Overview & Reviews

One of America's most storied automotive brands, Dodge has been around since the early days of the auto industry. In the past couple of decades, it has revitalized itself to be a producer of aggressively styled and performance-oriented vehicles.

Two brothers, Horace and John Dodge, began the Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicle company in 1914, after having worked as manufacturers of bicycles and automotive parts. Their first vehicle was a touring car that proved a fast favorite with car buyers; it was soon joined by a roadster and a four-door sedan. By 1917, the company's model line had grown to include trucks. Dodge cars and trucks were used as staff vehicles and ambulances in World War I.

Dodge was briefly owned by a banking firm and subsequently sold by its new owner to the Chrysler Corporation in 1928. From there, the brand slowly evolved into the division responsible for trucks and performance-oriented cars. Post WWII, Dodge introduced vehicles like the military-inspired Power Wagon truck, Hemi-powered Coronet and the Royal Lancer; in addition, the manufacturer began offering dealer-installed air-conditioning.

Vehicles like the Dodge Dart and the Coronet kept the manufacturer in American driveways throughout the 1960s. That decade also saw the launch of one of Dodge's most iconic vehicles, the Charger. Dodge's muscle car was based on the Coronet platform, and featured a fastback roof line, hidden headlamps and a full-width taillamp panel. Best of all, the Charger could pack one heck of a wallop under the hood. A 318-cubic-inch V8 was standard, but buyers seeking maximum brawn could upgrade to a 426-cubic-inch, 425-hp Hemi V8. The company also introduced a Mustang-fighting pony car, called the Challenger, in 1970.

As with other American auto manufacturers, Dodge's fortunes started to slip in the '70s due to changing tastes and increased competition. The company was saved from extinction in the early '80s thanks to government loans and the sales success of its Omni and Aries economy cars (the former an attempted copy of the VW Rabbit). But 1984 was when Dodge made its mark in the history books with the introduction of the wildly popular Caravan. Ideal for families and able to seat up to seven, the space-efficient Caravan started a whole new vehicle segment -- the minivan.

The early '90s saw the company wow the public with the V10-powered Viper roadster and an all-new Ram pickup that set a new standard for big-rig-like styling. A few years later, Dodge came to be part of DaimlerChrysler, a result of the merger of the German company Daimler (owner of Mercedes-Benz) and Chrysler.

The merger never really worked, however, and Daimler sold Chrysler and Dodge to a private equity firm in 2007. Soon after, America's economy slid into recession. Due to poor sales and debt, Chrysler had to declare bankruptcy. The federal government intervened and eventually Dodge came under control of Fiat, a European automaker known for its small cars, an area where Dodge's entries had been roundly criticized for mediocre build quality and unrefined performance.

More recent years have seen Dodge concentrate on the more practical vehicles in its lineup, making notable improvements to the performance and overall quality of its midsize Avenger sedan and Journey SUV entries. Dodge also spun off its truck line, making it a separate Ram brand. But make no mistake; Dodge is still considered Chrysler's performance division thanks to cars like the Challenger and Charger. Time will tell how successful Dodge's latest makeover is.

User Reviews:

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  Dodge Intrepid 1998 ES - 1998 Dodge Intrepid
  By Traci - June 11 - 2:00 am

  I have had this car for four years now and it has 86,000 miles on it. The only problems I can say that I have had are the brakes. I have had the rotors turned several times and then replaced. My brake pads also seem to be replaced almost annually. This is the only complaint. Everything else has been great!

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  BUYER BEWARE! - 1996 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By dissatisfied - June 11 - 2:00 am

  This has proved to be the WORST vehichle I have ever owned. I have had to rebuild the transmission, replace the fuel pump, water pump,and battery. That was all within two months of buying the van, when it was 4 years old and only had 54,000 miles. Now I am faced with a bad A/C, a squaling powersteering pump, and a leaking gas tank. What ever you do, protect yourself and do not let someone inflict one of these vehicles on you or your family!

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  Great Car - 2001 Dodge Intrepid
  By cincy80 - June 11 - 2:00 am

  I love my Intrepid. For your money you cannot get more. The power is awesome and the handling is great.

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  problems to be expected - 1998 Dodge Durango
  By chickie - June 11 - 2:00 am

  At 58,000 miles, I spent $2500 on getting the whole rear end replaced. All rear axle bearings,differential, trac lock assembly, etc. had to be replaced. The ABS light was diagnosed 3xs (at my expence)as incorrect programming. Until finally the diagnosis was a 560.00$ anti lock brake controller which is on national back order. Think they will do a recall? Ha. Strange thing is that our 97 Dakota has the same problem. Hmmm. Another consistency with our 2 Dodge vehicles is the evaporator pads for the A/C went (only 24K miles on the Dakota). Cost to replace, only an additional $900.00.

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  not good - 2002 Dodge Caravan
  By wendy - June 11 - 2:00 am

  I will not buy any dodge or crysler vehicle.

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  NitroLover - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By NitroLover - June 10 - 1:36 pm

  Love the bold design of the vehicle and the sleekness of the hand brake. Smooth ride, even though I was first told it would handle like a truck, it doesnt.

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  Fun Little Car - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By fun little car - June 10 - 5:06 am

  My partner and I chose the Caliber over the Toyota Matrix. More comfort and upgrades without all the extra cost. We have enjoyed it. It is a peppy little car on the take off and it runs very quiet. Much leg room for our 15 yr old. whos 6ft. tall, and room to spare for the family dog. Love the split seat feature, and love the glove box keeping the drinks cold for long trips.

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  ? - 2001 Dodge Durango
  By Ihatedurango - June 10 - 2:00 am

  You feel every bump in the road. This vehicle for some reason came with front disc brake, no rear brakes. Terrible if you drive in stop and go traffic. I feel Ive been taking ripped off when I traded in my 97 Durango thinking I would get a more luxurious model with leather seats, Infinity surround speakers. But instead, I got this vehicle for 2 and a half more years.

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  Great truck, could be a bit better - 2002 Dodge Dakota
  By Rook - June 10 - 2:00 am

  (V8 Manual) I have been taking this truck all over the south, on highways, on dirt roads, a bit off road, and I love it. Powerful even uphill, very smooth and quite silent, except at high speed when the wind noise gets a bit too loud. The bed is adequate, but I really missed the extra .7 of a foot. I liked the manual transfercase better than the electric one. I tried a toyota tundra and it felt smaller than the Dakota, and I couldnt get a manual transmission for the V8. Why do some manunfacturers take the manual transmission away from V8s??

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  transmission trouble - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By jmm - June 9 - 2:43 am

  We had the Journey one day and every time we braked the car would feel like it jumped into another gear. To make a long story short, the car had less than 300 miles and the transmission needs to be replaced. Yes, that is right. We requested the dealer please just give us a new vehicle but they explained since it was already titled in our name they cant. We were assured they have the top service center at this dealership. Very dissappointed and upset.