New Alfa Romeo Tonale 2026 review: fashionable but fundamentally flawed

The cabin quality is inconsistent, with some fairly low-rent plastics matched to nice leather seats and odd wetsuit-like materials across the dashboard and doors. A poorly placed wireless phone charger takes up a huge proportion of the available storage space, leaving little room for other items such as keys and wallets. The centre cup-holders are fine, but lack variability, and while there is a centre console bin under the armrest, it’s small and awkward to access. 

In-car tech is also pretty average in this day and age. The main 10.25-inch screen is bright and has good screen resolution, but it’s not particularly intuitive, as many functions are scattered around the messy interface. It is configurable, though, so with some set-up time this might not be a big issue. We like the design of the digital dial pack, but there’s a latency to it that accentuates just how off the pace this entire car feels. 

However, one advantage of this car’s relative age is the cabin’s general usability. We love the dash-mounted switchgear for the climate functions and the DNA drive-mode control, plus those paddle shifters behind the wheel add some Italian supercar flare to an otherwise fairly anodyne segment. But these elements aren’t enough to keep the Tonale from sinking against rivals. 

The notion sounds simple, really. To compete in the European mass market, all manufacturers should probably have a C-segment SUV in the range, ideally with some form of hybrid drivetrain. Build this car, make it look nice, and you should have a licence to print money, right? 

Not in Alfa Romeo’s case, as the Tonale is an example of what can happen when poor decisions are made at the very start of a new model’s development. With the influx of Chinese brands and a need to diversify between ICE, hybrid and electric, there’s simply no room left in the UK market for mediocrity, let alone outright incompetence. 

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