First Impression: Dodge Dart

The original Dodge Dart was a four-door sedan sold from 1960 to 1976. It was a successful car that was sold as a full-size sedan from 1960 to 1961, as a mid-size sedan in 1962, and as a compact sedan from 1963 to 1976. The Dart was always a front-engine, rear-wheel drive sedan, regardless of what class it was in. It was replaced by the Dodge Aspen. In 2012, Dodge started producing and selling a new compact car, called the Dodge Dart. This was the first Dodge compact sedan since the Dodge Neon and Neon SRT-4 were discontinued in 2005. The new Dart is a front-engine, front-wheel drive sedan that has the Fiat compact platform similar to the Alfa Romeo Giulietta, but it is enlarged by 1.5 in in width and 3.7 in length. The Dodge Dart is sold in China as the Fiat Viaggio. 

I first saw the Dodge Dart outside a Dodge dealership in Houston. The car has a sporty, aggressive styling. It has an aggressive front, aggressive side profile, and an aggressive rear. Since it is a sporty compact sedan, there is minimal head room and leg room for the rear passengers.

The Dodge Dart comes available with three different engines is available with a six-speed manual transmission, a six-speed automatic transmission, or an optional six-speed dual-clutch transmission for the turbocharged engine. The base engine for the Dodge Dart is a 2.0L I4 engine that produces 160 hp and 148 lb-ft of torque. This engine will get the Dodge Dart from 0 to 60 mph in 9.9 seconds and reaches a top speed of 120 mph. The Dart is also available with a turbocharged 1.4L I4 engine that produces 160 hp and 185 lb-ft of torque. The turbocharged Dart will go from 0 to 60 mph in 8.3 seconds and reach a top speed of 120 mph. The Dart R/T will be available at a later date and will come with a 2.4L I4 engine that produces 184 hp and 171 lb-ft of torque. Prices for the Dart R/T start at $22,495. There are also plans for a future Dart SRT model in the future.The Dart has great styling, but acceleration for the base 2.0L engine leaves much to be desired.

The Dodge Dart has been featured on Motorweek.

Final Thoughts: The Dart has a sporty, aggressive design, but the base Dart lacks acceleration. Any car with a 0 to 60 mph time of over 9.0 seconds is to slow. The turbocharged 1.4L engine gives the car better acceleration, but it is only adequate acceleration. I hope that the Dart R/T and Dart SRT have greatly improved performance. The car looks good, it just needs better acceleration.

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Photo was taken by a digital camera.

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