Faults:

It's consuming too much oil, more than it should, and occasionally it's even leaked oil while stationary. I don't know why yet; it doesn't affect the car itself, but it's an issue worth noting.

I don't know if it's a problem with mine, but the car sometimes smells like gasoline, not when refueling but while driving. I tried to see what it could be, but in vain.

I had to have the gearbox checked because it would suddenly go into neutral, an electronic fault that was luckily fixed.

I changed the brake pads because they tended to make quite a bit of noise when braking, so I had to replace them.

General Comments:

The Dart is a car that I like a lot when I compare it to other compact cars like the Focus, Cruze or Elantra, similar cars that could be considered competitors. The advantage of this car is that in terms of interior volume, it is almost a mid-size car rather than a compact, and it feels like one.

In many ways, the Dart looks like a modernized Neon. With its flowing dashboard, the Dart's interior leans toward the sporty end of the spectrum. Well-equipped models come with an 8.4-inch display for the navigation, climate, and audio controls, and a smaller screen displaying vehicle information sits between the gauges in the instrument cluster.

Seats are comfortable front and rear, and the seating position isn't as low as you'd guess based on the car's lines. Soft-touch materials on most parts of the dash coordinate nicely with harder plastic elements, though big swaths of hard black textured plastic still crop up in a couple of places inside the littlest Dodge.

The engine, in my opinion, lacks power. A car like this deserves a slightly larger engine than a 2.0, especially with an automatic transmission. It feels somewhat sluggish in more demanding tasks, such as merging into heavy highway traffic on an uphill ramp with a full load.

It's a very well-equipped and safe car, with nearly 10 airbags, along with the usual suite of electronic safety systems, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross traffic alert. Outward visibility is also excellent, and the reinforced roof provides added safety in the event of a rollover.

In conclusion, being a car that's over 10 years old, it only has problems typical of modern cars; otherwise, I can only say good things. It's comfortable, stable, handles well, and has a reliable but not very powerful engine.

Faults:

We purchased the car new, and thus far the car indeed performs like a V6, and as such, the fuel economy has been very disappointing. The sticker estimates 23 MPG city, and we have been hovering at 17 MPG.

Another issue is that the steering already seems to be out of alignment, and brakes just started to make a noise.

Also, at start-up, the engine revs up very high, as if it were an older car with high mileage, and going up hills, there is a "valve tap". The car is solidly built, and is relatively comfortable, but the seats feel cheap, and like they will not hold up over time.

General Comments:

Overall, the car is nicely equipped, and has the factory nav, etc.

As in most domestic cars, I don't expect this to hold to the standards of a comparable import. But that being said, for the price and amenities that the car is equipped with, you really can't go wrong.

If you're looking for a "5-year car", this one will do the job, and if equipped like ours, should hold a decent book value over time.

Dealer service is very marginal - not impressed at all.