Report: Alfa Romeo Working On Electric SUV for American Market
Alfa Romeo is not known for its vehicles’ efficiency or environmental consciousness, but the company is heading toward an all-electric future like many others. The automaker’s North American CEO, Larry Dominique, told The Drive that Alfa’s working on an electric SUV for the American market and promised that it would be different from the sea of increasingly homogenous vehicles hitting the market.
“We think of ourselves as different from the others. We just don’t want to blend in. We’re not a gray BMW. Our customers tell us they buy Alfas because ‘You’re not that.’” Alfa Romeo currently sells the Giulia and Stelvio in the U.S., but the Tonale crossover is on its way. The new ‘ute will be offered with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, and the automaker aims to shift to all-electric sales by 2027.
Dominque told The Drive that the “upcoming E-segment car will be designed and styled in Italy but will be developed with U.S. customers in mind. Details like interior size, features packaging, cupholder size, tech, etc. will be ideal for North America.” He went on to say that Alfa expects the United States to make up 70 percent of the new SUV’s sales, so the focus on American-sized features makes sense.
[Image: Alfa Romeo]
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And if you wanted it, where would you buy it? 2 of the 3 Alfa dealers within an hour's drive of me have already shut down. I'd have to drive past 4 Hornet-selling Dodge dealers to look at the Alfa equivalent.
I've got a 2020 Giulia that has been perfectly reliable (at 30k miles now) and a joy to drive/own. It also gets 30mpg average on my commute and 33/34 on highway runs, which I call pretty dang efficient. It's unfortunate for Alfa that consumers don't consider them more, I think there is no maintenance/reliability loss these days on an Alfa vs. a competing BMW, Benz, Audi or Cadillac; and you're getting a more interesting car IMO.
If low maintenance is your top priority when considering a luxury brand, then it seems Lexus or Acura are your only choices.
I'm interested to see what Alfa comes up with, but I wonder how an EV SUV can coexist with the Alfa virtues.
You knew Stellantis wasn't serious when they decided to not sell a single Alfa in the US with a stick.