A new . . . . Hornet?!

[peteski]

Saw a commercial on TV for a new Hornet.  The showed a swarm of them "flying" around.  I guess since AMC was originally absorbed by Chrysler, they have right to that name.

 

[Joe Handley]

Sat in one a month ago, wasn’t impressed, though I never drove it.

[Ace-Garageguy]

A yellow hippopotamus. Not bad looking for a sporty crossover or whatever, but all in all...   

Edited March 25, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy

[Sledsel]

Not a fan at all. 

[stitchdup]

even in yellow it looks dull, is it a rebadge from another brand as the back end looks identical to some mercedes sold in europe which is kinda confusing cos fiat own them now

[cobraman]

I think read somewhere it's an Alfa Romaro actually.  True ?

[Ace-Garageguy]

7 hours ago, cobraman said:

I think read somewhere it's an Alfa Romaro actually.  True ?

Yes.     

https://www.roadandtrack.com/reviews/a43380807/2023-dodge-hornet/

Edited March 25, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy

[The Junkman]

11 minutes ago, cobraman said:

I think read somewhere it's an Alfa Romaro actually.  True ?

So-bland looking and a prospective garage queen.  A winning combination.

[thatz4u]

[charlie8575]

If this is the future, they can have it.

Charlie Larkin

[1972coronet]

Another wrong-wheel-drive it box with a small-displacement engine with a turbo, back by a CVT;  offered under some  "creative" name and available in bright colours. 

Wow. 

[sfhess]

6 hours ago, stitchdup said:

even in yellow it looks dull, is it a rebadge from another brand as the back end looks identical to some mercedes sold in europe which is kinda confusing cos fiat own them now

Fiat group (including Chrysler/Jeep) merged with a company that is now called Stellantis, which owns, among other things, Peugeot, Citroen and what was Opel/Vauxhall.

[stitchdup]

3 minutes ago, sfhess said:

Fiat group (including Chrysler/Jeep) merged with a company that is now called Stellantis, which owns, among other things, Peugeot, Citroen and what was Opel/Vauxhall.

I'm probably thinking of the vauxhall then, its the uk version of the opels and most likelly pretty common

[webestang]

Another 4 door blob. YACK! 

[Ace-Garageguy]

With the overwhelming underwhelming response it's had here so far, kinda makes you wonder who was in the inevitable focus groups they consulted before green-lighting the poor thing.  

Edited March 26, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy

[charlie8575]

11 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

With the overwhelming response it's had here so far, kinda makes you wonder who was in the inevitable focus groups they consulted before green-lighting the poor thing.  

Certainly not car people.

Regulators, insurance companies, "how not to offend" specialists, and group-think soccer moms? Sure.

Now, if they had at least made this with a turbo Pentastar and a six-speed as an option, I'd be a lot more forgiving. Also a bit bigger, I understand this is slightly smaller than a K-car. Journey-size would be about ideal.

Charlie Larkin

[Ace-Garageguy]

12 minutes ago, charlie8575 said:

...Now, if they had at least made this with a turbo Pentastar and a six-speed as an option, I'd be a lot more forgiving...

Yeah, the road-tests say it handles well. Put 500HP and a manual gearbox in it, and even I'd be a lot more positive.   

EDIT: Gut one and set it up with a longitudinal, high-winding 340, full-time 4WD, and lower it about six inches. Now we're talkin'.  

 

Edited March 25, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy

[charlie8575]

2 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Yeah, the road-tests say it handles well. Put 500HP and a manual gearbox in it, and even I'd be a lot more positive.   

EDIT: Gut one and set it up with a longitudinal, high-winding 340, full-time 4WD, and lower it about six inches. Now we're talkin'.  

 

I don't even need anything that crazy. I much prefer low-end power for my driving. A properly dialed-in 318 with a low-speed cam, and good manifolding will do very nicely for me, along with an A518 TorqueFlite so I can get an overdrive, or a Gear Vendors O/D on a 904.

Charlie Larkin

[JollySipper]

41 minutes ago, charlie8575 said:

A properly dialed-in 318 with a low-speed cam, and good manifolding will do very nicely

I've driven an old muscle car with a 340 (Dad used to have a Road Runner), they have Plenty of bottom end torque! The 318 was pretty much just a people mover engine...... 340s never had a 2 bbl carb, they were strictly for high performance applications. The basic architecture of the 340 was used in the development of the Viper v10!

The only thing that (somewhat) keeps this Hornet from being unattractive is the fact that they tried to incorporate the Charger front end.......

[Rob Hall]

Same platform as the Jeep Compass and Alfa Romeo Tonale.   Basically the Tonale body w/ different front and rear.  Could sell well other compact CUVs, seems to be a popular niche.

[espo]

While many here seem to have a dim view of this car, remember it's place in the market as a lower priced car. A turbo 2.0 Liter engine, sort of the standard formula in this segment, and the availability of an AWD system. Styling is always a subjective thing and I personally like the looks of the Alfo it is based upon. I'm not a buyer, but if you were looking for a car in this price range and seeing what sort of options could be had and at what price, this would have to be a consideration. 

[iamsuperdan]

These threads always make me chuckle. New car is announced, people pile on to criticize.

I've seen some commenters' posts in the "what do you drive" thread. 

 

Pot

Kettle

Black

 

 

Cue the people defending their vehicle choices.

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

10 minutes ago, iamsuperdan said:

These threads always make me chuckle. New car is announced, people pile on to criticize.

I've seen some commenters' posts in the "what do you drive" thread. 

It's not a bad looking thing for what it is, and it's certainly more attractive than some of its competition...but that said, I'd never buy one when, for the same money, I could have something old and cool that would run forever and appreciate in value.

Different folks have different wants, different tastes, different priorities.

 

[Classicgas]

Zzzzzzzzz. Not bzzzzzzz, zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

[1972coronet]

I'd buy one just to make the folks in the gym I attend get all totes jelly. Then the twenty-somethings at the local supermarket will get all, like, OMG!, when they see me high-sidin' at the curbside delivery of my groceries and White Claw.