2013 Dodge Dart

Here’s the first result of the union between Fiat and Dodge. A front wheel drive five passenger 4 door sedan based on an award winning Italian Alfa platform. The Dodge Dart name lives on. Thankfully the Dodge Caliber it replaced does not. This car looks great with a cross-hair grill and taillights housing 152 LED’s.

There are a dazzling 14 interior trim combinations and over 150 accessories to customize The Dart. Dodge did a bang up job with the interior.  Nice controls and knobs. Great bucket seats up front and decent room for drivers and passengers, good looking and tight fitting plastics and a pretty clever storage space under the front passenger seat.

There are two LED screens. This one that houses Dodge U-Connect and uses Garmin for its navigation system. And lets you adjust heating and ventilation, heated seats, and steering wheel blue tooth and  the 6 speaker audio system. And the backup screen so you don’t dent your Dart while backing up.

credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Here’s the other screen, a seven-inch Thin Film Transistor (TFT) display in the center of two analog gauges. There are so many ways to configure the display. Think of it like your computer desktop. You get your choice of a digital speedometer, or analog gauge and the vehicle-information message center. The technology is clever cool, and user friendly.

More choices under the hood. This is the base 2.0-liter four-cylinder that makes160 hp. It’s a little pokey. Try the turbocharged four-cylinder making 160 hp and or 2.4-liter 184 hp before you buy. Three transmission choices: a six-speed manual or automatic and a six-speed dual dry clutch only available with the turbo engines.

The Dart drives well. Just remember, it’s not a sports car. But it does deliver great mileage, 27 city 39 highway for my 2.0 liter with a six-speed auto. The price with all of the options a little over 25 grand for this Italian, American car built in Illinois.

LIMITED:

12 exterior color options. 5 interior options. 2 wheel options.

POWERTRAIN:

2.0L Tigershark™ 4-cylinder engine with six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission (160 hp & 148 lb-ft of torque)

1.4L Intercooled MultiAir Turbo engine with six-speed manual or six-speed Dual Dry Clutch transmission (DDCT) with AutoStick (160 hp & 184 lb-ft of torque)

SELECT STANDARD EQUIPMENT:

(Includes all SXT features, plus these additions/replacements):

Bright Accents: Grille, headlamp bezels, door handles

Projector fog lamps

Power heated mirrors with supplemental signals

8.4-inch Uconnect® Touchscreen & ParkView® Rear Back Up Camera+

Floating Island Bezel

Six-way power driver’s seat with 4-way power lumbar adjust

Leather-wrapped steering wheel with cruise & audio controls

Front passenger in-seat storage

Uconnect Voice Command with Bluetooth®

Speed-sensitive power locks

Power windows with front express up/down

Automatic headlamps

Ambient LED interior lighting

Seatback pocket and overhead console

Illuminated visor vanity mirrors

Premium door trim panel and accent stitching

Active grille shutters and underbody aerodynamic treatment

Tire Pressure Monitoring Display

SELECT OPTIONAL EQUIPMENT:

High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps

Power Express open/close sunroof

Garmin® Navigation with SiriusXM Travel Link™+

SiriusXM Satellite Radio+

Alpine® 506-watt amplified surround sound with nine speakers and subwoofer

Technology Group

Includes:

- Keyless Enter ‘n Go™

- Rain-sensitive windshield wipers

- SmartBeam® headlamps

- ParkSense® Rear Park Assist+

- Blind Spot Monitoring+ and class-exclusive Rear Cross Path Detection+

Premium Group

Includes:

- Nappa leather-trim

- Heated seats

- Heating steering wheel

- Dual zone automatic temperature control

- Remote start system+

Base Price$19.995

Price As Tested $25,360