If we asked an oracle or the magic mirror of the story for a ranking of the most dynamic compact SUVs, possibly the protagonists of this comparison would appear in that list. Alfa Romeo and Cupra have in their DNA elements of sportiness, dynamism, and Mediterranean style that they have transferred in an exemplary manner to their best-selling SUVs.
What do a brand with more than a century of tradition and one formed just five years ago have in common? The answer is that a lot, at least if we think of a brand like Alfa Romeo, with a storied past in competition —including Formula 1—, a history in which sporty design, dynamism, high performance, and the maximum pleasure of driving has made him acquire an aura of mysticism as few have been able to develop. These are values that are undoubtedly present in the conception of Cupra as a brand, as an independent reality from Seat, and in these barely five years of existence, they have made it a fully consolidated reality.
In fact, last year Cupra sold almost four times more cars in Spain than the Italian manufacturer, thanks without a doubt to the Formentor, which exceeded 11,500 registered units in 2022, underpinned by its success due to its design, for a very reasonable price and a mechanical variety that takes advantage of the Volkswagen Group organ bank and ranges from the humble 150 CV of our protagonist to the 310 CV of the ultra-performance five-cylinder VZ5 —inspired by the Audi TT RS or RS3— or the 245 CV of the hybrid pluggable.
Yes indeed. There will be those who miss the presence of an ECO label variant, regardless of whether it had been achieved through mild hybridization or through the compressed natural gas technology that Seat includes in its Leon. Gasoline and Diesel versions, front-wheel drive, or 4Motion open up a choice that goes from the basic to the totally aspirational.
It is in terms of mechanical variety, and only in this aspect, which the Alfa Romeo is clearly behind the Tonale. In fact, at present —until the imminent arrival of the 280 CV plug-in hybrid version— the offer is reduced to two proposals, a veteran Diesel of 1.6 l and 130 CV and the micro hybridized with 48-volt technology, an electric motor of 15 kW and a small 0.77 kWh battery with developments of 131 and 160 hp. The latter, the one that we have faced Formentor in a duel in which we have invested hours of driving, measurements, and analysis and have allowed us to extract their differences in the DNA, always with the Latin character as the flag.
ALFA
ROMEO TONALE: A BIT OF HISTORY
Alfa Romeo took the SUV course of the days we live in with the Stelvio in 2016. It marked a turning point and years later it has paved the way for a more modest variant with a higher sales volume. Its name, Tonale, is a second allusion to the Italian Alps and its master design lines could allow it to be considered a logical consequence of that one: a complete reinterpretation on a scale that, in addition to aesthetics, also takes up its driving, with a traction base in front. Its length, 4.53 meters, places it in the average for the category and offers what adds a magnificent cargo space, although it is visually "adulterated" by the thick tray, almost 5 cm, and a double bottom of 11 cm which significantly improves capacity. Of course, some rather short sidewalks will condition the impression of space inside, less generous than it might seem.
The interior offers a fusion of materials and impressions. Classic design inspired by tradition and dynamism, with a sense of protection given the lesser visual weight of the glass surfaces compared to the interior linings of the bodywork, and a very logical layout of the driving elements. The instrumentation, for its part, is digital and masterfully recreates the most classic Alfa Romeo lettering. The number of buttons on the steering wheel is striking and that to navigate through the information submenus you must first activate the multifunction selector since otherwise you would work on the audio stations.
More
spectacular are the shift control paddles. Aluminum, huge and fixed dimensions
on the steering column: a nod to the most passionate brands in the group?
Perhaps, but without a doubt, a detail that will make lovers of maximum
sportsmanship smile with complicity and that could be achieved with great ease
even when we were swinging our hands at full speed on the steering wheel in
curved areas.
The seats are another manifestation of that suggestive design that defines the Tonale, full of hints of sportiness. Preshaped to offer lateral support, upholstered in leather with an impeccable appearance and multiple adjustments for both the seat and backrest, it is easy to find the desired driving position, although larger people will have the impression that the seat is shorter than what is desirable. There is barely 48 cm of the bench when the usual thing is to go above 50, and with the most prominent point of the cushion around 40 cm, although it is possible to achieve a slightly forced posture that on a trip of more than two hours does not cause you discomfort ... beyond that peculiar oversizing of the central area that seems to reduce the width of the seat.
The rear seats, meanwhile, are more sufficient than generous since they are in a good middle area of the category. The edge of the seat, 36 cm from the floor of the passenger compartment, means that the knees do not have to be uncomfortably raised above the hips in the case of above-average heights. Precisely because we share that height, we do not entirely agree with the brand when they announce that four people of 1.90 m could travel in complete comfort, but we do believe that at least they would not be uncomfortable or lazy on an excursion that would involve spending several hours sitting inside.
THE CUPRA
FORMENTOR, A VERY POWERFUL RIVAL
Its rival today, and one of the references in terms of compact SUVs is the Cupra Formentor, especially when we are looking for an image with personality and behavior that is out of the most classic and politically correct routine. Its definitive version came to light in 2020, just after the COVID-19 lockdown ended, and from that moment on it became the best ambassador that Cupra could have had in its expansion process. And it is that it has not only been the first model developed without a previous Seat base —like the León and Ateca—, but it has also been the first to have various possibilities of choice in terms of mechanics, with our protagonist as the most family accessible.
As the faithful reader of Autopista knows well, its technical base is the MQB platform of the Volkswagen consortium, with this implies taking advantage of technologies, materials, motor elements, and, especially, internal organs that are not visible. Hence, the magnificent use of space it offers will come as no surprise. In fact, with a total length of 4.45 meters, it is capable of offering more legroom for second-row passengers than its rivals, including the Tonale, with an additional 5 cm despite an 8 cm longer body. short, without giving in excess in terms of trunk capacity.
Digitization is patent and palpable in the Cupra Formentor. It unequivocally floods an interior presided over by the touch screen for selecting and controlling elements of information, entertainment and even driving. Yes. It is from it that we can most easily navigate through the menus for consumption information, navigation, selected driving mode, or settings for driving aids, established in level two of autonomous driving. Even details such as the audio and temperature selection controls are managed with constant sliding touch panels rather than with specific buttons for use. The majority is focused and concentrated so that it is the driver who is going to access them more easily.
For the
rest, as we pointed out, it may have a minimal advantage over its rival both in
distance to the roof and in terms of interior legroom in the rear seats. It
also has slightly more comfortable access, although neither is the perfect
example of the versatility that would result from taking a van with vertical
straight walls and sliding rear side doors. Of course, assessing the rear
doors, I prefer the Cupra since the upper frame of the Tonale is finished off
at the rear in a trapezoidal shape that forces you to separate the body to
avoid hitting you with the door's beak, as was the case with the first DS4 or
the current Focus, for example.
Finally, the trunk can be the last element of spatial assessment. Which is better will ultimately depend on where the lower tray is placed, since both have that double bottom close to 11 cm that can save you a weekend trip... or cause an impression of fair capacity. With them in the upper zone, the advantage is for the Cupra, which, however, would give up its privileged position by taking full advantage of the capacity... even if to do so it would be necessary to leave the thick tray at home. By the way. Both the loading plane, the dimensions of the loading opening, and the distance between the automatic closing button and the ground are almost identical, marking a technical tie in this regard.
ALFA
ROMEO TONALE HYBRID VS CUPRA FORMENTOR 1.5 TSI: LATIN CHARACTER
The character, the operation of the vehicle, and its setting on the asphalt will possibly be factors that will have the greatest weight in the mind of someone who is evaluating them. That preference for sportsmanship can surpass in importance elements such as habitability, equipment, or connectivity, much less emotional. In this case, the confrontation is very close despite what it might seem a priori, with those 10 CV of advantage for the Italian SUV —which also has an Eco label born from its 48-volt network, with an electric motor with potential for independent support of the thermal, and automated change of robotized double clutch—. You can be in an advantageous situation at the start of the competition between the two although, as is easy to suppose, the real advantage is going to have more to do with issues of nuance and individual needs than overwhelmingly definitive elements.
Because the analysis of the performance that these cars are capable of offering would again give a minimal advantage to one of the applicants, the Alfa. Because it's going to take advantage of that little extra power it has to achieve a few tenths of a second in acceleration, the kind that would be worth its weight in gold in some circumstances... if we were going back to driving one or two decades ago. Here, too, the automatic transmission is decisive, it adapts better to restarts, to the need to gain speed once the car is running, such as when after having lifted the foot off the accelerator it is time to do it again or to attack overtaking or joining to an acceleration lane. Here the Kick Down of the Tonale automatic transmission is unquestionable and makes us miss the Volkswagen DSG7 that Cupra could not give us due to scheduling issues.
Between curves, as in our day of data acquisition in the Inta speed ring, was where we began to perceive the differences in behavior between Tonale and Formentor. Because there are, and they are not few despite the theoretical similarities. In fact, despite the fact that both have very fast steering, with less than 2.5 turns between locks both, the Alfa's front axle responds with such immediacy to the slightest hint of the steering wheel that it can make the Cupra seem vulgar, minimally. less quick in its response, although with a somewhat more reliable touch when driving with high accelerator loads. The Tonale is also capable of braking better both in terms of stopping distances at the limit and the feel of the pedal, firmer. Possibly the quantity and quality of the rubber in contact with the ground of the advantage to the Italians has to do, but the data is there. At least when we increase the requirement and approach the potential limits of both SUVs.
ALFA
ROMEO TONALE HYBRID VS CUPRA FORMENTOR 1.5 TSI: SENSATIONS EMERGE
DNA manifests itself as soon as you take up a position at the command post. Small steering wheels, a low position, closer to that of a car than an SUV in every sense of the word. The Alfa's start button is located on the steering wheel, in a nod to those that expectation is increasing, while in the Cupra it is located in the central area, where the driving modes can also be changed. The Alfa DNA rotary selector makes it easy to toggle between the three driving modes and, taken a step further, disconnect traction control and increase ESP intervention levels. It does not disconnect but could come to the rescue when circumstances get really complicated, but it will allow you to achieve really satisfactory results. In this case, turning from D mode we can pre-accelerate the Tonale and look for the best start. The system does not go beyond 2,500 rpm, but after releasing the brake the Alfa starts with great determination and picks up speed with ease.
In these cases, the consumption indicator never exceeds 15 l/100 km, which reassures him... although you notice how the reality must be much higher given how low the indicated autonomy is. Something less easy is getting the most out of the Formentor as the maneuver of releasing the clutch requires more precision and not losing anything in gear changes, starting the change just at the moment of maximum power. Despite everything, its greater lightness allows it to keep up with the stopwatch in pure acceleration maneuvers, although not so much in terms of speed recovery, as we have mentioned. Motor skills are magnificent in both, as evidenced by those little more than 9 seconds needed to reach 100 km/h, although their relatively modest powers take them away from those 30 seconds in the 1,000 m. that define truly performance cars.
The setting on the asphalt is that of family vehicles rather than sports cars to use. The Tonale is very balanced in its commitment to sufficient comfort, even with the imposing 20" wheels and its 40 profile tires, and sufficient reactivity to facilitate mass transfer when loading weight on the front axle during braking and thus enhancing, even more, the very high reactivity of the steering at the beginning of the turn, to the point of giving the impression of helping you in changes of direction.
For its part, "our" Formentor, being equipped with variable firmness suspension, allows us to choose the degree of firmness that we are going to perceive and consequently the perception that we are going to notice. Perhaps the 14 modes that they advertise are unnecessary, but there are certainly clear differences between when we select the Sport mode and when we slide the selector towards comfort and it allows us to "play" configuring to our liking down to the last detail in the individualization of the mode. driving. Of course, in his driving, he does not manage to offer a behavior of temperament as vehement as the Tonale. Not because it is not fast or agile, but because behind its Latin design, it seems to hide a more Germanic style of driving, somewhat colder in its precision, with less mass transfer and, yes, the behavior of a tool that is scrupulously handled, always very sensitive to accelerator dosage. Yes. It is one of those cars that can be driven on gas and allows you to open or close the curve simply by accelerating a little more or a little less. There will be those who can define it as less emotional than the Alfa and perhaps it is in this version, but it does not stop offering a predictable, impeccable behavior and a magnificent balance despite loudness levels above what is desirable and some stopping distances that are no more than correct.
ALFA
ROMEO TONALE HYBRID VS CUPRA FORMENTOR 1.5 TSI: THE OTHER NUMBERS
Until now we have seen how the Tonale could be a little more emotional to drive, enjoy a design —like the colors, a matter of taste— something more elegant in its interpretation of the most classic sportiness, spend less gasoline, and benefit from the label Eco in its condition as a hybrid mico, although it gave way in aspects such as the habitability of the rear seats. But there is a fact that is not very emotional and less glamorous, although it is brutally forceful and it is none other than the price. In this case, the difference of more than €10,000 (the DSG automatic transmission is close to €2,500) can condition even passion and silence it, surpassed by reason, although speaking of emotions, Alfa Romeo moves like a fish in the water.
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