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Comments
I wonder how you got an R/T at all. We were told they aren't producing them until late summer, early fall. The SRT is the car we intially called about but it won't be available until later this year too.
We live in Dover, DE and for those of you who follow Nascar know that we have a track here. Well my husband is a vendor at the races and we hope to make at least $5k on this upcoming race weekend. So we will see what happens!
So I wonder is the CVT more vulnerable for failure, compared to the traditional auto transmission? Is the belt prone to breaking and replacement?
if you are getting 35 mpg with your neon, better stick with it. we are getting quite a few customers asking if something is wrong with their caliber because of poor fuel economy. its heavier, considerably, than the neon was, and not too aerodynamic.
I had a couple of stick shift Neons, and they returned 35 mpg IF I was driving on a long freeway trip, and kept speeds at 75 mph or lower. The Neons were light, low, and aerodynamic. They were also slighly cramped in terms of interior space, as are most "compact" cars, and slightly noisy - smooth motors, but a lot of wind rush and road roar from the tires.
Like you said, the Caliber is built a lot more solid - it looks like a truck, and apparently has the gussetting and heavier metal to stand up well in the modern crash tests (the Neon didn't do so well in such tests).
So it's a trade off. Buy a Ram pickup, or a Charger or Magnum, or almost any other larger car or truck, and suffer gas mileage pains; or try to make a trade off in size and weight in exchange for better gas mileage. If the Caliber has the "feel" and "quiet" of the PT Cruiser, then I'd say its a good deal, because the 2006 PT Cruiser is solid and quiet, but gets poor gas mileage for its size (but not for its weight and versatility).
And you finished:
we sell chrysler/toyota. if they are hardcore about mileage ill steer them toward a corolla or , if they want more cargo carrying capability, the matrix. the caliber will make its name with its style and cargo room, but not with fuel efficiency. the pt cruiser suffers from the same shortcoming, thought the calibers numbers would almost have to be better than that car.
I think if someone is hardcore about mileage, and doesn't want to pay the premium for a Prius, there is probably no better car in the world than the American trim Toyota Corolla. Say what you will, it IS an appliance, but with a very efficient engine, good passenger space (and a higher sitting height), and a decent trunk. On the other hand, I know very few people who care about cars who buy Corollas. So it is apples and oranges - the Caliber has a lot of style, and some presently unique features (anybody else think it got "separated at birth" from the Nissan Murano - both wagon style cross-overs with CVT transmissions?).
You are right about the PT Cruiser's gas mileage. We have both a Caravan SE and a PT Cruiser and the Caravan actually gets better mielage than the PT Cruiser. BUT, the PT Cruiser feels like a sports car in comparison to the van, it has great pickup and is well insulated to keep out the engine roar under full throttle.
I think the Caliber is a good addition to "small car" ranks. Look around you - most small cars have women at the wheel. Guys seem to disdain small cars for their arguably "feminine" looks. Trivial, I know, but pushes guys into buying compact pickups instead, which are much harder on the environment, not to mention on the wallet when you have to fill them up.
The Caliber has a chance of reversing the stigma of small "cars" - more so than the Honda Element, possibly making it cool (or at least not "un"-cool) to have a smaller vehicle again. That's probably a good thing.
(As a sidebar, I have to admit it was with much trepidation, bordering on embarassment, that we bought another PT Cruiser earlier this year; it is so "not masculine," but at the same time the PT is darn near the most practical small vehicle you can buy today, what with an enormous amount of rear seat legroom and decent trunk space for hauling a small family around. I really wanted the Caliber, which had just come out, but as a new car it was priced much higher than the long in the tooth PT Cruiser.)
No, the Caliber isn't aerodynamic; but it did sit at a good height which means it isn't likely to get hung up on snow or other stuff if someone takes it camping or fishing or hunting.
pt cruiser sales have died over the last couple years because:
1-matrix/vibe are equally versatile (in some cases more so)
but dont need to be so heavy--crash test scores for the pt werent helped over more economical competitors by its extra mass.
2-the retro novelty has worn off for many people
3-matrix/vibe twins are much more economical, reliable choices--matrix manual rated 30/36 and many people are exceeding this with little effort
**there are more competitors already here/on there way--i just focused on what i have personal experience with
the caliber still has to compete against matrix/vibe, and as far as fuel efficiency and perceived reliability (history is on toyotas side here) the caliber just cant compete. it is still a compact car. people will have to love the way it looks/drives for it to survive. id say with gas prices being quite high for the forseeable future--good luck!!
One last thing. I'm going to order mine tomorrow....I think.
THIS IS INCORRECT...the Matrix/vibe will be remodeled for the 2008 model year along with the Corolla (possibly a spring-2007 release date....so, while i believe the Caliber is lagging behind these cars already it will struggle more so when the Matrix is updated.
the matrix was also loud (considerably louder than the caliber).
Source Reuters:
Complete article: http://today.reuters.com/news/articl...ER-CALIBER.xml
DETROIT (Reuters) - Sales of DaimlerChrysler AG's (DCXGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) new Caliber compact hatchback have topped initial expectations, prompting the automaker to quietly curtail employee discounts for the car, company officials and dealers said. Chrysler has told dealers to stop granting employee-level pricing on the Caliber to all but the immediate family of workers and retirees over the past several days, a company spokesman confirmed on Tuesday.
PS: I'm glad I got mine way under invoice three weeks ago.
yes, the matrix is a bit noisy. id say this is its one significant flaw. my guess is that more sound deadening material would have made it too heavy to achieve 30/36 mpg that it gets (and from what ive read from actual owners, they are getting that or exceeding it). theres always a trade off, i guess. i had my choices narrowed down to matrix or corolla. the extra 4-5 mpg and quieter ride led me to choose the corolla.
perhaps the caliber has alot of sound deadening material, thus contributing to its heft.
i hope they werent blatantly lying just to steer you toward the caliber..they surely know that toyota isnt going to drop a car that has been, arguably, the most successful player in the crossover market and a great complement vehicle for corolla, one of the best selling cars ever.
I am in the same boat as you. I spoke with a dealership and they offered me this one week ago, and they put it in writing and said the offer was good for one week. I didn't put down a deposit or order it because I was unsure. So I called right now after reading your post to say I would like to order the car and they put it throught the system and told me to just come in and put down a deposit. And they said the offer they gave me was still good.
Either they haven't heard about this yet or it isn't true! So even though I should wait a few months to order it, I'm just going to go ahead and put down a deposit because this Friends and Family deal is too good and I'm afraid if I wait any longer they won't offer it to me anymore.
In terms of mileage - I'm lovin' it! I commute 70 miles daily to work and back. I fill up about once per week. I've easily been getting 35mpg on a regular basis. On long trips, my mileage has approached 40mpg at 65-70mph.
I'm going to test drive a Caliber this weekend, I hope. I sat in one at the Detroit auto show and thought the driving position was more cramped than the Vibe. I'm anxious to form an opinion about the engine and CVT, however, so I hope to find one to test this weekend. Wish me luck - I know they're hard to find!
Jim
Also, How did that Hi-speed training course that DCX was offering to all buyers who bought an SRT variant car work out? Has anyone heard? Also, if the Caliber is not the Neon replacement then why is th SRT4 a Caliber now? Can anyone make any sense out of this whole situation?
Any info will be greatly appreciated.
I just wanted to let you know that I ordered mine in a few minutes ago!!! A Caliber SXT, black, 1.8L, 5speed, leather interior, premium sound system, security group, cruise control, fogs, 17" alloy wheels, wheels locks, roof rack and 2 upright-style bike carriers and a full tank of gas... wow! And I got a pretty good deal toooo!!! I got it for 2K under the total price. The down side is that I will have to wait 6-8 weeks before getting it. :P :shades:
I guess an answer to this is that DCX is in finacial trouble and needs to lose money in order to decrease tax loss. Thats what we do on the farm. We bought a new truck last year and a new tractor the year before that in order to offset taxes a touch. DCX may have dropped there money maker car so that they can take a loss and save some tax money. I guess you have to look at the whole picture. If there is another answer( and I hope there is ) Please someone share it with me. Thanks
http://today.reuters.com/business/newsarticle.aspx?type=tnBusinessNews&storyID=n- N18363269
Click Link for more details:
http://www.autonet.ca/Spotlight/NewModels/story.cfm?story=/Spotlight/NewModels/2- 006/02/13/1440677.html
You are right when it comes to the "basics" and "engineering" of the two cars, but in my opinion, the exterior designs are radically different (interiors are very similar).
The Caliber has an edgy design, much more like the Vibe, in my opinion. The Matrix looks more like a glorified station wagon - but then, I am a bit biased! :-)
http://cars.about.com/od/2001/fr/CH_05_Vibe.htm
"The Pontiac Vibe and the Toyota Matrix are the result of a joint venture manufacturing agreement between General Motors and Toyota."
ARRRRRGH!!.....NO, NO, NO. pure fabrication and/or ignorance. maybe he was trying to keep you away from the vibe?? toyo/gm contract currently goes through 2008, and will likely go beyond that. the 2006 matrix/vibe continue to share the 1.8L DOHC VVT-i engine, as will the 2007 models. both will be remodeled for 2008. pontiac chose to drop the GT and AWD (thus dont sell equivalents of the matrix xrs or awd) version of the vibe line up as they werent selling that well. all basic vibe/matrix engine remain identical. good advice for all of us: when a dealer tells you something, make sure you do some of your own research to see if the guy/gal knew what they were talking about. its amazing how little some salesmen are up on the products they sell. it wont take anyone much research on a given car to know MUCH more than your salesman.
1)Look at the prodominent ammount of Subcompact buyers. They are women. Does Dodge really want to make there car Dog ugly. I mean, yeah, Its anything but cute works well for larger cars where men mostly buy them and like the masculan look but the "cuteness" factor is what sales Minis and VW Beetles so it must work.
2)The reason I like the Neon is not b/c I am a tuner. I do anything but tune. I like the Neon b/c it is a basic straight forward old tech car that has been "battle tested" over the years of production. Dodge by dropping the Neon on the spot risks 1st year bugs funking up the Calibers reliability. Buyers in this market like reliable cars. They dont care about the all new gadget over there and this one over here. They want something that is not on the side of the road all the time broke down.
Maybe the only reason to objecting to the immediate change in the Dodge compacts was that i like the looks of the Neon better but Think of the above and tell me thats not true. You cant do it.
As for looks, I think the Caliber is pretty cool looking, and I think would attract a lot of "women" buyers, because it looks kinda tough with that Magnum grill.
As far as first-year reliability is concerned...it always takes a while to work out ALL the bugs. I wouldn't have touched a Ford Focus for the first 3 years. Now it's on the Car & Driver Ten Best list.
Go figure.