The New Dodge Dart is a Dud
12-05-2012, 07:21 PM
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The New Dodge Dart is a Dud The addition of a third manufacturing shift may be causing the unusually high number of unsold compacts
Aaron Foley | WardsAuto
Sales of the closely watched Dodge Dart slipped in November amid rising inventory levels and an added third shift at the Illinois plant where the compact is built.
The Dart notched 4,489 deliveries for Chrysler, WardsAuto data shows. The highest sales month for the Dart was in October with 5,455 deliveries.
There were 25 selling days this November and year-ago.
Chrysler added a third shift this year at its Belvidere, IL, plant to accommodate forecast demand for the Dart. Inventory of 23,446 units left the Dart with a 112 days’ supply at end of October, compared with 73 for the industry overall.
Despite the Dart’s tumble, there were other bright spots in Chrysler’s November results. Overall, the auto maker delivered 121,886 vehicles last month, according to WardsAuto data.
The Chrysler 200 midsize sedan, the spotlight of the company’s heralded “Imported From Detroit” campaign, surpassed 200,000 deliveries last month since its unveiling last year. Sales of the 200 are up 49.6% so far this year from like-2011.
The Chrysler brand sold 12,130 vehicles overall in November, up 3.0%.
The Dodge Avenger midsize sedan also has been a consistent performer, with 7,132 deliveries in November and a 54.8% rise in 11-month sales year-over-year. Total Dodge-brand sales for the month stood at 20,387, up 25.2%.
November was the first full sales month for the redesigned Ram 1500 pickup, which notched 23,658 deliveries. Including the low-volume C/V cargo van, total Ram-brand sales clocked in at 24,395, up 23.5%.
Fiat continued to add to its tally in the U.S., with 3,603 units of its 500 sold in November. This month, a high-performance Abarth cabrio arrives in Fiat dealerships.
Jeep was the highest-performing Chrysler brand with 35,047 November deliveries, though that marked a 3.3% drop in volume from year-ago. Its best-performing model was the Grand Cherokee with sales of 13,619 units.
Reid Bigland, Chrysler’s head of U.S. sales, predicts strong year-end results and adds the auto maker is not concerned about the “fiscal cliff” looming in the U.S.
“We are expecting a strong December as the industry continues to recover from the East Coast hurricane and consumers continue to respond to our popular year-end ‘Big Finish’ (sales) event,” he says in a news release.
http://wardsauto.com/auto-makers/dar...00-passes-200k
Aaron Foley | WardsAuto
Sales of the closely watched Dodge Dart slipped in November amid rising inventory levels and an added third shift at the Illinois plant where the compact is built.
The Dart notched 4,489 deliveries for Chrysler, WardsAuto data shows. The highest sales month for the Dart was in October with 5,455 deliveries.
There were 25 selling days this November and year-ago.
Chrysler added a third shift this year at its Belvidere, IL, plant to accommodate forecast demand for the Dart. Inventory of 23,446 units left the Dart with a 112 days’ supply at end of October, compared with 73 for the industry overall.
Despite the Dart’s tumble, there were other bright spots in Chrysler’s November results. Overall, the auto maker delivered 121,886 vehicles last month, according to WardsAuto data.
The Chrysler 200 midsize sedan, the spotlight of the company’s heralded “Imported From Detroit” campaign, surpassed 200,000 deliveries last month since its unveiling last year. Sales of the 200 are up 49.6% so far this year from like-2011.
The Chrysler brand sold 12,130 vehicles overall in November, up 3.0%.
The Dodge Avenger midsize sedan also has been a consistent performer, with 7,132 deliveries in November and a 54.8% rise in 11-month sales year-over-year. Total Dodge-brand sales for the month stood at 20,387, up 25.2%.
November was the first full sales month for the redesigned Ram 1500 pickup, which notched 23,658 deliveries. Including the low-volume C/V cargo van, total Ram-brand sales clocked in at 24,395, up 23.5%.
Fiat continued to add to its tally in the U.S., with 3,603 units of its 500 sold in November. This month, a high-performance Abarth cabrio arrives in Fiat dealerships.
Jeep was the highest-performing Chrysler brand with 35,047 November deliveries, though that marked a 3.3% drop in volume from year-ago. Its best-performing model was the Grand Cherokee with sales of 13,619 units.
Reid Bigland, Chrysler’s head of U.S. sales, predicts strong year-end results and adds the auto maker is not concerned about the “fiscal cliff” looming in the U.S.
“We are expecting a strong December as the industry continues to recover from the East Coast hurricane and consumers continue to respond to our popular year-end ‘Big Finish’ (sales) event,” he says in a news release.
http://wardsauto.com/auto-makers/dar...00-passes-200k
12-06-2012, 02:02 PM
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12-06-2012, 02:33 PM
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It looks so much like a modern Neon that I think they should have called it that and reintroduced the name like Ford did with Taurus.
Calling it Dart would be like Chevrolet calling the Cruze the Vega IMO. I think the name is part of it's problem, the other part is I've seen little to no marketing for it.
Calling it Dart would be like Chevrolet calling the Cruze the Vega IMO. I think the name is part of it's problem, the other part is I've seen little to no marketing for it.
12-06-2012, 06:22 PM
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Build great car... call guy from year 3000... install year 3000 technology... win awards... send in Tom Brady. It's like a broken record playing in my head.
12-07-2012, 01:16 PM
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Test drove a Dart and wasn't impressed. It felt cheap, buzzed along like an old neon. I was looking for a fuel efficient daily driver for my wife. We had the Dart, Cruze, and Camry on short list. Ended up getting a 2013 Altima. By far the best driving car was the Altima, It gets 38mpg and has great room. It doesn't feel like a compact or economy car, it feels nice and solid.
Bottom line, the wife liked driving the Altima. I did my homework, it seemed like a great car so I bought it. I know these cars aren't in the same class, but its worth mentioning that for what a optioned out Dart cost we got a Altima 2.5 SV.
Bottom line, the wife liked driving the Altima. I did my homework, it seemed like a great car so I bought it. I know these cars aren't in the same class, but its worth mentioning that for what a optioned out Dart cost we got a Altima 2.5 SV.
12-07-2012, 08:49 PM
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I've seen a couple. One was in white and made me do a double take. Pretty good looking IMO.
They might have been bigger cars than the new one, but back then they filled the same segment as the small car.
12-08-2012, 01:46 PM
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12-08-2012, 01:47 PM
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12-08-2012, 01:49 PM
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Competitive price for the equipment offerings?
Maybe.
Fiat inspired designed and interior.
Maybe.
Lease rates and dealer incentives?
Maybe.
Granted, all these together may not float the car but I think Dodge would be chided more for at least not trying.
12-08-2012, 09:17 PM
#19
i hate seeing these old names put on new bodys.... the dart back in the day was sub-par muscle car, not a sub-par fwd compact. it's a disgrace honestly. that would be like chevy bringin out a 4 cly fwd platform and calling it a chevelle. that might lead to a mass murder in detroit.
