Alfa Romeo plotting all-electric large car

Alfa Romeo is plotting a long-overdue move on the premium large-car segment as it targets a bigger share of the lucrative North American market, but some might be surprised to hear the Italian brand’s all-new ‘E-segment’ model will be battery-electric.

Rumours of a big new sedan to belatedly replace the Alfa Romeo 166, which was axed in 2007, have circled for more than a decade, most recently with Spanish outlet Motor.es creating this sleek render of a BMW 5 Series-rivalling sports sedan reportedly due for release in 2025.

But the latest revelation comes from Alfa Romeo’s own CEO, Jean-Philippe Imparato, at the Japanese launch of the all-new Tonale mid-size SUV, where he told Automotive News that work was already underway on the all-new zero-emissions model.

“We will have to be in the E-segment in North America,” he said. “We are working on that.”

But while North America holds the key to commercial success and Alfa’s goal of markets outside Europe accounting for 40 per cent of the brand’s global sales by 2030, Imparato revealed the new EV wouldn’t necessarily need to be an SUV.

This is because aerodynamics are a key factor in the development and driving range of electric vehicles – as well as the fact that Alfa’s plans for a BMW X5-rivalling large luxury SUV are already underway.

Instead, the mystery Alfa EV could debut as a sedan to rival the Tesla Model S (traditional booted cars are still big business in the US), a wagon or even a four-door fastback crossover in the ilk of the Polestar 2.

Whatever the case may be, Imparato is determined to make all of Alfa’s future EVs sporty and engaging to drive with genuine performance thanks to 800V electrical architectures, ultra-fast charging and outputs varying between 260kW-600kW – no doubt with help from the other Stellantis Group brands such as Maserati.

Battery-electric Quadrifoglio variants, meanwhile, should offer close to 746kW (1000hp) and will more than likely feature tri-motor drivetrains as per the formidable Maserati Gran Turismo Folgore.

“I need to transfer the concept of performance,” Imparato said. “We will be a high-performance EV.”

Whatever kiloWatt counts future Alfa EVs end up offering, the global boss intends for the brand’s entire line-up to be electric-only as of 2027, with launches of new combustion models to cease in 2025.

The Tonale will be Alfa Romeo’s first EV off the ranks as of next year, before the brand’s first dedicated-electric model emerges in 2025.

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