2023 Dodge Hornet: America's "Alfa Romeo" Visits New York City, Still Looks Hit or Miss

Look, Dodge was talking all types of noise during the Hornet’s unveiling, about how they were going to “disrupt” the status quo for the segment, and how the Hornet is offering best-in-class performance in terms of handling, steering and braking. Now, that’s all fine and well, but what’s the point? This is 2023, and resources are better used in the direction of electrification (BEV not PHEV, mind you).

What’s the point of another gasoline-powered small sporty crossover? You’re telling me this thing isn’t getting walked by pretty much every single Tesla Model Y it will ever encounter at a stop light? Come on.

Anyway, I’m not here to hate on the Hornet, even though you can easily make a case for it not being a real blue-collar Dodge, both literally and figuratively.

So then, let’s address the positives, starting with some of those performance-oriented goodies I mentioned earlier. Hornet R/T and GT variants get Koni FSD shocks as standard, which are said to improve both control and ride comfort, whereas the R/T is the only one with Brembo four-piston calipers and a standard brake-by-wire Intelligent Braking System.

Other impressive technical features include the dual-state-valve suspension, dynamic torque vectoring and standard all-wheel drive, to go with a 9-speed automatic transmission and either a turbocharged 2.0L inline-4 engine good for 268 horsepower or a plug-in hybrid system where a turbocharged 1.3L unit pushes out 288 horsepower with the help of an electric motor – the latter being the R/T model and the former the GT spec.

In a straight line, the Hornet GT will hit 60 mph (97 kph) in 6.5 seconds, whereas the R/T can do it in 5.6 seconds. Like I said, you’re not outrunning most EVs in these things, but you do get over 30 miles (48 km) of electric range with that plug-in hybrid R/T model.

Variety is king

On display at the 2023 New York Auto Show, you’ll find several Hornet iterations, including the Hornet GT GLH Concept and the Hornet R/T GLH Concept. These so-called concept vehicles (the white and black SUVs with the racing stripes) are meant to showcase potential Direct Connection performance part upgrades for the production Hornet, which is also on display wearing a lot of red with black accents.

The 2023 Dodge Hornet starts off at just under $30,000, although if you mess around too much with the options list, you'll arrive at $45,000 in no time. Now, 45k is probably fine for certain premium car buyers, but for most people? Kind of steep.

Still, the Hornet remains considerably more affordable than rivals such as the Audi Q3, Volvo XC40, or the Mercedes-Benz GLA – and since these types of crossovers are by no means amazing in any way, you might as well rep for Uncle Sam, get the Dodge and save some money.