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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  Big disappointment - 2011 Dodge Journey
  By raychel2561 - August 23 - 11:20 pm

  Bought 2010 Dodge Journey 8 months ago. In the last 3 months having problem with car, wont turn over. Reacts like a dead battery but everything works, radio, door chimes, lights. Neighbor tried to jumpstart but car still wouldnt start. Car finally started. Had WIN module replaced due to recall and thought that would fix the problem but 4 weeks later, car would not crank again. Took 30 minutes and over 5 tries then car finally turned over. Batter tested ok. Dealer say they cant find problem and dont think it is the starter. This is my 5th and last Dodge. I dont plan on buying another one. Too many complaints. Dont buy a Journey!

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  My wonderful P.O.S. - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By smalerie - August 23 - 10:42 am

  First my car was in the shop about 13 months after I bought it. March 2010 for the recall of the drivers side switch for the windows. A month later we noticed there was a foul smell. It got so bad it made me sick and any passenger. Turning recycled air on was the only way to get rid of it. My AWD transfer unit was leaking onto the exhaust! Covered under warranty no! $300 later brought it home. 5 days later stranded on a hill AWD unit had dislodged itself. They wanted $1,500 to fix. Called customer service and dropped it to $500. It was a manufacture defect but they wouldnt come out and say it. Changed brakes after begining of summer last year need to again. Windows stopped working again!

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  Update to my review from 8/6/10 - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By jagon91 - August 13 - 6:20 pm

  Fell in love with the car and my only problem then was the hard shift in the transmission. Now not only does it do that all the time but my mpgs have gotten worse. My steering column has gotten stuck while driving around a corner under a bridge which in turn messed up my turn signal lever. Also the sentry key is a joke. New battery every 2 weeks for that thing. not cheap at $8 a piece. The key died and I got stranded over an hour away from home in a small town that had only had a gas station. Talked to dodge about my problems but they wouldnt do anything to help at all. They wanted me to replace my key for $245! Never will I buy from dodge again.

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  Poor Head Restraint Design blocks rear window - 2011 Dodge Journey
  By joel72 - July 24 - 12:36 pm

  After delivery of the Journey, I began noticing poor design issues that affected comfort and efficient use of interior space. However, my main concern was focused on a "safety" issue. The very large second row Head Restraints prevented a driver from having a good and safe view of traffic from the rear window. After a week or so, I removed these Head Restraints... and driving immediately became much easier and less stressful. It was now easier to see other cars in heavy traffic. It was easier when backing up. However, people in the second row would not have head protection. I eventually noticed that similar vehicle designed by other manufactures were designed with a much lower Head Restraint... like the RAVA-4 for example. An automotive shop here in Charlotte said they could reduce the size of the 10" head restraints to 4"... so they would be similar to those in the other vehicles. The price for both would be $500. This absolutely had to be done. Because this is an important "safety issue", Chrysler Customer Service was contacted for reimbursement of the Head Restraint alteration. Basically, they told me that I need to contact the Dealer (Keffer Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep)... and then "Keffer" would tell me that "Chrysler" should do this. This went back and forth a number of times. Eventually Chrysler Customer Service said that neither the manufacturer nor the dealer can have any part in this alteration for legal liability reasons. Yet at the same time both Chrysler and Keffer agreed that what I was asking for made a lot of good sense. And at the same time similar vehicles from other manufactures, such as the RAVA-4, had head restraints similar to what I needed for my Journey. All this was very frustrating, insensitive, illogical... and very wrong to a loyal Chrysler customer. To get the 2011 Dodge Journey, I traded in my 1994 Plymouth Grand Voyager which I had kept in great condition. In many ways, it was a very enjoyable, useful and comfortable car. I expected the Dodge Journey to be at least as satisfying. This has not been my experience... and Chrysler does not seem to care much about efficient design, comfort, safety... or satisfying customers anymore. I am sorry I bought the Journey. I would not recommend this vehicle to anyone.

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  Think Twice - 2011 Dodge Journey
  By hayesrbeam - July 14 - 3:25 pm

  refrigerated compartment does not do work, very compact, you can touch the passanger side door from the driver seat! not good if you are planning on using the third row on a regular basis. seats are hard to move. No storage when third seat is up. NO pick up when the A/C is on. The floor shifter is easily moved out of gear, yes, while driving I accidentally moved it into reverse! When I called Dodge to check on a possible recall I pretty much got told I was on my own. As a side note, the entire car is plastic, everything and the seats are extremely hard to clean, get the leather! If you looking to downsize to save gas money, this is not the car for you. Horrible gas mileage.

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  Quiet and comfrotable, but several simple downsides - 2010 Dodge Avenger
  By rlw6 - July 9 - 7:35 pm

  Ive been using this rental for several weeks. Overall comfortable and quiet, but: The trunk lid, with its spoiler, is very heavy and requires both hands free to lift it. The high lip of the trunk combined with the long rear window means that loading the trunk is limited to small things. The hood release is very poorly located and was broken by a previous user, but my left foot caught constantly on that lever on exiting the car. The A/C frequently required turning the fan to full to get it to kick in. Once working it could cool very well at 60 mph, but became an oven at traffic lights.

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  Stay away from this car - 2002 Dodge Intrepid
  By byrdnest - July 3 - 4:04 pm

  We bought this car with 57K miles on it. Most of our driving is highway driving. At about 122K the engine went. I noticed the oil light was on and immediately took it to my mechanic. Due to a poor oil pan design, oil sludge had built up in the engine. Chrylser was aware of the problem. If you get this car make sure you keep oil change records. I was reimbursed by Chrysler for about 1/3 of the cost of the engine replacement. It was very expensive to fix. We paid almost as much for the engine as we did for the car. I am car shopping right now and will not buy another Dodge product.

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  Do not purchase this vehicle - 2009 - 4 Cyclinder Model - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By barry_72 - June 27 - 10:37 am

  Brakes are horrible. Just after 12k miles, front brakes had to be replaced. I replaced with Autozone pads (lifetime warranty) and those lasted for another 20k miles better than the mopars. Im on my 3rd set of brakes using Autozone pads which offer free replacements. Rear brakes had to be replaced at 38k miles. Ive never had a car in which the rear brakes had to be addressed before 100k miles. Dont let Chrysler touch your brakes. $30 for your first pair of Autozone brand and they last longer with LIFETIME warranty even with normal wear. Chrysler will just put the same sub standard parts on your car for replacement that youll have to pay dearly to replace.

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  My 1st 98 was better than the 2nd 98 YES I bought a 2nd one for my dogs and this one east money like a pig. - 1998 Dodge Caravan
  By pianomann - June 23 - 5:34 am

  I have been pumping $300-500 a month in repairs and replacement parts since Christmas Eve 2010,,,it has 98 800 it us going to get paid off in 1 lump hopefully and it is going to another Charity supporter I have HAD IT with Chrysler and wouldnt take another 1 if it was FREE !!

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  Weaknessses in the Standard 3.7 L V6 4 Speed Auto - 2011 Dodge Nitro
  By badger377 - June 21 - 7:44 pm

  I recently rented a 2011 Dodge Nitro in a 10 day trip from Las Vegas and up into the mountains of Utah. The good - the car did not overheat, it was reasonbaly comfortable and roomy. Gas mileage was about what is rated. The bad includes the following: Under the load of two adults, two kids and two suitcases, the engine stuggled each time the air conditioning was turned on. The temperature conditions were between 70 - 100 F. Each time the AC unit was turned on under any load you would get a studdering similar to an alternator going out. I found thid quite annoying and would try the larger engine model before buying this. Try before you buy!