The Dodge Caliber SRT-4 is set to hit showrooms with Dodge’s own special blend of marketing and hype. It seems like it was just yesterday that they praised the upcoming Caliber SRT-4 as a 300hp dream that would leave its predecessor car lengths behind.

“With 300 horsepower under the hood, the Dodge Caliber SRT4 will dominate the sport-compact market,” said George Murphy, Senior Vice President — Global Marketing, Chrysler Group.

However, as the pudding hits the spoon we find the new SRT-4 has slipped back 20hp leaving one of its more marketed ingredients a little short on Ka-Pow.

While the 280hp and 260 torque may not be sweet music to the ears they are still fairly respectable numbers in the class of cars the Caliber is associated to. And while harping on the horsepower rating of the new SRT-4 it is still a favorable leap from its 230hp predecessor. Inspite of its inclusion in the SRT family and the high hopes at Dodge it does not seem likely that the Caliber will survive on the market as long as the Neon version, but there are always those who will think otherwise.

To view more “spy photo” captures of the new Dodge marketing for the Caliber SRT-4 head to the Caliber Forums. To compare the results of the production SRT-4 with what was promised back in February head to the AutoChannel.