Dodge Magnum test drive

[paul8488]

Just got back from a super-quick 4-day visit to Canada. Landed at Montreal and had to drive to Hamilton (around 6 hours), then back to Montreal, then up to visit family (another 3 hours), and then back to Montreal again. I had reserved a midsize rental car, but the guy offered me a PT Cruiser, which didn't interest me. I asked if he had a G6, and he didn't, but he DID have a dark blue 2006 Dodge Magnum. Didn't take much convincing. I did mostly highway miles, but had it in the city and a few smaller back roads too, and come away with a confusing impression.

Very first impression upon sitting in the car was 'Wow... this is one small big car!' It's pretty ridiculous that such a large vehicle feels so small. It really comes down to the roofline, which makes you feel like you're in a coffin. The view rearward is laughable... it's a good thing that people seem intimidated by the car and keep away, because otherwise it'd be very easy to ram into people changing lanes. The dash is very high and the console wide, adding to the in-a-bucket feel. The window sills are also too high... from the exterior it looks great, but inside the sills are too hight to be an arm rest, and the actual armrest is too low.

There are many small to medium annoyances to pick at. The car had 4000 kms on it, and the drivers seat material was permanently wrinkled. It looked like it had let go from the backing behind it. It'd be cranky if it was my car. The instrument pod looks alright, though the view through is too small and the gauges a little hard to see at the extremities. The passenger side of the dash is among the ugliest I've seen in years. Same with the door panels. Slapping on a simple chrome or brushed aluminum strip to break up monotonoy is usually a cop out, but I'd have prefered it to the total lack of adornment. Those of you that love caressing your plastics and analysing the grain pattern will be disappointed, though overall it didn't look awful.

The car had tapshift, which I'd never tried before. I thought it was a neat idea, but now think it's useless. I tried it a few times but I found no benefit. The car shifts on its own very well, and I just didn't find the tapshift (or whatever it's called at Dodge) to add anything. The only use I did find for it was to slow down a bit when highway traffic congested a bit... instead of tapping the brakes a quick tap down to 4th gear was often enough to slow the car down a bit. Still, I'd never pay to have this option on a car.

It seemed to me as I spent the weekend with the car that there was lots I didn't like about it, but as an overall package I loved it. It was only the 3.5 HO, and certainly didn't overpower the car, but once you were moving it hauled nicely. As the car wasn't even broken in I didn't want to horse it, but I did 'accidentally' peel away from a couple stop signs, and can now grasp the attraction of RWD. That said, on the highway, if I didn't know the car was RWD I couldn't have guessed. I think that says alot for modern FWD cars... in regular driving conditions (where regular people find themselves, regularly), I couldn't tell the difference between this car and, say, the last-gen Impala. Maybe as you get more power the difference is more noticeable, but once you get going I don't see how RWD is any more fun, unless you're on a winding mountian road.

Except, of course, I wouldn't want toe Magnum on a twisiting mountain road. I'm sure the SRT-8 is a much better handling vehicle, but the base model felt quite sloppy. I was surprised, and expected much better. It didn't roll excessively... probably because it's long and low with the wheels at thj
e corners... but the ride is super wallowy. It bounds and rebounds after bumps, and generally feels like the big tank it is.

Lots of points against, some solid points for... I think I could quite easily convince myself to buy this car, mainly because you can't help but feel cool in it. It got an amazing amount of stares... I figured it's common enough that people wouldn't notice, but that's not the case at all. It's the kind of car you want people to know you own, and Dodge should be credited for building a car that can be forgiven some faults that others cars wouldn't get away with.

I have a picture of it parked next to an Echo... I'll post it tomorrow... it looks awesome!

[cfch3399]

Thanks for the review. The transmission by the way is the standard and only transmission you can get with a Magnum/Charger/300. I myself am very interested in a Charger.
Was the engine powerful enough for a car that heavy?

[All6ofUs]

I test drove the Charger R/T last August - with the Hemi -it's a great ride. I personally would opt for the R/T with the road and track package to tighten up the handling a little more but for a daily commuter, the regular R/T is better suited. Brakes are awesome.

I had no problem hitting 122 mph very quickly on Autobahn 3...until the stau which ruined my test drive!

[King Riffle]

Meh, the Intrepid was imo a better car, and a good handling one too. I imagine it was also faster with the 3.5 than the Magnum.

[paul8488]

Originally Posted by cfch3399

Thanks for the review. The transmission by the way is the standard and only transmission you can get with a Magnum/Charger/300. I myself am very interested in a Charger.
Was the engine powerful enough for a car that heavy?

I'd have to say no, the engine really isn't powerful enough for the car. I liked it okay, but I'm used to small 4-cylinder cars and don't care much about tons of power... but I suspect most people who are interested in a large RWD sports wagon or sedan will be disappointed in the V6 versions. It certainly didn't feel as strong as it looked. The one I test drove was hardly broken in (about 4000 kms), but even so I found the fuel mileage pretty crappy. I think most people would be better served with the V8.

I didn't know that was the only transmission... though I guess if it's included there's no problem, since it shifts on its own very well. I haven't driven automatic for a long time, but thought it was a very smart transmission, and didn't hesitate at all. If anything it was more responsive in automatic mode than when shifiting myself.

Once again we have a car that, by all accounts, is like the Solstice. You can pick a few holes in it... it's far from infallable... but that unmeasurable 'something' is really convincing. I can see myself buying a V6 Magnum when I get back on the other side of the ocean. Dark blue with deep tinted windows... grrrrr...

[paul8488]

Here are a few pics I thought were kinda cute...

[Michael_S]

A friend of mine wanted to buy a Magnum, but decided the low roofline made it useless. He also felt that it didn't have nearly as much interior space as you would expect for something that big, and he hated the poor field of vision.