120,000 Mile Long-Term Review on my 2012 Dodge Avenger R/T 

I was turned on to the 3.6 pentastar when i drove my new girlfriends 300. I was amazed of the power from a 6 in that sized car. I thought about the styling of the Challenger and Charger, but I don't want a car that big. I fell in love with the Idea of the Avenger R/T. the luxury and sports package of a smaller car with that engine. I'm looking for 2012- 2014 and they are quite hard to find in colors different than red or gray or white. I'll eventually find my blue or black R/T, hopefully do a few mods to get it over 300 hp. I want it to be my car show car when I retire. within a few years they will be rare, and I'll sit with my sweetie in the sun with our floppy hats and travel around with other old classic car owners.

My 2013 Avenger was a decent car but the head gaskets started leaking at 150k miles, which took me 6 years to hit. I was driving a ton back then. I always wish I did the R/T and got the V6 over the 4 cylinder. Overall, the car was pretty low maintenance until it didn't. The deals Dodge was offering back then were crazy. I think I paid around 21k for everything.

I love how you have proof for everything that you said happend, great video.

This video is one of the best reviews on the Dodge Avenger RT 3.6.I bought a 2013 Avenger R/T in 2015.Ive been in love with it since day one.It's like a mini Charger.Excellent gas mileage and great performance.In 2013 it had the most powerful V6 in its class.This car is very quick for a 6 banger.The Pentastar V6 is very reliable and holds up well to hard driving.I have a few minor mods done to my Avenger.I have a Diablosport Intune,Borla cat back exhaust,and a K&N cai.I have outran a Mazda 6,Altima 3.6,a late model Maxima,Honda Accord V6,Silverado 6.2,C4 Corvette,and a Golf gti in this car.With the mods,my Avenger hits 60 in 5.7 seconds,and runs a 14.1 quarter mile.Not bad for a car with a horrible resale value of maybe $5,500.Issues I have had is the air duct actuator replacement $40 doing it myself,AC compressor 800 having it done,and right now my catalytic converter is stopping up.Should be able to have it replaced with straight pipe for$100 or so (given there is no sensor problems).The interior has held up well even though it consists of a lot of cheap plastic parts.The seats are comfortable,though not so much for long trips.The handling is good but not excellent.I love the body style,and Im planning to never part with mine as long as possible.Im just an average Joe construction worker with average salary.So this car means so much to me and my love for dodge's beautiful body styles.My dream is a Challenger 6.4 one day.But for now this is all I have lol.Ive never been more happier compared to other vehicles I've owned than I am with this one.I'm 51 and have owned my share of cars.Sorry for rambling on here,but it seemed like a great place for Avenger RT lovers.The Avenger in this vid sold for a great price for the condition.Someone out there should be very happy to get so much car and performance for $4,500.That's another reason I will never sell mine.4,500 is nothing for the performance,reliability,and gas mileage you'd lose.Thank you for the video and your reviews.Hope others follow up here with their views as well.I also subbed.

I didn't know anything about the avenger so I definitely learned a lot in this video. Great daily driver and it looks like it has some good pep! I also agree with your note about the Widebody. I prefer when it's molded together with the other body panels rather than just fender flares. It's definitely grown on me with the Hellcat but I wonder how it would look if it was more like the avenger.

I have a 2009 Dodge avenger R/T and I still love it

I love the look of these cars!

I’ve been waiting for this. I miss my avenger l

Good review

I have a 2013 Dodge Avenger SE V6 that I bought on 8-25-12. So far, I have replaced the radiator, heater core, thermostat, and a wheel speed sensor. I know the battery is difficult to remove, but having it there is probably why it has lasted so long for me. I also still have the original serpentine belt, and I just turned 129,000 miles on it. I don't drive it hard, but I don't drive ti easy either. I got that recall on those active head restraints fixed a while back. I'm surprised you weren't able to get it yet. I remember there was a recall on all the models above the SE for the sound system because Uconnect could be hacked with a Sprint phone. I'll be driving the car until the wheels fall off for sure.

Love the avenger RT ! Sad to hear your selling hit. Can’t wait to buyone

I have a 2014 avenger with the 4 cylinder, not a bad car. 51k miles on it too. I noticed even without the Boston acoustics stereo it sounds really good, and it's pretty peppy for a 4 cylinder, not fast but takes off quick.

I have the 08 Avenger R/T with the 3.5 HO. Orange sunburst metallic with 172k on it. Great car.

Great review

I always wanted one of these cars. I drove a few 300’s and Charger’s with the 3.6 but not the Avenger. I like how much smaller they are then the Chargers and Challenger’s.

The avenger vid is getting seen! Still a popular car

Thanks for the info! I’m currently looking at a blue 2012 Dodge Avenger R/T that my dealership got in from a trade in deal. I want a daily driver because I don’t want to put more miles onto my Dodge Charger RT.

I used to have the exact same 2012 R/T in black haha. Unfortunately transmission went kaput at 135k miles, but in the time I had it, great first car. I now have a challenger as well, and im trying to get rid of the Avenger lol

By the way, I love my 2012 Avenger, just need the radio/cd player to work!!

How is the transmission in these? I have had two Ram 1500’s and both had the transmission go out and both have had issues with the ABS. Any feedback appreciated.

I also don't get why the Avenger got so much flack. I have the 2008 R/T and man I love it. Performs as well as my old 2014 Fusion Titanium, the STOCK speakers completely blows the Fusion out if the water and it wasn't something to turn your head away from, and a smooth af ride. It has almost all the exact same bells and whistles, minus the actually stereo system, no Bluetooth and it's just dated. Nothing a decent adapter won't fix or shell out a good $200 for a nice touch screen stereo, and it's now on par. Oh maybe minus a sun roof, "sports" mode (although the Avenger has a manual mode just like sports mode let's you do, only difference is you can drive without changing gears and the computer would just adjust timings on the fly to allow higher speeds and handling with much better acceleration than in just Drive.) and a couple minor things. Biggest difference in my opinion is that sports mode thing, idk if just switching to the -/+ mode will do the same and allow regular driving without manually switching gears and just change up the ECU, or goes straight to manual mode. I'll have to try it out one night with no traffic to get embarrassed by if I make a bad shift, like an early one lol

Great car. I got the base SE model which has no screen. But it has the V6.

Theres cam issues with the 3.6, the lobes wear. Also they had issues with the number 2 or number 6 valve dropping up to 2012. I used to work at a Chrysler dealer.

I have the avengers Chrysler brother A 2014 200 s with the 3.6 Currently has 128k runs great Only had to replace the ac condenser 140 did it myself

Great video, very interesting. There should be more “long term” review vids for sure.

Just bought a 2010 avanger runs super fine.

Can I put a 65r tires on a 2013 Avenger, SE ? I hate the low profiles on my current tires cause I feel every damn bump on the road.

Just bought my 2012 R/T , originally drove a 2013 SXT and love the R/T much more. unfortunately mine was in a front end accident before i got it, but very minor fixes. mine has 135k miles and has amazing gas milage overall a great car and highly recommend an avenger.

I do not understand why these cars were derided so much. I have had two at work (2010 and 2013) and both were great. The mechanics over at our garage said they were all trouble free. I always had people comment about how nice the interior was despite what the car magazines say. My parents had a 2008 and it was great. I had to turn my 2013 in due to mileage last year. It was replaced with the worst new car I've ever driven. My 2020 Malibu is an absolutely terrible car. I cannot get the seat in a comfortable position. Driving it for 20 minutes kills my arthritic back. It roars going down the road and rides like an economy car. It has no power despite being turbocharged. I found an identical 2013 Avenger to the one I had, sitting in the parking lot. I asked my supervisor if I could swap and he thought I was nuts. He approved it, so I am going to swap this junk new car for an 8 year old Avenger.

The 1990 Dodge 😮Sprite was a hell of a car buddy! Only bested by the R/T model.

I got the standard SE Avenger 2014 model, my only gripe is the small engine and some cheap interior and exterior nitpicking (passenger side door has vinyl bubbling up and certain panels of the car is hazing) but mechanically a good car. Also like the Stratus, I hate the battery is in the driver side wheel well. Dodge fucked themselves not converting this to a coupe again and making a mini Charger and keeping the Dart as the family friendly sedan (Avenger died to no real updates and then wanted to bring the Dart as a four door compact which rivaled but also failed after the Fiat buyout). Honestly should have kept the Stratus and let the Avenger be a coupe again but whatever. The car itself is such a handsome design and wasted potential. The car is a good basic rider, handles well. I've no complaints apart from luxury. I really wanna trade my 4cyl for a 6 RT version.

What radio do you have and does it have CarPlay??

Do you think I could buy a 2012 SXT for my first car? it only has 67k miles and has new brakes and tires

Had my avenger 2012 rt since 2018 and it has 100k miles the trans blow at 80k and its driving good with 60k o. The trans

Do the sxt have the strip seats as well or is that just in the rt?

Is this car still available

My wife had one for 100k loved that car V6 with no issues. Great video brother

Thats awesome I literally just bought a white one used!

Well, thanks for the video...now I know I need an accuator--I have been getting the tap, tap, tap. Now, what's up with the radio/CD player? It's stock. Lost the radio almost a year ago and the CD player went out last week. Fuse is fine, wiggle it and CD plays when I start car for about a second.

Is there some type of electrical issue with your Avenger? The dash lights keep flickering.

Nice Dodge 👍 ... Still a great motor, the FCA 3.6L.

How much did you pay for insurance if you don’t mind me asking

I have same 2013 Engine 3.6 V6 my car white I just got this car had to put thermostat it a good car

Hey im looking for my first car do you think that an avenger would be good for a first car

“What makes an R/T an R/T?” A Hemi 2.0 V8 engine, that’s what it makes it an R/T. Pentastar 3.6L is what they put on charger/challenger base models AKA “muscle cars” without muscle.

I have a 2013 SXT with the 3.6 V6 and it has those wheels

I got a 2012 and it runs great just hit 100k miles so far I just change a battery and tires

The only problem i have with my 2012 Avenger RT is passing smog every two years.

How much is it

How much?

Very good condition for being almost a decade old and 120k miles! The next owner should have an awesome reliable car👍

Beautiful car I have the se but wish u had the RT. I do have srt rims on my so it only looks fast. Also It was a huge mistake from dodge to cut the Average.

How much are u selling it for

I love my Avenger. It's been off the road for over a year now because it's been in limp mode. I have no clue how to fix it so I'm thinking about just getting a new one

Sxt plus has only red stitching

how much are u selling it for or have u sold it already?

I have a 2012 Dodge Avenger for 4,700 with 120,000 miles (first car btw I’m 18)

The water sound is due to low coolant

at 20:24 your dash lights are flickering

You mean 2013?

go get my tires balanced noted

10 years ago

I'll pass do not want the V6. It has some common problems that are expensive to repair. And V6 equipped Avengers tend to have more transmission problems then the four cylinder equipped cars.

Plus you weigh a lot and are pretty huge so you would have a quicker quarter mile if your 150 lbs like me

paula car dodge avenger

6:45 into the video and you have done nothing but try to sell the car. I was hoping you'd tell me how it ran and what problems to expect. If you did talk about the problems, you took way too long to get to them. If it had been a 15-minute video, I would have stuck around, but I've got better things to do with my time then to hear about who caused the stains in your car and red stitching. Put the important stuff first and make a much shorter video.

lol you went to race that junk embarrassing

How much did you want for the car