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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  LOVE IT! - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By StratRT - July 11 - 6:30 pm

  Let me start by saying I love this car. I have a 2005 Dodge Stratus coup RT that I bought used, and it is a fantastic car. It came with just under 13000 miles on it. I am now up to about 60,000 and havent had to fix anything on this car, outside of breaks and tires. I get compliments on my car all the time. People love the aggressive and sporty look. I have had people who work at the dealers ask multiple times when I am going to trade because they would like to take it off my hands for me. In short the best car that I have owned! I have not had to do fix anything on this car outside of breaks and tires.

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  Great Little Car! - 2008 Dodge Caliber
  By Doug - July 11 - 6:21 pm

  I tested several similar cars and liked all of them but decided on the 08 Caliber. I have to say that I love this car and dont regret for a second the decision to buy it. I got the SXT with 2.0 and CVT and average 29-31 mpg consistently mostly driving to work and back. The CVT shifts smoothly and effortlessly and overall has a lot of pep, steering system is tight and responsive, ride is smooth and comfortable. I have owned nothing but GM and Honda vehicles for the past 20 years but went out on a limb and went with Dodge this time. I must admit that Im quite impressed with this little car. Great job, Dodge!

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  Useless! - 2010 Dodge Nitro
  By adam07 - July 11 - 8:40 am

  I am getting pretty tired of this car, the cheap plastic is giving me headaches because there is nothing i can rest my arm on! Its also a dog if you ever need to pass anybody and on top of that it gets bad gas mileage, around 15 mpg. We just drove down south and all I could fit was two golf bags, and two suitcases WITH the backseats folded down! So this car is pretty much useless, you cant carry a lot of things in it, has poor acceleration and the interior has all hard plastic and things are already squeaking after 6 months. DONT BUY!

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  1st new car - 2009 Dodge Caliber
  By javaman - July 10 - 3:35 pm

  Cash for Clunkers was a huge help. I got rid of my 90 Ford Aerostar, just in time. The first week I had it I loaded it up and drove my oldest to college, after a year of ownership I have dealt with a couple huge snow storms, at one point I had driven into snow so deep that from the windshield forward was under snow, I dug out the front wheels and backed right out. The daily driving is fun I travel back roads to work that have hills and turns and this little 5-speed with a 1.8l engine sticks to the road and is quite fun. I love the features, and it is a great car.

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  Great to pull my Travel Trailer - 2008 Dodge Durango
  By Dave - July 9 - 3:51 pm

  I was a bit worried since my 28 travel trailer weighs 6,000 but the Durango 4.7 V8 pulls it like a champ! Better than my 2001 Toyota Tundra did and it handles great. I average 16 mpg around town and 18 on the interstate. Good vision, comfortable on long trips, fun to drive.

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  Great sports sedan - 2010 Dodge Charger
  By Rich - July 8 - 9:45 pm

  Bought this 2009 used with (13000 miles) in May,"for my wife". She loves it except that the ride is a bit rough on bumpy roads. The car drives great and has lots of room for passengers. Its quiet and feels solid. I was very skeptical about the gas mileage with the hemi V8,but am very impressed so far. 368 H.P and deliver 26- 27 M.P.G. on freeway trips is outstanding.

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  Finally, I waited 40 years for this! - 2010 Dodge Challenger
  By Finally - July 8 - 8:07 pm

  24+ MPG on the road, quiet interior, great sounding exhaust, well balanced ride, no rattles or squeaks, killer sound system...what a car! NO REGRETS. Get yourself one of these MONSTERS, tint the windows, slip on your shades, go styling at the local retro drive in and enjoy showing your new baby off. I got this to trailer behind our RV but I find myself looking for ANY excuse to hop in it and enjoy the experience. Well done Dodge. Thanks!

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  Got what I paid for - 1994 Dodge Intrepid
  By ibakan - July 8 - 4:27 am

  Bought this in July, 08 with 80K miles because it was seemed to be a good value. The climate control unit had some glitches I soon discovered and soon stopped working. Had a couple mechanics do some diagnosis and weve not come up with answers except its not the control head, min. $200 for a good diagnosis and at least another $150 to fix. I was doing a lot of mountain driving at the time, so when my water pump failed it quickly overheated and developed a head gasket leak, est. repair cost is $500 - $1500. Starter is failing now too, so its time for my clean, good looking 95K mile Intrepid to be turned in because the cost to repair it all is higher than the value of the car.

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  Do not buy! - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Shanno - July 7 - 5:01 pm

  Well where do I begin with this thing. Lets see 3 day of having the dealership had to have it towed. I pulled out of my garage and her a bang and extremely loud clicking. Ends up the piston rod went through the engine. The tires had to be replaced 4 months later. At 6 months later needed new brake pads. A year later brought it in to be inspected and needed 2 grand of work. Still brake problems and had 4 different garages look at it and nobody can figure out whats wrong with them. Very noisy the Body is cheap but sporty and nice looking. Not as good on gas as they say. Terrible trade in value if you can trade it in. After 2 years I cannot find a dealer to take as trade.

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  We call it Shake Rattle and Roll - 2006 Dodge Dakota
  By Stacy GA - July 7 - 2:50 pm

  This truck shakes. It vibrates. Took it back to the dealership 5 times in 5 months. Finally had to call Chrysler when the dealership became very rude with me. They didnt know what to do with it. It was still under the manufacturers warranty but they kept telling me it was brake issues and tire issues. Had all that replaced. Truck was still vibrating. They repaired some kind of axle shaft. Still vibrating. Put 4 new tires on it and turned the front rotors. Didnt vibrate for about 3 months. Now its vibrating again. Its a piece of crap just because of this vibration that no one can make permanently go away.