By Christopher A. Sawyer
The Virtual Driver

(May 1, 2014) — I have just one question to ask: How is it that this car isn’t flying off the shelves? Except for one (somewhat) major and a few minor complaints, I can’t find anything that would keep someone in the market for a handsome, roomy, fuel-efficient, sporty, four-door sedan from putting this car on their serious consideration list or in their driveway.

Is it the combination of Chrysler (never a synonym for top-flight quality) and Fiat (ditto) that scares them away? Were potential buyers scared away by the confusing array of models, options, powertrains, etc. available at the Dart’s launch? Did they see some of the more garish colors available, and run away in fear that these were the only choices? Or did they not even consider the Dart because they didn’t know it existed? Was it because the Dart’s launch effort wasn’t followed up by a continuing support program that compared the Dart and its main competitors?

Whatever the reason, it doesn’t change the fact that this is a very seductive car.



To see what I mean, start with the window sticker. Base price for the GT is $20,995, not including the $995 destination charge. This gets you keyless entry/start, rearview camera, Uconnect with 8.4-in touch screen display, seven-inch customizable TFT gauge cluster, auto-dimming rearview mirror with microphone, dual-zone automatic climate control, a heated steering wheel, heated front seats, soft-touch instrument panel, SiriusXM, LED interior lighting, power six-way driver’s seat, power four-way front passenger’s seat, automatic headlamps, heated exterior mirrors with integral turn signals and puddle lamps, 18-in alloy wheels, and more.

In addition, our test car included the following: Technology Group (intrusion alarm, rear park assist sensors, blind spot/cross path detection, automatic high beam control, rain-sensitive windshield wipers, high-intensity discharge headlamps), $995; Six-speed AutoStick automatic transmission with remote start functionality and leather gear knob, $1,250; Uconnect AM/FM/Navigation, $395; and Hyper Black 18-in alloy wheels, $395. With destination, the out-the-door price is a very reasonable $25,125. Yeah, that’s almost $10,000 more than a base Dart, but this trim level and these options transform the Dart from something you’d find on a rental lot to a car that you’d want to own. And there’s more.

A quick trip to the Dodge web site shows a price $1,500 less than the $25,125 on the sticker. That’s because there’s $1,500 cash on the hood. This brings the price down to $23,625. If that’s not enough, buyers adept with a manual transmission can drop the $1,250 automatic, and those ordering other than the Bright White clearcoat on our test car can save another $395 by sticking with the standard-finish wheels. That brings the price to $21,980.

Then again, you may not have to lower your sights at all. Dart sales were down 37% in February compared to one year ago. Just 4,888 units sold in the second month, and Chrysler laid off 325 workers to balance supply and demand. A quick search showed 118 Darts that matched the specs of our test car, and a further 369 that closely matched that build spec. Lease rates spanned$175/month to $191/month, while the price to own it ran from $312/month to $393 for an exact-match.

So, what’s wrong with this picture? Why is the Dart — especially the GT — languishing on dealer lots? Some analysts claim it’s the fact that the Dodge is heavily discounting the aged Avenger. People come in looking for a Dart, and drive out in a larger car with more stuff for less money. If that’s true, Dodge — and Chrysler and Fiat — have much bigger problems than suspected.

Not only are dealers shoving Avengers out the door at fire sale prices, their customer base is predominately made up of bargain hunters looking for the best possible deal. That is, they are not loyal, they have no interest in the vehicle itself — other than what they can get for the price — and they will not be coming back to a Dodge dealer until the next deep discount sell-off of unsold inventory. If things keep up like this, they could finally be coming in to buy a Dart, but for all the wrong reasons.

Quite honestly, the folks in Auburn Hills, Mich., have got to pull their heads out and realize they are competing in one of the toughest segments on the planet. You can’t sell a new car with two unreliable — in the buying public’s eyes — parents; an unending number of options, colors and combinations; a pathetic advertising campaign; and unrelenting competition from the Chevy Cruze, Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Forte, Nissan Sentra, Toyota Corolla and VW Jetta. Well, you can, but you won’t be successful. Nor can you tout the car’s Alfa Romeo underpinnings as though that’s a positive. It’s not.

Even though Alfas are sexy, they haven’t been sold here for years, and those that remain are either in collections, broken down at the side of the road or piles of rust. Plus, the letters of the name of the parent company of both Alfa Romeo and Chrysler, Fiat, still stand for “Fix It Again Tony”. Instead Dodge has to accentuate the positives, and the Dart GT has many of those.

Despite complaints by some critics that the Dart is bland looking, in GT guise it looks both sophisticated and handsome, with one of the best stances (when viewed from the rear) in the compact sedan segment. The styling is crisp and clean, if a bit too inoffensive, and should wear well against some of its more effusively styled competitors.

The same is true of the interior, which benefits from the addition of a soft-touch pad atop the instrument panel. This IP topper adds a level of refinement missing in lesser Darts, and increases perceived quality. In addition, the Uconnect system is one of the fastest and easiest infotainment systems in the industry — that said, its clear graphics are a bit “Playskool” to some eyes — and the layout of the interior is both logical and ergonomic. Personally, I’d like it if  the seat could be lowered ½-1 inch, as this would eliminate another small interior demerit: the effect of the swept-back windshield. If you’re a tall driver and first in line at a traffic light, chances are you’ll have to lean forward and look up to see when the lights change.

Though the Dart may not be as roomy in the back seat as VW’s cavernous Jetta, it is plenty comfy and does not have the claustrophobic feeling you get in a Focus sedan. You can roll comfortably five-up, but four will be more comfortable. Plus, it’s doubtful that anyone will be complaining about the Nappa leather seating surfaces with perforated inserts that sits atop a red fabric that matches the stitching and interior trim. It’s a subtle design cue, and one that helps alleviate the visual weight of a black interior without descending into parody.

Another bright spot is the 2.4-liter Tigershark inline four. Mated to a six-speed transmission, this engine produces 184 horsepower at 6,250 rpm and 171 lb-ft of torque at 4,800. Its biggest fault is that it can feel a bit rough at start-up, though it is smooth the rest of the time. The big four also returns respectable fuel economy: 22 city/31highway/26 combined according to the EPA, and a solid 26.5 mpg in our daily use. It has the grunt to get you safely into traffic at highway speeds, and — with the GT’s 15.8-gallon fuel tank — should have a more than acceptable cruising range.

The automatic transmission shifts smoothly, and doesn’t hunt for the next gear. However, it does have one foible shared with every other AutoStick gearbox: in manual mode you pull back to upshift and push forward to downshift. Horse riding convention — pulling back to slow down and easing up on the reins to go faster — is more intuitive. However, over time the Chrysler way becomes familiar.

The centerpiece of the GT, however, is its sportier suspension. It retains the standard Dart’s gas-charged MacPherson struts with anti-roll bar up front, and multi-link independent  rear with gas-charged dampers. The GT (like its Rallye and Limited stable mates) also adds a link-type anti-roll bar in back to control body roll and damp some of the chassis’ inherent understeer.

But where things go really wrong is in the Holy Trinity of dampers, tire sidewalls and suspension bushings. The combination chosen gives the GT a stiff-legged ride, and causes the GT to pound over uneven or scarred pavement. Someone needs to inform the person in charge of this car that “sporty” and “harsh” are not synonymous. It would have been better to allow the GT to use ever bit of available suspension travel, while controlling wheel and body movement progressively.

In some ways, the Dart GT feels like a 2003-2007 Mini Cooper on run flat tires, but without the involving steering and corner turn-in that car possessed.

A bit more feel and fun from the Dart’s electrically assisted helm would be appreciated, but the damping and bushings need a serious rethink.

Less problematic is the cargo area. The trunk is large and the split seatbacks fold forward but not flat. Unfortunately, the structure that stiffens the Dart’s flanks intrudes slightly, reducing the size of the objects that can be passed through to the interior. However, it’s unlikely that buyers will find they need to use more than the 13.1 ft3 provided by the regularly shaped trunk. It’s more likely they will find themselves wishing that the folks in Auburn Hills had seen fit to place indents/hand holds on the trunk lid’s inner panel so they can pull it closed without getting their hands full of dirt.

Perhaps the best summation I can give for this car is this: When it came time for the Dart GT to leave, I didn’t want to see it go. Despite the stiff suspension and other, minor, shortcomings, I found the Dart GT to be a comfortable, efficient, capable and sporty sedan that, in my opinion, does not get the recognition it deserves.

Buyers need to know how it stacks up against the competition, and be assured that — should anything go wrong — the company stands behind them. (The Dart has a 3-year/36,000-mile basic and 5-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty with roadside assistance for 5 years and 100,000 miles.)

Most of all, however, Dodge needs to get butts in seats, and let the Dart GT do all the talking.

The Virtual Driver