Review after 2500 miles.

7995 Views 18 Replies 16 Participants Last post by Fyrstorm, Feb 18, 2009

teachair

Discussion Starter · Aug 11, 2008

I was unable (i do not know why) to put it in the right directory, so putting it here. Maybe someone could move it right where it should be?) please?
So I have reached 2.500 miles In my first brand new car. I never thought it would happen so fast but, since it was bought as a company-owned car, it has to be used as such; thus the 2,5 k have come like unexpected mother-in-law. I had liked the car ever since I saw it for the first time in a TV commercial. Then, there was one standing in a market, as the Chrysler dealer showcar. I remember my wife said “it’s a big Skoda Fabia”. We didn’t speak to each other for the following week. But when my old Ford Escort Bolero reached 170.000 km it was time to change the car. First, I put the Caliber as a wallpaper in our computer. Then, I drove more often to the market with the show car. When she finally agreed (it’s her company, and formally her car, but she doesn’t have driver’s licence…) on Caliber, I had hard times talking her into Inferno Red. She preferred Silver, but I said: “Honey, whe you see a Caliber, it says LOOK AT ME but when you see the Red Caliber, it shouts F***ING LOOK AT ME!!!
And so we leased our Caliber and lived happily ever after… No no no, there’s more to the story. Let’s elaborate a bit on some features of owning and driving Dodge Caliber SXT 1.8 manual transmission. STEERING/WHEELS: Compared to the cars I have driven Caliber’s steering wheel flows smoothly just with one finger. Traction is perfect but if you haven’t driven on alu rims, it takes time to get used to it. I also used to drive cars with 13’ max, so going for 17” was a great adventure. Some people here say the tires are loud, but I never noticed. Maybe because of Toby Keith in loudspeakers. ENGINE/FUEL/TRANSMISSION Everybody said “Buy a 2.0 diesel CVT”. Yes, but it weren’t them to pay for it. So I chose 1.8 manual and never regretted. I like shifting gears, especially when they move so smoothly. I had problems with the first and rear gear at the beginning, but now I know where they are and the just seem to find their way by themselves. As to the fuel consumption, I managed to get down to 32 MPH which, I guess, isn’t that bad. No featherfooting, Litesong, but just normal day-to-day driving. In Poland yoy don’t have places where you can practice feather footing as we get so many speed limits, crossroads, towns, villages etc. Poland is 1/50 of the USA, bear it in mind. ELECTRICS I love the console, especially the lights and wipers switch. They are so logical. Rear lamp is ingenious. I had some problems with alarm lights/adjust front lights switch panel (sorry for that innovative slang), but they fixed it within an hour. There was also a strange noise coming from the rear right door. It turned out that when they were installing central key lock they forgot to put some “sponge”, as they said, around the door knob and it was rattling. Fixed within an hour. INTERIOR/COMFORT Starting with positives: Spacious car, seems bigger then it really is, lots of space in the trunk, I even managed to carry a whole bunch of 2.5 meter sticks in it. I love the seats – the Yes Essentials. I had an option to have leather seats for extra money. I decided to stay with standard and don’t regret it. My bro-in-law has Jeep Patriot with leather seats and I must admit mine are more comfy. He also says so, but very quietly. There is lots of space on the back seats and the idea of an adjustable back seat is brilliant. Also, the cover of the cargo area is a good idea, especially when you have to take it out, but its thinness is tricky – my dachshund, being used to travel on the back floor above the rear seats jumped onto the one in the Caliber and almost had a heart attack. She’ll never do that again. Only one negative: I am 6 feet tall and have long legs, so my knees often touch the bottom of the front panel. I also adjust the seat somewhere in the middle, so the problem is minor, really. MODS Here’s the problem. Here in Europe there are little possibilities of obtaining original mods for Caliber, and if so, they are extremely expensive. But, as my relatives call me ‘MCGYVER’ I managed to personalize my Cali for less than 20 $. And now there is no passer-by who wouldn’t just take a glimpse of jealous look at my car.
SUMMARY If I had a chance to come back in time to the moment just before signing the lease, I would gladly do the same. I expect some faults, as in any thing you buy, use, sometimes misuse or overuse, but I am prepared psychically for it. I personalized my Caliber so it’s even closer to my heart. To all those considering buying a Caliber: give it a good thought, go and buy one. Or two…

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