![]() This is quality control testing circa 2013 with a robotic truck that knows its location to within a couple inches and can test around the clock. I am loosely belted in the back of the crew cab so I can lean forward to shoot photos and videos through the windshield. Yet time and again the truck circles and cuts the same arc which guides it precisely to and across two jarring strips of bumps that bounce me around in the back seat. The weakest part of this powertrain is the laggy six-speed automatic gearbox.There's no driver at the wheel of the Ford F-150 I'm riding in and no orientation landmarks on the vast asphalt flatlands of Ford's proving grounds. ![]() The transition from electric to petrol power can be a bit clunky if you stamp on the throttle to join a motorway or overtake someone, but otherwise it’s pretty smooth and you’re never left floundering because the electric motor gives reasonable shove straight away. ![]() Top speed is slightly lower though at 128mph. This simultaneously slashes the 0-62mph sprint down to 6.2 seconds. Opt for the plug-in hybrid Tonale Q4 with its more powerful petrol engine and electric motor, and power jumps up to 271bhp with over 400Nm of torque. Not only does it suck some of the joy out of blasts along country roads, it’s a pain during regular driving, too, and means you’ll need to wait for bigger gaps when joining a roundabout or overtaking. There’s a noticeable delay between you pressing the accelerator and the car actually responding. Performance is modest compared to the plug-in Tonale Q4, but the real let down is the power delivery. The electric motor’s 121bhp is plenty for everyday driving and you can drive at up to 84mph on electric power alone in the Tonale PHEV, but it will comfortably cruise along the motorway with the engine just a distant hum at a little over 2,000rpm. The torque from the electric motor helps to push the back axle gently when accelerating out of a turn, though the Tonale still feels more front-driven than rear. Straight-line performance is stronger in the plug-in Tonale, too. It feels more planted and less likely to be unsettled overall than the mild-hybrid version, and despite the extra weight of the PHEV model, which uses a 1.3-litre petrol engine, electric motor and 15.5kWh battery, it’s still keen to turn in and body control is kept in check. The entry-level Tonale uses a mild-hybrid powertrain that combines a new 1.5-litre petrol engine with a small electric motor, however, the plug-in hybrid Tonale Q4 is our pick of the range. ![]() There’s also a battery save mode in the plug-in model that lets you reserve charge for later in your journey. Natural is the hybrid mode, which balances between performance and economy, while Advance Efficiency essentially puts the car into EV mode and dulls the throttle to eke out as much range as possible from the battery. In Dynamic mode, the throttle, gearbox, stability control and steering are tuned to provide a more direct feel, and in the plug-in hybrid Tonale Q4, the brake regeneration gets stronger, too.
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