2010 Dodge Hornet: Making a 'Sting' on the compact car Market

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Introductions 

Tough times often put paid to even the best-laid plans, and so it is with Chrysler's promised new compact car, the Dodge Hornet, in today's dour U.S. economy. Expected to bow as a 2010 model, the Hornet will now be essentially a reskinned version of the popular front-wheel-drive Nissan Versa and built alongside it in Japan. Styling will borrow elements of the ugly-cute 2006 Hornet hatchback concept, but the rest of the package will be mainly Nissan.

Full Preview 2010

Originally, the 2010 Dodge Hornet was to be sourced from China through a tie-up between Chrysler and Chery Automobile Co., one of the fastest-rising vehicle makers in that fast-rising country. The hope was to take advantage of China's much lower production costs for a car that Chrysler couldn't design and build profitably on its own. The doubts increased with Chrysler's takeover in August 2007 by equity-investment firm Cerberus Capital Management, and seemed to grow stronger once the wily Jim Press was recruited from Toyota North America to be Chrysler co-president.

Finding another partner seemed to be the only option, as Chrysler needs the 2010 Dodge Hornet in the worst way. Enter Nissan, another of Japan's economy-car experts and whose CEO Carlos Ghosn is usually open to doing deals. The first with Chrysler involved supplying Versas for sale in South America under the Chrysler or Dodge label. Nissan would handle the 2010 Dodge Hornet, while Chrysler would return the favor by designing and building a new large pickup truck to replace the slow-selling Nissan Titan. Presto! The one other question about the 2010 Dodge Hornet is how much it will look like the well-received 2006 concept. Otherwise, the Nissan architecture is a good choice. The hatchback Versa is a close match for the Hornet concept in width and height, and both are boxy 4-doors with short overhangs front and rear. Count on Chrysler stylists to preserve all the concept visuals they can so the 2010 Dodge Hornet won't be mistaken for a Versa. Chrysler is sharing a platform and has no money to pay Nissan for modifications, so expect conventional doors, same as the Versa.

Interior Styling

"Like the exterior, the interior is geared around young rally enthusiasts," said John Sodano, principal interior designer. I studied images of space capsule interiors, since they are designed for high efficiency in a limited space. The space-saving foam seats are exceptionally slim but comfortable, with the striking satin-silver finished aluminum framing deliberately exposed. Belts are integral with the seats.

Both the passenger front bucket seat and the 40-60 three-passenger rear seats fold forward and collapse to the floor to provide a flat load bed. The cabin floor is covered with an attractive and durable honeycomb-texture rubber.

This position provides for the highest possible vertical storage behind the front seats. When upright, the rear seats track rearwards to provide an additional 225 mm of legroom for rear seat passengers. The driver's door trim panel contains a first aid kit, open storage bin, and a closed case with carrying handle that can be removed from the car. The passenger door boasts both open and closed bins plus a longer open bin with bungee cords to retain stowed items. Moreover, the designers envision the Hornet as a vehicle that can be easily customized through the purchase of add-on exterior and interior parts and accessories, allowing owners to personalize their cars to express individual needs and desires.

The driver's side rear door contains a handy beverage cooler while the door opposite boasts a fold-out table module. On all doors, cloth-covered armrests with integral pull cups are underlined by narrow satin silver moldings while side air bags are concealed in the Pique cloth bolsters.

The modular instrument panel features twin horizontal Pique cloth wrap over pads divided by a satin silver center stack topped by a fixed navigation screen with non-glare glass. The pads front shallow open storage trays directly ahead of the driver and front seat passenger, with storage for smaller items provided in divided bins below. A freestanding cantilevered center armrest floats over the front floor console, pivoting downward to permit unfettered access to the six-speed manual shift lever during aggressive driving.

However, mainstream infotainment and rear DVD entertainment systems might be available to help the 2010 Dodge Hornet stand further apart from its Nissan parent.

Engine and Powertrain

In other respects, the 2010 Dodge Hornet will be a near photocopy of the Versa hatchback. A continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) could also be available if Nissan decides to share that. Other Versa features passing to Hornet should include front-disc power brakes with optional ABS, electric power steering for saving a little gas over a conventional hydraulic setup, front side airbags, and curtain side airbags. The no-cost card should also list active front head restraints (designed to minimize whiplash injury), air conditioning, tilt steering wheel, power mirrors, a split-fold rear seatback, variable-intermittent wipers, rear-window defroster, and rear wiper/washer. Options, too, will be much like Versa's, so look for power windows, power remote-entry door locks, a keyless entry and starting system, remote engine starting, power sunroof, satellite radio, and sporty styling add-ons including a spoiler atop the lift gate.

Dodge dealers probably wish they had the Hornet right now, given that the larger Caliber compact hasn't exactly had people rushing in to buy.

We don't see the 2010 Dodge Hornet being any more innovative than its orthodox Nissan parent. There's no money, for one thing, and Nissan can't let Chrysler tinker too much with the basic design, lest production costs spiral out of sight.

Advice and Early Conclusion

The "Plan B" 2010 Dodge Hornet should be a much more professional effort than it would have been under the original plan. Nissan sourcing also implies the 2010 Dodge Hornet will be in ample supply, which will be good news for Chrysler if sales take off. Cars.com has a preview from a recent auto show, click here for more information.

That said the 2010 Dodge Hornet will face stiff competition from many quarters, being positioned below the Caliber as the brand's smaller compact car. In theory, at least, the Dodge Hornet should cost no more to build than a comparable Nissan Versa. With all these details taken into account, the Hornet should be primed to make a 'sting' on the market.