Effin Ponderous Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Just had to shake my head in sadness this weekend after driving the new Dodge Caliber on a rental. I guess I understand more than ever how imports are making the domestics look bad. (editors note: I haven't bought a new domestic car in a while) I picked it up in LA on Sunday and drove to Vegas with it today. The car had 700 miles on it so I figured it might at least be "interesting" to drive. I have never seen a worse case of torque steer in my life...not to say that the car even has any power?! At 148hp, you can imagine how bad the acceleration is, but get this - When you accelerate the car pulls to the right. When you take your foot off of the gas the car swings back to the left. It actually becomes difficult to keep the car headed straight. I guess it has something to do with the CVT tranny which is another dissapointment. If you like hearing the sound of a nat by your ear, you will love the sound of the 1.8 liter "new world" engine. In addition, there was a constant error message (CEL) in the dash, the interior (dash) lights will only come on if you put on the overhead interior light and the gas mileage has averaged a little over 20mpg highway. There were a bunch of other annoying things that I won't waste anymore time on, but if this is what we are producing here, Hyundai will be out selling the domestics soon. Advantage - Dodge? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJack Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 I just got rid of two DC vehicles, and was considering the Calibre. Got to the dodge forums and read about all the stupid problems with them . I have read many bad reviews, one was a person on myspace that had one for a rental and said it was horrible. I heard the car is hard to see out of. I liked them at first but the more i see them i don't care for it. Chrysler is gonna be in alot of trouble soon. They were building some nice looking cars but it seems the tide is turning, not to mention reliabilty problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iyalla Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Its a shame how the Big 3 continue to suffer from poor execution. When it comes to passenger cars they are almost clueless. You have a public that just wants a great cheap American car they can buy. The buzz goes up and then the car is released and boom its all downhill from that point. They just continue to land on their face. The dealers don't help either, no American dealer should be selling a car thousands over sticker I don't care how big the buzz about it is, I certainly wouldn't buy one over sticker. Remember the buzz of the Ford Thunderbird. Dealers had that thing marked up significantly, then the bottom fell out as people realized what a crap car it was despite the cool retro styling. Execution, execution, execution. If the regular GM guys had been in charge the Corvette would still have flip up lights! The big 3 always seem scared to make a change to a model. They'd rather scrap it and start from scratch. But a Honda Civic is a Honda Civic because it started over 20 years ago and has been refined every 4 years since. Why can't they take a look at their own Ford F150 or Silverado which keeps kicking butt and has been around 4ever???! I bet they scrap the Caliber in a few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTsullyman Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Dodge just sucks at pretty much every car they make. IMO GMs last chance will be on the new camaro. If they show they can make it like the concept at a decent price point and its done right then i think they will have turned in a good direction. They are finally giving each of their brands its own identity and its starting to look like they may have figured something out. 2007 DGM LGT 2003 Suzuki SV650S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTTuner Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 As an employee at a Dodge/Chrysler dealer I can say I am ashamed at how cheap they make an interior look. Did you notice the plastic inside the Caliber? The whole inside looks like a recycled milk jug! If you bang you head on a door panel it (your head) will bleed! On the flip side, the powertrain engineers at DCX have really gotten their act together. This includes our domestic and world engines. Our trannys have gotten extremely reliable also, even the "grenade" A604 is very reliable. I guess the fact I drive a Subaru say's something. I would buy a 300C in a NY second, if they did not deprecieate 40% in 12 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrok Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Dodge just sucks at pretty much every car they make. IMO GMs last chance will be on the new camaro. If they show they can make it like the concept at a decent price point and its done right then i think they will have turned in a good direction. They are finally giving each of their brands its own identity and its starting to look like they may have figured something out. Not sure if you meant to have it come off this way, but Dodge isn't part of GM. At least thats my understanding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrjoshuanyc Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 wow, that sounds pretty bad! a good friend of mine has a dodge magnum hemi and when he got it he could not wait to show it off. I was impressed with the package, navi and other cool features. His car does not have 20k and already he is trying for the lemon law! 2 rebuilt trannys have been put in and the damn car still leaks fluid and does not shift properly. Bottom line when he gets his money back he is buying import! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pillboy Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 I guess the fact I drive a Subaru say's something. I would buy a 300C in a NY second, if they did not deprecieate 40% in 12 months Buy a used one....should be a good deal. It is still ugly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bb6lude Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 yeah, i rented one last december. no go whatsoever, stomp on the gas and it just sits there. interior wasn't that great either, but it was better than a neon that i rented several years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iyalla Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 but it was better than a neon that i rented several years ago. +1 I think thats what happened, they made something better than the Neon and so they patted themselves on the back and stopped right there lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul G. Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 When my last car died, I rented a Neon from Enterprise while shopping for a new car. Knowing I had to get in that car every day was the most depressing experience in my life. Fortunately I got a new Subie off the lot and turned the Neon in early. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTsullyman Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Not sure if you meant to have it come off this way, but Dodge isn't part of GM. At least thats my understanding. Yeah i know i just made my point unclear. Someone was bashing domestic cars and i was saying that dodge and ford are already on their way out and GM has got its last chance coming up here. 2007 DGM LGT 2003 Suzuki SV650S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthworm Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 I'm sure the Big 3 will fix their problems and be competitive with the overseas market soon. Why just today, Ford announced their $5.8 billion loss on the fourth quarter but assured everyone that they have a plan to return to profitably by 2009! I believe them! I mean, they only are losing a little bit with each vehicle: ...to explain its staggering total, which represented a loss of $4,380 on each car or truck it sold in 2006. (Associated Press) Oh btw I am being sarcastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sponge Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 When I got my rental car two days ago they tried to give me a Caliber but it wasn't clean yet...thank God I thought...what do they give me? A Saturn Ion?!?! I think I got the worst end of the deal my friend...at least the Caliber is decent looking this has to be the f'ing ugliest car in its class. Not to mention when you first start it (in the cold) it whines so bad it sounds like its going to just give up and blow a ploom of smoke out the rear. What's worse is the road noise is so bad that you have to crank the radio that doesn't get any stations clear (IN CHICAGO) and it sounds so bad it makes me long for the OEM Legacy one...yes its that bad. The ironic part of the whole thing is a Saturn Ion is what caused the wreck I was in and now after I am driving one I can see why! The Big 3 are in a world of hurt and I don't see them turning it around soon just due to the fact of how many bad cars they make! Kinda sad... My vB Gallery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTsullyman Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 Its sonne gonna be a Toyota world, how scary is that thought? Really scary to me anyway. 2007 DGM LGT 2003 Suzuki SV650S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTTuner Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 yeah, i rented one last december. no go whatsoever, stomp on the gas and it just sits there. interior wasn't that great either, but it was better than a neon that i rented several years ago. "Better than the Neon" isn't all that impressive. It has a lot of features at a low price, if a chilled glovebox is high on your list. Chrysler better get serious about their small cars if they want to be in that game much longer. Jump into a new Kia or an Elantra and look at the fit and finish of the dash then look at the price. It says it all. I'm not that afraid of Toyota, the Koreans are the ones on a roll. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iyalla Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 ^+1 Koreans are scary right now. I know the Japanese must be worried, I know I would be if I was them. I mean the new Sante Fe is like a twin of the Rav 4 except it has a 10 year warranty. Yikes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTsullyman Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 "Better than the Neon" isn't all that impressive. It has a lot of features at a low price, if a chilled glovebox is high on your list. Chrysler better get serious about their small cars if they want to be in that game much longer. Jump into a new Kia or an Elantra and look at the fit and finish of the dash then look at the price. It says it all. I'm not that afraid of Toyota, the Koreans are the ones on a roll. Yeah i would just worry about everything in or on a kia. They are really poorly made cars. I know tons of people who got them and now are trying to give them away. Tons of electrical problems and everything is made out of second rate plastic. You drive that car any longer than the test drive and you deserve a medal or to be put into a special care facility. 2007 DGM LGT 2003 Suzuki SV650S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilT Posted January 28, 2007 Share Posted January 28, 2007 The rental companies around here are starting to use imports now, I either get a Camry or a Yaris from the airport in Montreal, much nicer than the domestic crap. Double Award Winning Legacy GT Wagon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Effin Ponderous Posted January 28, 2007 Author Share Posted January 28, 2007 I think Hyundai is the biggest worry for the imports right now. Hyundai has come out with three home runs in the past two years with the Sonata, Azera and now the new Santa Fe. All three have produced record sales and look pretty damn good. Just let them do a re-design on the Tiburon and they may be kicking Nissan's butt soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.