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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  So far so good - 2007 Dodge Caravan
  By Hepp - November 15 - 11:48 am

  I have owned over a dozen vans in my life, from every American manufacturer. This van has proven to be the most economical one. Reasonably priced to start, the gas millage is decent at 23 MPG combined city hwy, and Insurance cost are low. With 15k have had no issues except a less than smooth transmission downshift which the dealer says is normal.

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  Should have asked a driver part 3 - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By Acajin - November 14 - 4:10 pm

  Well here it is March 24th 2010. Ive now had this vehicle for 15 months. It has 34,000 km on it and I still love this car. I had to change the brakes at 30,000 km but I got the repair shop to install aftermarket ceramic pads. This winter the power steering hose busted (twice) it was -26c when this happened and the dealer told me that it was due to the cold weather thickening the power steering fluid. The hoses are made cheap and they cant take the extra pressure. Warranty covered the problem. Get this, the best mileage I could get driving 100 kph on a flat road was 7.2 L/100 km, awesome! I usually average about 8.3 L/100 km (34 imp. mpg) on the highway and 10.5 L/100 km in the city.

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  Another Caravan! - 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Sal - November 14 - 1:36 am

  This is our 3rd (1990, 1998) Chrysler minivan and by far the best. We love the quad seating, the video system, sound system, and driveability. We were initially concerned with the transmission as it "shuddered" between 1st and 2nd gear but have taken it to two seperate dealerships and we were assured that this was normal. Something about the transmission having a built in memory to the primary drivers driving habits. My wife is now the primary driver and we havent noticied the "shudder" effect as often. This van was purchased used from a dealership that acquired it from a rental company.

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  Good while it lasted. - 2001 Dodge Stratus
  By Anomaly21 - November 13 - 10:58 pm

  This car (the coupe) is just a Mitsubishi Eclipse with a different outer body. Its fun to drive and I still got complements even though its an 01. I traded it about a month ago with 80K miles. The transmission went without any warning whatsoever, the interior was falling apart (dash cracking in sun, door handle breaking) and paint on the door was chipping. This was upseting because I felt like I was fighting a loosing battle in tring to keep it nice, by the end it looked like I treated it like crap which was not the case. It was fun to drive with good performance from the Eclipse 3.0 200hp v6. It however kind of stunk in the winter even though it was front wheel drive and had decent tires.

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  Daytona Charger - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Mikey C - November 9 - 1:48 pm

  Wow. I know its just a pretty version of the regular R/T, but their is just something about this car when you drive down the street in its orange and black colors. The engine growling, and knowing that everyone cant help but look in interest. Sure, its no SRT-8, but the mileage difference in MPG makes up for that. I am seeing abour 16 city and a cool 25 on highway. The pick up and go is strong and nice, and the interior is very comfy and roomy. I had a small Trans prob right away, but the warranty took care of that and no probs since. Good job Dodge!

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  Very disappointing - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By Jeffrey Dunn - November 9 - 12:30 am

  My wife and I are very disappointed with our "dream" car. Its in the shop every month , even now over Christmas (10 days) and have hardly driven it for we have lost confidence in it. It was not worth the $30,000 price to sit in our yard leaking oil along with a dead battery. I think a Buick Lucerne would have been a better choice.

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  Neon SRT-4 - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By Whiteacrsrt05 - November 7 - 11:32 am

  This car has been a blast to drive. I have hit a tree doing 80mph in the left rear, and walked away with no problems. I used to own a nissan sentra SER Spec V....I thought that car was fun untill I test drove my Neon, Fun factor of 10!

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  SRT - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By mrp - November 7 - 5:43 am

  This is the most amazing vehicle I have ever driven/owned. It does as little or as much as you would ever want to do. It does however have some blind spots. In addition to this, I have noticed a whine, sounding like a turbocharger, possibly coming from the transmission, as I pull in to my garage. Hopefully nothing serious. If it isnt, I will be very extremely pleased with the vehicle.

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  Already Issues! - 2004 Dodge Intrepid
  By Heidi - November 6 - 12:47 pm

  I just purchased the 2004 Dodge Intrepid for my daughter (it is her first vehicle) 2 weeks ago and at first she noticed she had issues starting it. I thought with 38,000 miles, it would be a reliable car but it has stopped on her while she was driving twice now! Found the camshaft sensor needed to be replaced. We also are looking at the crank sensor but I am frustrated with the reliablity of a 2004 car with low miles. My husband was upset that we purchased a Dodge and I regret our decision as well.

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  Good van - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Eduardo Mondragon - November 5 - 3:26 pm

  My reference point is my previous 2006 Town & Country. The 2008 Dodge Caravan certainly includes lots of nice features I didnt have in my previous van. Such as the dual DVD system, shades on second and third row windows (optional) and a more ergonomic interior, in general. So far my major complaint is about the quality of the assembly/manufacturing of the body panels. I had a huge gap between the panels of the drivers side doors and the front door (drivers side) has to be slamed or it wont close. After three visits to the dealer the problem has not been fully fixed. The latch system has been replaced and several adjustments have been made. The gap is gone but I still have to slam the door