The Dodge Colt is a subcompact car manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors and marketed by Dodge for model years 1971 to 1994 as a captive import. Rebadged variants included the Plymouth Champ and Plymouth Colt, both were marketed by Plymouth.
The Colt was initially a rebadged variant of the rear-wheel drive Galant and Lancer families before shifting to the smaller front-wheel drive Mitsubishi Mirage subcompacts in 1979.
First generation (1971–1973)<span class="anchor" id="1"></span><span class="anchor" id="First"></span><span class="anchor" id="1971"></span>
alt=|left|thumb|1973 Dodge Colt HT Coupe rear view
Introduced in 1970 as a 1971 model, the first generation Dodge Colt was a federalized first-generation Mitsubishi Colt Galant. Available as a 2-door pillared coupe, 2-door hardtop coupe, 4-door sedan, and 5-door wagon, the Colt had a 4-cylinder engine. The unibody layout was traditional, front engine and rear-wheel drive with MacPherson struts in front and a live rear axle. Standard transmission was a 4-speed manual, with a 3-speed automatic being an option. The engine was initially rated for , but dropped to in 1972 when manufacturers revised the method of measuring horsepower from gross to SAE net. For 1973, a GT hardtop coupe model was added featuring rally stripes, sport wheels, and a center console amongst other features. The Dodge Colt was Chrysler's response to the AMC Gremlin, Ford Pinto, and Chevrolet Vega. As a captive import from Mitsubishi, the Colt also competed directly with other Japanese imports, such as the Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Datsun 1200.
Second generation (1974–1977)<span class="anchor" id="2"></span><span class="anchor" id="Second"></span><span class="anchor" id="1974"></span>
Based on the platform of the first generation model, the Galant sedans and coupes received a new, somewhat rounder body in 1973, while wagons continued with the old body with a facelifted front end. The new version, with single headlights rather than the doubles of the previous generation, became the 1974 Dodge Colt in the US, available in the same bodystyles as the first one. The base engine also remained the same, but a larger G52B "Astron" engine became optionally available, originally only in combination with the automatic transmission. Later, the 2-liter engine became available with a manual transmission as well and was made standard fitment in the GT coupe. The 2-liter engine developed at 5500 rpm, with the California version making two fewer horsepower. Ratings varied from for the smaller one and for the larger engine in different publications and across the years.
A four-speed manual or three-speed automatic remained available, although the original Borg-Warner automatic transmission was replaced by Chrysler's own Torqueflite unit in the 2-liter version.
In Canada, the second-generation Dodge Colt was rebadged as the Plymouth Cricket for the 1974 and 1975 model years — not to be confused with the rebadged Hillman Avenger, marketed in the United States for model years 1971-1973 without success. All Canadian Crickets for model years 1974-1975 wore the grille from the 1974-1977 Dodge Colt station wagons. All Colt body styles were shared with the Cricket, with the Cricket equivalent of the Colt GT marketed as the Cricket Formula S. These second-generation, Canada-only Crickets were rebadged as Plymouth Colts for 1976.
<gallery widths=200 heights=140>
Dodge Colt 2nd gen cp.jpg|Dodge Colt Coupe; side profile
1978 Dodge Colt wagon.jpg|Lightly modified Dodge Colt wagon, with the larger, post-1975 bumpers
</gallery>
Third generation (1977–1979)<span class="anchor" id="3"></span><span class="anchor" id="Third"></span><span class="anchor" id="1977"></span>
The third-generation Dodge Colt effectively comprised two lines: coupes and sedans were of a smaller, Lancer-based series, and the station wagons were based on the new Mitsubishi Galant Sigma. In late 1976, for the 1977 model year, the smaller A70-series Mitsubishi Lancer became the Dodge Colt available in two-door coupe and four-door sedan body designs. While the wheelbase was slightly shorter than that of the second generation Colt, overall length was down from . The new Colt was also referred to as the Dodge Colt "Mileage Maker" to differentiate it from its larger predecessor. Second generation coupe and wagon versions remained on sale for the 1977 model year. The second generation Colt sedans and coupes were replaced by the third generation for the 1980 model year.
Colt Wagon (1978)
For 1978 a new Dodge Colt Wagon appeared - unlike the sedans and coupes, this was not Lancer-based but was instead a rebadged version of the larger Mitsubishi Galant Sigma. The 1.6-litre MCA-Jet four, as per the smaller sedans and coupes, was standard, with the 2.6-litre, Astron engine optional along with a five-speed manual transmission. While the last year for the Lancer-based Colts was 1979, the wagon was continued alongside the front-wheel drive Mirage-based fourth generation models until 1981 when it was effectively replaced by the domestic Dodge Aries K wagon. The larger Mitsubishi Galant Lambda coupé was also marketed as the Dodge Colt Challenger from 1978, although the "Colt" part was later dropped. It shared the chassis as well as the engine options of the Colt wagon.) as a 3-door hatchback in Deluxe or Custom equipment levels. These imports used a Mitsubishi Orion 4G12 1.4-liter overhead-cam, four-cylinder engine at first, which received the highest United States Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy rating in its debut year. This engine was joined by the 1.6-liter, 4G32 Saturn engine at the end of the year.
{| style="float:left; font-size:90%; margin: .4em 1em 0 .2em;" class="wikitable" width="20%"
|-
! colspan="3"|Colt US Sales Unique for North America - the turbocharged Colt/Mirages sold elsewhere had a 1.4-litre engine - this used the fuel-injected 1.6-litre 4G32T engine also seen in the next-generation Colt, providing at 5500 rpm and considerable performance. It, too, featured the eight speed Twin Stick transmission and also received ventilated brakes in front. Both GTS models, available with three-door bodywork only, received a larger gas tank rather than the E and DL's tank. They also featured a sporty appearance with uprated suspension, blacked out trim details, and a sizable front air dam.
| transmission = 3-speed automatic<br />4/5-speed manual
| wheelbase =
| length = Hatch: <br />Sedan:
| width =
| height =
Beginning in September 1984, the fifth generation Dodge/Plymouth Colt was marketed for model year 1985, as a three-door hatchback, a four-door sedan, and as a five-door minivan/station wagon marketed as the Dodge/Plymouth "Colt Vista"; a rebadged Mitsubishi Chariot. A twin-barrel carbureted 1468 cc four was the Colt's base engine, while the 4G32BT turbocharged 1.6-litre already seen in the last model year of the previous Colts was optional on the upscale Premier four-door sedan and standard on the GTS Turbo hatchback. Power for the turbocharged variant remained at 5500 rpm, as for the previous generation. A first for FWD Colts was the availability of a three-box four-door sedan body; it and the 3-door hatchback were available in the US from 1985 to 1988; the 5-door hatchback only in 1985 (and only in base E trim) and the wagon not until 1988. The five-door hatchback was only available for a single model year as Chrysler was worried about this car cannibalizing sales of their own Omni/Horizon. The five-door was replaced by the E sedan for 1986. In Canada, the five-door hatchback was also available in DL trim.
Beginning in January 1988, Chrysler Canada began sourcing Colts from Thailand, assembled there from Japanese parts, planning on bringing in 8,000 cars per annum. Thai Colts were imported to Canada until 1994. From 1988 (and lasting until 1991), the Colt/Mirage was also marketed as the Eagle Vista in Canada.
Early cars have small rectangular headlights in black inserts, while later models received more aerodynamic, flush-fitting units. The facelift model appeared for the 1987 model year, presented in late September 1986. The lowest-priced model was the "E" (for economy), followed by the "DL" and topped by the turbocharged but slow selling Premier and GTS Turbo models. In 1987 the turbocharged engine became an option for the DL hatchback, which replaced the GTS. Power for the turbo versions crept up to for the 1988 model year. The DL Turbo remained available through 1988. 1988 also marked the introduction of the wagon, initially only available with front-wheel drive. Unlike the remainder of the lineup, the 1988 wagon received a fuel injected version of the 1.5-liter engine which produces at 5500 rpm.
The Colt wagon, while never available with the turbocharged engine, did receive a more powerful 1,755 cc engine in the four-wheel-drive version which was added for 1989. The Wagon was only ever offered in DL trim. Unlike the FWD version, the DL 4x4 was not available with an automatic transmission. For the final year of the fifth generation Colt in the United States, the DL model received fully body-colored trim (including bumpers, mirrors, and so on) for what Plymouth referred to as a "dipped look." Dodge and Plymouth Colt sedans returned for 1993–1994 as a variant of the next-generation Eagle Summit. The Dodge/Plymouth Colt, Eagle Summit, and Mitsubishi Mirage of this generation used 1.5 or 1.6-litre inline-four engines.
A model powered by the 1.6-litre 4G61T turbocharged four-cylinder was produced for the 1989 model year only. There are a rumored 1,500 of these special editions to have been produced. The engine was only offered in the Mirage and the Colt GT Turbo, which were distinguished by their ground effects and spoilers (although these parts were also available for a price as add-ons to other model ranges) and by their extra features not normally found on base model ranges such as power seats, power windows, power locks, and power mirrors, special colored interior and seats, as well as a 150 mph/9000 rpm gauge cluster. The Turbo Colt/Mirage Turbo was one of Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best for 1989. A naturally aspirated version of this engine was available for the following years Colt GT, with power down to 113 hp.
thumb|left|Sixth generation Plymouth Colt 3-door
Power of the 1.5-litre 4G15 was up to thanks to multi-point fuel injection. Top speed was .
The Colt Wagon was redesigned in 1991, now based on the RVR, and continued in production until the 1996 model year.
Seventh generation (1993–1995)<span class="anchor" id="7"></span><span class="anchor" id="Seventh"></span><span class="anchor" id="1993"></span>
thumb|left|Plymouth Colt GL coupe
The seventh generation of the Colt was the same as Plymouth's version, and also the same as the Eagle Summit. As usual, they were all simply badge-engineered versions of the Mitsubishi Mirage/Lancer. There was no hatchback version of the seventh generation Dodge/Plymouth Colt. Originally available in Base and GL versions, the ES (with supposedly more sporting intentions) was added later.
1.5 and 1.8 litre four-cylinder engines were used, with the larger engine originally only available to four-door Colts. While the sporting variants offered in the sixth generation were not renewed, the two-door ES was available with the more powerful sixteen-valve SOHC 1.8 for the 1994 model year. The smaller engine has while the larger version has . The previous Colt Wagon (Mitsubishi RVR) continued to be sold until 1996, while the Dodge and Plymouth Colts were replaced by the new Neon after the 1994 model year.