2008 Dodge Caliber

Rating from Caliberh8r

(2)
Comfort:		2 out of 5
Performance:		3 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		3 out of 5
Value for the Money:		2 out of 5
Reliability:		2 out of 5

"Be wary of this vehicle. I bought mine new. 15000 miles after I got it I needed new tires, because they were, cupping. I started noticing the road noise getting worse at about 6000 and had them rotated, when the noise got too much I bought new tires. After that I rotated religiously, but to no avail. At 30000 it needed new tires again so it went to the Chevrolet dealer instead and I got a nice quiet Malibu, awesome!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from shankles476

(3)
Comfort:		2 out of 5
Performance:		3 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		3 out of 5
Interior Design:		2 out of 5
Value for the Money:		2 out of 5
Reliability:		2 out of 5

"I have a 2008 caliber, driven it for a little over a year now. This is the most uncomfortable car I have ever owned. Short trips to the store are not too bad, but anything over 30 minutes and the ride starts getting miserable. The road noise is so loud that you have to crank up the stereo to actually understand what is being said. To replace the alternator you have to disassemble most of the front end of the car and it turns into an all say job. The suspension leaves a lot to be desired. I have already replaced the struts, at least I did not have to tear half the car apart to accomplish this task. I have had to replace more parts on this car in a year than I have ever replaced on any vehicle. Starter, alternator, battery, struts, brakes, (of course) tires, wipers every 3 months, and regular maintenance."

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Transporting family

Rating from Rich

(4)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		2 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"I traded my '05 Mercedes CLK500 for this used SRT-4 because I needed more space for travelling but also wanted a car that I could still have some fun in. This car is a blast to drive. Especially through the mountains with the turbo engine. It will effortlessly climb hills, and accelerate like a madman on the highway. The turbo has a nice linear spool without being delayed and violent like the Lancer Ralliart Sportback I test drove. The interior is bleh but the seats are like sitting in a lazyboy; extremely comfortable for sport seats. A lot of sqeaks and creaks from the body though. I can't see how this car could not be an extremely reliable machine. Here's why: no power seats, no complicated/ expensive differential, no stupid moonroof, it's just a turbo engine with a 6speed tranny and big wheels. Sure, the professional reviews of this car suck but, it's actually a very easy car to live with and a blast to drive. I've gotten up to 29mpgs on the highway and averaged about 22mpgs with spirited driving. A fully synthetic oil change is a whopping $60(not much). At speed it will out accelerate the majority of cars. Tires are hard to find because of the odd 225/45R19 size, and when you do find them locally people are asking an arm-and-leg for them so do yourself a favor and go to an online source for tires. It's cheaper and there's a bigger selection. It's an extremely rare car so if one could be found, I would recommend this car to anyone that loves turbo manual driving fun in a FWD package. It's an excellent car."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Having fun

Rating from john

(1)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		3 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		3 out of 5
Interior Design:		3 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		2 out of 5

"purchased 2008 in april 2010 and started with the alternator battery and now is the computer system this car is good to 50000 miles i'm the 4 i heard this problem"

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Transporting family

Rating from PAGirly

(4)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		4 out of 5

"Purchased my used 2008 Dodge Caliber SXT w/ 27,000 miles on it in April 2011.. I have not had any issues thus far.. It's my little mini SUV for half the price and works well for my family.. My husband thought that based on the outside view of the vehicle that it would not be roomy enough but, to his surprise, the vehicle is extremely roomy and he had plenty of head and leg room.. In my opinion, the ride is smooth and I get wonderful gas mileage as well.. This is my first ever hatchback and I absolutely love it.."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from caliber fan

(4)
Comfort:		2 out of 5
Performance:		3 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Very flexible interior.Great for lugging stuff like bicycles. But it's a bit unforgiving as interior materials seem too hard e.g. my arm gets Am getting 30mpg combined on last tankful which is OK. No mechanical problems so far; car seems solid."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from Pleasantly Surprised

(4)
Comfort:		3 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		3 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		3 out of 5

"Bought the car to have as a second vehicle for running errands and we have enjoyed it so much that it is becoming our vehicle of choice when we go anywhere. We especially enjoy driving it to the gas station, knowing that we may actually have some money left over after getting gas."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from GlryCrk

(4)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		3 out of 5

"Bought '08 Caliber R/T to replace old van. Wife wanted better MPG. Looked online for cars she might want and this Caliber was the first car that caught her fancy. Drove a SXT and then the R/T. I was very impressed with the performance of the R/T vs. SXT. The response and overall feel of the R/t sold me. Doesn't look like a compact car. The stereo is very cool for stock. Love the MPG. 27 first fill. 30 the next. Comfortable. Noticed the blind spots and complaints on the cheap plastic. I guess once you are driving it it doesn't seem a problem. I really like the CVT transmission and the smoothness if you feather the accelerator. I can get to highway speed and never have the RPM over 2000. IMO doing this saves a lot on MPG. Obviously not going to do this trying to merge on the freeway but normal driving I feel this is a plus. Wife is happy and I'm impressed. We'll see yet on reliability but we love the car so far."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Crusty Ol' Codger

(2)
Comfort:		1 out of 5
Performance:		3 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		3 out of 5
Interior Design:		2 out of 5
Value for the Money:		1 out of 5
Reliability:		1 out of 5

"Our (much loved) Taurus Station Wagon was totaled by a 25 year-old female who was texting while driving and rammed us in the rear at 35 mph. in April 2010. Thank God we were not hurt, but we were forced, then into the car market with only 5 days to make our choice by USAA - the other driver's insurance company. Not being particularly flush at that time (we'd just paid our 2009 federal income taxes) we made a hasty decision to buy a 2008 Dodge Caliber. How wrong were we? (1) The car is noisy. (2) The car is rough riding; i.e., we get to enjoy EVERY wrinkle in the road. (3) The seats are very uncomfortable. (4) Getting into and out of the rear seats is a chore as there is insufficient clearance between the door post and the rear seat cushion for feet of normal size. (5) The posts for the windshield obscure large portions of fields of vision to the left and right front sides of the car. (6) The rear seats' headrests obscure large segments of rear vision through the rear view mirror. (7) The Chrysler Motor Company, though it knows that the front suspension is prone to failure (lower control arms and ball joints) will not extend warranty coverage for these items -- ours failed at 52,024 miles, and neither after market nor OEM has these parts in stock -- both are back-ordered. But it does get good gas mileage. Even better now as it sits in my mechanic's lot while we wait for either the Dodge dealer or the after market supplier gets the part -- in a week or 10 days. Oh, the joys of weekly rental car charges! All these things should be painted Sunkist Yellow!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from Dodge Fan

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"I recently was looking at the Dodge Avenger, and being a fan of the Dodge line I instead went with the Dodge Caliber. The caliber is a great car for anyone, it has enough room to load up friends for a road trip to a nuggets game or taken the wife for a ice cream run. Its fun to driveand there are tons of after market products that you can add to make it more personalized to fit your taste. So all in all I love this car!!!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: Used

Primary use for this car: Having fun