The 2007 Dodge Caliber: Anything But Cute, or Anything But Cool?

[JohnBM01]

I'm normally a DaimlerChrysler fan, but when I heard about the Neon being replaced, that's one thing. Replacing it with a (let's face it) baby SUV deal, that makes people wish the Neon could have lasted longer, or at least have the Caliber as a completely new machine like Honda did with the Fit/Jazz/City. The car is getting some publicity now. So what do you think about this Caliber?

I'll begin.

I usually used to look at certain cars than asking for your views on specific, recently-released cars. This car replaces the Neon, which is already Strike One in my view. I made a joke in another forum that I guess Chevrolet could replace the Cobalt with a a bigger version of the Chevrolet Kodiak (a big commercial truck that's also commercially-available). I usually considered the Neon as a non-boring car, especially the SRT-4. That memorable model will be the one I'll remember most as the Neon is replaced by the Caliber. I still think Dodge could have maybe upped the ante with the Neon like Honda did with the Civic. Instead, they straight up kill off the Neon and put in the Caliber. I don't think it was much of a smart move, especially since the Neon SRT-4 was probably the only reason people cared about the Neon. We not have the Caliber as the Neon had its funeral long ago.

The latest edition of MotorWeek featured the Dodge Caliber. It even talked about how people think about this as a CUV (Crossover Utility Vehicle. I know. Sometimes the designations get old). It's said to have a 0-60 run of 9.3 seconds and 83 mph down the 1/4 mile. There is front end push with this mini SUV in the turns. It has a pretty cool setup for the trendy, young types. And I'll admit that it seems to be a pretty cool urban vehicle. Part of my concern has been about how the sport compact and import tuner groups respond to the Caliber. Will they embrace it like they will embrace the Honda Fit? It has some features I think this segment of car fans will appreciate. For example, there is some iPod room to hook that bad boy into an auxillary speaker unit. There are rear speakers once you open up the rear tailgate.

Overall, I know that the correlation between the Neon and Caliber is that the un-cute Caliber replaces the fairly modest Neon. I don't know. When I think of the Neon, I think of especially the Neon SRT-4. That was a 220hp, turbo-charged all-American import fighter. It's also my favorite American compact car (believe it or not). To see that all go with the Caliber, I think it's sort of a dumb move. I think the Neon and Caliber could have been two seperate models than a replacement. But if this ends up being a better and better-appreciated car than the Neon, then I guess I'll give the Caliber the respect it deserves.

What do you think about the Caliber, now that it's out on the streets?

 

[Joey D]

The Dodge Caliber sucks, it's a crappy replacement for a decent small car like the Neon. A buddy of mine had his dad bring home the SRT-4 version from the tech center last week and I got to go for a ride in it. It not only torque steered quite badly it also had wheel hope and massive understeer. Why they didn't make it AWD is something I'll never understand.

But I think Dodge should have just freshened up the Neon instead of replacing the thing. There wasn't much wrong with the Neon, it was a good point a to point b car and the R/T and ACR were slightly sporty. The SRT-4 was overrated but still decent and didn't have nearly the problem the Caliber SRT-4 has.

But really the Caliber is just as crappy as the PT Cruiser is, I think Dodge made a dumb move on this thing. Plus it looks like a Durango had relations with a Vibe and it's some sort of bastard child of theirs.

I mean what the hell?

 

[Dave A]

They've made an SRT-4 of a car that looks as sporty as a shopping trolley. That say's it all really, the Neon was not a good looker imo, but it looked unique, it still looked like someone spent time desiging it, this just looks totally uninspired like the desinger's could care less..

 

[Joey D]

All Chrslyer designers did was look at a Vibe and Durangofy it.

 

[CodeRedR51]

All Chrslyer designers did was look at a Vibe and Durangofy it.

Durangofy, huh?

 

[Ghost C]

When I saw the commercial they're showing, before the end where the narrator says "anything but cute", I thought "Oh look, the fairy used it's wand, but nothing happened. That's because it's already as fairy as possible"

That's my opinion on it.

 

[Carl.]

I don't think it looks that bad, actually. I like its looks better than an HHR, a PT cruiser or a Vibe/Matrix, actually. Yes it's a car with truck looks, but at least the proportion aren't bad on that one, as opposed to say, a Magnum.

That doesn't look bad to me at all.

What I find disappointing about it is the cheap materials used for the interior, and that according to reviews driving dynamics aren't very good. (then again, I've never heard much praise in both departments for an HHR, Vibe/Matrix or non-turbo PT Cruiser). Some of the engine/transmissions/drivetrain choices they made for their lineup are quite absurd too. (CVT only in the R/T - FTW???)

 

[Joey D]

Another thing about the manual cars is that when you shift fast you bust your knuckles against the center stack, I noticed this at the NAIAS.

 

[Dave A]

That's one thing I love about my 306, it has a beautiful gear change.

 

[z-reserve]

I've seen one last week and while I don't hate the design, its dwarfing size doesn't appeal for me. Dodge could have made a smaller car, but that's not in their priorities.

The SRT4 model has an hood scoop to boot.

 

[YSSMAN]

I'm kinda finding myself a bit lost with the Caliber...

On one hand, I really do think it is a great car that offers a good amount of space and functionality, combined with decent fuel economy, and bargain-basement prices. I'd say that the look is handsome in the way a mother would address a child that isnt George Clooney, but with certain options, the Caliber can look rather nice. It is agressive in appearance, and thats a good thing. In a market dominated by other vanilla products from Honda and Toyota, the Caliber is a step in the right direction for DCX in the small car market. That said...

The Cailber still comes off as a dissapointment. Even as a brand-new car, it still feels kina old. The interior plastics are some of the worst I've seen since the '90s, but Dodge does a good job of hiding the overall cheapness with good surfacing on the plastics themselves (knock on 'em, you will know what I mean). The engines are still two steps behind what I consider to be the standard in the small car industry, the GM ECOTEC... By comparison the engine is rather coarse (sp?), a little rough, and not quite as fuel efficent as others available from both American and Japanese markets.

...Added to that, the Caliber still seems confused as to what it is actually doing. To some extent it is competing with the Honda Fit and Nissan Versa (price, performance [depends], capability), but then again I think it was meant to tackle cars like the Cobalt, Civic, and Corolla (price, size, etc.). The $13,00 entry price is awesome, there is no questions there. But you don't get a very well-refined engine, a rubber-band transmission, she is missing a lot of necessary interior options, and youre stuck with bottom-rug options. By the time you option the car to what I would consider necessary (power windows, locks, ABS, alloy wheels, fog lights, etc.) you are crossing into the $16,000 range...

Would I consider buying the Caliber? Probably not, mostly because of the overall poor feelings the car gives back. However, I wouldnt hesitate to recomend the car to others who are looking for a cheap, somewhat reliable model to replace an aging compact. The Caliber is a worthy successor to the Neon, I just wish we would have saw more of a jump like what GM did with the Cavalier turn Cobalt...

----------------------------

Now for the SRT-4, technically still a stand-alone model:
First let me say, the car looks good... Damn good. But (and this is a huge BUT!) 300HP in a FWD package is just too much in such a little car. If they can keep the prices down, these things are going to sell incredibly well, but I would only buy one with AWD, and it looks as though it will not happen (based on words from the SRT heads in C/D's preview of the SRT-4). I think like it's predecessor, it will be an iconic American performance car, and will continue to be a cheap alternative to the Honda Civic Si and VW GTI.

-------------------------

Dodge Caliber: 70%: Good effort by the folks at Dodge, but the final product just was not what it was promised to be.

Dodge SRT-4: 85%: Looks pretty good inside and out, but I think they made a mistake not going with AWD...

 

[JohnBM01]

I usually say that the latest Eclipse could have benefitted from 4WD. Then again from tuning one in GT4, the FWD acts more like a 4WD.

I guess in this case, mini SUVs (or CUV in this case) are the new hatchbacks. Next thing is probably Chevy replacing the Aveo with an M1 Abrahms Tank. I still think this could have been its own car than just a Neon replacement. And I guess I'm thinking about this as a replacement to ALL Neons including the SRT-4. I'd up the game with the SRT-4. 4WD may even be a nice deal to consider as well for it. Don't laugh at me when I say this, but it looks too mean to be a compact. Compare this to the Focus and the Vibe (I guess it's called the Toyota Voltz in Japan, which looks wholly alike) in terms of styling. I seem to really be focused on styling since I am an art person. I'd probably say that a truck conversion of this car would look pretty nice for this thing. That's the same thing I say about the Scion xB. But if you completely take away the second row and the rear and the spoiler, you have a VERY WEIRD truck deal. It would make a nice Ute if redesigned correctly.

My issues are normally related with other people. So I still wonder how the import/sport compact public will take this Neon replacement. I think that this isn't really the best job of replacing a fairly decent Neon with this "crossover utility vehicle." I actually like the Magnum more than this in terms of long and low cars. This could have been more of a baby Magnum than a Neon replacement. Only that this "baby Magnum" can be available in either front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive. The big plus? It costs pretty cheap.

Before I leave this post, I was thinking about this car and that Rallye concept deal. I'd personally HATE to see this as a rally car up against machines like the Ford Focus, Subaru Impreza, Peugeot 307, and any other car currently in the WRC (thanks for not showing WRC anymore, Speed. 👎). If anything, this is a baby Dakar machine. Just jack up the suspension really nice and make the body heavier.

Your time to comment now.

 

[a6m5]

This car is weird. It looks like it should look nice, but it doesn't. It is pretty ugly and I think it might be that huge grill, maybe the entire face. My buddy tells me that 300hp motor is pretty cheap to obtain in this car, which is kinda neat.

 

[Wolfe]

Ugh, the dreadful Sports Utilicompagon, as I call it.

Who replaces a compact car with a mini-wannabe-SUV? DCX, apparently.

 

[Pupik]

Style-wise, it certainly looks as if it were designed by committee. It's as if design brain trust said: "We want a car that can do everything...it's not an SUV, it's not a Neon, and it's not a truck. It's not the car their parents would drive, and it's not a hatchback! Americans hate hatchbacks. And don't call it a liftback either, that's a Toyota-only term!"

I saw one, and although it's not ugly, it just looks like a car that has an identity crisis. It's supposed to be small, but it's overweight. It's supposed to have a useful hatch, but the rear end is not on speaking terms with the front end of the car. It's trying to fit in with all the automotive circles, but instead it's wearing a traditional blue blazer with a T-shirt and a clip-on tie with scrub pants.

I can only hope it drives far better than the intial reports.

 

[Poverty]

They should have taken the mercedes c-class kompact chassis and made a new neon or even the c-class chassis.

 

[niky]

I can only hope it drives far better than the intial reports.

I doubt it... would be a sad thing, eh, if they replaced the nimble Neon with something that not only looks like a CUV (compact utility vehicle), but drives like one.

I personally am about the whole thing, but I can see this selling well with the wannabe SUV crowd who are too hard off to even afford a CRV. While the tech specs may not impress, space does sell.

We'll just have to wait and see how much it sells.

 

[Danny]

I'll be straight to the point here.

I hate the Dodge Caliber.

If Dodge try to ship any into here they can expect unfriendly fire and a large resistance.

Mainly from me.

 

[neanderthal]

not an original thought amongst the lot of you huh?

the 300/ magnum and charger are a hit because they dont try to be what they arent. they are an unabashedly american car; big, bold, and in your face, and if you dont like it, eff the fark off. in a world full of accords and mazda 6s and camries they are a breath of fresh air. and they are a hit even in europe, asia and australia.

dodge is simply trying to repeat that feat in the compact class. and they are trying to venture beyond north america for sales, into europe and asia. where hatchbacks are far more common and appreciated than here. this is why its has the not quite hatchback styling it has. its designed for an internatinoal appeal, but at the same time its also designed to not alienate american buyers, hence the not quite hatchback. it would cost a lot more to have a sedan for a merica and a hatchbackl for the rest of the world. solution, compromise.

its a business decision, not a "will the wanna be racers like it" decision.


the neon was laughably inept in its debut in england and europe. a good number of neons here went to rental fleets, not ane arena where much profit is made, also an arena that kills your resale value. in a segment dominated for the last 15 years by the civic and corolla, and now being crowded by the mazda 3 and various cookie cutter koreans, the dodge stands out. IT IS DIFFERENT. and for some people that will be enough. look at the way its being marketed. its not being marketed as just another compact car from another car company. its being marketed as something differnet for people who are different. not more of the same.

will it work, i dont know. i think its too compromised for europe and too compromised for NA too. i think it will fail on both sides of the pond.
i think they should have gone with a wildly american style which they kinda did, but they wrapped that american style in a european box. big mistake.
shoulda just stuck to thier guns and did something wild. like the 300/ magnum, 1993 ram, plymouth prowler, viper; all succesful beyond thier predecessor (where there was one,) all boldy american.

i think they should have had an american design and a european one. different stlying, possibly different interiors too, but same architecture/ chassis/ frame. like the golf and audi TT are based on the same frame. yet wildly different.

---------------------------



im really really amused by the "sport compact" tinge of a lot of your thinking. not all (car) business decisions are (made) for the people who want a sporty car. i keep having to say that in this board. its almost funny. big picture people, big picture. think outside your little mind for a minute. it doesnt hurt. i promise.

 

[YSSMAN]

^^^I agree for the most part, but I'm going to withold my calls for success/failure untill the numbers show up further down the road. I've actually seen quite a few driving around here in Michigan, and I have to admit that they do infact stand out. But I don't think it is the stylng specifically, I think it is a combination of the look and the overall size of the car which makes it look very unique compared to any Honda or Toyota...

Commercials here in the US for the Cailber promote the car often as somthing for more active people, particularly those in the 20's and 30's. The iPod connection is one feature that is something they talk about a lot, as well as the flip-down music gate inside the tailgate, and the "cool-box" thingy in the glovebox to keep your bottles of Coca-Colla chilled. We will see if that effects sales at all, and to me, they are attractive options that I wish could be on other models at other dealers.

I'm interested in what the European press has said about the car thus far, as every comparison test (that I know of) that the Caliber has competed in, it has lost. Competition thus far has included vehicles such as the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Nissan Versa, Chevrolet HHR, Toyota Matrix, and Mazda3. Thats right, even the Chevrolet HHR beat it...

-------------------------------------

As to the Caliber being entered into WRC competition, that is something I'd love to see! If they want the WRC to become popular in the United States, an American car needs to be competing in order for Americans to watch, and this could be it to see WRC get into the big time... Sure, it isnt as pretty as the 207 (or whatever Peugot is running these days), the Citroen (whatever they are running these days), STi, Evo, or Focus.... But it would be great to see an American car mixing it up in there.

 

[Wolfe]

Neanderthal, get off of your high chair. Yeah, the Caliber is different -- since when does that mean that we can't dislike it? Yeah, some people were expecting something sporty -- what do you expect when Dodge is producing an SRT4 version of it? Besides, the posts in this thread that called for more sportiness are in the minority rather than the majority.

Maybe if you "thought outside of your own little mind for a minute," you'd realize that in the real world, different people have different opinions. Fancy that.

...and to think, you could have just made a useful contribution to the thread by excluding a few things --

the 300/ magnum and charger are a hit because they dont try to be what they arent. they are an unabashedly american car; big, bold, and in your face, and if you dont like it, eff the fark off. in a world full of accords and mazda 6s and camries they are a breath of fresh air. and they are a hit even in europe, asia and australia.

dodge is simply trying to repeat that feat in the compact class. and they are trying to venture beyond north america for sales, into europe and asia. where hatchbacks are far more common and appreciated than here. this is why its has the not quite hatchback styling it has. its designed for an internatinoal appeal, but at the same time its also designed to not alienate american buyers, hence the not quite hatchback. it would cost a lot more to have a sedan for a merica and a hatchbackl for the rest of the world. solution, compromise.

the neon was laughably inept in its debut in england and europe. a good number of neons here went to rental fleets, not ane arena where much profit is made, also an arena that kills your resale value. in a segment dominated for the last 15 years by the civic and corolla, and now being crowded by the mazda 3 and various cookie cutter koreans, the dodge stands out, because it is different. and for some people that will be enough. look at the way its being marketed. its not being marketed as just another compact car from another car company. its being marketed as something differnet for people who are different. not more of the same.

will it work, i dont know. i think its too compromised for europe and too compromised for NA too. i think it will fail on both sides of the pond.
i think they should have gone with a wildly american style which they kinda did, but they wrapped that american style in a european box. big mistake.
shoulda just stuck to thier guns and did something wild. like the 300/ magnum, 1993 ram, plymouth prowler, viper; all succesful beyond thier predecessor (where there was one,) all boldy american.

i think they should have had an american design and a european one. different stlying, possibly different interiors too, but same architecture/ chassis/ frame. like the golf and audi TT are based on the same frame. yet wildly different.

 

[niky]

Ditto with Wolfe, neanderthal... a lot of that was uncalled for.

His version of your post does read a lot better.

And to note, I did say that while I don't like it, space sells, and that it remains to be seen how well it sells.

Like it or not, the Caliber is smack-dab in the middle of the sports compact market, in terms of size, price, features and model range. Obviously, people are going to judge it in sports compact terms, whether they're "wannabe racers" or not.

Like YSSMAN said, it's failed in comparisons against sports compacts, but that's not the market it's aimed at. It'll be interesting to see not only if it sells... but who it sells to.

 

[Joey D]

When you put a Durango front end on a Vibe and then take the rear hatch from the Malibu Maxx and put it all together it doesn't make the car original.

To illistate the point.

Durango front end...

Vibe body...

Maxx rear end...

And that's how you make a ugly Neon replacement.

 

[Raghavan]

I liked the SRT-4. Ferocious in a straight line, and good at handling too. Now it's been replaced with an SUV with 300 hp and still FWD. What's the point?

 

[YSSMAN]

Don't be surprised to see if the Street Racing Technologies team decides to offer an AWD system a little further down the line. The car is designed to take it, and I'm sure they could tap their friends at Mitsubishi for a system similar to that of the Evolution IX or X... Although they might deem it too "expensive" to attact the former buyers of the Neon-based SRT-4.

I was reading on the online-interweb not too long ago that the Caliber has been accepted pretty well by the younger folks, mostly because it offers a similar level of neat features like what you can find on your neighbor's Scion xA and xB...

I also think it is funny that the iPod seems to be playing such a large role with the features in the new cars and trucks. GM decided to change all of their stero systems in the brand-new cars to feature an iPod link that is immediately useable (unlike Honda or BMW who charge you more than $100 for it), and the Caliber has managed to have a special holder and input for the iPod as well...

Just another way to attract more youthful buyers...

 

[a6m5]

I also think it is funny that the iPod seems to be playing such a large role with the features in the new cars and trucks. GM decided to change all of their stero systems in the brand-new cars to feature an iPod link that is immediately useable (unlike Honda or BMW who charge you more than $100 for it), and the Caliber has managed to have a special holder and input for the iPod as well...

Just another way to attract more youthful buyers...

That is one of the features I look in a car these days. As long as it's a $100 - $200 option, I think it's reasonable.

 

[YSSMAN]

...I'd say its a rip-off for the $129 in the Honda (plus installation fee), and almost $200 in a BMW or Mercedes-Benz. It should be standard like how GM and DCX are doing it...

It's cool to think that Volkswagen was the first to do it all those years ago way, way back when the iPod first came out. I can recall a campaign here in the US so that when you bought a new VW, you got a new (I want to say 30GB) iPod and connector kit for free. Too bad they don't do it anymore...

 

[neanderthal]

wolfe/ niky

BS
why? because the large corporations are not trying to please little wanna be ricer when they design a car. they are trying to hit middle america mom and pop who will likely be buying the car. ive yet to see a single marketing blurb that says the "geewhizzbang aero version XXX is being marketed at streetracers and other people who will appreciate its handling while they are tearing up the canyons of thier local mt akina." the closest ive seen is the marketing materials for the SRT4 which simply said they were aiming to get some autocrossers and dominate the class.

but lotsa car threads seems to be tinged with racer elitism and ricer mentality and less and less common sense, especially when it comes to what the corporations should be doing. im not impressed by how much of a wanna be racer some of aspire to be, or how much technical knowledge they can drop. especially in a thread about the replacement for a entry level compact car. the racers and ricers dont buy em in enough quantity for the corporations to care that much about em. thats why a lot of "sport" packages are nothing but a stripe and wheels.

theres nothing wrong with trying to share your opinions about cars. about your personal slant on whats wrong with them and so on. but in order to critise the coproration one must think like the corporation would have to think. they have to worry about fixed costs, labour costs, tooling costs, sales, resale, option mixes, how much inventory is on hand, JIT deliveries and myriad other things that people here dont seem to consider.

if were are going to criticize the corporations effort to replace the neon at least address the concerns the corporation has to address; the international market, resale value, costs, marketing, sales, product appeal, demographics and so on and so on.

otherwise the couch quarterbacking, and backseat driving is nothing more that trite criticism, potshots taken with no real thought behind them. like dissing the retarded kid coz everybody else is doing so.
the original poster himself allued to the SRT4 being the reason why people love the neon. people buy it coz its a cheap alternative to the corolla and civic which lead the class. who has ever compared them and said the neon is a better car (unless they were really big?) nobody ive heard of.


anyway. perhaps it was a little harsh. i wont say it wasnt. but perhaps a little more thought was called for as well. i did say that. verbal diarrhea is an unappealing thing. especially in a medium like the internet that is not regulated.

if one can do better one should simply state how they would do it or shut up instead of criticising without offering a real world solution. in the real world a corporations main concern when it rolls out a new car is profits except where loss leaders are concerned. the caliber is not a loss leader. its designed to make a profit. or the smallest possible loss. its not designed to please the performace sector of the population. a sector that rarely makes profits in the compact car realm. the 323GTX is dead. so is the pulsar GTi. the CRX Si. (toyota never really gave us a perfomance compact ouside of the first gen MR2) the EVOs and STis sell at $30000 in miniscule numbers. both are compact cars. theres very little profit in performance at less than that. but how many sport compact cars would be sold at those prices? especially when you can get a 300hp mustang GT for $25000.

this belies my call for common sense.

 

[neanderthal]

Don't be surprised to see if the Street Racing Technologies team decides to offer an AWD system a little further down the line. The car is designed to take it, and I'm sure they could tap their friends at Mitsubishi for a system similar to that of the Evolution IX or X... Although they might deem it too "expensive" to attact the former buyers of the Neon-based SRT-4.

the relationship is a little cooler since DC sold thier stake in mitsubishi.

i too think the rational direction is AWD. hopefully it wouldnt add too much to the weight and cost.

 

[Joey D]

It needs AWD because it torque steers and understeers like a mother. 300hp to the front wheels is the worst idea I've heard in a while.