ALFA ROMEO

Kamal Concept: 20 years ago the Italian brand showed an authentic conceptual and stylistic leap

Nowadays, nobody puts their hands on their heads anymore when a brand like Alfa Romeo, which historically has always made sports cars, some of them mythical, produces SUVs and crossovers. But in 2003, long before the arrival of crossover fashion, the Milan-based manufacturer presented its first proposal. It was the Alfa Romeo Kamal Concept, the spiritual origin of the Tonale.

In Sanskrit, the ancient language of India, the word Kamal refers to the color red. In Arabic, it means 'perfection' and 'synthesis of opposites'. Different languages ​​and meanings that balance and complement each other in the same word. An evocative force to describe a prototype that the Italian brand presented at the 2003 Geneva Motor Show.

The Alfa Romeo Kamal Concept marked an authentic conceptual and stylistic leap in the international automobile scene. The automotive industry was already beginning to open up new horizons and segments in which Alfa Romeo intended to play an important role. At that moment, the Italian brand set an ambitious goal: to create a prototype that represented the concept of 'elegant sportiness' that has always characterized Alfa Romeo models, but in a completely new form.

Through a complex and refined game of allusions, Alfa Romeo's SUV prototype recalled the company's tradition in the sports vehicle sector, while including new and attractive lines that looked to a future still unknown to the general public at that time, but that would transform the auto industry several years later.

Built on the same platform as the Alfa Romeo 159 and the Brera, the Kamal Concept was equipped with the same 3.2-liter V6 engine that delivered 250 hp, the same block as the GTA versions of the 147 and 156. 6-speed Alfa Selespeed. According to the manufacturer, it could exceed 200 km/h.

Kamal meant a blend of style and design that represented a unique crossroads of cultures. The prototype was a fusion of different types of vehicles: it combined the off-road performance of an SUV with the driving pleasure and handling characteristics of a compact Alfa Romeo like the 147 at that time. A car as comfortable driving on highways as on rough terrain.

At the same time, it offered a versatile and functional cabin, as is customary in a multipurpose vehicle, due, above all, to the intelligent use of space and a wide range of seating configurations. All this, designed by Arese Style Centre. So, 19 years later, the brand presented the Alfa Romeo Tonale, a compact SUV that can be considered a spiritual descendant of the Kamal.

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