ALFA Romeo is entering the compact SUV market with a new model called the Tonale that will sit in its line up below the Stelvio.

With hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains available the car is likely to cost from around £35,000 when it arrives later in the year.

Styled in a similar vein to the Stelvio, the Tonale plug-in will use a set-up similar to that of its Stellantis sister brand Jeep in the Renegade which sees a 1.3-litre turbo petrol engine mated to an electric motor giving a total power output of 271bhp.

It will have an electric-only range of around 37 miles and be capable of accelerating to 62mph in 6.2 seconds.

The battery will take two-and-a-half hours to recharge from a fast charger.

The plug-in will be joined by two hybrid versions of the Tonale using a 1.5-litre engine mated to a 48-volt system developing either 128 or 158bhp.

While the plug-in model has a four-wheel-drive set up with the electric motor powering the rear axle, the 48-volt models are front-wheel-drive only.

All versions have automatic transmissions and there is no manual option.

Interior equipment includes a 12.3-inch digital instrument panel and a 1.0.25-inch central touchscreen which is not only fully smartphone compatible but also with Amazon Alexa.

The Tonale is also the first car to use non-fungible token blockchain technology which will record vehicle data that can produce a certificate of the vehicle's history at resale.

Other high-tech features see Level 2 autonomous driving functions included in Alfa's DNA drive-mode system.

The Tonale measures 4.53 metres in length, 1.84 metres wide and has a height of 1.6 metres which is similar in size to other compact SUVs such as the Volkswagen T-Roc and Volvo XC40.

Full specifications are still to be announced.