Take a look at the new 2023 Dodge Hornet, the first compact SUV from the Dodge brand since the late and unloved Caliber left showrooms a decade ago. If it looks familiar, that’s because you may have already seen the new 2023 Alfa Romeo Tonale, a compact SUV from Dodge’s sister brand under the big Stellantis umbrella unveiled to the world a few months ago.
Connected: 2023 Dodge Hornet: Performance-oriented small SUV under $30,000
The Hornet is unashamedly based on the Tonale and is even produced at the same Italian plant, according to Dodge brand chief Tim Kuniskis, who spoke to the media at a private reveal of the Hornet before its public appearance. “We started with what was already a really good car and injected it with Dodge DNA,” he said. “Why reinvent something, or add cost and complexity just to add something like a crease in the sheet metal to make it look different?”
The Hornet is unashamedly based on the Tonale and is even produced at the same Italian plant, according to Dodge brand chief Tim Kuniskis, who spoke to the media at a private reveal of the Hornet before its public appearance. “We started with what was already a really good car and injected it with Dodge DNA,” he said. “Why reinvent something, or add cost and complexity just to add something like a crease in the sheet metal to make it look different?”
Dodge is looking to move into the super-hot, super-crowded compact class areas that are currently not being played by competing brands. Dodge executives complained that the top three customers want for this segment according to their research are apparently “value,” “reliability” and “sale price”; “Fun to drive” is 15th on this list and “power and acceleration” ranks way down at 38th.
But Dodge isn’t boring or ordinary—this is the brand that makes 700-horsepower cars and SUVs.
“We’re not a ‘need’ brand,” Kuniskis said, “we’re a ‘want’ brand.” no one need a Dodge – we are our customers brand they want.” Realizing they needed to come up with something different to play with (perhaps taking some lessons learned from the short-lived Dart revival), Dodge made a hot crossover that was intended to be fun to drive from the base model to the more modified ones. . -External version that your mind can cook using Direct Connection company’s online parts seller.
Whether you think the new Hornet is different enough from the Alfa Romeo to justify itself is likely a matter of personal preference. It shares much of its sheetmetal with the Tonale, from the doors to the roof to the window openings, but the front fascia, hood and taillights are uniquely Dodge. The brand will also offer Blackout packages and the Track Pack with larger, black-painted wheels as an option that brings the Hornet more in line with Dodge styling rather than Alfa. Whether its badge says Tonale or Hornet, the small crossover is still an attractive little car, but it’s not likely to be its styling that wins over new buyers.
The most daring standard compact crossover you can buy
What might win over buyers who are fine with the idea of a crossover but don’t want something boring or slow may be the standard equipment that comes with the Hornet GT for about $30,000: a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine that kicks out a minimum of 265 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque (Dodge is trying to squeeze a bit more before launch), standard all-wheel drive, Koni shocks, a fully independent suspension at all four corners (no axles free with reverse) and an electronic limited slip differential. At that price, it matches a Honda CR-V or AWD Toyota RAV4, but easily outdoes both in the power department.
It only goes up from there. The most powerful plug-in hybrid available in the R/T will pump out more than 285 hp and 383 pound-feet of torque, which is V-8-level power and torque, while providing what Dodge says is 30 miles of all-electric range. The R/T PHEV will match up well with a RAV4 Prime in terms of price, and while it falls a bit short of the RAV4’s horsepower rating and all-electric range, it offers significantly more torque. It will also bring a dual-stage damping suspension, four-piston Brembo front calipers and the PowerShot feature that boosts power by 25bhp for 15 seconds, knocking a full second off the standard 0-60mph time.
The new Hornet looks to be the enthusiast’s choice in the compact crossover class, the thing to buy when the family needs four doors and cargo room, but mom and dad don’t want to give up the thrill of driving something fun. Many of its equipment and powertrain details are shared with the Tonale, but you’ll need to spend thousands more on the Alfa to get the same level of kit. Dodge is not wrong when it calls it unique in the segment: To have a truly sporty, fast and capable crossover, buyers usually have to go to luxury brands such as Alfa Romeo, Audi, BMW, Jaguar or Mercedes-Benz. Mass-market brands like Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Nissan and Toyota simply don’t do anything truly “fun to drive” in this category – the Hyundai Kona N is the exception, not the rule.
Compact is the right word
One area where the Hornet may have some challenges is interior space – it feels like it’s on the small side for the category, with cramped quarters in both the first and second row of seats. There isn’t much room for front-seat passengers, and the steering wheel isn’t centered on the driver—it’s within an inch or two, just enough to notice. The second row is tight on legroom, especially when compared to some competitors like the Nissan Rogue or Volkswagen Tiguan, which have relatively wide rear-seat legroom.
What the Hornet has, even in the early prototypes I sat in, are quality materials, smart design that combines real buttons and touchscreen controls, a latest update to the Uconnect multimedia system that ensures its status as a system standard and polished details such as color stitching even on basic models. The interior also differs slightly from the Tonale – perhaps more so than the exterior – but the layout is still the same, including the position and style of the multimedia screen that seems sunk into the middle of the dash like an afterthought.
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A worthy experiment
So will the Hornet work? Will a cheaper, Alfa Romeo-based, mass-market crossover with a very specific mission find buyers in such a crowded field? I’d say there’s a good chance – Dodge knows its customers pretty well and tailors its offerings to appeal to them to great effect. This comes after years of trying to be a major player in popular fields with conventional products that never quite caught on, no matter how good they might have been. Aiming for white space where popular players aren’t participating is certainly worth a try.
On paper and foil, the Hornet looks like it has the enthusiast goods – but we’ll have to see how it drives to judge whether it’s worth putting on a consideration list.
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