Sonic vs. Dodge Dart
- Thread starter jimric
- Start date
$ub$onic
The Sticker Guy
I actually went to look at the dart. Left with the sonic lol
Here is why
The 6 speed manual felt like a sponge
The clutch was also really spongy
The brakes were too sensitive
The interior sucked
And was 24k
Went and drove the sonic an everything felt right
And was 15k
Bottom line you will not know till your test drive both but I would pick cruze vs a dart
Here is why
The 6 speed manual felt like a sponge
The clutch was also really spongy
The brakes were too sensitive
The interior sucked
And was 24k
Went and drove the sonic an everything felt right
And was 15k
Bottom line you will not know till your test drive both but I would pick cruze vs a dart
jimric
New member
I already own a 2012 Cruze RS
ColonelPanic
Banned
I had the Dart as my top pick when we were out shopping. Kind of apples to oranges comparison to some, but I was considering many in varying classes that were at a certain price point. Oddly enough I've seen some Dart vs Sonic comparison threads on Dart forums as well. 
opcorn:
I would have picked Header Orange, which I find vastly superior to Inferno on these things. :banana:
No torsion beam or rear drums on the back of the Dart was nice. I didn't consider the turbo because of the ridiculous price tag for the engine and then having to pay another large sum for the dual clutch automatic. The 2.0 with the more traditional Hyundai automatic I would have gone with is quite a bit thirstier than the Sonic.
I applaud Chrysler for actually giving the customer a choice on what options a customer could get instead of this one size fits all garbage like with competing cars (especially the imports.) But it also left them with a lot of oddly equipped cars on lots that didn't have what people wanted.
In the end, the price kicked it out of the running. The car started out cheap but would nickel and dime you to death. I looked at the SXT. $1k or so for an auto. More money for the preferred option group. More money for the cool LED racetrack tail lights across the trunk. More money for a USB port and bluetooth. More money for Sirius. More money if you wanted Uconnect. Even more money if you want Uconnect with nav.
opcorn: I would have picked Header Orange, which I find vastly superior to Inferno on these things. :banana:
No torsion beam or rear drums on the back of the Dart was nice. I didn't consider the turbo because of the ridiculous price tag for the engine and then having to pay another large sum for the dual clutch automatic. The 2.0 with the more traditional Hyundai automatic I would have gone with is quite a bit thirstier than the Sonic.
I applaud Chrysler for actually giving the customer a choice on what options a customer could get instead of this one size fits all garbage like with competing cars (especially the imports.) But it also left them with a lot of oddly equipped cars on lots that didn't have what people wanted.
In the end, the price kicked it out of the running. The car started out cheap but would nickel and dime you to death. I looked at the SXT. $1k or so for an auto. More money for the preferred option group. More money for the cool LED racetrack tail lights across the trunk. More money for a USB port and bluetooth. More money for Sirius. More money if you wanted Uconnect. Even more money if you want Uconnect with nav.
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I also considered the dart, before buying a sonic. I was interested in the dart aero model. The aero comes with the dart turbo and 6 speed manual transmission.
The rebates for the aero dart right now are very good and bring it down within Sonic LTZ price range.
The dart isn't a bad car and I can see many would chose it and be happy. But in my research and drives, including seeing both at an auto show, the sonic offered more and (arguably) drives better.
On paper dart aeros look great. More hp, more torque, but also more weight, and critically for me (and you feel this on a test drive) the torque comes on late so you clunk around in first until the engine revs up past 3000 rpms. That robs the car of an otherwise great potential at being a true dart. You feel slow because the initial acceleration is not present. I don't suffer this in the sonic.
Or at least this is how it felt for me. Only way to know is get inside the dart you are considering and see for yourself, it may just meet your needs.
Other factors for me getting a sonic were a better interior, more electronic wiz-bangs, and a lower purchase price-- outside of what I say is a superior drive-ability of the sonic over the dart.
The rebates for the aero dart right now are very good and bring it down within Sonic LTZ price range.
The dart isn't a bad car and I can see many would chose it and be happy. But in my research and drives, including seeing both at an auto show, the sonic offered more and (arguably) drives better.
On paper dart aeros look great. More hp, more torque, but also more weight, and critically for me (and you feel this on a test drive) the torque comes on late so you clunk around in first until the engine revs up past 3000 rpms. That robs the car of an otherwise great potential at being a true dart. You feel slow because the initial acceleration is not present. I don't suffer this in the sonic.
Or at least this is how it felt for me. Only way to know is get inside the dart you are considering and see for yourself, it may just meet your needs.
Other factors for me getting a sonic were a better interior, more electronic wiz-bangs, and a lower purchase price-- outside of what I say is a superior drive-ability of the sonic over the dart.
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ecohauler
New member
As is often the case with Mopar, the Dart looks fabulous but is still a Dodge. As many have mentioned, that probably means problems throughout the whole drivetrain. I want to think that all car companies make decently reliable vehicles now, but I've heard too many recent stories from people who bought new Dodges and had major problems with them. While Ford and Chevy (as well as a host of smaller Asian makes) were fixing their design and reliability issues around the turn of the century, Chrysler was still busy making poorly-designed engines and mating them to transmissions that aren't made for them, as well as some poorly-designed and poorly-built transmissions of their own.
I didn't even consider Dodge because they don't make a hatchback short of a Jeep or Journey, and the most efficient Jeep is capable of 30 MPG highway on the rare occasion that it makes it that far from the shop. I need efficiency, and I sometimes carry big things (hence the name). I would have been willing to give them a fair shot if they made a small, efficient hatchback (not a PT Cruiser though - those things are awful), but I seriously doubt they would have even made it to the test drive. Every Dodge I've ever sat in, everything just feels slightly wrong.
The one exception in my mind to the 'Dodges are garbage' rule is the Viper, and possibly all Dodge muscle cars. They use the same nearly-bulletproof Tremec transmissions as the Mustang and Camaro (manual, anyway), and as far as I can tell the engines aren't terribly unreliable either. It remains to be seen whether V8 and V10 Dodges have the same problem I've seen with other Dodges, where something will go wrong and they'll throw a wrong and unrelated code instead of the correct one.
I didn't even consider Dodge because they don't make a hatchback short of a Jeep or Journey, and the most efficient Jeep is capable of 30 MPG highway on the rare occasion that it makes it that far from the shop. I need efficiency, and I sometimes carry big things (hence the name). I would have been willing to give them a fair shot if they made a small, efficient hatchback (not a PT Cruiser though - those things are awful), but I seriously doubt they would have even made it to the test drive. Every Dodge I've ever sat in, everything just feels slightly wrong.
The one exception in my mind to the 'Dodges are garbage' rule is the Viper, and possibly all Dodge muscle cars. They use the same nearly-bulletproof Tremec transmissions as the Mustang and Camaro (manual, anyway), and as far as I can tell the engines aren't terribly unreliable either. It remains to be seen whether V8 and V10 Dodges have the same problem I've seen with other Dodges, where something will go wrong and they'll throw a wrong and unrelated code instead of the correct one.
LoneRider
New member
I was considering the Dart at one time and took it for a drive. It is a really nice car and a FAR CRY from Dodges of old. The interior was fantastic: comfy seats, plenty of storage, good build quality, and an outstanding UConnect nav/radio screen. That was the best infotainment screen I have ever seen and it uses Garmin nav, which is one of the best out there. The stereo was great too.
As for the drive, I was impressed there as well. It's a very easy car to drive as the clutch is so light, albeit rather numb. The shifter is great too, although the throws are a bit long. I drove the Ralleye with the 1.4 Turbo from the Fiat 500 Abarth. Which brings me to the big disappointment I have about the Dart. That engine is great in the 500 because that car is so small and light. However, in the Dart it felt underpowered. I did notice a bit more turbo lag than I imagined as well. The Dart is one of the bigger compact cars out there and it shows when you drive it. It's a fun car, but I just wish it had more power.
The lack of power, $25k price tag, and the fact that I don't like sedans is what stopped me from buying it.
I've had my Sonic RS for almost 4 months, and it's hands down the best car I've ever owned and I plan on keeping it for a long time
As for the drive, I was impressed there as well. It's a very easy car to drive as the clutch is so light, albeit rather numb. The shifter is great too, although the throws are a bit long. I drove the Ralleye with the 1.4 Turbo from the Fiat 500 Abarth. Which brings me to the big disappointment I have about the Dart. That engine is great in the 500 because that car is so small and light. However, in the Dart it felt underpowered. I did notice a bit more turbo lag than I imagined as well. The Dart is one of the bigger compact cars out there and it shows when you drive it. It's a fun car, but I just wish it had more power.
The lack of power, $25k price tag, and the fact that I don't like sedans is what stopped me from buying it.
I've had my Sonic RS for almost 4 months, and it's hands down the best car I've ever owned and I plan on keeping it for a long time
xsonicLTZx
New member
I have to disagree with you on one point, dodge does make a hatch back and I almost bought it a few years ago, the Caliber is a hatch back. I wanted an SRT Caliber so bad, such a bad ass lookin car, for me at least. And yes the PT cruiser is :sadbanana:
bkmitchy600
New member
Ah... the Caliber was discontinued and replaced by the Dart.
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