Alfa Romeo Tonale also comes as Dodge

On the Italian forum car pareripopped up pictures of a car that looks like the Alfa Romeo Tonale, but isn’t. According to various sources, this is the Dodge Hornet, a name that we encountered at the brand a long time ago. Nothing is known about this ‘Hornet’ yet, but the model is presumably intended for the North and South American market. The photo shows a part of the front, on which the lines of the Tonale are still recognizable. Only the Alfa Romeo Scudetto grille is gone, giving way to a rectangular grille that sits between the headlights. There are also additional cooling slots in the hood.

The interior of the Dodge ‘Hornet’. Photo: Autopareri.com.

However, the wheels seem to have been taken over from Alfa Romeo 1 on 1. The similarities are also clearly visible on a photo of the interior. The steering wheel is the same as that of the Tonale, but has a Dodge logo. The large paddle shifters of the Tonale are also missing. The interior is still partly covered, but seems to match that of the Tonale. The meter housing and the ventilation grilles may have a slightly different shape.

It is not yet entirely clear which powertrains the Hornet will receive. In addition to a number of Tonale engines, the Dodge will probably also have powerful non-hybrid engines at its disposal. It is quite conceivable that Dodge will market the strongest variant as an SRT version. In any case, it is a somewhat special move by Stellantis that Alfa Romeo wants to market as a premium brand. Rebadging the latest product as a Dodge with apparently few adjustments, seems to be somewhat at odds with that.

The exchange between Alfa Romeo and Dodge is not new: in 2012, the brand presented the Dart, a car that stood on the platform of the Giulietta. However, the Dart was a model with its own ex- and interior. That doesn’t seem to be the case with the Hornet, if it is indeed going to be called that.