dodge dart tft display free sample

The 2013 Dodge Dart was loaded with technologies and features, some standard, and some new to the segment. The biggest-in-class 8.4 inch touch screen stereo, for example, could come with Garmin navigation, iPod and climate controls, voice activated Bluetooth®, SiriusXM Travel Link, and weather updates.

The class-exclusive 7-inch gauge cluster display, derived from the 200C concepts, can show digital or analog gauges, the navigation turn-by-turn display, an eco-meter, audio or phone information, or compass and temperature readouts.

The Dart’s instrument cluster display could be set up as a basic analog read-out, or a full digital display that clearly communicates car information. The driver can configure the screens to display the information they desire, mixing and matching information. The virtual gauges enhance communication between the car and driver in a simple, pleasing format.

With the push of a button on the steering wheel, drivers can select from two analog or two digital displays for the gauges, then customize further through the nine main menus. The system can be reconfigured as much as the driver wants, or not at all. Four small icons in the corners of the center display can be set to show information at-a-glance, including current fuel economy, outside temperature and compass direction. The nine main screens are speed, miles per hour or kilometers per hour, fuel economy, trip A odometer, trip B odometer, audio, stored messages, car information, and navigation.

Warning messages are displayed with an animated message, as well as text highlighted by a color change of the information bar. Warning messages are automatically sent into stored messages so a driver can review the message when parked.

The TFT cluster appears dark or blank until the driver starts the car. That’s when the floating island bezel begins to glow and the animated analog or digital instrumentation comes to life. Gauge numbers are around 14% larger than a traditional 3.5-inch cluster display, and in a performance font, which makes them easy to read. The gauges are backlit with LEDs, which makes them crisper.

The 2013 Dodge Dart features the largest touchscreen radio in its class. It integrates voice command, real-time information, multimedia, portable mobile devices and car settings.

The Uconnect Touch 8.4N now has Garmin® navigation (with lane guidance) and SiriusXM Travel Link with real-time fuel prices, movie listings, sports updates and weather. SiriusXM Travel Link is free for the first 12 months, the longest trial period of any automaker. It includes a USB port with iPod control, an SD card reader (MP3/WMA only), an integrated Gracenote® database to identify music on portable devices abd display album artwork (and improve accuracy of voice recognition of artist names and song titles). It also has SiriusXM Satellite Radio with song alert/game alert for automatic prompts of favorite songs/artists/games, and a CD player in the center console, along with the usual AM and FM.

The 2013 Dodge Dart returns to Chrysler’s traditional high-end audiophile maker — Alpine. The nine-speaker premium audio system with additional subwoofer includes a 12-channel, 506 watt amplifier and digital signal processing with 7.1-adapted surround-sound. Speakers are:

The 2013 Dodge Dart is the first compact car to offer drivers a heated steering wheel, used when temperatures are below 40 degrees. The steering wheel will continue to heat for 58-70 minutes before shutting off.

Dodge’s Compact U.S. Wide (CUS-wide) electrical architecture is adapted from the Fiat-based Compact Electrical Architecture. It is the backbone of the electrical system, delivering connectivity between advanced technologies and in-vehicle personalization, for enhanced driver awareness. This will be the first Dodge car to have both high- and low-speed data networks, equipped with as many as 40 individual modules.

This 2013-2016 Dodge Dart site was established in 2011. Copyright © VerticalScope Inc. All rights reserved. except as noted and Chrysler press materials.

Ever wonder how the 2013 Dodge Dart"s huge TFT instrument panel screen was developed?Well, according to Dodge"s latest ad, developing the high-tech feature required the use of a time machine.

In the 30-second ad dubbed "How to Make the Most Hi-Tech Car," Dodge shows how the Dart instrument panel"s TFT screen was made. First, Dodge claims, you start with nothing and then build a car from scratch. Next comes a time machine that pulls "Future Guy" from the year 3000, who travels back to 2012 to create the TFT screens. Finally, you send him back and destroy the time machine.

We"re pretty much in agreement with all the steps expect the first step, since the Dart wasn"t built from scratch but based on a modified Alfa Romeo Giulietta chassis.

The commercial spot will first air on September 5, just in time for the NFL season. It"s based on a longer ad that aired a couple months ago titled, "How To Change Cars Forever." That spot explains how the birth of the Dodge Dart and includes an appearance by NFL quarterback Tom Brady, who also makes a cameo in the second ad.

The Dodge Dart is a front-engine, front-wheel drive, four-door compact sedan that was manufactured and marketed by then FCA US LLC, a subsidiary of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. The automobile made its debut at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan. In some non-US markets, the Dodge Dart is sold as the Fiat Viaggio.

Resurrecting a nameplate used by Dodge for model years 1960-1976 for a succession of full-size, mid-size and finally compact models, the Dart (PF) was the brand"s first compact sedan since 2005, when the Neon was discontinued.

A mini MPV concept car was designed and developed by Chrysler and revealed in 2006 as the Dodge Hornet.2009 financial crisis and the restructuring of the Chrysler Group.Fiat in late 2010, the small Dodge Hornet concept took on a new form to share a Fiat platform.

The Dart has three transmission options,TFT display, a "floating island bezel" placed between traditional round gauges, which graphically shows trip computer and navigation system information; it is integrated to make it appear to be part of the gauge cluster itself, rather than a separate screen. Storage includes a glove box, center console with auxiliary electronics jacks, and console map pockets.

In 2014, all Darts aside from the SE got standard U Connect Bluetooth telephone for 2014. A Blacktop Package, featuring black alloy wheels and black accents, for all models except SE and Limited, as well as a California Appearance Package for the SXT and Limited, both became available for 2014.

The Dart was the first compact sedan to feature a rear obstacle detection system and blind spot monitoring.‑imp) (16.94 km/L) made it possible for Fiat to acquire an additional 5% share of Chrysler Group.

The Dart uses a similar suspension system to that of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta: in front it has independent MacPherson struts, coil springs, twin-tube dampers, and stabilizer bar while in the rear it has independent multilink suspension.

The Dodge Dart came in several different trim levels during its four-year production run, each model having its own distinct level of standard and optional equipment:

The SE was the base Dodge Dart model between 2013 and 2016. It offered the following standard equipment: 160-horsepower 2.0L Tigershark I4 engine, six-speed manual transmission, AM/FM stereo with single-disc CD/MP3 player with auxiliary and USB inputs, four-speaker audio system, heater (no air conditioning), power windows and door locks, cloth seating surfaces, dual manually-adjustable front bucket seats, split-folding rear bench seat, full instrumentation, fifteen-inch black-painted steel wheels with plastic wheel covers, and black door handles and side mirrors. Additional options available for this model included a SE Popular Equipment Group that added equipment such as air conditioning, U Connect Bluetooth with streaming audio, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, a six-speaker audio system, keyless entry, and exterior color-keyed side mirrors. A six-speed automatic transmission was also available for this trim level. In mid-2016, the SE trim level of the Dodge Dart was discontinued.

The SXT was the "mid-level" trim level of the Dodge Dart between 2013 and 2016. It added the following equipment to the base SE trim level: sixteen-inch aluminum-alloy wheels (2014 and newer models), U Connect Bluetooth with streaming audio, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, a six-speaker audio system (four-speaker audio system after mid-2016), air conditioning, keyless entry, and exterior color-keyed door handles and side mirrors. Additional options for this trim level included sixteen-inch aluminum-alloy wheels (standard on 2014 and newer models), the U Connect 8.4-inch touch-screen infotainment system, a nine-speaker, 506-watt Alpine premium amplified surround-sound audio system, remote start, a six-speed automatic transmission, a 160-horsepower 1.4 L MultiAir Turbocharged I4 engine, the Rallye Package, a seven-inch TFT instrument cluster display, and a power-adjustable front driver"s bucket seat. During the final few months of Dodge Dart production, this model was known as the SXT Sport, and with the discontinuation of the previously base-model SE trim level, became the base trim level of the Dodge Dart.

The Limited was the "up-level" Dodge Dart trim level between 2013 and 2016. It added the following equipment to the "mid-level" SXT trim level: seventeen-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, the U Connect 8.4-inch infotainment system, a power-adjustable front driver"s bucket seat, Nappa luxury leather-trimmed seating surfaces (2014 and later models), dual heated front seats, a seven-inch TFT instrument cluster display, a six-speed automatic transmission, a 160-horsepower 1.4 L MultiAir Turbocharged I4 engine, a 184-horsepower 2.4 L Tigershark Inline Four-Cylinder engine (standard on later models), seventeen-inch polished aluminum-alloy wheels, GPS navigation, Keyless Enter-"n"-Go with push-button start, a nine-speaker, 506-watt Alpine premium amplified surround-sound audio system, and Nappa luxury leather-trimmed seating surfaces (optional on 2013 models only). In mid-2016, the Limited trim level of the Dodge Dart was discontinued.

The Aero trim level of the Dodge Dart, available from 2013 until 2016 and based on the "mid-level" SXT trim level, was focused on fuel economy, and added the following features to that model: U Connect 8.4-inch touch screen infotainment system and 160-horsepower 1.4 L MultiAir I4 engine. Additional features on this trim level included aluminum-alloy wheels, a six-speed Dual-Clutch Automatic Transmission, and remote start. The Aero trim level of the Dodge Dart achieved an EPA fuel economy rating of 41 MPG Highway. In mid-2016, the Aero trim level of the Dodge Dart was discontinued.

The GT was the top-of-the-line Dodge Dart trim level between 2013 and 2016. It added the following equipment to the Limited trim level: Nappa luxury leather-trimmed seating surfaces, Keyless Enter-"n"-Go with push-button start, eighteen-inch Granite Crystal-finished aluminum-alloy wheels, a nine-speaker, 506-watt Alpine premium amplified surround-sound audio system and a 184-horsepower 2.4 L Tigershark I4 engine. Additional options on this trim level included eighteen-inch Hyper Black-finished aluminum-alloy wheels, a six-speed automatic transmission, and a remote start. During the final few months of Dodge Dart production, this model was known as the GT Sport.

The Dart has three engine options: a Tigershark 16-valve 2 L engine, a "Tigershark" 16-valve 2.4 L MultiAir 2 four-cylinder engine, and a 16-valve 1.4 L MultiAir Intercooled turbo engine used also in Alfa Romeo Giulietta.manual transmission is available with all engine options, a six-speed automatic is optional on the 2.0 L and 2.4 L engines while a six-speed dual-clutch transmission is available on the 1.4 L turbo version. Marchionne has stated that a 9-speed automatic will not be available until sometime later.Dundee, Michigan.

In 2014, the Dart SXT and Limited included a 2.4 L I4 engine with increased horsepower ratings, while making the 2.0 L Tigershark I4 engine only available in the base SE model. The 2.4 L I4 engine was offered in late 2013 with the introduction of the Dart GT model. The Dart Aero, Rallye, SXT, and Limited models are the only models available with the 1.4 L MultiAir turbocharged I4 engine.

The Dart is equipped with numerous safety features, such as: brake assist, brake-lock differential, rainy brake support, hydraulic boost compensation, electronic stability control, traction control, anti-lock braking system, electronic roll mitigation, hill-start assist, trailer-sway control, rear backup camera and rear park assist. The Dart has 10 airbags standard; it also has a reactive head-restraint system for the front seats, and other available systems are blind-spot monitoring and rear cross path detection.Euro NCAP tests.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gave the 2013 Dart a five-star safety rating in the frontal offset barrier, rollover, and side impact crash tests. The Dart also earned an IIHS Top Safety Pick for 2012.

At the New York International Auto Show in 2012, a Dodge Dart turbo four-wheel drive rally car was shown. The blue-and-white SRT-badged car entered the 2012 Global RallyCross Championship, driven by four-time Rally America champion Travis Pastrana and his teammates.

Based on the 2013 Dodge Dart, it included a 2.0 L 4-cylinder, 16-valve turbo-charged engine rated at 600 hp (447 kW) and over 550 lb⋅ft (746 N⋅m) of torque, and Sadev 4-wheel drive transmission.2013 Global RallyCross Championship season, but after Pastrana placed 10th in the driver"s standings for both years, Dodge pulled out of the series and he returned to Subaru Rally Team USA in 2014.

The Dart SRT 4 was originally planned for production starting in December 2016, based on the 2014 five-year plan of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) group. However, due to the decision to end production of the Dart, the SRT 4 version was canceled.

The Fiat Viaggio ("journey", "voyage" in English), also called fēi xíang (菲翔), is a sedan version of the Dodge Dart for the Chinese market, designed by the Fiat Group Style Centre in Turin, Italy. A 1.4 L T-Jet engine producing 120 PS (88 kW) or 150 PS (110 kW), was available paired to a 5-speed manual or 6-speed dual clutch gearbox for 2012 and 2013. A 7-speed Dual Dry Clutch gearbox was standard from 2015 to 2017.

The Dart was manufactured at Chrysler"s Belvidere Assembly Plant,Dodge Caliber (2006-2011), Jeep Compass, Jeep Patriot, the first & second generation Dodge Neon (1995-2005) and Dodge Neon SRT4 (2003-2005) were all manufactured.

The Dart used a modified variant of the Fiat Compact Platform,Alfa Romeo Giulietta, widened by 1.5 in (38 mm) and lengthened by 3.7 in (94 mm) to its wheelbase — creating the Compact U.S. Wide (CUSW) platform. The modified platform, adapted to U.S. requirements and subsequently redesignated the PF platform, was designed over approximately 18 months at a cost of US$1 billion.

In July 2012, the first television advertisement for the Dodge Dart aired during the broadcast of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, featuring the bassline from Kanye West"s "No Church in the Wild", a spoof on the Reliant Robin and a cameo by NFL"s Tom Brady.

On January 27, 2016, Fiat Chrysler announced the end of Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 production to redirect its focus towards crossover vehicles. A plan to move production from its Belvidere Assembly Plant to Mexico was in the works but later scrapped.

The Dart ended production on September 2, 2016 after failing to meet sales expectations,Dodge Neon based on the Fiat Tipo replacing it in the Mexican market.

During a press conference held at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show, FCA President Sergio Marchionne said: "I can tell you right now that both the Chrysler 200 and the Dodge Dart, as great products as they were, were the least financially rewarding enterprises that we"ve carried out inside FCA in the last eight years," adding "I don"t know one investment that was as bad as these two were."

The 2013 Dodge Dart enters the lineup following in a long line of pretty successful compact (known now as the C segment) options that included the Dodge Neon in the 1990s and the Dodge Aries in the 1980s. While there were vehicles like the Neon SRT4 that packed serious driving excitement, many of those drivers who have owned a higher volume Neon or Aries wouldn’t consider those cars to have been the most interesting to drive or to ride in. The Aries played a major role in Chrysler’s grown through the 1980s and having owned one; I can attest that it was a great affordable, reliable and efficient car. However, the interior was very bare even for the time and while efficient, the engine struggled to allow the little Aries to break the highway speed limit. The Neon was a step in the right direction in terms of driving excitement and fuel economy but across the span of the two Neon generations, the interior neither plush nor was it technologically advanced in any way. The Dart is a culmination of what the Chrysler Group has learned about the compact sedan over the past 30 years with the help of Fiat, combining a comfortable, high tech interior with a stunning exterior design and a drivetrain that makes it one of the most efficient and the most powerful compact sedan on the market today.

The American compact sedan segment was once one that was all about blending in but as more consumers of these affordable small cars have demanded vehicles with some real attitude and character, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited offers an unmistakable exterior design. The Limited trimline is the top of the line option in terms of amenities so my test Dart is technically a luxury package and that begins on the outside with a splash of chrome that you don’t see on the Rallye model that I drove when the Dart was first launched. Luckily, Dodge was able to add some bling to the exterior without diminishing the sporty feel of the Dart and without making it look like said chrome was added as an afterthought to quickly dress up the exterior.

Across the front end, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited features the same striking countenance as the entire Dart lineup with the slim, sinister crosshair grille but unlike the other compact Dodge sedans, the Dart Limited has crosshairs trimmed in chrome set in a gloss black mesh background. That chrome is echoed through the large projection headlight housings and in the gloss black projection fog light bezels while more gloss black mesh is found in the large lower grille opening. The front end is still clearly sport-minded in its design but the chrome grille and headlights work with the projection lighting setup to give this package a very upscale look. Chrome trim aside, the Dart Limited features the same bold, aerodynamic front end design with the high fenders giving this compact sedan a very sporty look.

Along the sides the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited wears the same 17 inch polished aluminum wheels that are standard on both the SXT and Rallye models but unlike those lower level trimlines, the Limited package adds chrome door handles with integrated keyless access buttons for the front doors. The greenhouse is set back a bit, presenting a long hood area that leads up to a quickly sloping windshield and a long roofline that makes for plenty of head room inside before swooping down across the back glass to give this sedan a fastback-like design.

Out back, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited wears the distinct LED racetrack taillight that is – in my opinion – easily the best looking rear lighting setup in the segment. Set perfectly flush to the body lines and filled with gloss black through the middle, this taillight design is sporty and classy. When Dodge announced that they were adapting the LED racetrack taillight design from the Dodge Charger to the smaller Dart, I was concerned that it wouldn’t fit but the company has done a beautiful job with the back end design of this new compact sedan. This gorgeous taillight setup is tucked neatly under the sculpted trunk lid edge that creates a sort of “spoiler” to accentuate the sporty feel while the contrasting matte black lower rear fascia with the dual exhaust poking through each side furthers the performance minded design approach of this high end trimline.

The compact sedan market in the United States has shifted towards far more aggressive, sporty looking models even in the more luxury-themed trimlines and the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited is a beautiful example of just how nice a C segment can be – without paying a fortune.

Where the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited really shines is inside, where technology that has previously only been found in some of the priciest luxury cars in the US makes the Dart one of the most impressive cars in the compact sedan segment. Most notably, the Dart Limited comes standard with the huge 8.4L infotainment screen mounted high in the center stack and the 7 inch customizable thin film transistor (TFT) gauge cluster mounted in the floating island dash bezel. These are features that we have enjoyed in other vehicles including the Grand Cherokee SRT8, the Dodge Charger SRT8 and the new Dodge Durango but no other car in the segment offers these high tech goodies.

The 8.4 inch infotainment touch screen in the Dart Limited is similar to the setup used in the majority of Chrysler Group vehicles that offer such a system and with full controls of the sound system, the navigation, the heating and air conditioning controls, the hands free phone system and the vehicle settings. Also, there are steering wheel controls for both the cruise control and the sound system in addition to traditional knobs and buttons mounted below the touch screen for those who prefer to adjust the radio or climate control system without using the touch screen. These traditional controls are a bit abridged but this is a control system that caters both to those who want high tech and those who do not.

More significantly, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited comes with the standard 7 inch TFT gauge cluster that is one of the best looking layouts in the world. The outer edges of the cluster hold a large tachometer on the left side and the fuel gauge on the other with the large adjustable screen mounted in the middle. With the buttons on the steering wheel, the driver can customize this large center section (shown above with the digital speedometer) with the Dart logo joined by what is playing on the radio (in this case, USB track #93), the outside temperature on the left and the compass direction on the right. This top area can also display things like fuel range, fuel economy and trip information. For the large central section (where the digital speedo appears below), the driver can also select an analog style speedometer with the growing flower design in the middle that shows fuel economy figures and serves as a sort of driving coach for the best fuel economy possible. As you drive more efficiently, new pedals grow on the orange and yellow flower while hard driving will make the pedals fall away. You can also pick a smaller digital speed readout with a long list of fuel economy readout options below for those who want to see fuel economy information without the bright colored flower.

When it gets dark out, the interior of the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited continues to shine with a warm red glow permeating from around the edges of the “floating” gloss black dash bezel that runs across the driver’s side and middle of the dash. Combined with the red knobs and buttons in the lower portion of the center stack, the Dart Limited looks every bit as cool when the sun goes down and the lights go up. This is truly a remarkable gauge cluster in any modern vehicle but the fact that it is standard in the sub-$30k makes it that much more impressive. Lots of cars in the US auto market have these configurable TFT gauge clusters but none of them are compacts and none of them have a price under $30k. My Dart Limited test car carried an MSRP of $25,270 and that includes the upcharge for the 1.4L Turbo engine, the Dual Clutch automatic transmission, the$795 destination fee and a handful of interior options that are discussed below.

One of my favorite features of the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited is that while there is lots of high end, high tech content – leather is not standard. While I am a fan of leather seats, many people are not and some of those people are forced to accept leather seats if they want a loaded up interior. The Dart Limited allows you to pack this sporty compact sedan full of high end amenities without opting for the costlier leather seats. However, to dress up the interior a bit Dodge has made the leather wrapped steering wheel, the leather wrapped shifter, the leather covered center armrest and the leather trimmed door panels standard with the cloth seats. While there are other color options available, my Dart Limited test car was decked out almost entirely in black from top to bottom – with only a touch of silver here and there breaking up the blacked out interior.

In addition to all of the standard high tech goodies in the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited, my test car was fitted with the Technology Group package, the high end UConnect system with Garmin GPS navigation and Sirius satellite radio. The only interior features not included in my Dart Limited test car is the Premium Group package which adds heated leather seats, a heated leather steering wheel, remote start and a universal garage door opener.

Gadgets aside, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited offers a ton of elbow, head, leg and knee space for the driver and front passenger with equal amounts of elbow and head room in the back seats – especially if you only have two people in the back seat. The Dart is a little tight on leg room for taller rear riders but even with the front seats moved all of the way back, children can comfortably fit in the back seat. It is a little tight for adults in the back seat when the front seats are pushed back but with the front seats adjusted to comfortably seat a 6 foot tall driver and front passenger – two adults can get comfortable in the back seats.

The 2013 Dodge Dart Limited shows that you don’t have to pay $50,000 for a sedan that has this incredible level of interior content. The high end infotainment system and a customizable TFT gauge cluster are previously unheard of in this affordable compact sedan segment but Dodge has integrated these features into a gorgeous, roomy interior that can take on the likes of the biggest luxury brands in the US – with a price well under $30k. No longer does driving an affordable American compact sedan mean that you have to suffer with a boring, bare interior. The Dart Limited has been recognized as one of the nicest interiors in both the segment and the industry for a good reason.

MY 2013 Dodge Dart Limited test car was fitted with the 1.4L turbocharged 4-cylinder engine sending 160 horsepower and 184lb-ft of torque to the front wheels via the optional 6-speed dual clutch automatic transmission. This makes the Dart one of the most powerful cars in the class (rivaled only by the Ford Focus ST) and just as importantly – the Dart is among the most efficient cars in the segment. Dodge and the EPA expect that this drivetrain will allow the Dart Limited to achieve 27 miles per gallon around town and 37 miles per gallon on the highway with a combined figure of 31mpg. During my time with the Dart, I averaged just under the expected number with a real world number of 30.6 miles per gallon. However, I drove the Dart harder than I would expect the average compact sedan driver but when cruising casually on the highway – I was able to meet or exceed the 37mpg figure on the highway when running slightly above the posted speed limits. Mind you, I live in a fairly flat area with very little traffic so I got great fuel economy around town and on the highway when driving reasonably…although my spirited driving sessions prevented me from reaching the expected combined fuel economy numbers.

The fuel economy of the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited is great but so is the fuel economy of plenty of other cars in the segment. Where the Dart really excels is the driving dynamics thanks to the power of the spunky little turbocharged Fiat engine. Even with the dual clutch, the Dart will put a spin to the front tires before accelerating hard through the gears. A manual transmission would be my first choice but the dual clutch automatic provides crisp, precise shifts that are refreshing compared to the lazy slushbox automatics found in many self shifting compact sedans. Also, while the shifts are very crisp under hard acceleration, the DCT shifts smoothly and quietly when driving gently so the dual clutch offers the best of both worlds in terms of smoothness and precision. Acceleration is slowed just a touch by the quick spool time of the 1.4L engine but once the air and fuel are being rammed into the engine – the Dart will accelerate hard throughout the powerband without any hesitation. It is one of the most powerful cars in the segment and that translates to being one of the quickest and fastest cars in the segment so for those who want an efficient compact sedan that offers great fuel economy and a really great driving experience, the Dart fulfills those needs better than any car in the segment.

Finally, in addition to accelerating hard, the 2013 Dodge Dart Limited offers a great blend of handling and ride quality. This is a compact sedan that you can toss into a tight turn while cutting through back country roads with a great response from the suspension and steering system while still packing a nice, smooth ride when cruising down the highway – even when soaring at higher speeds through long, gradual turns. The Dart is smooth and confident while being driven hard but for those who arent into that sort of thing, the Dart is also remarkably smooth. Very little of the “road noise” is transferred through the suspension or steering and while you do get some wind noise at highway speeds, the Dart is one of the more welcoming, pleasant compact sedans on the market on a short run across town or a three hour drive to visit grandma.

The 2013 Dodge Dart Limited is at the top of the compact sedan segment in pretty much every way with the most power, the best fuel economy and the most well equipped interior I have seen from a car of this size and price class. The Dart offers technology that is unrivaled by any other compact sedan available in the US and enough power to make it one heck of a lot of fun to drive – without compromising fuel economy that is among the top of the class as well. If you want a compact sedan that will realistically seat four adults in an environment packed with high tech goodies while also providing a great driving experience – the new Dodge Dart has to be on your short list of cars to drive before you make your next new car purchase.

Accident Free CARFAX History Report*, HEATED FRONT SEATS, Cruise Control, Push Button Start, USB/ AUX Input, Sirius XM Radio, Alloy Wheels, Backup Camera, Bluetooth, 8.4 Touchscreen Display, 8.4 Uconnect Touchscreen Group, Active Grille Shutters, Black Crosshair w/Black Surround, Black Fog Lamp Spear & Bezel, Blacktop Package, Body Color Power Heated Mirrors, Cold Weather Group, Dual Rear Exhaust w/Bright Tips, Fog Lamps, Gloss Black Exterior Mirrors, Glove Box Lamp, Heated Front Seats, Illuminated I/P Surround, iPod Control, Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel, ParkView Rear Back-Up Camera, Quick Order Package 28B, Radio: Uconnect 8.4 MP3, RALLYE Appearance Group, RALLYE Badge, RALLYE Group, Rear Stabilizer Bar, Remote USB Port, Touring Suspension, Underbody Aerodynamic Treatment, Wheels: 17 x 7.5 Granite Crystal Aluminum, Wheels: 18 x 7.5 Gloss Black Aluminum. Recent Arrival! Clean CARFAX.

* The wide range of available models, cool styling, spacious interior and sporty driving experience combined with excellent safety ratings and cutting-edge technology make the compact Dodge Dart sedan an attractive (if frequently overlooked) choice in an extremely competitive segment. Source: KBB.com

* The 2015 Dodge Dart boasts performance-inspired exterior design that leverages world-class architecture of Alfa Romeo and infuses it with Dodge passion and design. Clean lines from nose to tail form its curvaceous silhouette. The unmistakable split crosshair grille accentuates a low, wide stance. The available full-width racetrack style LED taillamps make an aggressive statement. The interior has an intuitive, fluid layout designed to be both beautiful and ergonomic. It offers ambient lighting, refined soft-touch surfaces, accent stitching and tactile grains or available hand-wrapped protein vinyl surfacing. The Dodge Dart includes a number of available class-exclusive features, including seating, dual temperature control, and a 7-inch Thin Film Transistor (TFT) premium cluster display. Not only does the display deliver real-time information on performance, navigation and vehicle status, it truly comes alive with countless ways to reconfigure in full color and incredibly rich graphics. The 2015 Dodge Dart is tuned to deliver with the available Uconnect 8.4-inch touchscreen, featuring AM/FM/CD/MP3 and available SiriusXM Satellite Radio. Get up-to-the-minute weather, fuel prices, sports, and movie listings with available Garmin Navigation and SiriusXM Travel Link. Choose from a 2.0L 16-valve Tigershark four-cylinder engine, a 1.4L 16-valve intercooled Turbo with MultiAir, or a 16-valve 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir II four-cylinder engine. Along with 10 standard airbags, reactive front head restraints, and available features like Blind Spot Monitoring, and Rear Cross Path Detection, the 2015 Dodge Dart is among the safest vehicles in its class. Source: The Manufacturer Summary

Dodge is reviving the Dart brand with a new 2013 car, and it"s adding a customizable digital instrument cluster that the company says is a first for a compact vehicle. We spent some time with a mock-up, and there"s a lot to like about the new layout. The 7-inch TFT display is bright with vivid colors, and while it"s nestled between the car"s physical RPM and fuel gauges the visual effect is that you"re viewing one continuous display. The system allows you to change the look of your speedometer with four different preset styles, and you can customize the information laid out in the corners of the screen: time, date, and available driving range are amongst the options. Turn-by-turn directions are also delivered to the display, and integration with the car"s Uconnect Media Center is of course included.

We were informed that some minor animations do occur when directions appear on the display, but a Dodge representative reassured us that the company has tested the system to ensure that drivers won"t be distracted (changing display presets is disabled altogether while the car is in motion). The 2013 Dart will be released later this year at a starting price of $15,995; there"s no word yet on when the new dashboard will be making its way to other Dodge vehicles.

As we say goodbye to our bright orange long-term Dodge Dart test car, which completed its 40,000-mile test in our hands in an on-schedule 15 months, there’s no better way to sum up the experience than to point out that the car no longer exists. Sure, Dodge still sells the Dart, but you can no longer buy a car spec’d identically to ours. And that is a very good thing.

You see, Dodge axed the turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that powered our 2013 Rallye model from every Dart save the Aero fuel-economy special. Great, we say, since nearly every comment in the long-term Dart’s logbook spat fury at the Fiat-sourced MultiAir turbo four, which produces what feels like half a pound-foot of torque from idle to just above 3000 rpm, almost single-handedly ruining the Dart’s otherwise acceptable driving experience.

Technically, the engine makes 184 lb-ft of twist at 2500 rpm, but we never felt it. One staffer minced few words when it came to the powertrain, emphatically describing it as “awful.” Most on staff were in consensus over the ideal launch technique for the Dart: Mat the throttle, side-step the mushy, uncommunicative clutch, and hope the turbo kicks in. Most were of equal mind, too, that this technique is hardly acceptable in town, around your mother-in-law, or near cops.

Freakishly snowy conditions in our Michigan environs prevented us from performing our usual raft of end-of-40,000 instrumented testing before the car was whisked away, but the Dart made it to 60 mph in a ho-hum eight seconds when new. Typically, our well-broken-in 40,000-mile long-termers manage the sprints to 60 mph and through the quarter-mile slightly quicker than when they first entered our fleet.

Whereas the Dart’s balky low-speed response created frustration driving in town, the car’s peachy highway demeanor made it a frequent road-trip companion. On the freeway, the Dart hums along quietly, with a decent sense of straight-ahead and a comfortable ride. Its highway acumen helped keep our average fuel economy to a high 29 mpg over the duration of our test, as it visited locales as exotic as Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, and New Jersey.

Visible wear and tear in our Dodge’s cabin were almost nonexistent, thanks to the mostly black-colored interior. Chrysler’s ubiquitous Uconnect touch-screen infotainment system was universally praised for its ease of use. We did wish for a temperature knob for the HVAC system, instead of tap-up and tap-down buttons, and some drivers found the driving position cumbersome. A few of us even found that butts could sink through the seat foam before settling on hard structural members.

Being the offspring of a still-bouncing-back Chrysler and Italian Fiat, the Dart’s reliability was our biggest pretest concern. However, we experienced only two electronic snafus, both around 20,000 miles, that were fixed under warranty. Scheduled maintenance costs started out reasonably, but a $408 30,000-mile service bill turned that table over, thanks to the Dart’s crazy-expensive proprietary spark plugs. (The three other services cost $59, $80, and $157.) Our only non-maintenance-related expenses were $449 for a new windshield and $638 to repair the front-right fender after a ladder fell from a van and struck the parked Dart.

Given the 1.4T’s nearly total elimination, it’s worth pointing out what engines buyers can now get in the Dart-osphere. For 2014, Dodge has relegated the Dart’s standard 160-hp, 2.0-liter four to the base SE trim level. Previously, it was in the SE, SXT, Rallye (that is now an option group, not a trim level), and Limited. The 1.4-liter turbo comes only in the Dart Aero with a six-speed manual or dual-clutch automatic; the rest of the lineup—the SXT, the GT, and the Limited—gets a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter four. A manual is standard in the SXT and GT, and a six-speed automatic is optional (it soon will be replaced by a nine-speed ZF unit); the Limited gets the automatic standard.

The 184-hp, 2.4-liter four makes a huge difference, being smoother and more linear than the pesky, peaky 1.4-liter four. Demerits are lower fuel-economy estimates versus the turbo’s—22 mpg city and 35 highway instead of 27/39 mpg for manual models—and the same disconnected-feeling clutch action we felt in our Dart. Also, despite packing 24 more horsepower, the 2.4-liter produces 13 fewer lb-ft of torque, meaning that, according to our test equipment, a similarly equipped, manual-transmission Dart is 0.2 second slower to 60 mph.

But pedal-to-the-metal numbers don’t tell the whole story, and here it’s the flexibility, improved throttle tip-in, and crisper part-throttle response of the 2.4-liter in everyday driving that counts, although we’d still prefer the more fun-to-drive Ford Focus or delightful Mazda 3 as a daily driver. Even though the Dart served us well as a commuter car, it didn’t excel at any one thing except swallowing real-size humans in the back seat. Aside from its new engine, the Dart remains merely a decent choice among a gaggle of excellent compact cars.

We’re making a final, valiant push to finish our Dodge Dart Rallye’s 40,000-mile stay roughly on schedule. In our first long-term test update, we noted the Dart was struggling to gain friends—and miles, having accumulated just over 18,000 odometer ticks after eight months in our fleet. Now, 13 months into its test, the Dart has rolled over 34,060 miles, and we will complete our assessment of Dodge’s fresh-faced compact within the next month or so. (For reference, we can usually roll 40K on a given long-termer in a year.)

Early on, the Dart’s laggy and flaccid powertrain distinguished itself as one of our least-favorite things about the sedan. It’s good, then, that the Dart’s mileage accumulation has come largely from a travel format that mostly minimizes the 1.4-liter turbo four’s role and plays up the car’s comfortable ride and spacious accommodations: long road trips. Free of the stop-and-go hustle and bustle of city slickin’, the Dart has established itself as an amenable highway cruiser—especially during this year’s precipitation-heavy winter, where its benign front-drive dynamics have combined with winter rubber to instill confidence in bad weather

Immediately following our first update, the Dart’s problem-free run came to an end, as its airbag and check-engine dashboard lights started blazing with 20,385 miles on the odometer. The diagnostics came back with 33 codes thrown, all of which the dealer reset, initially curing the problem. However, after tracing the issue to the wiring harness under the passenger seat, service techs found that wiggling the loom caused the dash lights to glow like the end of a Cuban. A short was diagnosed, and the dealer replaced the wiring harness under warranty.

Just 271 miles later, the check engine light came back on, prompting yet another unscheduled dealer visit. Turns out the Dart’s active grille shutters weren’t working—they were, thankfully, stuck open—and the entire assembly was replaced free of charge. The Dart hasn’t been back to the dealer for anything but scheduled maintenance since, and we’re glad those issues occurred while we were under the protection of the Dart’s three-year bumper-to-bumper warranty.

Since our last report, the Dart underwent its 30,000-mile service. Compared with the relatively reasonable $59 and $80 service visits previously done, the 30K bill was, uh, shocking. It set us back a substantial $408 for an oil change, air-filter swap, and fresh set of spark plugs. We think it’s bizarre for any modern car to require new plugs so early, and it’s even stranger for those plugs, some oil, and an air filter to cost $261. (The labor portion of this service ran $119, with the rest allotted to mysterious “miscellaneous charges.”) We initially figured the dealer had simply hosed us, but we did some digging and found that the extreme cost could be chalked up almost exclusively to the spark plugs themselves.

The Dart—at least 1.4-liter turbo models—uses NGK iridium spark plugs, which retail for $33 each on Mopar’s parts site, but a massive backorder on these plugs meant we were charged 25 percent extra to get the plugs in posthaste. This pushed the per-plug price to a staggering $44.It gets worse—we couldn’t find the plugs from parts suppliers like NAPA or O’Reilly, and even though the plugs are produced by NGK for Mopar, they don’t appear on NGK’s databases. It seems that for now Chrysler is the sole source for these plugs, and they’re not cheap. Back-yard mechanics, take note.

Overall fuel economy has notched down by 1 mpg to 29. That kind of efficiency is pretty darn good, but it also reflects the sheer amount of highway miles we’ve spent in the Dart as opposed to gallivanting around town. A few drivers have noted an odd sensation when accelerating at highway speeds, with one driver describing the issue as a “hiccup” and another hypothesizing a misfire when accelerating at 70 mph in top gear. We have yet to have the issue examined, as the little orange Dodge headed out for a quick jaunt to Florida. We’ll have an update—and a final verdict—on the Dart soon.

As it enters its eighth month in our hands, the oh-so-orange Dodge Dart Rallye remains one of the least-subscribed rides in our long-term fleet. Some editors’ enthusiasm has been dulled by the compact’s awkward pedal and steering-wheel angles, numb clutch, and uncomfortable driver’s seat. But the biggest reason for the Dart’s having accumulated just 18,172 miles since it arrived is its lackluster powertrain. (Our long-term test cars typically eat up their entire 40,000-mile stay with us in about a year.) Weak-kneed, laggy, and nonlinear, the Dodge’s turbocharged four-cylinder engine has caught no shortage of flak for its around-town drivability.

On the bright side, the Dart has yet to be sidelined by any mechanical issues outside of its regularly scheduled maintenance. Besides two oil changes and inspections, one at 8847 miles and the latest at 16,798 miles—total for both: $140—we had to visit the dealer once to explore an airbag light that came aglow in the gauge cluster around the 9900-mile mark. No problem was found, and the light was reset free of charge.

Given the Dodge’s lightning-quick development from essentially a chopped-up, up-sized Alfa Romeo platform and its mix of American and Italian components, we wondered if the car would haunt the dealership service bay. But the Dart’s lack of issues so far has us sleeping a little easier.

The Dart’s only significant downtime came through no fault of ours or the car’s. A ladder plunged off a work van and cracked the Dodge’s windshield and dented its front-right fender while it sat parked. Although the Dart’s wounds were healed using funds from the van’s insurance provider, it’s worth noting that the tally for the new windshield was a reasonable $449, and the dented fender cost $638 to repair.

As the miles pile on, our complaints about the Dart’s powertrain haven’t tapered off. Nearly every logbook entry mentions the turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder’s paucity of punch below 3000 rpm, as well as the lumpy midrange surge. The engine’s responsiveness has taken the most flak for its off-the-line performance; simply put, it is laggy on throttle tip-in. Keeping pace with the ebb and flow of traffic requires early throttle application and generous revs to keep the turbo’s turbine speeds up. Dropping down a gear (or two) helps as well.

We’re curious to see how the upcoming Dart GT, with its more powerful, naturally aspirated 2.4-liter four-cylinder, compares with our turbo long-termer. Sans turbo, power delivery should be more linear and torque more usable. Moving outside the Dodge family, we’ve already found the 160-hp, 2.0-liter turboless Ford Focus to have better driving characteristics and a more polished (manual transmission) driveline than the turbocharged Dart in a comparison test.

On the flip side of the Dodge’s dynamic coin, plenty of praise has been heaped on the little orange sedan for its serene and comfortable highway demeanor. Still, some drivers might want to bring a pillow; multiple logbook comments note that the seat’s soft padding means butts and thighs sink deeply enough to touch the chair’s metal frame. The sedan’s high proportion of highway miles has resulted in wallet-friendly overall fuel economy of 30 mpg. Editors’ occasional abusive throttle usage around town to overcome the Dart’s sad launch behavior apparently has had little effect on the car’s noteworthy efficiency.

The Dart’s all-black cabin is holding up well visually, although several rattles and a suspension creak or two have presented themselves. The Uconnect touch-screen infotainment system works brilliantly, but some have decried the tedious temperature control, which requires occupants seeking hotter or colder air to tap hard buttons up and down while watching the onscreen display. Others have noticed the Dart’s front defroster occasionally creates pockets of condensation on the lower portions of the windshield and front-side windows after clearing broader swaths of fog. The only way to clear it up is to switch the mode control to blast air out at floor level or roll down the windows and shut the system off entirely.

So, the Dart is serving its duty reliably, and with a minimum of fuss—or excitement. We’ll be monitoring how the sedan’s mileage accumulation is affected as the summer road-trip season winds down.

The new Dart is being ballyhooed within the halls of Chrysler’s HQ as the car that will reestablish the Dodge brand among compact-car buyers—an important mission because Dodge hasn’t offered a viable small car in nearly a decade. The Neon had plucky charm, but it was replaced with the crudely executed and unloved Caliber just as small-car buyers were beginning to demand more refinement in the compact class. To find out whether the new-for-2013 Dart is worth any kind of hooing, we ordered one up for a 40,000-mile long-term test.

At first blush, it appears as though Dodge has churned out a potential winner in the Dart. It’s decently styled, has a large back seat for the segment, and is EPA-rated for up to 39 mpg (up to 41 mpg on the special Dart Aero model). Courtesy of Chrysler’s new Italian overlords, the sedan rides on a lengthened and widened Alfa Romeo platform and is powered by a Fiat-sourced turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine. Dodge says this marriage makes for a sporty and refined ride-and-handling balance—an American-sized small car with European flair.

At launch, the Dart range consisted of SE, SXT, Rallye, and Limited trim levels. A high-efficiency Aero variant arrived later, and Dodge just announced the coming of a sporty GT model. All Darts, save for the Aero and GT, come standard with a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder and a six-speed manual. A six-speed dual-clutch automatic is optional on turbos, and the 2.0-liter gets an optional six-speed auto. (We previously tested a Limited with the available dual-clutch and have driven the base 2.0-liter-with-automatic combo.)

For our long-term test, we ordered up a midrange, semi-sporty Rallye with the optional turbocharged 1.4-liter four and six-speed manual transmission—the zestiest combo available in the absence of the upcoming GT. To add even more spice, we asked Dodge to spray our Dart with the recently introduced Header Orange paint. This eye-searing color bestows on our long-termer a striking resemblance to a traffic cone.

The Rallye is essentially a $1000 option package that buyers layer on to the Dart SXT, and it adds a leather-wrapped steering wheel with redundant audio controls, cruise control, a trip computer and driver information display, 17-inch aluminum wheels (we had them covered in a dark-charcoal-colored finish for an additional $395), fog lamps, dual rear exhaust outlets, blacked-out headlight bezels, and a black grille with body-color crosshair inserts. The SXT trim comes equipped with power windows and locks, keyless entry, hill-start assist, a tire-pressure monitor, and 10 airbags.

On top of the Rallye group, we splurged on the $895 sunroof and $295 Popular Equipment group, which brings a tire-pressure-monitoring display, front seatback pockets, a headliner-mounted sunglasses holder, an additional 12-volt power outlet for the center console, and illumination for the cup holders and front sun-visor mirrors. The 1.4-liter turbo engine added $1300 to the bottom line and came with additional underbody aerodynamic cladding and active grille shutters.

We beefed up the infotainment side of things with Chrysler’s excellent Uconnect touch-screen system with navigation and a backup camera ($495), which necessitated an additional $595 outlay for a package filled with automatic headlights, iPod control, SD and USB ports, and an ambient light tube that wraps around the entirety of the Dart’s instrument panel. A $495 nine-speaker, 506-watt Alpine audio system rounded out our choices, bringing our long-term Dart’s grand total to $24,455.

Including a brief 300-mile break-in period, we’ve logged a little more than 4800 miles on our Dart so far. At the test track, the Dart put up respectable numbers: 0 to 60 mph in eight seconds flat, 0.87 g around our skidpad, and a solid 168-foot braking distance from 70 to 0 mph. On the mean streets, however, the Dart’s performance feels less respectable. Most of our complaints to date center on the turbo engine’s paucity of power below 3000 rpm and how the low-engine-speed dead zone doesn’t mix well with the Dart’s hefty 3277-pound curb weight.

Two months into its stay with us, the Dart has received no shortage of powertrain badmouthing. Leave a stoplight without revving the pants off the Dart, for example, and it takes off with a disappointing lurch as the flaccid engine bogs down and you unenthusiastically creep away. Once moving, things don’t improve much, with several editors noting random power surges and copious turbo lag that can make downshifts tricky.

Hustling the Dart down back roads reveals a willing chassis with good body control, but the steering, although nicely weighted, is on the numb side. The pedal placement further complicates rapid off-highway forays. The brake pedal is positioned much higher off of the floor than the throttle, making heel-and-toe downshifts an ankle contortionist’s dream unless you’re hard on the binders.

Stomping hard on the pedal at the right does have one benefit. Chrysler has managed to infuse the car with a rorty Dartissimmo exhaust bark, despite the engine’s being plumbed through a turbo. As for the car’s semi-stubby shifter, its engagements are positive, but throws are on the long side and some editors decry it as “ropy.”

Freeway cruising is one activity at which the Dart excels. At 70 and higher mph, the Dart starts channeling its inner Alfa. The little Dodge settles into a groove and hoovers down the interstate as if it were on an autostrada, stable and planted and reasonably responsive to throttle input as long as the revs stay above 3000 rpm.

Sedate driving highlights the Dart’s main dynamic triumph: a plush ride. However, this redeeming quality is offset by some front-suspension impact harshness that only presents itself over certain pavement irregularities, such as midcorner bumps when the outside wheel’s suspension is already compressed. Still, we remain impressed by the Dart engineers’ ability to dial in a comfortable ride while delivering capable handling.

Chalk up another win for the Dart’s interior, which has received praise for its roominess and well-placed controls. And even though the cabin has its share of hard plastics, it’s soft in the right places.

So far, the Dart’s ability to chew up highway miles and spit them out with ease has staffers cycling through it fairly often for longer trips. We’ll keep you updated on whether the car’s sluggish around-town demeanor discourages further mileage accrual, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on the Dart’s reliability, which a few staffers have expressed concern over, given the uncommon mix of Chrysler and Fiat parts. The Dart has been dead-nuts reliable up to this point, although no one will miss seeing us should we ever need to pull off the road.