Its been out for a while. Anyone here with personal experience with the Alfa-based Dart? Not in the same class or even same league as MB, of course, but as a daily driver for people not exactly enthusiasts.
The interior looks better than anything recently out of Chrysler, exterior is not bad, either. Over-stuffed seats in the compact class is interesting. Looks easy to increase the price by 50% over base MSRP--lots of options. I think the base engine is really marginal, and the multi-air turbo a little better. Maybe best to wait until the larger 4cly naturally aspirated engine comes out.
I am interested in what MB fans think of this little compact.
( non-political, please)

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

I too am intrigued by it.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I like the interior. The seats vaguely remind me of the old Alfas and Lancias. TBOmachine once pointed out that it looked like a Neon and I'd have to agree.

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'07 Yukon 2500
'13 Subaru Outback 3.6R
'13 Orbea Carpe 9-speed

Currently Benzless
Formerly: 300TD, S600, E55, 560SEL

---= The forest breathes, listen.
-Native American elder

Interested as well.

As far as looking like a Neon? I guess there are some similarities but I thought the Neon was a hideous little blob and think the Dart isn't half bad looking for a compact.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

Better a Neon than the hideous penalty box called the Caliber (I rented one and it was truly awful). The Dart is a step in the right direction.

While I was running, I was thinking about the Subaru BRZ or it's Scion counterpart as an alternative.

Different markets I know.... but pricing is similar.

The Dodge is FWD (ugh), but has seating for 4. I could get away with the BRZ since we don't have kids and my wife has an Outback wagon for the dogs and hauling stuff.

I bet the BRZ would do ok in the snow with it's wt distribution and good snow tires. Clearance might be an issue on rare occasions.

I do like the Dodge much more than the Hyundai Veloster however...

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'07 Yukon 2500
'13 Subaru Outback 3.6R
'13 Orbea Carpe 9-speed

Currently Benzless
Formerly: 300TD, S600, E55, 560SEL

---= The forest breathes, listen.
-Native American elder

It seems like nearly everyone is putting 45, or even lower series tires on even fairly mundane sedans these days. I would worry about the ride being pretty stiff. Anyone with experience on these very low profile tires?

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

I have 45 series tires on my BMW, did on my S600 (iirc) and a few others from the recent past as well.

I suppose the car will ride more stiff, but it's more about the suspension tuning. One has to be careful as not to "curb" the rim, that might take some getting used to.

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'07 Yukon 2500
'13 Subaru Outback 3.6R
'13 Orbea Carpe 9-speed

Currently Benzless
Formerly: 300TD, S600, E55, 560SEL

---= The forest breathes, listen.
-Native American elder

I was thing "cool car" until I saw the word Alfa.....

Twice as expensive as Fiat, and just as unreliable.... Why couldn't they pair with a an Asian company or, "tada!" just design it themselves?

Look at the 2013 Honda Accord LX. Well-equipped, and I'm certain that resale will be much better than the Dart.

They didn't pair with anyone. Fiat bought a controlling interest; not a merger--a takeover.
I think you are mistaken as to the reliability of Alfa versus Fiat.

It is a stretched and widened Afla platform engineered for North America. I think current engines come from Italy, but transmissions and the rest are sourced in North America.
I can use past experiences too, but I want to know about now; not 30 years ago.

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

Any car made today is 10x more reliable than a lot of the turds from 30 years ago (Fiat, Yugo, Hyundai, etc). This being said, my uncle had a Fiat 124 sedan in Poland that had something like 300,000 km on the clock, and wouldn't stop running. His second car was a Citroen DS, which proves his love of reliable vehicles

I like the Dart, its definitely a refreshing change from what Chrysler has been putting out lately. I just saw the newest "200" commercial and their latest gimmick as a "beats by Dre" soundsystem. In audio circles (not even pro circles) beats by Dre are renowned for awful sound quality. Just what I want to pay as an expensive option in my car! But hey, you'll look cool.

The Dart has an excellent interior. I sat in one at the NY Auto show and it was very comfortable. Its definitely economy car on the outside, but the interior is almost up to VW levels. The steering wheel doesn't really fit the overall style of the rest of the interior but its a minor quibble. Pricing it out though, its cheaper but not really a bargain over a lot of other cars in the field. Nothing really stands out about it over a Golf or Focus.

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

Yeah, the 200 is another vile abomination that I had the displeasure of renting.

And before you think that I complain about all rentals, I just had a Prius rental that I thought was pretty awesome.

I just saw one on the road. The front end looks distinctive, the rear end pudgy, and the side profile pleasant but forgettable.

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma