2006 Dodge Caliber SE from North America - All Comments

Oxygen sensor reset air-fuel ratio(further posts mention details), & car bucked badly. The dealer reflashed the electronics & fixed the problem easily. Car is again, smooth with good mileage.

Just got the Dodge Caliber 2liter w/CVT. The CVT transmission is what intrigued me to purchase the car. With the various mileages reported for this car, I was v. curious what my mileage would be. Two previous cars gave me maximum gas mileages of 50+ & 53MPG. On its first trip of 182miles over slow backcountry roads with lots of hills, I feather-footed the gas pedal trying for the car's best mileage. The engine got one full cool down, & several partial cool downs. I tried to gas up the car both times to the same level. With those caveats I got 33.7MPG. Hopefully I will be able to report more data later, whose average will be more accurate & indicative of truer real-world conditions. Some readers here may say I have room for greater mileage (as one person has reported here) if I can get it on the highway & eliminate those cool downs. That may be true. However, I note that the drag coefficient for the Dodge Caliber is not as low as many cars. Therefore, unless I drive no more than the speed limit (or even less which I am prone to do), I believe extra speed on the highway will tend to give mediocre MPG results. It is said the CVT transmission is about 5% more efficient than regular automatic transmissions. Again, I think the bad drag coefficient of the Caliber will tend to negate the CVT advantage as compared to other automatic transmission cars having lower drag coefficients. Hope to report my results later as miles pile onto my Caliber. Other than MPG, the engine is not smooth at high RPMs. In most low to moderate accelerations tho, the engine is smooth. But I must attribute the truly smooth performance up & down hills to the CVT transmission. Yeah, the hills I've chugged & vibrated over hundreds of times before with manual transmissions, now take on an ease of transport that vehicles never had before (at least to the vast majority of motored transporters). However, under higher performance & RPM demands the CVT needs some help. As others have noted, the acceleration from 0 to 15MPH is terrible. It finally gets going tho, & is OK from there on out... at least for a 2 liter engine & 3000 pound car. If you punch it at higher speeds as if to pass other cars, the engine (& I assume, the electronics) stumbles a bit, then takes off. I guess the engine doesn't truly engage the CVT till the engine gets to the specified RPM implied by the gas petal setting.

The stereo is OK, having good bass (tight, but only polite) & mid-range (woodwinds sound immediate & rich). The treble is a bit harsh which can be reduced by reducing the treble range. The controls vary not only the bass & treble, but also the mid-range. It comes with a CD player. I don't think I'll need an upgrade, unless the treble begins to bother me terribly.

So far, there are no squeaks or rattles that drive me batty or that I even notice. Hope to report more later.

I don't think 33mpg is anything to complain about.

But then you seem to be a little obsessive about miles per gallon as well as the stereo performance of you Caliber.

I hope you can get beyond that stuff, and just drive and enjoy your new car. Otherwise you'll just drive yourself batty!

Wow, what a well thought out review...you're really serious about your fuel economy. I think the Caliber is a nice replacement for the Neon...I'm not sure I like the SUV looks of the thing, but it's definitely a step up. You'll have to keep us abreast of the engine's performance and reliability (being part of Chrysler/Hyundai/Mitsubishi's new World Engine program).

Don't think I'm obsessive enough about MPG. Because Americans don't care about the planet, they don't care about their pollution & the earth is reacting in complex ways that won't be good for many people... maybe even you, who seem rich enough to isolate yourself from the worst pollutions.

As for the stereo, I'm a musician & love good sound.

Wrote the review here. Was going to wait till more miles were driven, but must report the car began bucking badly near stops. Feather-footing the gas I was able to get to the Dodge dealer 30 miles away. The chip controlling the "throttle-body" was at fault & was promptly replaced with corrected software (I hope). I had driven up Stevens (4000'), Blewett(4000') & Snoqualmie (3100') Passes & the chip interpreted the oxygen level as wrong & wrongly adjusted the fuel-air ratio. I had expected such things with the new car & sure enough, it did. But the Caliber is running very smooth once again. A short tank of gas mostly in town gave 28MPG. Someone else had the same problem driving over the mountains. Hope this helps anyone else with the Caliber that has problems at higher altitudes. A longer tank of gas thru the mountains & with the ensuing problem gave 32.9MPG. The drive over 4000' Stevens Pass showed good reserve power in the lightly loaded Caliber. My 50MPG carburetor cars always struggled up Stevens Pass. Much of this power on tap can be attributed to the Caliber's CVT transmission which places the gearing in the optimum setting for the throttle setting. Yes, the CVT transmission is very fine, now showing its versatility. Here's hoping the software problem is solved.

Believe me, I am not "rich enough to isolate myself" from polution" (however one would do that)??? and I certainly care about good gas mileage, but I do believe that over 30 mpg from your Caliber is very good indeed. I have no idea how you made those assumptions from my previous comment.

I certainly hope that the recent problem you had with it, was just an isolated issue and that it will provide thousands and thousands of miles of trouble free service.

Now I'm off to Starbucks for a $5 cup of coffee and a $10 muffin, I just can't decide whether to take the H1 or the Maybach.

Happy Driving!

Wrote the review above, & must report another incident. I had to back up about 100yards on a gravel road that had a slight crest to it. The view out the back is restricted, & I couldn't see the road close to the car even using all three mirrors. So it was a bit of guess work & careful backing to keep the car on the road. Still, I must have been a bit to one side when I turned the wheel to turn the car around. The front wheel, as it turned the car, got off the road & almost fell into a deep hole. Fortunately, the high ground clearance of the Caliber kept body work from any damage, altho there was some scraped dirt on the Caliber's underpinnings. Yeah, the Caliber needs better rearview vision. I used all the Caliber's high ground clearance on that incident.

33 mpg is not bad at all for a car that is only rated at 32 with the smaller engine. I've driven Chrysler products before and always got better than the EPA estimates, which is unusual.

Be aware that ALL first year models will have NUMEROUS glitches (yes even the "can do no wrong" imports!!). I used to work for an auto manufacturer, and the first year model is always a bit untested and prone to minor problems.

I've put over 240,000 miles on one of my Dodges with ZERO problems. Hopefully you'll have the patience to get past the 1st year gremlins and enjoy your car for a long time.

Yes, it is true that most Americans don't care one iota about pollution or the environment (just look at all the monster SUV's clogging up our highways). It's sad, but that's what being an affluent country does to the thinking of its people. We'd rather have big gas guzzlers and leave our grand children a ruined planet.

More continuing gas mileage & impression reports on this particular Dodge Caliber. The car continues to run exceedingly well (2500miles), emphasizing its smoothness. Took my Caliber over the mountains & got 32.5MPG, this time with no recurrence of the software oxygen setting problem. My Caliber pleases my wife & I immensely. Tank by tank, it seems that my Caliber may not have reliability problems that I've read about from other owner reports. I don't note excessive leaning in turns that others talk about. My desire for good gas mileage & increasing age (57) tho, keep me from pushing the car aggressively. I'm a longshoreman & sometimes drive hundreds of cars off car-ships. I've noted that Mazda cars have fine suspensions & steering & handle better than my Caliber. Yes, I would have bought a hatchback CVT equipped Mazda, Honda, Toyota, or Nissan Versa. Alas, the first three had no CVT. Nissan didn't market their cheapest model Versa with a CVT, & lost a deal with me. My Caliber, as other owners complain, is pretty road & tire noisy. I've heard that keeping tire & wheel size smaller & undercoating the Caliber should keep tire noise lower. Engine & wind noise is low at lower highway speeds, but long term tire noise compromises driving & music enjoyment. I've been listening to more of my CD's. The harsh treble range I've previously noted on the stereo radio is missing with quality CD's. The standard Caliber stereo displays classical music well. You can almost see where instruments are in the orchestra. Midrange woodwinds are to die for. The 4 speakers are 6 by 9 inch, not 6.5inch speakers! The bass is very tight & present, displaying wild Shostakovich & Stravinsky poundings robustly. It may not impress rockers... hey it's a standard radio! But I confess to listening to my CD's in the Caliber while in the garage. Finally drove a flat highway & got 34.9MPG with some cool-downs. In city traffic though, mileage drops to only 27+MPG. I see why some owners report mileage in the low 20's.

I appreciate the reviewer's continued updates on this car. I really want one, but I'm wary of buying the first year of any new car. Of all the similar cars I've driven, the Calibre impressed me the most. I found the 2 Scions I drove to be rough-riding and slow, the Matrix and Vibe (same car, but the Pontiac version has far better customer service) were very cheaply made, and the Saturn Vue is just boring. I'm somewhat concerned about the CVT (a very unproven concept that smacks of slipping or broken belts) and will insist on a 5-speed manual.

Let your engine cool down? Did you get one with a dud radiator or just trying something different to make the car run less efficiently/extra wear on the engine.

Made the original Caliber report here. The CVT is the auto transmission of the future (at least till everyone is driving electric cars). CVT's gave trouble because they used rubberized beltdrives. But now the Jatco CVT belt that is in the Dodge Caliber & Nissan Versa is carbon graphite fiber, 3 times stronger than steel & 4 times lighter. CVT's have been reliably used in Europe & here in hybrids for years. The questions you should ask yourself is, "Why would I drive around with a transmission that is so often disconnecting the engine from the wheels to shift gears? Why would I want my engine to rev thousands of rpms unnecessarily... some times near the redline? Is gear shift shock & engine revving necessary?" With a good CVT the answer to the first 2 questions is, "I wouldn't." & the answer to the last question is, "No." Again, if you can get used to the low computer controlled acceleration from 0 to 15MPH, the CVT gives a magic carpet ride. If you like to jerk yourself & your passengers back & forth, you should keep your manual & auto shifting trannies. My 35mpg Caliber, the 36 to 40mpg Nissan Versa, & 60mpg Prius does not speak of slipping pulleys & gears. But jerking passengers tells you that your wheels are often disconnected from the engine! Now that's strange!

Oh, about the cool-downs...No, I just got to where I was going & turned the engine off. Gas mileage always drops when you turn off your engine & cool it one or more times between fuelings. So I noted to readers that my engine was off & cooled between fuelings to give people a more accurate assessment of real world mileage.

"My 35mpg Caliber"

Given your Caliber is listed at 26 city/30 highway (and those are EPA estimates which are always unrealistic) your 35 mpg is fantasy.

35mpg is no fantasy at all. I calculated it & since I have an aeronautical degree, you know that I speak truth. Many others beat the EPA highway numbers all the time. I heard & believe even higher numbers have been reported for the Caliber. I must say it really helps if there is light traffic.

Also, it helps if you pretend that every depression of the accelerator is precious... because it is. You place in the forefront of your mind that every gallon of gas produces 19 pounds of carbon dioxide (28 pounds including the energy to deliver that gas to the gas station). You can get from point A to point B at less speed & smoother than you have in the past. It's time to think of the waste that comes out our tailpipes & reduce it.

35mpg for the Calibre is VERY realistic. Every Chrysler product we have ever owned got BETTER than EPA estimates (and they were the ONLY cars we ever owned that did). I got an amazing 37mpg on one highway trip in our 1988 Daytona

(2.6 litre 4 cylinder) and ROUTINELY averaged 35mpg in combined city/highway driving in our '90 Omni. I have no idea why, but Chrysler's small cars seem to beat the EPA ratings consistently. The comment is NOT fantasy.