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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  Possible Lemon - 2010 Dodge Journey
  By hfr - January 4 - 11:55 pm

  I bought 2009 Journey in August 2009. Within months, the sun roof leaked and it took several times to fix it. At about 20K the brakes had to be replaced. Dealership replaced at no cost (thankfully). At about 40K the tires had to be replaced (19" tires are very expensive). Driver side passenger door filled up with water because tape was left on the drain holes. Had to have PTU gasket replaced recently. Cruise control looses 5 to 7 mph going up hill before it increases speed. Dealership says this is normal. Transmission has a delay in accelleration. Dealership cant find anything wrong. Currently have 49,000 miles on car. Really like the way it drives and handles but not happy repairs.

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  It dodges everything but the gas station - 2010 Dodge Nitro
  By mazagod - December 31 - 10:12 pm

  I have been driving this vehicle for about three months and I am not happy about it. I am a tall guy, and I hit my head every time I get into the car. There are huge blind spots, and if someone is sitting next to you in the front passenger seat, it is very hard to see out the window. The engine is not powerful at all, but it does guzzle the gas. Sometimes I put the gas pedal down, and the car actually seems to slow down. There is no storage in the car at all. Dont even get me started on how bad the gas milage is, SUV or not. I would not buy this car again.

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  Love at first, but then.... - 2008 Dodge Caliber
  By kytrailhikers - December 28 - 8:38 pm

  Got this car for ease of getting child in & out of car seat. Worked great for that & love the comfort and look of. Once 40,000 miles hit, the problems began. Started hearing loud clanking noise when driving on highway. I read numerous complaints about the Caliber having suspension problems. I panicked & took it right in. I didnt want to worry about my child riding in this car. Today they tell me they cannot find what is causing it... said the suspension is tight BUT suspect it is the bushings. They didnt want to take a part yet so has to get worse. AND my oxygen sensor quit so paid to get that fixed. I was not expecting all this so soon. Now I will continue to worry.

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  The Best Car Ive Ever Owned - 2001 Dodge Intrepid
  By miss_m - December 27 - 12:01 pm

  I went to Dodge to get a new-used car as a Christmas present for myself and after not getting approved for a couple of cars that I was looking at, they had approved me for the 2001 Dodge Intrepid with only 75K miles and a 2-yr warranty. At first, I was not interested. Boy, am I glad that I took a second look at it the next day! After all, I was tired of driving my 1996 Pontiac Bonneville with no heat or air conditioning. With living in the desert, a/c and heat is a must! Besides, after putting about $1,300 worth of new parts and labor into the car, I was tired of dealing with my Bonneville. Im so happy to be a new owner of my 01 Dodge Intrepid!

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  I wish Chrysler still made them8-( - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By jaidee22 - December 26 - 5:50 pm

  I bought my 2003 Neon SXT in May 2003. I still drive it every day - it has been the BEST car I have ever had. Aside from normal maintainence, it owes me nothing. 132,000 and still going..LOVE my car. Still gets 33-35mpg, faithfully. And NO RUST. I wish they still made this car. I have been looking for another one and cannot find one...huuummm wonder why?? Because they are keepers, thats why!

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  2011 Dodge Charger - 2011 Dodge Charger
  By jaymo1 - December 26 - 2:44 pm

  I just picked up a new 2011 Dodge Charger. Wow! Incredible vehicle! Great MPG 29.5 MPG from DC to Baltimore, fast (292HP), easy to use 8.3" touch screen controls heated seats and you can pause and rewind live music (Sirius) playing on the radio, handles the rough roads in DC and Baltimore like a very expensive car, old school power steering - you can make a U-turn with one hand, very quiet interior, black headliner. The racetrack/LED rear lights look very nice at night. One of the best vehicles that I have ever driven! 10 out of 10! People keep stopping me at red lights, gas stations, asking me how much it costs and how I like it. Pretty cool for a base medel, entry level vehicle (27H)

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  Thank you, Dodge. - 2009 Dodge Avenger
  By gutterballgt - December 25 - 8:11 pm

  My Avenger may well have saved my life yesterday. Christmas Eve, and an old man with hearing aids nearly caused a head-on collision with me by veering into on-coming traffic in an ill-timed attempt to make a left. Between my seatbelt and the airbag, I barely felt the collision (I managed to swerve enough to clonk into his rear quarterpanel as he turned) and am not sore at all today. Plus, this car is built like a tank because, despite the harsh hit, only the front end was damaged. Not sure how much yet (it being Christmas, the insurance companies arent out for blood yet), but I know its not nearly as much as it probably should be. So thank you, Dodge. Thank you for my wonderful car.

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  worth the price... of my base Journey - 2010 Dodge Journey
  By carmudgin - December 23 - 2:49 am

  Ive had the Journey 6 months and have put 23,000km on it. It has had no issues, everything has worked perfectly so far. Im glad we got the 4cyl with gas prices nowadays. My other car is a Chevy Tahoe and the Journey is way better on gas, way smoother ride. It handles bumps extremely well, and when i need to weave in and out of traffic while doing 130km/hr it handles great. I feel confident driving it. The car feels like a more expensive vehicle and Im sure thats because it was designed by Mercedes while they owned Chrysler.

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  Computer problem? - 2009 Dodge Avenger
  By vegilover - December 21 - 12:47 pm

  This is my second ND winter wtih this vehicle. It gets around all right, however on the first below zero day the computer gets confused and the entire car dies. this has happened both winters. The dealer claims it just needed a computer update but thats not adding up for me. Has anyone else had this problem? My warranty is almost up and Im very concerned it will happen again next winter. Its fine once they reset the computer. Very odd!!!!!

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  Do not buy this car - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By jander19 - December 19 - 8:24 pm

  I do love the way this car looks and the pick up the car has. However that is not enough to make up for the stupid little things that have broken on my car. My gas tank needs to be completely replaced now and it will cost me about nine hundred dollars by the end at the low end cost range!! This car is definetely not worth buying and in fact I will never buy a dodge car again b/c of all the issues I have had from this car. Please consider your options before buying this car. Do not get sucked into how the car looks b/c the quality is just not there.