Which Diamond-Star Shines More Brightly? 2004 Dodge Stratus Coupe vs 2005 Dodge Stratus Coupe

On this very special episode, we’re going to be talking about a very special car. It’s the star of the New York International Auto Show, a car now old enough to be considered a classic in some states, the pride of Normal, Illinois: the Dodge Stratus Coupe. Beloved by some, dismissed by others, the Stratus Coupe is the sort of car we don’t see anymore, and we’re unlikely to see again. And it’s not an easy car to find for sale these days, let me tell you.

On Friday, I closed out our fourth year together by giving you an opportunity to turn the tables on me, if you so chose. And it appears that you like me! You really like me! Or at least, forty-three percent of you do; you chose the nice, comfy Volvo 940 as the car you’d like to see me drive for a week.

Of course, the number two vote was that sketchy Smart. Most of the votes for that one seem to have been intended as punishment, and that’s cool. I’ve driven worse. Hell, I’ve owned worse.

I’ve owned a lot of cars, in fact. Not nearly as many as some here, but around forty in my name, plus ten or fifteen owned by significant others or family members that I drove regularly. I also, by some rough math, did around 40,000 oil changes in the 1990s on other people’s cars, and in some cases, picked those cars up and delivered them back to their owners.

I’ve serviced and driven a Dodge Dynasty with 300,000 miles on its odometer. The first car I ever made payments on was a Ford Tempo that I drove back and forth between Chicago and Milwaukee every week to visit my girlfriend. I’ve spun out a Cadillac Cimarron on a freeway on-ramp at 60 miles an hour. I’ve had sex in a Chevy Cavalier Z24. I don’t mean for this to sound like a Beetlejuice-style list of qualifications; I’m just pointing out that I come by my appreciation for mundane domestic cars naturally.

Not everybody gets it, I understand. But for those of you who do, like me, I present to you two examples of the car of the hour. The two best examples I could find for sale, actually. Special thanks to the Bishop for spotting one of them for me.

2004 Dodge Stratus SXT – $5,499

Engine/drivetrain: 2.4-liter DOHC inline 4, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Omaha, NE

Odometer reading: 128,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

Diamond-Star Motors, the joint venture between Chrysler and Mitsubishi in central Illinois, is best known for the Mitsubishi Eclipse, Eagle Talon, and Plymouth Laser, especially in their fire-breathing turbocharged AWD variants. But the facility that now produces Rivian electric vehicles built a whole lot of other cars. The Dodge Avenger, which in its second generation became the Stratus Coupe, may not have had the performance credentials of its siblings, but it’s more comfortable, thanks to a longer wheelbase and less frantic suspension tuning.

Chrysler’s name game with these cars wrought all sorts of havoc on mechanics and parts-counter clerks, more than once. The original Chrysler Sebring convertible was a derivative of the JA-platform Cirrus sedan, but the Sebring coupe was a completely different car, based on the Mitsubishi Eclipse platform. They used different engines with the same displacement. No parts were interchangeable. As if that wasn’t confusing enough, when the second generation came along, Dodge did the same thing with the Stratus. Basically, if it has two doors and a hard top, it’s a Mitsubishi design; otherwise it’s a Chrysler.

This Stratus coupe is a little scruffy; the dashboard seems to be coming apart, and there’s a tear in the driver’s seat side bolster. I can’t give you any information about its condition other than that, because it’s for sale from a dealership via Autotrader, and they’re more concerned with making a deal than providing transportation. My advice, as always, is to check it out carefully, and if you don’t know what you’re looking at, take someone with you who does.

It has seen some action on the outside, it looks like. The driver’s side front fender has a serious wrinkle, and there’s a dent in the rear quarter panel on that side as well. Red paint is notorious for fading, and this one is no exception. And worst of all, I think I see rust bubbling under the side skirt in front of the rear wheel. There aren’t very many Stratus coupes for sale, so its steep price could be seen as a case of “Oh yeah? Find another one.” Except that I did. Or rather, the Bishop did.

2005 Dodge Stratus SXT – $2,999

Engine/drivetrain: 2.4-liter DOHC inline 4, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Wichita, KS

Odometer reading: 180,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

Head south across the border into Kansas, just past the Point of Know Return, and you’ll find this similarly-equipped but much less expensive Stratus coupe. It’s less flashy looking in white paint, but it looks like it’s in considerably better shape. And judging by the price on the windshield, it has already been reduced once. The seller could be in a mood to listen to even lower offers. That’s the other thing about “undesirable” cars: you can sometimes find a good deal by looking beyond the obvious choices.

The base engine in both the Stratus sedan and coupe displaces 2.4 liters, but the sedan uses a Chrysler engine and Ultradrive transmission. The coupe is powered by a Mitsubishi 4G64 engine and F4A transmission. Performance is six of one and half a dozen of the other, and reliability is similar as well. This car has 180,000 miles on it, and I’m sure it runs and drives just fine. There are no warning lights on the dash, anyway, which is a good sign.

It’s an SXT model, as is the red one, which is Dodge’s mid-range trim for many different models. It includes the most popular options, like power windows and locks, air conditioning, cruise control, and a decent stereo. Despite having more miles, this one looks like it’s in better shape. The dashboard is separating along the top of the instrument panel, same as the red one. That must be a design flaw in these. But besides that, all I see is a little wear here and there.

It’s in better shape outside, too, with no visible sheetmetal damage, no apparent rust, and only some chipped paint on the rear bumper. However, that being said, there is no photo of the driver’s side in the ad. That could be an oversight, or they could be hiding something. Only one way to find out.

I don’t know; maybe if you get to gallivant all around driving this and that for a day or two, you become jaded and suddenly you’re too cool for a car like the Dodge Stratus coupe. And I suppose, compared to a Ferrari, or even a well-equipped Mustang, it’s not all that hot. But millions of people rely on millions of ordinary cars every day, going places, making memories, and enjoying life. That’s what cars are for, after all. If you can’t understand why someone would love a car like this, I feel sorry for you. Thank you for indulging me on my soapbox today, and feel free to make the obvious choice between these two, just to make it official.