A worthy compact sport-utility vehicle, Italian-style

This review first appeared in the May 2024 edition of the Cruisin' News, "Oregon, Nevada and California's classic auto news & marketplace."

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Sacramento, California --It had been years since I had been behind the wheel of an Alfa Romeo.  Many years.

And yet, here was a 2024 Alfa Romeo Tonale Veloce eAWD parked in my driveway. I'll admit to being nervous.  What if it was so exotic that I couldn't figure out how to drive the thing?

Needless worry, as it turned out.

Perhaps the best praise I can offer from the get-go is this: this compact crossover sport-utility vehicle from the venerable Italian automaker is as good as anything out there ... anything produced by the Hondas, Toyotas and Fords of this world.

And a pleasure to drive.

The Alfa's builders tout its power and range.  And rightly so.

The plug-in hybrid powertrain is anchored by a 1.3-liter turbo-4 matched with a 90-kilowatt electric motor. The result is a muscular 285 horsepower.

That power plant drove the tester strongly.  I was repeatedly pressed deep into my seat on hard accelerations and quick moves in freeway traffic.  On crowded city streets, the Alfa was quick on the draw and easily handled the nastiest gridlock situations with nimble ease.

And it looked good doing it, with 20-inch tires snapped onto stylish five-hole wheels. My ride was "Fangio Green," a shout out to the Formula One legend -- Juan Manuel Fangio of Argentina -- who won the 1951 world championship driving an Alfa.

Alfa's noteworthy luxury was prominent on my tester, priced at $58,990 on the sticker's bottom line.

The steering wheel and front seats were heated, the 10.25-inch touchscreen display was useful and the leather sport steering wheel made me feel like Fangio himself.  My ride was liberally dressed up with options, including a power moonroof and a Harman Kardon premium audio system.

Safety features were plentiful, and state of the art.

How about the plug-in part? Sure, it's part of a hybrid package, and the electric range is an impressive 30 miles.

In sum, an excellent vehicle. But who buys it, given the blizzard of strong compact crossover candidates on the market?

I'm guessing the target American buyer is someone who wants a unique vehicle, with a prominent sense of style.

Italian-style, that is.