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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  Awsome - 2002 Dodge Dakota
  By Bogey69 - October 14 - 2:00 am

  Best truck I have owned yet. Went looking for a new one this summer and was not happy. They have nothing like this out there. Ford and Chevy gave up making Rangers and S-10s. Toyota has a smaller interior. This truck has been excellent in upper Michigan. In snow and off road it handles like a champ. Never had any major issues yet and has been a joy to drive. I plan on keeping it for another 80K. Why spend money on the new junk! The 4.7l V8 really goes and has tons of power that can tow a 24 ft trailer with no problem.

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  Problem child - 2010 Dodge Charger
  By tracersummit - October 14 - 2:00 am

  Owned this rig for less than 2 months. Have barely 1500 miles on it and the sun roof doesnt work, the tire sensors flash on the dash board, the passenger window fell off the track and it has a vibration the the dealer cant find. All these problems have been looked at 3 times and still no satisfaction. As soon as my warranty runs out, Im going back to a quality German made car!

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  This is Love - 1999 Dodge Avenger
  By JusBringIt - October 13 - 2:00 am

  I bought this fancy car over 230 miles away from home in Pennsylvania. Ive been through the best and the worst with this car and every time I turn it on, it returns the favor. Ive made some additions over the 3.7 years Ive own the car, however nothing that takes away from the original showmanship. There were very few problems with this car and most of them were self inflicted. The only issue I have is that I dont have a manual transmission. Keep up the maintenance and the car will give you years of service. This car drives even better than it did the day I bought it. It ages like wine.

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  Beware buying Dodge - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By dld06981 - October 13 - 2:00 am

  Ive been recently looking up the paint that Dodge/Chrysler uses to paint their vehicles and it seems that there is a pretty good shot that you will have paint bubbling and/or fading. My black car got so bad with the Gray spots that I finally took a can of black spray paint and filled in the spots. It looks bad now but not as terrible as it was. When I asked my dealership to fix the problem they said it was my problem, that the vehicle had to be buffed out. What a joke, it seems like this error in paint happens all the time with this company. They are aware of their faulty paint and continually use it the most recent vehicle I read about with this problem was a 2008. Please beware when buying Dodge

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  Ultilty with comfort - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By D.R. - October 13 - 2:00 am

  Owned 99 Dodge truck for 10 years. Time for a change. Truck ran great 150,000. Staying with Dodge. This journey is a blast. I love all the room it has. Light construction projects are breeze, all the seats lay flat for hauling 8 ft. 2x4, s and can still close the hatch. Family of 5 no problem with 3row seating. Interior nice, gps and sound system, awesome. No regrets.

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  Buysomethingelse - 2009 Dodge Challenger
  By 09SEG1Kover - October 12 - 2:00 am

  Awesome design, blast from the past. Just wish they put more thought into building this car. Weve had it for almost 3 yrs and have 18,000 miles on her. We belong to several car clubs amd keep the car in SHOW condition at any one moment. The plastic black trim pieces have all been replaced due to discoloring and warping. The dash has been replaced due to no support around front passenger air bag. And the dash is sinking again in less than a yr after they fixed it the first time. Just brought it back to dealership, and they wont fix it again. They say its just the design. The door sill, hood, and truck areas always get wet and dirty from poor design of seals. Way under powered V6.

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  Forewarned! - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By Tara - October 12 - 2:00 am

  This car has been interesting to say the least. I like the design and gas mileage but as I am writing this my car is having its back brakes replaced after last week having the transmission replaced. This past spring we had the front breaks replaced. What will be next. I contacted Chrysler and they have no recalls! Clearly there is a huge problem with this vehicle. Our dealership has been wonderful. I will contact Dodge with a formal complaint along with consumer protection. Any advice would be appreciated. I miss my Pacifica that I traded in for this car! If Chrysler does not address this we will be purchasing a GM product, unfortunate in that we have owned over 10 Chrysler vehicles.

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  love it - 2004 Dodge Dakota
  By zack - October 11 - 2:00 am

  I have a 2004 dakota with the 4.7 v8 it has a lot of power towing wise its great i pulled 12,000 pounds and the truck doesnt struggle at all. But i have a problem with the window when you close it it will fall and not go back up dose this happened to a lot of people with this truck? But I can tell you its the best truck so far I had it has 147,000 miles on it and it still runs like a beast. But gas wise it drinks a lot but if you drive on the highway it will do great I drove it to new jersey and I only filled up 3 times and I was pulling a trailer so I can say that its a awesome truck and I love driving it.

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  Love my Nitro! - 2010 Dodge Nitro
  By Scott - October 11 - 2:00 am

  Ive had my Nitro for about three months now and its the best SUV Ive ever owned. It looks great, drives smooth, and reacts very nicely when driving at high speeds! The only thing I dont have is the cruise control option. I will have it added in the near future.

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  exterior mirrors - 2010 Dodge Nitro
  By owner - October 11 - 2:00 am

  I am 5 ft 2, the driving part of this SUV isnt the problem, its the outside mirrors. Left turn or right turn it doesnt matter I lose view. I have been trying for a month to get Chrysler and the car lot to help me remedy this, I cant get help, I do have case numbers with both, they say there are no replacement mirrors and they cant put a power seat in, so now I must drive a car Im scared to drive, this is truly a problem that should be in a recall! So nothing bad has to happen and then they put a recall out. Please dont contact me, Ive already talked to everyone