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The 2013 Dodge Dart is a compact car with two parents, Chrysler and Fiat. Dodge took the Alfa Romeo Giulietta, a highly regarded, upper-market hatchback, widened, lengthened, and re-skinned it as a sedan, replaced the driver-facing systems with Chrysler ones, retuned the suspension, and put in their own engines.

The result is a reasonably priced, quiet, and sporty car with a good interior space, numerous features, a flashy dashboard, and a good balance of economy and acceleration. While quality and durability will not be known for years to come, both were definite priorities from the start of the program through to production. Compared with other cars in its class, the Dart has the longest wheelbase, front track, length, width, and greenhouse "footprint." Dart also has the "most aggressive tumblehome," according to Dodge.

The 2013 Dodge Dart will fulfill the basic mission of the original: to be a relatively upmarket compact car, selling at a small premium but delivering a better driver experience than its competitors. It would fulfill that mission even without the numerous "not normal on compact cars" features.

Dodge Dart SE will have a base price of $16,000. The SE does not include the fancy 7" configurable display, the 8.4" touch screen, or the LED taillights, all of which will be on the Limited and R/T; they may be options on the SXT and Rallye (the Rallye at the Detroit Auto Show had all these features).

The Charger-inspired, full-width tail-lamp design accentuates the Dart's width, using 152 indirectly glowing LEDs through an internal lens that creates a fractal glass appearance; these taillamps will be available on most Darts but not SE. Both front and rear of the car are very round with virtually no corners. Up front, an active shutter system directs air around the car when extra engine cooling is not needed, increasing aerodynamics.

The new Dart car is around a foot longer and two inches wider than the Giulietta hatch. It is being made in the United States, with full production starting in April 2012 (delayed from January), and will finally fill in a gap left by the Neon, which was also made in the Belvedere plant. The same basic architecture will spawn at least one crossover and probably a hatchback.