Driving the Dodge Avenger is a rewarding experience, especially when you keep in mind the sticker price. It's extremely solid now after the chassis improvement, and that solidity translates into a quiet cabin, very good suspension isolation, and accurate steering inputs and response.

The 3.5-liter V6 engine in the R/T version we spent the most time in was smooth, quiet, powerful and responsive, now equipped with a drive-by-wire electronic throttle that smoothes out the bumps. At a rating of 235 horsepower, this engine is well below the state of the art in power production for 3.5-liter V6s, but the ultra-smooth six-speed transmission's ratios help the car to feel light and sprightly. Dodge officials said it would deliver 16 mpg City and 26 mpg Highway under the new and stricter EPA mileage rules, about two mpg less than it would measure under the old 2007 rules.

The Avenger offers a very good combination of ride smoothness, control of body roll in corners, straight-ahead stability, and willingness to turn when asked. Compared to the outgoing Stratus, it's in a whole different category of smoothness, quietness over the road, and relatively sporty handling.

On the twisting mountain roads north of Phoenix, the Avenger R/T was a model of good behavior, with typical-for-the-class front-drive understeer, with ride, handing and suspension toward the sporty end of the spectrum, but not far from the middle. Quiet competence personified.

The brakes on the R/T are disc/disc ABS brakes, and they worked extremely well, with a nice, progressive action and pedal feel, but be aware other models use front disc and rear drum brakes without ABS (SE), and disc/drum brakes with ABS (SXT), making disc/disc ABS brakes an optional extra, and worth the money.