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Yes I know. The Dodge Avenger was manufactured from 2007 to 2014, but in Europe the party ended in 2011 because it was not the best-selling model from Dodge possible, given that Dodge is not the best-selling brand possible. In Europe at least. But will the Dodge Avenger be as good as the warm beer?

Dodge Avenger started the American offensive in Europe and again I have to write about the same car, because Dodge Avenger, Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass, Jeep Patriot and Dodge Journey are the same car. In this order of body size. Same engines, same transmissions, roughly the same problems. But wait, the story doesn’t end here, because the whole group shares the platform with Mitsubishi Outlander, Peugeot 4007 and Citroen C-Crosser. And with the Mitsubishi Lancer. And with the Mitsubishi ASX. And the petrol engines are developed as a joint project between DaimlerChrysler, Hyundai/Kia and Mitsubishi and are called “World Engine” because they wanted to be universal engines and were quite close to this universal engine status. An idea executed better than “One Ford” and their 1.0 EcoBoost.

What do we have here?

A tube of lube, a rope and an open mind….this…Dodge Avenger. From the entire extended family, the Dodge Avenger is at the base of the tree and if you don’t want to read too much about the Dodge Avenger, then you must know that the Avenger is actually a poor man’s Passat and with that I can go home. Because in the real world the Avenger comes with a 2.0 diesel from VW, usually with a manual gearbox. Basically, a cheaper Passat with a different body. Which is not a bad idea, because that diesel is the reliable one, without the faulty injectors on the Passat. Basically, it’s a cheaper and bigger Jetta. And, just like in the case of Jetta, it doesn’t express anything to me in a special way, not even in a non-special way. It’s a car and that’s it. It has 4 doors and a boot, it has a 2 liter diesel engine and that’s about it. 4850mm of the car and that’s it. And this general boredom was so obvious that the facelift model was withdrawn from Europe and we no longer received the 2.2 diesel from Mercedes, like the rest of the Chrysler summer band.

Dodge Avenger Engines

Petrol

• 2.0 GEMA World of 158 horsepower – We start with the smallest and common sense engine, a 2 litre 4-cylinder that doesn’t impress anyone and that people probably didn’t flock to buy, but if you find one by mistake, possibly at the price good, worth buying it.


• 2.4 GEMA World of 170 horsepower – Because these two engines are old-fashioned engines that sacrifice performance and consumption in the name of reliability. Of course, it won’t run away and it won’t bring you to tears because of how impressed you will be by consumption, but you won’t stop by for service too soon either. Ask the people in the Mitsubishi community, because there you have the best chance of finding information about this engine. Their code name is 4B1.


• 2.7 V6 EER of 190 horsepower – If you want a portion of American burgers, this is the closest engine to that experience, because this is where the party ends, while in the Americans it just begins. They also have a 3.5 V6 that is not necessarily successful and they also have the legendary Pentastar 3.6 V6, used on serious stuff, from Chrysler 300c to Dodge Nitro and many American things you don’t know about. As for the 2.7 V6 EER, personally I will say hard pass. Serious issues with the timing chain that jumps just as I jump out of bed at night when I hear noises and think “Natalie Portman, is that you???”, and the engine gets clogged with oil sludge so I’ll say pass again.


• 3.5 V6 EGF of 250 horsepower – Another oil sludge unit with a timing belt spinning it around in-sync, but atleast it’s fine as long as you change the oil every 2nd engine start or 3,000 miles and not wait for the recommended 7,500 miles interval. Otherwise you’ll clog everything and eventually tear off the crankshaft.


• 3.6 V6 Pentastar of 283 horsepower – Sure, the legendary Pentastar doesn’t deliver performance nor fuel economy but it will deliver reliability. And on the 23 pounds weight of the compact Avenger, the Pentastar kicks ass. This is THE engine to buy if you’re looking for an bland, anonymous 4 door saloon and you think that the Corolla is too mainstream for you and you want something reliable from a Dodge-y manufacturer. 

Diesel

2.0 TDI EA188 of 140 horsepower  – The only relevant engine for the European Avenger really. We have the same 2.0 TDI used on the Golf, Octavia, Leon and others, so it’s an honest engine that doesn’t leave you alone. It has a double mass flywheel that wears out faster than you’d like and it doesn’t come to terms with walking around the city, just like Jake Paul doesn’t come to terms with the japanese court system. But all in all, it’s an stress free engine, just because it’s old and I recommend a careful check because literally anything can fail at this age and especially mileage.

Dodge Avenger Reliability Issues

• The 4-speed automatic transmission Ultradrive is reliable, but it is 4-speed and depends a lot on the quality transmission oil, so it only uses original ATF from Dodge. Don’t be afraid that it only has 4 steps, that’s how it is with Americans. Don’t be afraid of the miserable Ultradrive, the Avenger uses fairly reliable gearboxes. Later, the 6-speed PowerShift box with double clutch appears out of the woodwork, used here especially on Ford but which did not reach the European market. Hard pass on that one.


• The rear calipers seize but atleast you don’t have a massive no-replacement-for-displacement engine to say that a seized caliper can be considered dangerous. No, you only have 140-160 horsepower at your disposal so you’re safe.


• It’s not the most agile car in the bends because it’s an American car, but if you buy it for highway driving, you don’t need more really.


• It’s an American car, so the complementary moment must come when I talk about the cheap interior. But if you find it at a good price, does it really matter?

Dodge Avenger Verdict

Dodge Avenger is the ideal car for the kind of person who knows he wants a saloon but doesn’t know exactly what he wants and finds a cheaper car he doesn’t know anything about and chooses to buy it. He will not be enthusiastic about it but he will also not be disappointed. For him, the car is a tool that takes him from point A to point B. The kind of man who tells his friends that he sold his car because he is ashamed to say that he forgot where he parked it. Sure, the American Avenger is more intense, but the European one is just a bigger and cheaper Jetta. And there is nothing wrong with that. On the contrary, you get more for less. Because if you’re looking for a Jetta, you’re unlikely to care about the “quality of interior materials” and other nonsense.

What engines do I recommend? For petrol engines it’s definatelly the 3.6 V6 Pentastar, everywhere else the 2 litre World petrol is all the engine you need, but realistically speaking, here in Europe you will go for the 2 litre VW sourced diesel. Like any other 4 door diesel compact saloon on the market.