Since rising from the absolute depths of bankruptcy and bailout,
Chrysler Canada has released 20-plus new or renewed cars. There is no
doubt that this 2013 Dart compact car is more important than any of
those.Furthermore, it's also the first car to be completely developed with new parent company, Fiat. Peel back the layers and the basic guts of this Belvidere, Illinois-built sedan come from Europe's Alfa Romeo Giulietta. A cowboy on a cannoli this is then, and one ready for the rodeo.
Ergonomics/Comfort/Quality
Dodge is being forthright about its new compact's European underpinnings, most likely in hopes of some magical, instant street cred. It is a chassis that's been modified though for our, umm, expansive, North American backsides. Versus the Guilietta, the Dart rides on a 7.6 cm longer wheelbase and measures 5 cm wider and 30 cm longer overall. The result is best-in-class interior room - near midsize sedan capaciousness.
We've seen the Dart's "driver-centric," dashboard on its big brother, the Charger, but the rest of the surrounds do indeed look much more Euro-inspired that any other current Dodge offering. There's nothing groundbreaking here in term of ergonomics - straightforward is the name of the game. From the SXT model up, you can order a Dart with the 8.4-inch touchscreen multimedia centre already deployed in the Dodge Journey. It controls myriad functions and is much easier to use than the similar MyFord Touch system found in the Focus. There's also an exclusive, customizable seven-inch screen offered in the gauge cluster. Bonus: the Dart uses only one seat design for all models and they're some of the best, most supportive buckets we've yet seen in this segment.
How about quality, fit and finish? It's a mixed bag: the soft touch materials and the varied colours and textures you can get on the interior are impressive (e.g.: denim, two stripes up the seat centres, accent stitching). That said, some the plastics look and feel decidedly low grade. What's more, some panels on the Dart's exterior were misaligned, but these were pre-production cars, so maybe Chrysler will sort that?
Functionality/Usability
They weren't precisely preaching on the merits of socialism, but we did notice the Dodge engineers at the Dart's first-drive talking more like Europeans. There seems to be an air of sophistication that went into the design of this sedan beyond what we're used to hearing from the American engineers. The guys waxed on about details like the laser joined roof panels for smoothness, the seal along the trunk for quiet, the active grille shutters that boost fuel economy, the hydraulic mounts to smooth the engines, how the vertical Alfa air conditioner allowed for a massive glovebox, 600 hours spent in the wind tunnel. We could go. It all means a better sorted, more competitive Dart.
On the safety front, all models comes with 10 airbags and stability control, plus this is the only compact aside from Hyundai Elantra with standard four-wheel ABS disc brakes.
Dodge reps went on at length in Texas about how they've equipped the Dart to be priced at roughly $3,000 less than equivalent rivals. The majority of Canadian Dart buyers will opt for the $17,995 SXT model. It doesn't match the nutty value-for-your-dollar of something like a Kia Forte, but you still get kit like LED tail lights, a laminated windshield, power windows, mirrors and door locks, remote keyless entry, a 60/40 split-folding rear seat and A/C.
While a top-of-the-line R/T starts at just $23,995, we're assuming you could option a Dart up to 30 grand. It would be one very well equipped car then, with features covering anything from blind spot monitoring, navigation and a backup camera to dual exhausts, a heated steering wheel, HID headlamps and a 506-watt stereo system.
Thinking about how dominating the Civic and Corolla have been for so long, this is a really impressive accomplishment - and no doubt a little scary for those two long-time Canadian top-sellers. The Dodge Dart lands in Canada this summer. Get more car parts information from carpart4u.
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