Introduction: The Dodge Magnum was introduced in 2005 as part of Chrysler's LX platform the only one of Chrysler's platforms using Mercedes Benz components and pieces. The original Dodge Magnum was a replacement of the old Charger essentially a short lived 2-door car on Chrysler's B-platform. The current version however is a station wagon version of Chrysler's flagship 300. Dodge has given the Magnum 4 different engines ranging from 2 V6 units to 2 V8 units including Chrysler's famed HEMI V8. Unfortunately for Chrysler the Magnum has not sold well and eventually was discontinued in 2008.
When I first saw this gigantic beast, I was rather eager to drive it due to it being from the LX platform and how cool it looked. I was slightly skeptical as well since I also drove the Sebring that day and that was an unhappy memory(I will around to this one and explain why, trust me). During this time I loved everything about RWD and believed that whatever Chrysler did to this car that my faith in RWD would not be shaken.
Performance: Oh boy...I only driven the SE version meaning I got the car with the 2.7L V6 that produces 190 hp and 190 lb.ft of torque. Let me put it this way...I've never driven such a slow car, unlike the Fusion which felt slow...this car was slow. Most people could at best do 0-100 km/h in 11.7 seconds...that's pathetic. The engine sounded awful for a V6 unit...and guess what...its used on quite a few Chryslers. A big reason why this car accelerates so poorly is its about 4000 lbs...the engine is nowhere near adequate and should have not been an option. The man in a Toyota Prius can accelerate much quicker than this heavy beast with a weak heart. If you must buy one of these, it better be a V8.
My Score: 1/10 - The engine sucked, this is the slowest accelerating car I've driven, I hated it.
Handling: The Magnum is a RWD car so it must handle well...right? I'm afraid not, due to the fact the car is 4000 lbs this its unable to handle very well with the suspension Chrysler fitted to it along with the Mercedes bits. It just didn't have any agility and you could really feel the weight, its just miserable at attempting a corner. Being a Chrysler, the wheel isn't weighted properly and was rather light meaning it gave little feedback as your miserably going around the corner.
My Score: 1/10 - None of the cornering advantages of RWD apply here, this whale has a hard time going from corner to corner.
Interior: Things still don't look good here, the interior of the Magnum is pretty appalling. All of the plastics are of very low quality, you can just see they didn't even bother to use smooth plastic and notice how they look exactly like recycled budget school chairs due to their texture. The ergonomics of the car are also pretty poor, due to my height I need to sit up close...problem is the turn signal stalk is so low my knee prevents it from signaling left. You can see from the picture how the stalk is angled down 45 degrees. Who in earth thought this was a good idea? They're mostly all black too with cheap aerosol painted plastic pretending to be aluminum which always looks disgusting. The stereo is a standard Chrysler unit which is not very sophisticated but nonetheless doesn't look good or sound good enough to warrant keeping. The car is pretty spacious but you don't have good seats to sit in.
My Score: 2/10 - Cheap plastic, ugly aerosol paint job, so-so stereo, dumb ergonomics...you can clearly tell they had no stylist do this interior.
Styling: Finally something the car can be happy about. The styling of this Dodge is pretty aggressive and was clearly inspiration for the Charger. This looks like the car that would be suitable for a cool bad guy's getaway car. This would also be a pretty scary looking cop car should the car ever need a station wagon. I do like the styling, the rear kind of gives it a hearse image but other than that its actually something done well.
My Score: 8/10 - Aggressive, intimidating and yet still pretty cool looking despite the side profile making it seem like a hearse.
Value for money: The Dodge Magnum is not a good value for your money unless you really need a very large station wagon. The awful interior, the awful performance and the awful handling should have driven you nuts and forcing you to forget this car. There are a few wagons out there while not as big, are certainly much better cars than a Magnum like the Mazda6 or Subaru Legacy/Outback.
My Score: 2/10 - The only good value you get for your money is if you happen to need a gigantic station wagon.
Overall: 14/50 - If it weren't for the styling, this car would be a total miserable failure. It was discontinued for a reason, unlike what I've said about Ford and Hyundai...Chrysler hasn't learned.
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