The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New Dart right on target
Dodge brings familiar name back to roads. European influence can be found in new compact sedan.
Dodge put a great deal of thought into the naming of its new-for-2013 compact sedan.
Continuing to use the name of the Caliber, the model being replaced, was never an option; that hatchback penalty box was almost universally scorned, even by rental car companies. Nor was much thought given to resurrecting the googly-eyed Neon, though it was the last small Dodge to sell in significant numbers. Delving into the 1970s and ’80s seemed pointless: Time’s passing had not water-colored America’s memories of the uninspired Aries K-car or the often-recalled Aspen compact.
Ultimately, the company reached back more than a third of a century to dust off a name — Dart — associated with success rather than failure.
The Dart nameplate first appeared on a highly praised 1956 concept car designed by Virgil Exner. The name was then applied to a range of Dodges in 1960-76, including, most notably, a line of compacts that acquired a reputation for being nearly inde- structible.
Today, however, Chrysler’s starved-for-product Dodge division is so eager for a fresh start and so desperate for a reboot in the compact sedan segment, that it turned to its European cousins for inspiration.
Under its new skin, and despite its red, white and blue name, the Dart is an Alfa Romeo at heart.
The car’s basic structure comes from the much-admired Alfa Giulietta, the runner-up for 2011 Car of the Year honors in Europe. The chassis, suspension, electric power steering, engine, transmission and other driveline components are direct from the Fiat Group, parent of Alfa and the reborn Chrysler Group. A recently announced variant will be sold in China and other international markets as the Fiat Viaggio, and as many as a half-dozen other yet-to-be-announced models — coupes, sedans, hatchbacks and crossover utilities — may eventually use the same versatile platform.
Dodge engineers and designers seem to have retained the best of the Alfa, including precise steering and driving dynamics, while improving on features that may matter most to Americans, like comfort, roominess and utility.
The Dart is about a foot longer than the Giulietta and a bit wider. While the extra size — pushing the boundaries of the compact class — enhances its lent, may be too precise and sporty for some U.S. drivers. The Dart is afflicted by a bit more road noise and vibration than the Giulietta, but I noticed that only when driving the cars back to back.
I was pleasantly surprised that the front-drive Dart exhibited little or no torque steer — a sideways tug of the driving wheels — when accelerating.
Nor was there appreciable understeer — a tendency to plow ahead, rather than turn — when cornering. While the Giulietta’s chassis uses steel subframes, the Dart is equipped instead with weightsaving die-cast aluminum subframes that are bolted to the steel unibody for greater rigidity.
The Dart is surprisingly agile through the most diabolical corners and pavement changes. One supposes that if you’re descended from the Italians, with their winding, narrow, angina-inducing roads, this sort of agility must be in your genes.
It is no exaggeration to say that cars like the Dart, Giulietta and Viaggio are vitally important to the Fiat Group’s well-being. These are strong new products in a class neglected too long by Fiat and Chrysler. In the U.S. market, where the new Ford Focus is setting a high standard for style, comfort and road manners, and with rivals like the Hyundai Elantra coming on strong, the Dart seems a worthy challenger.