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2008 Dodge Caliber Bottom Line

November 7, 2008

By Bengt Halvorson's avatar Bengt Halvorson, EditorBengt Halvorson

The car experts at TheCarConnection.com combed through the most authoritative reviews on the new Dodge Caliber to produce this conclusive review of the 2008 Dodge Caliber. TheCarConnection.com's editors have also driven this car and can add our expert opinion to help you decide whether the Caliber is the right car, as well as weigh it versus the competition.

Likes:

  • Awesome available features
  • Comfortable seats
  • Impressive interior flexibility

Dislikes:

  • Interior materials are subpar
  • Difficult access to the backseats
  • Sharp edges of center stack can be a pain in the knee
  • Tepid acceleration in SE and SXT
  • Engine noise with CVT automatic

Buying Tips:


If you like the packaging of the Dodge Caliber but want a little bit of SUV-like ruggedness, check out the Jeep Compass.

The Caliber was introduced for 2007, replacing the Neon sedan as the small car in Dodge's lineup. Available only as a five-door hatchback, the 2008 Dodge Caliber comes in three different models and with three different engines: 1.8-, 2.0-, and 2.4-liter four-cylinders. An all-wheel-drive system is available only on the top Caliber R/T model and can send up to 60 percent of engine power to the rear wheels. At the top of the range is the high-performance SRT-4 model, which adds a 285-horsepower, 2.4-liter turbocharged four along with a bevy of high-performance equipment and a racier appearance, but it goes without all-wheel drive.

The Dodge Caliber is quite impressive at first glance and has some very clever and thoughtful interior features available, including a beverage cooler, an easy-clean cargo floor, and a setup that includes rear-facing speakers for tailgating. Seats are supportive, though their positioning is a little low, and there's a generous amount of space in back for combinations of passengers and cargo. However, the execution is lost in the details as many of the interior plastics and surfaces are (literally) rough around the edges.

Unfortunately, the Caliber's road manners are entirely unremarkable. Skip the 1.8- and 2.0-liter engines if you're considering the optional CVT automatic and go with the R/T model, but even then with the CVT, it's accompanied by a noisy drone. The R/T with the manual transmission is our favorite. The 2008 Dodge Caliber has a decent ride but doesn't handle as nimbly as most small cars. The SRT-4 wasn't as comfortable or as fun to drive as its 285 hp might suggest, due to a hard, unforgiving suspension that's out of place on rough roads. Across the line, fuel efficiency is very disappointing for a small car, with ratings as low as 21 mpg city for the R/T AWD model.

The 2008 Dodge Caliber gets mixed marks for safety and doesn't offer all the features that are standard on some competitors. Head-protecting side-curtain airbags covering front and rear occupants are standard, but torso-protecting supplemental side airbags are optional. Although it received five stars in the federal government's frontal and side crash tests, it was only rated "marginal" in the insurance industry's side-impact tests and in rear crash protection, which is based on seat tests and assesses neck and whiplash injuries. Electronic stability control is optional.

Other Choices:

If you like the 2008 Dodge Caliber, also consider:

Reason Why:

Each of these vehicles has very different styling and design inside and out, except the Vibe and Matrix, which are mechanically identical to each other. The Kia Spectra5 should be a better choice than the Dodge Caliber if you're looking for better handling and a peppier driving feel; the Versa also handles well without any sacrifice in ride quality. Its competitors have to make far fewer trips to the gas station, but none of this field gets top marks in safety across the board.

The Bottom Line:

The Caliber has a very practical layout and quite a few innovative features to get excited about, but it's lacking in driving enjoyment or refinement--even compared to its low-priced competition.

The car experts at TheCarConnection.com combed through the most authoritative reviews on the new Dodge Caliber to produce this conclusive review of the 2008 Dodge Caliber. TheCarConnection.com's editors have also driven this car and can add our expert opinion to help you decide whether the Caliber is the right car, as well as weigh it versus the competition. Likes:Awesome available featuresComfortable seatsImpressive interior flexibilityDislikes:Interior materials are subparDifficult access to the backseatsSharp edges of center stack can be a pain in the kneeTepid acceleration in SE and SXTEngine noise with CVT automaticBuying Tips: If you like the packaging of the Dodge Caliber but want a little bit of SUV-like ruggedness, check out the Jeep Compass. The Caliber was introduced for 2007, replacing the Neon sedan as the small car in Dodge's lineup. Available only as a five-door hatchback, the 2008 Dodge Caliber comes in three different models and with three different engines: 1.8-, 2.0-, and 2.4-liter four-cylinders. An all-wheel-drive system is available only on the top Caliber R/T model and can send up to 60 percent of engine power to the rear wheels. At the top of the range is the high-performance SRT-4 model, which adds a 285-horsepower, 2.4-liter turbocharged four along with a bevy of high-performance equipment and a racier appearance, but it goes without all-wheel drive. The Dodge Caliber is quite impressive at first glance and has some very clever and thoughtful interior features available, including a beverage cooler, an easy-clean cargo floor, and a setup that includes rear-facing speakers for tailgating. Seats are supportive, though their positioning is a little low, and there's a generous amount of space in back for combinations of passengers and cargo. However, the execution is lost in the details as many of the interior plastics and surfaces are (literally) rough around the edges. Unfortunately, the Caliber's road manners are entirely unremarkable. Skip the 1.8- and 2.0-liter engines if you're considering the optional CVT automatic and go with the R/T model, but even then with the CVT, it's accompanied by a noisy drone. The R/T with the manual transmission is our favorite. The 2008 Dodge Caliber has a decent ride but doesn't handle as nimbly as most small cars. The SRT-4 wasn't as comfortable or as fun to drive as its 285 hp might suggest, due to a hard, unforgiving suspension that's out of place on rough roads. Across the line, fuel efficiency is very disappointing for a small car, with ratings as low as 21 mpg city for the R/T AWD model. The 2008 Dodge Caliber gets mixed marks for safety and doesn't offer all the features that are standard on some competitors. Head-protecting side-curtain airbags covering front and rear occupants are standard, but torso-protecting supplemental side airbags are optional. Although it received five stars in the federal government's frontal and side crash tests, it was only rated "marginal" in the insurance industry's side-impact tests and in rear crash protection, which is based on seat tests and assesses neck and whiplash injuries. Electronic stability control is optional. Other Choices:If you like the 2008 Dodge Caliber, also consider:Kia Spectra5Nissan VersaPontiac VibeToyota MatrixReason Why:Each of these vehicles has very different styling and design inside and out, except the Vibe and Matrix, which are mechanically identical to each other. The Kia Spectra5 should be a better choice than the Dodge Caliber if you're looking for better handling and a peppier driving feel; the Versa also handles well without any sacrifice in ride quality. Its competitors have to make far fewer trips to the gas station, but none of this field gets top marks in safety across the board. The Bottom Line:The Caliber has a very practical layout and quite a few innovative features to get excited about, but it's lacking in driving enjoyment or refinement--even compared to its low-priced competition. The car experts at TheCarConnection.com combed through the most authoritative reviews on the new Dodge Caliber to produce this conclusive review of the 2008 Dodge Caliber. TheCarConnection.com's editors have also driven this car and can add our expert opinion to help you decide whether the ...

Other Choices:

Each of these vehicles has very different styling and design inside and out, except the Vibe and Matrix, which are mechanically identical to each other. The Kia Spectra5 should be a better choice than the Dodge Caliber if you're looking for better handling and a peppier driving feel; the Versa also handles well without any sacrifice in ride quality. Its competitors have to make far fewer trips to the gas station, but none of this field gets top marks in safety across the board.

Next Steps:

Check Insurance Rates

for the 2008 Dodge Caliber

Check Financing Rates

for the 2008 Dodge Caliber

Check Local Classifieds

for a 2008 Dodge Caliber near you

See the Dodge Caliber in Other Years:

2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006

Comments (1 total)

  1. By Bekah #1, Posted: 1/19/2009

    Manual Trans Issues

    My biggest complaint with my Dodge is the transmission issues, I had 1 major failure, 1 minor(caused by clutch plate misinstallation) failure, and it has been in to the dealership twice for seal leaks. am I the only Caliber owner with this?

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