Chrysler has officially unveiled the 2008 Dodge Avenger, which will see production in the coming months. Initial photos of the car leaked from a Chrysler facility earlier this month. The sedan will be offered with the choice of a 173 hp four-banger, 189 hp flex-fuel V6, or a 235 horsepower high-performance V6. The three engine choices are, in fact, identical to those of the 2007 Chrysler Sebring — a direct sibling to the Avenger. A diesel model will also be offered, but it’s unclear if it will be available in North America. The Avenger is set apart from the Sebring in terms of exterior styling and interior treatments. It’s not clear how the Avenger will be priced in comparison to its Chrysler counterpart, which starts at $18,995. Gallery after the jump…



09/20, 1:04 AM
posted by:
John Landers
These pics make the car look pretty good, unlike the warehouse spy pics.
The headlights could be a little better styled though. They look like a rough draft.
09/20, 1:07 AM
posted by:
k42rich
Once again, i always imagined an avenger as being 2DOORS!!! its still o.k. though….pretty good, but nuthin speciall
09/20, 1:08 AM
posted by:
Brendino
Hrm, did you always have to have an account to post notes?
Anyways, I like the pics, though I have a feeling that real-life shots will be significantly different. I hope an SRT is in the works, and I hope the interior is at least a little different than the new Sebring (and I think this is better than the Sebring on the outside).
09/20, 1:28 AM
posted by:
Andre Neves
“The sedan will be offered with the choice of a 173 hp four-banger…”
-LLN
LoL what’s a “four-banger”?
JK
Ever wonder if the Caliber & the Charger had sex, what their kids would look like? Heh, Must be an easy job being a Designer for the “Big Three”.
09/20, 1:32 AM
posted by:
Andre Neves
Message to vehicle design teams at Daimler Chrysler, Ford, & GM:
You guys have to stop relying on the “Copy & Paste” tool in Photoshop so much. Try actually coming up with a new concept for a change other than make all your vehicles look the same. Mercedes(daimler), that means you too.
09/20, 1:33 AM
posted by:
Thomas
Well… OK.
Pretty ho-hum engine offerings though…
09/20, 1:39 AM
posted by:
cknoff
Finally, Dodge has a mid-sized car I can care about!
09/20, 1:47 AM
posted by:
WonbyOne
I would say that at least from these pics it looks nothing like the last Avenger and only carries desgine cues from the Dodge lineup. Pretty much like every car company in the world does Andres. There are few if any cars out there that could not be identified if you stripped off the badging.
THis isnt bad looking, but as usual I will reserve final judgement when I can see it in the flesh.
09/20, 1:49 AM
posted by:
3aboud
wat’s so CONCEPT abt it..!!!!
its nuthing but normal…..
nuthingz special.!
09/20, 4:06 AM
posted by:
DaveO
I like it and think it will be well recived….should have called it the Dodge Dart and had a special “Swinger” package. Guess the silver warehouse photos were the rental spec.
09/20, 4:40 AM
posted by:
Webran61
This will be hot, simply because it (ever so boldly) resembles the Charger.
09/20, 6:23 AM
posted by:
Ferg
100% A-V-E-R-A-G-E!!!
09/20, 6:28 AM
posted by:
Joey D
It’s ugly and going by the quality of DCX vehicles it will more then likely be junk. Also 189hp V6? That’s pretty lame, the Monte Carlo has 211hp (which isn’t awesome) and the Fusion comes with 221hp with it’s V6, sure you could opt for the high output V6 but I would assume its just a N/A tuned of the 189hp V6, which means your gas mileage is going to the dogs. Just save yourself the trouble and buy an Altima, Camry, or the Accord. You won’t be punching yourself later on.
09/20, 7:08 AM
posted by:
Carnut4ever
The C pillar with the fender bulge is still plain ugly right down there with the C pillar of the new CRV. What were the designers thinking?
09/20, 7:23 AM
posted by:
Kenny W
I’ve said it once & I’ll say it again. The American division of DCX is in the worst position of the big 3. DCX relies too much on one design language and far too heavily on trucks. They’re a company of one hit wonders and in the long run that is no way to run a business. GM and to a lesser extent Ford have the right idea in both interior/exterior design and engine offerings. 189bhp V6 is pathetic, sounds like an engine Mitsubishi would put out.
09/20, 8:00 AM
posted by:
Brendino
“one hit wonders” is a paradoxical thing to say.
09/20, 9:06 AM
posted by:
TimG
Well, at least it doesn’t look like the “Saturn-ish” pics leaked earlier. And at least their designs are eye-catching-like ‘em or not! What they NEED to do is get their engines to compete.
09/20, 9:22 AM
posted by:
Bush
Better looking than the Sebring, now just add a 280+ HP V6 and AWD.
09/20, 9:26 AM
posted by:
blitzkrieg79
“189bhp V6 is pathetic, sounds like an engine Mitsubishi would put out.”
Actually if you would know anything about engines Mitsubishi makes one of the most reliable and powerful engines in the world. Besides, you must be an American to think that HP is everything when it comes to car performance but there is much much more to it.
The thing is that most of the cool stuff is not being released on the North American market by Mitsu. For example Europe has a turbo Outlander and turbo Colt, Japan once had a Pajero Evolution which put to shame all 4×4s performance wise. However we have an Evo here with its 4G63 engine and only few engines can compete with it powerwise and fuel efficiency wise. Besides, the new Outlander will have a 3.0l V-6 PZEV with 220HP which I don’t think is that bad. Also most of the Mitsubishi engines are mod friendly.
09/20, 9:30 AM
posted by:
novicius
RTFArticle people, that’s a 189 flex-fuel V6. The unleaded-only V6 outputs 235 horse, more than enough for daily-driving duties.
It is polarizing, something an Altima/Camry/Accord is not. Also, when equally optioned, should be cheaper than any of those three. For many folks, that’s enough. *shrug*
09/20, 9:34 AM
posted by:
BrokenCadillac…
Looks good. A formidable competitor this time around. Much better than the lame Malibu or G6. On par if not better than the underwhelming Saturn Aura as well.
09/20, 9:47 AM
posted by:
Saud
Way better than the dodge stratus, especially the front.
09/20, 10:10 AM
posted by:
tppp
The 189hp V6 gets good gas mileage and I would rather drive a car with small a V6 than a 4cyl for the same price or more in a Camry or Accord.
09/20, 10:14 AM
posted by:
Bonquisha Sheneequah Sharkeesha Shi-thead Jackson
It’s nice to see so many wishful thinkers/optimists on this site, you chrysler fans are forgiving it way too much.
It looks like a PLymouth Cricket
The detailing is very poor
09/20, 10:18 AM
posted by:
davidg1977
I’m trying to figure out the market for a mini-me Charger. Aren’t people that were excited by the Charger already in one?
I know the idea du jour is a “design language” that both Chrysler and Ford are going by but this is truly an 80% scale model of it’s bigger brother.
I know it’s good to show some commonality from a gene pool perspective and I give them credit for such differentiation from the Sebring (which Ford didn’t do with the Milan/Fusion), but this doesn’t show much creativity.
I do like the hips in the back third but the Charger has those too. In two years, you’ll have three cars that absolutely resemble each other in the Avenger, Charger, and Challenger and this likely appeals to the same buyer and not different but similar buyers by segment which I think would be a better strategy.
09/20, 10:25 AM
posted by:
1c3d0g
Woohoo! If a Diesel engine is in the works, this will be the most kick-ass mid-size sedan ever.
09/20, 10:34 AM
posted by:
Kenny W
blitzkrieg79,
While Mitsubishi may have some decent engines in the rest of the world, here in the states they dont, they have the Evo and that is it. Their engines aren’t refined, they aren’t gas sippers, they aren’t the most technically advanced, they really have nothing going for them. That is just one reason Mitsubishi is going down the toilet.
novicius,
Being flex fuel ready is pointless when 99% of those engines will never see a drop of E-85. It also doesn’t excuse it for being so low on the power totem. You can get the fuel economy & the power out of a I4. When the Toyota Rav4 has a more powerful V6 and gets better gas mileage than the Avenger, then yes I think thats a pretty bad showing by DCX.
This car is nothing special by any standards and thats why DCX is loosing money. If they prove me wrong then I will gladly eat my words, but I highly doubt it will come to that.
09/20, 10:54 AM
posted by:
mertzen
As a current avenger ownr Id love to have seen it being two doors, but I’ll still get one of these. Probably the flex fuel one.
09/20, 11:07 AM
posted by:
chuckles
yyyaaawwwwnnnn…(sound of crickets in background)
09/20, 11:29 AM
posted by:
Endurancevm
Hooray for the Caliger! (Caliber + Charge = Caliger)
The only thing im disappointed about is that terrible engine and lack of AWD.
09/20, 12:11 PM
posted by:
Stuart
This platform is capable of 4wd so may be in the future with even a v8 Hemi. The car itself looks quite good to me. More capable of being a world car with the ability of selling in europe as well as america.
The people who think the camry or accord really do need to go to the opticians sooner then later.
09/20, 1:23 PM
posted by:
Joey D
Flexfuel is nothing special, there are hardly any states that have E85 and it’s not practical to have it either. For affordable mid-size go for an Altima, you won’t be disappointed…and this comes from a guy who used to be and is still die hard GM.
09/20, 1:26 PM
posted by:
Endurancevm
The Altima is ugly and low quality, i have driven one and didnt like it.
If the Caliger gets an engine bump to have more power, a nice interior, and AWD then this is the car for me.
09/20, 1:30 PM
posted by:
novicius
Kenny W, your initial complaint addressed the flex-fuel V6’s power output only, which was also pointless as the more powerful 3.5L V6 is listed in the same sentence. Additionally, people can still get the more fuel-efficient I4 with the new Avenger… so what’s your point? The 2.7L is not the top-of-the-line, top power-producing V6.
I do agree, this car is nothing special.
09/20, 5:01 PM
posted by:
Detroit Dude !
Much better than the Sebring !
09/20, 6:55 PM
posted by:
RustedEmpire
it’s a start, but it looks like an updated stratus
09/20, 8:25 PM
posted by:
Joey D
Altima may be ugly to some people but it isn’t slow. But if its quality you are looking for you’d be stupid not to buy a Camry or Accord.
09/20, 9:34 PM
posted by:
Stuart
Accord or camry? you must be having a joke why not just pay the extra and buy a Volkswagen Passat. Better yet BMW 3 or Mercedes C-class
09/21, 12:18 PM
posted by:
Joey D
I’m not saying they aren’t great cars, but they are more expensive, I was trying to pick cars that start under 20k. The BMW 3 series is far better then any of them, along with an Audi A4
11/23, 10:36 PM
posted by:
VDuv Kux Klan
nice looking car, a very good replacement for the junky stratus!