A Dodge Nitro SLT 4×4, seen at a repair shop on a car market in Beijing. The Nitro was dirty and dusty but otherwise in a fine shape, painted in Dodge’s signature orange-red and loaded with chrome.
The Dodge Nitro featured a unique retro-style design with ultra wide wheel arches, a big straight grille, and a boxy cabin. If it was a little smaller, it could be a Tonka®.
Side profile is very strong, with a blacked-out C-pillar and darkened windows. The Dodge Nitro was only manufactured from 2007 until 2012. There was no successor. The Nitro was closely related to the second generation Jeep Liberty. Both cars shared platform, engines, and even the hard points. Still, Dodge and Jeep manages to give their cars a distinctive design.
The Nitro apparently belonged to a wedding company.
The interior was very American, with large swaths of black plastics and lots of space. The leather seats and red trim make the place a bit more special. The steering wheel has some red trim too and the instrument cluster, with three separate dials, looks almost sporty.
The Dodge Nitro was available with 3 engines: a 3.7 liter V6, a 4.0 liter V6, and a 2.8 liter diesel l4. The SLT model, like the one we have here, had the 3.7 liter motor under the bonnet. It had an output of 210 hp and 320 Nm. The engine was mated to a four-speed automatic sending horses to all wheels.
The Nitro was not officially sold in China but some examples arrived here via the gray market, imported directly by Chinese car shops from US and Mexican dealers. Over the years I have probably seen a dozen of these big American SUVs on the road in Beijing.