Filed under: Marketing/Advertising, Dodge
Dodge looking for young buyers for the new Avenger
If you're a working professional in your mid-30s with an annual income around $60,000, take notice: Dodge will be working hard to entice you to buy a new Avenger. Don't think you'll be safe by turning off the TV, either. The Avenger will be on the internet and in your video games, as well. Dodge is marketing its new Avenger to the 30-something demographic with a series of ads that tout technology and performance. Cup-holders that heat and cool your liquid and a MyGIG sound system with 20 gigabytes of hard drive space will be front and center in the ads. Another spot will highlight Avenger's "Natural Performer" attributes. You'll even see the Avenger in Tom Clancy's "Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter" video game from Ubisoft. We assume the Detroit Free Press means the Avenger will be in G.R.A.W. II actually, since G.R.A.W. has been out on store shelves for some time now.
Every automaker aspires to get younger folks buying its vehicles so they can generate brand loyalty for the future. The Scion brand has worked brilliantly with eight out of 10 owners staying in the
[Source: Detroit Free Press]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Tony 4:05PM (3/05/2007)
Young buyers with no taste, that is one ugly car!
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fizzandpop 4:07PM (3/05/2007)
"If you're a working professional in your mid-30s with an annual income around $60,000"—YOU CAN AFFORD A DODGE CHARGER. So why would you bother with this?
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Aaron 4:09PM (3/05/2007)
Well, this car seems like it is going to go over better than the sebring, as it almost equalled sebring sales with its first month of psuedo availability.
Went out and looked at them this weekend, the R/T is a fairly sharp looking car.
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Rocket Punch 4:11PM (3/05/2007)
...If I am making 60k a year, this would be the last thing I would buy. 60k a year is 5k/month. Dude, I am getting a Elise if I made 5k a month.
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DriftPunch 4:15PM (3/05/2007)
Perhaps I'm a bit of a luddite, but I don't care for the modern trend to focus on frigging music players (or similar) in automotive marketing. I'm not against having features like this, but please tell me about the point A->B attributes of the car.
I like my vechiles to primarily be machines, not peripherals.
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mr.ed 4:17PM (3/05/2007)
They are falling further behind even the Koreans with this rude, crude brother of the Chrysler Sebring, both universally unloved by the car columnists and Consumer Reports. A sad commentary on American design and cost-cutting quality.
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Howard Kerr 4:18PM (3/05/2007)
This shows how out of touch the marketing folks at Dodge/Chrysler are, if they think someone making 60K will consider an Avenger. If it even shows up on a "young professional's" list, it would most likely be near the bottom.
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That One Person 4:19PM (3/05/2007)
I saw a silver R/T about a week ago. It was actually pretty sharp. The same day I headed up to the local Dodge dealer with a friend and they had a couple black R/Ts and a red one. They are definitely better looking than the Sebring. I just wish they had a coupe version or it was just a coupe period (like the original). But the base model versions, like the Sebring, are definitely rental car material.
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geo.stewart 4:30PM (3/05/2007)
no elise for me. 401K, IRA, mortgage, stay at home mom, 2 kids, ballet, gymnastics,... yep, Avenger would be in the crosshairs except for the flimsy hard plastic interior materials. compared to Altima, Aura, Camry, and Accord, this will be carrying rebates very quickly.
I like the exterior (much better than Sebring) but its just so 70's inside. I like to buy American but this is just doesnt quite cut it. I have an 06' Grand Caravan that is appointed nicely for the price so they CAN do it, they just didnt.
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SSBR 4:32PM (3/05/2007)
Great, a mini-Charger...
There going after the 60k crowd??? No offense, the car looks ok, but I highly doubt it will attract the 60k crowd. Maybe the 60k crowd that owes child support payments, and alimony court fees.
http://www.rolesor.com
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ellerton 4:34PM (3/05/2007)
R/T with an automatic transmission? Yea, that will really appeal to young buyers...
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cgr 4:39PM (3/05/2007)
I am the target audience here. Right of the bat, here is my list of issues:
1) It's a Dodge. Toyota did right by bringing up the Scion brand. Even though most purchasers are aware that their Scion is a Toyota, this approach still creates sufficient seperation in the mind between what is old and what is new.
2) With my salary, I'm far more interested in entry lux euro imports. And even if I decide not to take that route, I'm on my sixth VW now, I'm likely to roll a 4-door GTI or a new R32 than an Avenger.
3) To get me to part with my hard earned cash, you're going to need much more than a 20gig hard drive in your sound-system. I've got 80gigs in my back pocket via a $350 iPod. What's my interest in 20gigs in a $20k+ Dodge? Talk to me about your Direct Shift Gearbox instead; oh wait, you don't have one (there goes my wifes approval).
4) I appreciate having real vehicles in the Tom Clancy games. Unfortunately, while playing "Rainbow Six: Las Vegas", I'm far more concerned with keeping my butt alive than checking out the bullet riddled Dodge that I'm hiding behind.
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Bob R. 4:43PM (3/05/2007)
Wow, there is much better cars for 60k. Like some other people said, a Charger or 300C but if you have to stay in the mid size sedan category there is much better choices like the Fusion, Aura and Malibu from the domestics.
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Aaron 4:50PM (3/05/2007)
ahahahaha 60k a year, yeah I'll buy an elise, rent for the rest of my life, have no savings...
lmao the american way.
Once dodge can develop their new phoenix v6s they will be in a much better place, but until then this is better than the car it replaced.
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iQuack 4:54PM (3/05/2007)
Saw an Avenger a couple of days ago and thought it was a Charger until I noticed that it was too short to be a charger.
Much better style than the Sebring with its nitwit, plastic thing on the "C" pillar that's supposed to make it look like a phony Audi (whose bad idea was that?).
The Avenger has lousy visibility to the side/rear with so much steel between the rear side and back windows.
It's probably about the same price as a Honda Civic and I'd take the Civic without any doubt at all.
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WB233629 4:57PM (3/05/2007)
Are people forgetting about taxes entirely??? If your making 60K a year you cant afford a 45K Elise or even a 35K Charger unless your also living in your car. This is a perfectly reasonable car for someone making 60K a year even though the car itself isn't all that exciting. I love cars as much as anyone but if I'm spending 3/4 of my income on a Lotus... I think it's time to stop drinking
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Non-Bizarro Adam 4:58PM (3/05/2007)
I am also in the 60K demographic, though I am a bit outside of the age bracket at only 24, so maybe I don't get it, but I would be way more willing to spend the extra money to get a Charger than this thing.
Oh, and to all of you who think 60k is a boatload of money, after student loans, car payment, mortgage, shoes for the wife, retirement accounts, and stuff like cable and internet, you'd be surprised how quickly you can burn through 60k in a year. I grew up in a very low income family, so I know how to live on 20k a year, but if you'd be surprised how easily your expenditures catch up with your income.
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Sagracer 5:01PM (3/05/2007)
ummmm....I make 100K a year and I don't consider myself wealthy at all. I drive a 20K car, and I don't have much money left at the end of the month....You have to make about 200K to be semi-wealthy these days. As for the Avenger - No thanks. I'll take a Saturn Aura XR instead, or wait for the new Accord to come out.
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Accordsforall 5:06PM (3/05/2007)
Hmmm
An Avenger is probably the absolutely last car.. Id ever want to drive. Being that I have driven Accords and I make a decent salary.. this Avenger comes up so low on my list..
If I made 60g.. I wouldnt be flaunting it. Id be driving a Compact Pickup Tacoma or Frontier. I might still be driving an Accord.. but If I didnt Id go right after an Altima SE-R or the Mazda. The Altima has it over the Ford / Mazda mess..
And the one thing that would stick out to me before even buying any of Chrysler's cars.. is the thats on the Sebring and or Stratus. Last thing I want.. is money on the hood... Lease deals yes.. cheaper financing maybe, but dough on the hood.. no.
And I got news for ya.. for a single person making 60g a yr.. there are SERIOUSLY a DOZEN cars FAR better THAN some DAMN SEBRING / STRATUS.
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Chris 5:06PM (3/05/2007)
I think we've finally found the lost prototype design for the 1988 AMC Gremlin... all mid-30s professionals with a modest income and large sense of humor are now lining up to buy this hilarious interpretation of an American classic.
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