I haven't been a big Dodge fan over the years, having only owned one out of 17 cars. But the last few years have been exciting at the pentastar. Everyone knows about the Magnum / 300 / Charger triplets. And of course the Neon SRT4 was an impressive performer. But what else from the Dodge boys was interesting? The base Neon seemed dated when compared to the Focus or new Chevy Cobalt. So I was surprised that the new Caliber actually touched a nerve for me. And I'm not talking about the upcoming 300 hp SRT4, I'm talking about the everyday Caliber in the STX trim.
New powertrains from 1.8/2.0/2.4 liters and the possability of a new Common Rail Diesel, as well as distinctly Dodge styling, and some very interesting interior options. They have a new feature called the "Chill Zone", basically a cooler for beverages and a new speaker option for the tailgate, that I wouldn't go for myself, but 15 years ago would have really had me. The Caliber can be a great first car for a college student or even a useful vehicle for small families. Standard front wheel drive and available all wheel drive seem to offer something for almost everyone.
Could this be the first vehicle to bring me into a Dodge dealer? I'm looking forward to test driving one. It could be on a short list of cars I would buy. I would only be itnerested in a manual transmission, so it's either the base 1.8 or the 300 hp SRT4. It's nice to dream, but I'd probably stick to the 1.8, or if a CRD would be availalbe with a manual I'd jump on it.
Prices start just below the Scion Xb and grow with options, but power is better and combined with styling, this could be big trouble for Scion.
Update, click title for commercial clips from Jalpnik.
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