Caliber comes up brighter than Neon
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04-24-2006, 03:21 PM
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Caliber comes up brighter than Neon
Caliber comes up brighter than Neon
BY JIM MATEJA
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
April 24, 2006
It's like replacing a typewriter with a computer. The Dodge Neon sedan brought out in 1993 has been replaced by the Caliber crossover for 2007.
Neon held down the entry-level end of the market for Chrysler Group, though poorly, with sales of only 113,332 units in 2005.
An automaker typically gives itself an "atta boy" anytime sales of a model top 100,000 units. But the Neons were produced on only one shift of 2,100 workers at a plant that has capacity for 300,000 units with 3,100 workers on two to three shifts.
Neon came up short on looks, room, comfort, performance and innovation. Neon was to frump what Caliber is to fashion, starting with dramatic styling to keep it from being lost in the crowd. It features the Dodge crosshair grille, flared wheel openings and huge tail lamps that make the compact not only look sporty but also rugged and larger than it is. A roof spoiler complements the look.
While Caliber looks longer, it's 1 inch shorter than Neon, though 1 inch wider and 4 inches taller in recognition that consumers want more hip and head room than length. It's also about 5 inches longer than a PT Cruiser.
Caliber comes in SE, SXT and R/T versions. The SE and SXT have a 1.8-liter, 148-horsepower 4-cylinder as standard; the SXT a 2-liter, 158-h.p. 4 as optional; and the R/T, only a 2.4-liter, 172-h.p. 4. Engines were developed with Hyundai and Mitsubishi. A 2-liter diesel is available for markets outside the U.S.
Neon had a higher performance SRT4 version, and Caliber is expected to as well.
The SE and SXT are only front-wheel-drive with a choice of manual or continuously variable automatic transmissions; the R/T only all-wheel-drive and only with a CVT with Autostick for manual-mode shifting.
But Larry Lyons, vice president of front-wheel-drive products, said R/T will get that drive train along with manual later this year at a price about $2,000 less than with AWD and CVT.
We tested the SXT at length and the R/T briefly on an extended run up, down and around the hills and mountains in Arizona.
Caliber, with the optional 2-liter and CVT, performed with lots of spirit. It took sharply twisting turns through the mountains without getting winded or excessive body lean.
The SXT comes with 17-inch, all-season, radial tires that grabbed the pavement without wandering onto the sand and gravel shoulders in a series of hairpin turns.
The light-effort steering gave it agility to maneuver into and out of the continual twists in the path. Steering was crisp, not so loose you had to wrestle the wheel out of a turn.
Caliber took a stretch of roller-coaster pavement without bottoming out. The suspension kept most of the road harshness from filtering into the cabin.
The R/T features sports-tuned shocks and spring rates, larger sway bars and a little heavier steering effort for more aggressive driving. R/T rides on wider-profile, 18-inch, all-season radials for sure-footed handling.
Later in the model year, Caliber will add electronic stability control to keep the vehicle on course. The system applies the anti-lock brakes and/or limits fuel to the engine when wheel slippage is detected to keep it from wandering off course.
The CVT has an infinite number of gear ratios and finds just the right one based on pedal input. When rounding a corner and the road headed skyward, the crossover continued to accelerate without pausing to search for the proper gear. The CVT makes the 2-liter feel more energetic.
The 2-liter is rated at 26 m.p.g. city/30 m.p.g. highway and the 2.4 liter in the R/T is rated at 23/26.
Seats are well cushioned cloth with wide bolsters up front to hold you in place. This was especially appreciated when trekking through the mountains.
Headroom is unusually spacious front to rear, thanks to the 4 inches in added height.
Caliber faces lots of competition in the crossover market so Dodge came up with a variety of surprise-and-delight features to draw attention from the rivals.
These include MusicGate, pull-down speakers in the hatch lid so youth can park at the beach, open the hatch and listen to the tunes without having to open all the windows and turn up the sound.
There's also Chill Zone, a cooled beverage storage bin above the glove box that holds four, 2-ounce bottles.
Other novelties include a storage compartment in the top of the dash; a removable flashlight in a recharger built into the headliner above the hatchback lid; a cell phone/MP3 player holder that flips up out of the center console armrest; and a 115-volt outlet in the center console to power a laptop computer.
But there are a few gripes, one being manual only seats, and rear door openings that are just a tad narrow. And that's not counting the need for hand-held computer and crystal ball to figure out the options and what model can have which ones at what price.
MusicGate, for example, runs $400 to $500 and leather seats $900 to $1,000 depending on the model.
Two exterior colors, Solar Yellow and Sunburst Orange, cost $150 extra. But you have to get the Appearance Group at $645 to add Solar Yellow or Sunburst Orange inserts on the seat backs and bottoms as well as the instrument stack on the dash. And why wouldn't you?
Excellent little crossover that should do well, once it becomes clear what you get for what price
BY JIM MATEJA
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
April 24, 2006
It's like replacing a typewriter with a computer. The Dodge Neon sedan brought out in 1993 has been replaced by the Caliber crossover for 2007.
Neon held down the entry-level end of the market for Chrysler Group, though poorly, with sales of only 113,332 units in 2005.
An automaker typically gives itself an "atta boy" anytime sales of a model top 100,000 units. But the Neons were produced on only one shift of 2,100 workers at a plant that has capacity for 300,000 units with 3,100 workers on two to three shifts.
Neon came up short on looks, room, comfort, performance and innovation. Neon was to frump what Caliber is to fashion, starting with dramatic styling to keep it from being lost in the crowd. It features the Dodge crosshair grille, flared wheel openings and huge tail lamps that make the compact not only look sporty but also rugged and larger than it is. A roof spoiler complements the look.
While Caliber looks longer, it's 1 inch shorter than Neon, though 1 inch wider and 4 inches taller in recognition that consumers want more hip and head room than length. It's also about 5 inches longer than a PT Cruiser.
Caliber comes in SE, SXT and R/T versions. The SE and SXT have a 1.8-liter, 148-horsepower 4-cylinder as standard; the SXT a 2-liter, 158-h.p. 4 as optional; and the R/T, only a 2.4-liter, 172-h.p. 4. Engines were developed with Hyundai and Mitsubishi. A 2-liter diesel is available for markets outside the U.S.
Neon had a higher performance SRT4 version, and Caliber is expected to as well.
The SE and SXT are only front-wheel-drive with a choice of manual or continuously variable automatic transmissions; the R/T only all-wheel-drive and only with a CVT with Autostick for manual-mode shifting.
But Larry Lyons, vice president of front-wheel-drive products, said R/T will get that drive train along with manual later this year at a price about $2,000 less than with AWD and CVT.
We tested the SXT at length and the R/T briefly on an extended run up, down and around the hills and mountains in Arizona.
Caliber, with the optional 2-liter and CVT, performed with lots of spirit. It took sharply twisting turns through the mountains without getting winded or excessive body lean.
The SXT comes with 17-inch, all-season, radial tires that grabbed the pavement without wandering onto the sand and gravel shoulders in a series of hairpin turns.
The light-effort steering gave it agility to maneuver into and out of the continual twists in the path. Steering was crisp, not so loose you had to wrestle the wheel out of a turn.
Caliber took a stretch of roller-coaster pavement without bottoming out. The suspension kept most of the road harshness from filtering into the cabin.
The R/T features sports-tuned shocks and spring rates, larger sway bars and a little heavier steering effort for more aggressive driving. R/T rides on wider-profile, 18-inch, all-season radials for sure-footed handling.
Later in the model year, Caliber will add electronic stability control to keep the vehicle on course. The system applies the anti-lock brakes and/or limits fuel to the engine when wheel slippage is detected to keep it from wandering off course.
The CVT has an infinite number of gear ratios and finds just the right one based on pedal input. When rounding a corner and the road headed skyward, the crossover continued to accelerate without pausing to search for the proper gear. The CVT makes the 2-liter feel more energetic.
The 2-liter is rated at 26 m.p.g. city/30 m.p.g. highway and the 2.4 liter in the R/T is rated at 23/26.
Seats are well cushioned cloth with wide bolsters up front to hold you in place. This was especially appreciated when trekking through the mountains.
Headroom is unusually spacious front to rear, thanks to the 4 inches in added height.
Caliber faces lots of competition in the crossover market so Dodge came up with a variety of surprise-and-delight features to draw attention from the rivals.
These include MusicGate, pull-down speakers in the hatch lid so youth can park at the beach, open the hatch and listen to the tunes without having to open all the windows and turn up the sound.
There's also Chill Zone, a cooled beverage storage bin above the glove box that holds four, 2-ounce bottles.
Other novelties include a storage compartment in the top of the dash; a removable flashlight in a recharger built into the headliner above the hatchback lid; a cell phone/MP3 player holder that flips up out of the center console armrest; and a 115-volt outlet in the center console to power a laptop computer.
But there are a few gripes, one being manual only seats, and rear door openings that are just a tad narrow. And that's not counting the need for hand-held computer and crystal ball to figure out the options and what model can have which ones at what price.
MusicGate, for example, runs $400 to $500 and leather seats $900 to $1,000 depending on the model.
Two exterior colors, Solar Yellow and Sunburst Orange, cost $150 extra. But you have to get the Appearance Group at $645 to add Solar Yellow or Sunburst Orange inserts on the seat backs and bottoms as well as the instrument stack on the dash. And why wouldn't you?
Excellent little crossover that should do well, once it becomes clear what you get for what price
#2
04-24-2006, 06:25 PM
Record Breaker
RE: Caliber comes up brighter than Neon
In fairness to the Neon, the Neon sold very well when it was first introduced. It did to the Shadow/Sundance what the Caliber has done to it. The car was over ten years old. The base engine hadn't really changed except it got more reliable and got lower EPA ratings. The old 3-speed was replace with the 41TE and it didn't see a big improvement in fuel economy. I have doubts about the sales numbers because other cars in the segment are not that big in sales; however, Dodge has been known to turn a slow segment popular, so we will see. I think they oought to make a sedan version because I think they are missing out on a lot of potiential sales.
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04-25-2006, 08:19 PM
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04-26-2006, 11:29 PM
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RE: Caliber comes up brighter than Neon
I think you guys are comparing apples to oranges like stated before about the two. IMO, it's fair to compare a neon sxt to an base model neon or caliber sxt to base model caliber...not neon to caliber Two different cars there. The caliber replaces the neon's lineup, the
, not the platform.
The neon was/is a great car at it's level...I see them all over the freakin' place! I've seen them beat to hell and back and they were still running. Caliber = new car. Compare it to other cars that it's made to compete with like the Cobalt, Lancer (not EVO), whatever Ford's lineup is, and so on.
the entry-level end of the market for Chrysler Group
The neon was/is a great car at it's level...I see them all over the freakin' place! I've seen them beat to hell and back and they were still running. Caliber = new car. Compare it to other cars that it's made to compete with like the Cobalt, Lancer (not EVO), whatever Ford's lineup is, and so on.