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While it may be "just a crossover", the new Dodge Hornet R/T is integral to Dodge's future. It is the first new vehicle under the Dodge name in over a decade and is the first plug-in hybrid vehicle from the brand. I'll be going through everything you need to know about this new crossover and if it's worth it!
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This is a 2024 Dodge Hornet RT, and it is one of the most important vehicles that Dodge has come
0:08
out with in a very long time. The main reason behind this is it's actually the first new vehicle
0:13
under the Dodge brand in over a decade, with the last one being the Dodge Dart. Yes, the Dodge Dart
0:20
Isn't that kind of crazy? Anyways, it also is the first vehicle under Dodge's ownership that is a
0:27
plug-in hybrid SUV or vehicle in general, making this an important part of their plan moving
0:34
forward. As vehicles like the Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger have been discontinued
0:38
this vehicle right here is starting the new version of what Dodge hopes to be
0:42
So in this video, I'm going to be going through everything that you need to know about this all
0:46
new Dodge Hornet, this being the RT model that just came out and is just now hitting dealership
0:51
floors. I'm going to show you the exterior, interior. I'm going to let you guys know all
0:55
the specs about this little SUV and if you should buy it. Before we get too far in the video, I do
1:00
want to thank Pierce Auto Center who lent me this Dodge Hornet RT today to review and show you guys
1:05
all about it. I am leaving a link down in the description if you want to check them out. They of course do sell Dodge, Jeep, Ram, and Chrysler. So if you are interested in any of those vehicles
1:13
I definitely say check them out in the description. So let's really quick before we jump into the
1:18
features, I want to say why this SUV might actually seem a little bit familiar. Sure
1:22
it did just come out for the Dodge brand, but the design has actually been around for a little while
1:27
So this is actually based on the Alfa Romeo Tonale, which it has a lot of the same design
1:31
characteristics along the side and in the rear. However, the main difference is that they did
1:36
tune this vehicle a little bit differently than the Tonale. And of course they did a complete
1:40
redesign on the front end, the new hood and all of that kind of stuff. So it's definitely still
1:44
resembles the Tonale, but has its own kind of Dodge feel to it. This of course also comes down
1:50
to price point as well. So if you are cross shopping an Alfa Romeo, as well as the Dodge
1:54
Hornet, there is a big difference as the base Dodge Hornet actually starts at a little over
1:58
$31,000 and the base Tonale actually doesn't start until over $43,000. So this is a great
2:05
budget alternative to that. So before we get too far into the video, I do want to talk about this
2:09
RT's powertrain as Dodge really is a performance oriented brand now. So if you opted for the GT
2:15
you would get a 2.0 liter four cylinder with a nine speed automatic transmission that got 268
2:21
horsepower and 295 pound foot of torque. It should be noted that all Hornets get an automatic
2:27
all wheel drive powertrain with no front wheel drive version being available. Now with the RT
2:31
which is a performance oriented version of this Hornet upgraded to a hybrid powertrain
2:36
which means it has an electric battery that assists with power, but actually downgrades the
2:40
size down to a 1.3 liter four cylinder engine and a six speed automatic transmission. But don't
2:46
let the numbers fool you as this now gets 288 horsepower and 383 pound foot of torque. And on
2:53
the horsepower front, you can actually get an additional 30 horsepower when you use the power
2:57
shot feature that we'll talk about a little bit later in the video. Now this does go zero to 60
3:01
in just 5.6 seconds, which is impressive considering its competitors and benefiting from
3:07
the fact that it is a plug in hybrid, you can get up to 32 miles on just electric only range
3:12
Meaning if you don't commute very far, you can actually run on electric only on this vehicle
3:16
permanently without really having to use any gas unless you really need it. All right. And with all
3:20
of that said, let's talk about styling. And I have to say, I actually really do like the style of
3:27
this SUV. I particularly do like the front end. Of course they have kind of, for lack of better way
3:32
of saying it, Dodge-ified the front end. Of course you do have this vent that you see very similarly
3:38
on all of the different Dodges nowadays. And I actually really like it. It has a very thin
3:42
headlights that look really nice and are also LED standard. I believe all the different lines of
3:48
these Dodge Hornets do have LED headlights. They aren't those like split headlights where you have
3:52
kind of the running lights up here and they were normal headlights down here. And I like that. And
3:56
this front end does look quite different than the Tenale. And really that also comes over to the
4:00
hood as well. So Dodge is actually very proud of this hood and having kind of a little bit more
4:05
like hood bulges on it. And I think it looks really nice. These are functional vents over here. So they
4:10
do go underneath of the hood and do allow a little bit more airflow over the hood from the front end
4:15
of the vehicle. One interesting feature actually is right here. So this is actually the sensor for
4:19
a lot of the driving. This does of course have things like lane keep assist and cruise control
4:24
that, you know, goes up and down and speed and that kind of stuff. And this is actually the sensor
4:28
right here. I do wish they kind of integrated it into the grill a little bit more. It is a little
4:32
bit more obvious than I would like it, but it, you know, it hides pretty well. As for these wheels
4:38
I really like these wheels. I've been really into kind of darker wheels lately, and I like the
4:42
styling on these. They do have some really nice red brakes. This of course is the RT line with
4:46
the track package. And I think that is a big part of why these wheels look that way. And I really
4:51
do like them. And it's nice because you can actually see through the wheel. Nowadays, a lot
4:54
of these wheels are very covered up. You can't see much of what's going on back there. And that
4:59
just isn't the case with this one. I do really like these wheels. As for the remaining features
5:03
on this, it actually looks very much like the Alfa Romeo Tonale, and that's okay. It gets a lot of the
5:09
good Italian kind of features that you're used to from, you know, Alfa Romeo, but it translates over
5:15
to a Dodge pretty well. However, one thing that I thought was a little bit strange actually is over
5:19
here. So you'll notice right here, this is your door line, and it pops up and over right here
5:24
And I thought that was a little bit strange. You can actually see when you open the door, it goes up and around. And that panel actually just goes right there. And really, so it's only
5:33
a design characteristic. I thought that was kind of interesting and kind of broke up the body panel
5:37
a little bit. I don't know how I feel about it. Another interesting thing about this Dodge is the
5:41
fact that it has a gas port right there. And if you jump over here, it has another one. So what
5:48
is this? So this actually is the gas cap right here on the right-hand side of the vehicle
5:53
This over here is actually the plug because this is a plug-in hybrid. So this is where you're going
5:58
to plug in the vehicle. So coming around to the back of the vehicle, and it looks really nice as
6:02
well. It actually kind of has a Macan feel to it just with the sloping lines and honestly the size
6:08
of the vehicle. And then of course, it does have this wraparound taillight that looks really cool
6:13
including the glowing Dodge logo, which looks pretty cool as well. Right. So let's go ahead
6:19
and jump into the interior of the Dodge Hornet. And I have to say it feels very different than a
6:24
lot of other Dodges out there. And the reason behind that is it's based on an Italian brand
6:29
which is Alfa Romeo. And honestly, I think it translates really well because it has a little
6:33
bit more of an upscale feel to it and a little bit more sporty. So I actually think it benefits
6:37
really well to it. So this is actually the exact same steering wheel from the Alfa Romeo Tenale
6:43
just with a Dodge logo in the middle. That also means that it has a lot of the same switch gear to
6:47
it, including a little push button in the bottom left of the steering wheel. This is an eDrive mode
6:52
which switches it to different modes, which are kind of the more eco modes and that kind of stuff
6:56
Whereas I think the Tenale actually has that as the on off button, but I think that felt a little
7:00
bit too Italian for Dodge. So they moved the on off button over into the center console
7:05
where it is a little bit more of an American feel. As for the dash, it's actually a full 12 inch
7:10
display and it is actually really nice. And this is not just to the RT line as it does come with
7:15
the GT as well, making this a pretty tech oriented car. And the display itself is really, really nice
7:20
and works really well. I don't have any issues with it. Now, one standout feature is actually
7:25
these paddle shifters. This actually came from the Alfa Romeo Tenale and they are like a full
7:30
length, really long, probably six or seven inch long paddles instead of just being something that's
7:35
tacked on the back of the steering wheel, like a lot of the past Dodges and kind of FCA style
7:38
products have been. So they really did benefit from coming from an Alfa Romeo. They are steering
7:43
wheel mounted, which means that they don't go with the steering wheel when you move it. So you
7:47
always know where your paddle shifters are. And that actually brings me to the power shot feature
7:51
which is activated using these paddle shifters. You pull both of these and you are in the sport
7:56
mode of this car that actually turns on the power shot feature, which gives you an additional 30
8:01
horsepower. Now to talk a little bit more about the dash, other than just the gauge cluster
8:06
they have really nice vents on the right hand side of the dash and the left hand side
8:10
they kind of have this kind of brushed chrome feel to them. They do look really nice. The
8:15
function really well. I do like these little dials. As for this display, you do get a 10.5 inch U
8:21
connect display. So this is what all of the new Dodges and Stellantis products are really starting
8:25
to get. And it is a very comprehensive display and works really well. It looks really nice
8:29
I actually like the kind of tablet feel that it has, but it's not too big. It doesn't get into
8:34
your vision. Moving below that display, you do have some more events, your hazard lights
8:38
and then below that are a bunch of the physical HVAC controls. The nice thing is they didn't move
8:43
all of the HVAC controls into the display itself. So you do have easy access. You don't have to
8:47
surf through the display to be able to turn on and off your HVAC control. So it is really nice
8:52
that they are continuing to include that. Below that is the start stop engine button. And below
8:58
that button is actually probably my favorite feature. The interesting thing is actually when
9:01
you're warming up this vehicle, the engine actually doesn't start unless you click that sport button. So when you're just idling, it's heating up, I think just using the electric power
9:08
train. A little bit above that, you do have a USB-C and a USB-A charger. So no matter what phone
9:14
you have, you can charge it in here. Another feature that I do like to see in vehicles is
9:18
honestly a physical shifter. And I think this one actually works really, really well. It's not
9:23
complicated. It's your standard PRND where you can shift it on your own just by sliding it over to
9:28
the left. And it's very simple, very easy to use and isn't complicated like a lot of the other
9:34
shifters that are coming here. It's not a dial. It's not a bunch of different random buttons
9:37
To the right of that actually is a volume slider. So it's actually a kind of a tactile kind of
9:42
diamond feel to it. And it feels really nice. It's easy to use. You don't have to look down
9:46
to use it, which is really nice, but just because of the way it is positioned. Behind all of that
9:50
you do have two cup holders, which I'm always thankful for cup holders. And then behind that
9:55
is going to be a small storage bin. It is by no means a big one, especially when I'm comparing it
10:00
to something like the Toyota Tundra that I reviewed recently, where it had a massive center console
10:05
but we're talking about a compact SUV here. And it is nice to at least have some form of storage
10:10
here, but it's nothing to talk about too much. One of the stand out features of this SUV
10:14
I think actually has to be the seats here. And this is something that comes with the RT models
10:18
So these are a faux leather perforated seat. And so the perforation actually has a little bit of
10:23
kind of a red underneath and it looks really cool. It's very sporty, very nice looking. And
10:29
the material itself feels really nice. It's kind of like an Alcantara feel to it and kind of makes
10:34
it feel like it's a little bit more luxurious, a little bit more sporty than honestly it really is
10:38
As for the seating position, it feels really nice. I am used to much larger vehicles. I drive a Tahoe
10:44
We have a Ford Explorer. I'm used to pickup trucks and that kind of stuff is what I normally drive
10:49
But the seating position on this, you do still feel a little bit higher up because it is a
10:53
crossover. However, it's comfortable. You're a little bit, like I said, you're higher up
10:58
but you're still comfortable. You do still feel like you're driving a little bit more of a sporty
11:02
vehicle. And the seats do hug you just enough. I am six foot, six foot one. I do have plenty of
11:08
headroom in the driver's seat as well as the passenger's seat. And it is a comfortable place
11:13
to be. So I honestly don't really have too many complaints when it comes to that. I think this
11:18
would be a great everyday vehicle and something you could drive for long periods of time with
11:21
still being comfortable. All right. So moving to the rear of the vehicle, and this is probably one
11:26
of the most controversial parts of the vehicle, not because there's any real weird features or
11:30
anything like that, but it actually comes down to space. So this is a smaller crossover and a lot
11:34
of people have complaints about space. So I actually have the seat right here where I would
11:39
be sitting in. Again, I'm six foot, six foot one. I will say, I think I sit closer to the steering
11:43
wheel than most people do, but that really is up to an objective reason. So anyways, I am where I
11:49
would have myself. I have about two inches of legroom in front of me. So I am not touching the
11:54
seat in front of me. And as for headroom, again, I'm wearing a hat as well. I have about, oh
11:58
probably about, if I sit up straight, about an inch or so. So I actually am not touching anything
12:04
when it comes to space here. And I'm actually a pretty large guy. So I don't totally know what
12:09
people are talking about. Obviously, it is a smaller SUV. You have a little bit less shoulder
12:13
room. My, my elbow is hitting the left-hand side, but it's not like I would have much issue sitting
12:18
here for a long period of time. So I don't totally understand what people are complaining about
12:23
I mean, it is very possible that they are also complaining about the small doors. So this does
12:27
have smaller rear doors. It is a little bit more difficult to get into than obviously larger
12:32
vehicles. But that is something that can pretty easily be overcome. And honestly, most of the time
12:37
it's going to be kids back here. So I think it actually has plenty of room. Obviously, if you
12:41
want more room, you're going to want to go with a bigger SUV. You're not going to be going with something like this anyway. So I don't, I can see where people are coming from, but I also don't
12:49
totally understand. I don't have much issues when it comes to space in this vehicle. I will say there
12:54
are some things in the back here though, that are obviously a cost-cutting measures. For example
12:59
they do have kind of hard plastic, whereas in the front, they're a little bit more of a faux
13:03
leather, soft touch materials. So they obviously are cutting back on materials there. Over here
13:08
you have a little bit more hard plastic, and that's just kind of the overall theme of this
13:12
SUV in the back end. There isn't a ton of higher end materials like what you saw in the front
13:17
but again, most people aren't going to be using the back seats. And when they are, it's generally going to be children who aren't too worried about it. And honestly
13:23
it's easier to clean hard plastic, but when you are getting to a higher trim level up in the $40,000
13:28
range, that is something I wish they would have put a little bit more money into as a little bit
13:32
more soft touch materials, just to make this have a little bit more of an upscale feel. But that
13:36
said, you do have some other features back here. You do have your own center vent here, which does
13:41
have USB-C and USB-A as well. So you can easily charge devices back here without an issue. One
13:47
cool feature though is actually right here. So in the middle seat right here, you do have an armrest
13:51
with two cup holders, but behind that, you actually can have access to the rear compartment by just
13:56
pushing down on that latch. And you have a flow through in the middle here to the rear hatch
14:01
which we'll talk about in just a second. But that allows you to be able to put longer items
14:05
you know, like skis or snowboards, maybe a snowboard. I'm not totally sure if that'll
14:08
fit through this hole, but it does allow you to be able to fit longer things in here. And that is
14:13
something that you don't see in every SUV. So that is important to you. This might be something you
14:17
want to put onto your list. But with all of that said, let's go ahead and move into the rear and
14:21
show you what your cargo space looks like. All right. So one of the features that come with the
14:26
RT Plus and the GT Plus from the Plus is actually that it has hands-free tailgate. So you can
14:31
actually put your leg underneath of the tailgate and it does open automatically. However, this being
14:36
the standard RT, it doesn't have that functionality. So instead, you're just going to be pushing a button right here that unlatches right here and you pull up. It does have this kind of
14:44
cargo hider, which is kind of nice. So it hides the cargo when the door is closed. But that brings
14:49
us into the interior here. And here we are. So this is going to be the cargo area in the 2024
14:55
Dodge Hornet RT. So on the left-hand side here, you do have a light that goes into your cargo
15:00
You're going to have kind of, you know, a cigarette style lighter right here. And then you do have a
15:05
grocery hanger. Tell me in the comments, do you guys ever actually use those or do you just plop
15:10
them down here? Anyways, so there is going to be a light on the right-hand side. You do have some
15:15
child seat tethers right here to be able to put in car seats. Then right here is actually the
15:20
back side of that tunnel. And so what you do is you just push right there. As you can see
15:24
there's your cup holders. You can push and there's the interior of the vehicle. So that
15:28
is actually a really cool feature to be able to have. And you can access it from the front and
15:32
the back of that seat. As for the remainder of it, there isn't a ton going on back here. Obviously
15:37
you do have this little handle right here that you pull up. And one kind of cool thing is when
15:42
you pull up, there's those little clips right here. You can see. And it makes it so that doesn't pop
15:49
back down. It's kind of cool. So it keeps it all up. Right here is kind of a fix and flat kit. You
15:53
have a tire pressure gauge. And then you have a couple other tools here just kind of get you
15:57
basic stuff. And that really is all that's down here. You could probably put some little things
16:01
in here that you want to keep long term or just want to keep it out of sight. But that's kind of
16:05
cool. So with that said, there really isn't much else to talk about. All right, so that is a complete
16:10
tour of this 2024 Dodge Hornet RT. So what do I think about it? I actually think this is a pretty
16:18
cool little SUV out of vehicle that starts a little over $30,000 and goes up to about $43,000
16:25
It honestly is a pretty good deal. If you're looking for a smaller SUV that's fun to drive
16:30
and is a little bit more sporty than the market that compete with this, this is actually a pretty
16:35
cool vehicle. I really do like the way it looks. I like the Dodge styling on it. And I really do
16:40
appreciate the fact that this is the first new Dodge in over a decade people, which is kind of
16:45
crazy that they haven't pushed out a new vehicle in that long. But that said, it's actually pretty
16:51
competent for what it is of just being a basic people hauler that is a little bit more fun
16:56
I think it's for those people that don't want to give up the sportiness, but do want to have
17:00
something that's a little bit more practical, a little bit smaller with better gas mileage, and with that hybrid drivetrain. It does have some really cool Italian feel to it in an American
17:09
vehicle. I noticed there's actually a sticker on the other side of the vehicle there that talks
17:13
about where all the parts come from, and the majority of them are Italian and Polish. I don't
17:18
think there's any US parts on this thing. So if you're looking for an Italian vehicle, but an
17:22
American vehicle, this really is a great option for you. And it's a lot of fun. I do appreciate
17:26
as you can see, there is snow on the ground here that these all do come with all-wheel drive
17:31
And it really would be a great vehicle, I think, in the snow and for in the area that I live
17:36
So what do you guys think about the Dodge Hornet RT? Is this something that you would buy
17:41
If not, leave it down in the comments. If you would, leave it down in the comments, but also make sure to check out Pierce Auto Center as they did lend this to me
17:48
and you might be able to get one for yourself from them. Of course, if you do also like
17:51
Stellantis products, I am leaving a video right here that will get you over to the
17:55
Jeep Wrangler 392 that I also reviewed
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