Alfa Romeo introducing larger electric SUV to the US because ‘Tesla is kicking everyone’s ass’
Italian luxury automaker Alfa Romeo is gearing up for an all-electric future by 2027. The company plans to release its first electric car next year, followed by its first dedicated EV in 2025. Meanwhile, Alfa Romeo has more significant plans to take on Tesla in North America, including plans for a larger electric SUV in 2027.
Alfa Romeo plans for a larger electric SUV in the US
Under the Stellantis umbrella of brands, Alfa Romeo will be the first company to introduce an all-electric lineup.
Despite not having a fully electric vehicle out yet, Alfa Romeo says the launch of the Tonale, a plug-in hybrid SUV with 35 miles all-electric range, is the start of the automaker’s transition.
Earlier this year, at a Tonale launch event in Japan, Alfa Romeo’s CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato said that entering the E-segment in North America was critical. Imparto says its planning to make sportiness “the hallmark of its coming EVs” as it looks to differentiate in an ever-expanding market.
The company’s North American head, Larry Dominique, reiterated this stance speaking with The Drive. Dominique stated:
The E-segment … for America will be more utility than the sedan, and the Giulia replacement is [already] locked.
Alfa Romeo has already confirmed that the Guilia will go electric in 2025, which could offer ultrafast 800V charging (18 minutes max) and up to 1,000 hp.
The brand’s first fully electric vehicle is expected to be launched next year based on the Jeep Avenger, a small compact SUV. Its first dedicated EV, potentially the “Guilia EV,” will be launched the following year.
Differentiated electric lineup
As Stellantis works toward an all-electric lineup, it’s looking to carve a niche market out for itself rather than blending in with other automakers, like BMW. Dominique explained:
The fastest-growing premium vehicle in the U.S.—Tesla—is kicking everyone’s ass. 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.”
Although Tesla’s market share in the US has slipped with new electric models from nearly every automaker, it still controls over 62% after another record performance in the first quarter.
Alfa Romeo’s preference for small Euro-sized vehicles has made it a challenge for the brand to expand in the US, with less than 13,000 cars sold in the US last year.
The automaker hopes its upcoming E-segment electric SUV can spark growth, as Dominique said the upcoming car would be designed with US customers in mind, adding:
Details like [interior] size, features, packaging, cupholder [size], tech, etc. will be ideal for North America. The U.S. will represent 70% of the sales of this new vehicle, so it needs to bode well for the American audience.
The new electric SUV will be roughly the size of the BMW X5 and is expected to ride on Stellantis’s STLA Large platform, the same used for Ram’s first electric pickup, the Ram 1500 REV.
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Kenworth has announced the addition of Bendix’ Fusion advanced driver assist system (ADAS) to its line of options on the T680 line of Class 8 commercial semi trucks – a lineup that includes the Next Generation T680E battery electric semi truck.
One of the many new trucks revealed at the 2025 ACT Expo in Anaheim, California earlier this year, the Next Generation Kenworth T680E featured the latest advancements in battery-electric technology, an enhanced exterior design, and a suite of new, in-cab technology that extends to the addition of three Bendix Fusion version: ADAS, ADAS PRO, and ADAS PREMIER.
All three of the announced ADAS packages offer updated Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with ACC Stop and Auto Go™, a new Pedestrian Autonomous Emergency Braking (PAEB) feature, and a new High Beam Assist feature to reduce the likelihood of blinding oncoming drivers supported by the addition of a new forward-looking camera.
Those updates are in addition to the ADAS units Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Multi-Lane Autonomous Emergency Braking, Highway Departure Braking (HDB), and Stationary Vehicle Braking (SVB), Lane Departure Warning, and Bendix® Blindspotter® Side Object Detection already available on previous versions of the ADAS-equipped Kenworth.
Kenworth migital mirrors
Now that we’ve got that acronym-loaded word-salad out of the way, we can get to the point: the newest generation of electric trucks is easier and safer to drive – and not just safer for the truck’s operators, but for the people who share the roads with them, too.
Kenworth T680E electric semi
The Next-Generation T680E is available with up to 605 peak hp and 1,850 lb-ft of torque from a PACCAR Integrated ePowertrain fed from a 500 kWh li-ion battery pack good for more than 200 miles of loaded range. The updated Class 8 BEV is rated up to 82,000 lb. gross vehicle weight ratings (GVWR), and can get that load back up to speed quickly with a 350 kW peak charge rate that means the T680E can charge up to 90% in just two hours.
That system isn’t just more efficient than the first generation truck, it’s also more serviceable than it was before.
“This move to a fully integrated and ground-up PACCAR design means we were able to design for enhanced serviceability,” explains Joe Adams, Kenworth’s chief engineer. “Providing easier access to the Master Service Disconnects for improved safety and increased uptime and allowing the use of the DAVIE service tool for troubleshooting and diagnostics.”
The Next Generation Kenworth T680E electric semi truck is designed for short and regional-haul, LTL, and drayage operations. It’s available as a day cab as either a tractor or straight truck in a 6×4 axle configuration.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Kenworth; via Kenworth.
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Just like it says on the tin – retailers are advertising killer deals on the fun-to-drive Kia Niro EV, with one midwest auto dealer reporting more than $10,000 off the sticker price of the Niro EV Wind. That’s nearly 25% off the top line price!
SKIP THE STORY: get straight to the deals.
The Kia Niro EV gets overshadowed by its objectively excellent EV6 and EV9 stablemates – both of which are currently available with substantial lease cash and 0% APR financing, in fact – but that doesn’t mean it’s not an excellent little electric runabout in its own right.
The last time I had a Niro EV tester, my kids loved it, I liked that it was quicker and more tossable than I expected it to be, and my wife liked the fact that “it doesn’t look electric. It looks normal.” And, with well over 200 miles of real world range (EPA-rated range is 253 miles), it was more than up to the task of commuting around Chicago and making the trip up to the Great Wolf Lodge in Gurnee and back without even needing to look for a charger.
It’s not the primary family hauler I’d choose – but as a second car? As a primary car for a slightly smaller family (1-2 kids, instead of 3-4)? The Kia Niro EV Wind, with a $42,470 MSRP, seems like a solid, “can’t go wrong” sort of choice. You know?
You won’t even have to pay that much, though. Raymond Kia in Antioch, Illinois is advertising a $42,470 Niro EV for $32,431 (that’s $10,039, or about 24% off the MSRP), and several others are advertising prices in the $33,000 range.
And, while we’re at it:
Kia Niro EV gallery
SOURCE | IMAGES: CarsDirect, Edmunds, Raymond Kia.
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