2007 Dodge Caliber SXT review from North America
"Way more than you'd expect for your money!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Rear dome light needed to be tapped to work. I changed the bulb, and no problems since!
Flaking paint on the front bumper - Dealer's fault. They attempted to cover some rock chips, and didn't prepare the surface or mask anything before spraying it. They promptly replaced the bumper, and any part that had any over-spray on it. They even put me in a rental while they fixed it.
General comments?
It's been a fantastic car. I love driving it, and it's pretty darn comfortable for being a mid-trim model car. It's been as reliable as my old Toyota so far, and hopefully will be in the future. I have a pretty heavy foot at times, so I'm hard on engines and transmissions. If the powertrain were cheaply built, I would have broken something by now.
The Caliber's performance, for a 2.0L, is fantastic, especially with that CVT keeping the engine where it needs to be for passing power. My only real complaint so far is road noise; it is not the quietest car in the world. I drove an 08' SRT caliber that didn't have the issue, so I'm assuming it's my tires (they're getting close to the end of their life). The 6CD mp3 changer sounds pretty good. It could use a subwoofer, but I wanted a yellow car, so I took what I could get.
The paint is pretty tough, but tends to get some bad chips around the wheel wells.
The handling is not like Audi, but beats the Focus and Cobalt in similar trim levels.
Interior space is amazing for such a small car. I put all the seats down, and hauled home a queen size bed (from Ikea) in it. The hatch closed, with room to spare.
My favorite part is, everyone whom sees it, or gets into it loves it. It's the only car I've ever had that everyone says about, "This car is sweet!" It must be the solar yellow colour!
Don't get the light interior; the plastics get dirty very easily, and are a royal pain to clean!
Recommended reviews
| A good car for people who have a lot of friends or stuff to haul around! |
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| A lot of car for the money, feature rich and uber convenient |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 2007 |
| Year of manufacture | 2007 |
| First year of ownership | 2007 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2008 |
| Engine and transmission | 2.0L Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 10 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 9 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 5 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 8 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 11000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 40000 miles |
| Previous car | Toyota Tercel |
| Date of Entry | 19th November, 2008 |