming when you realise that the mild-hybrid variants in the Tonale line-up get 500L instead. But that’s the price you pay for carrying around a large battery in addition to an internal-combustion engine. But if you stow the 60/40 split-fold rear bench via the boot-accessible manual release latches, the main storage space expands to a more agreeable 1430L.

While the load lip is mostly flat alongside the boot floor, loading bulkier items is made a little more difficult by the narrow aperture. That said, loose items can be secured with the two bag hooks and/or four tie-down points, while the charging cable/s can be hidden in the underfloor storage space. You also get a very handy 12V power outlet.

And with that, I’ll see you next time for the third and final instalment of this long-term EV Guide review, which will cover my driving impressions and overall verdict. Ciao for now!

Acquired: March 1, 2024

Distance travelled this month: 801km

Odometer: 4318km

Average fuel consumption this month: 6.1L/100km