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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  A pretty fair car - 1999 Dodge Neon
  By Miramichier - June 29 - 4:55 am

  I bought my 1999 Neon with the idea of saving money on gas and maintance,which I must say I was right in that respect, for gas mileage and easy maintance this (so far) had been a great little car, but(and there always is a but) on a drive over 25 miles the seats are really uncomfortable. They feel like you are sitting on two pieces of plywood. My car has a/c and that really doesn`t have the capacity to really cool the interior of the car on a really hot day (and yes I did have the service ppl at my local a/c shop look at it and they say it`s as good as it can be.)

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  Ton of fun, but not reliable - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By Geoff Rummel - June 28 - 7:04 am

  Magnum RT AWD is a load of fun to drive. Installed an AFE Cold Air Intake - adds 10 extra HP. Car is comfortable, agile and extremely fast. AWD with 4 snow tires easily handles severe winter driving. My only complaint is poor quality and reliability. Ive been to the dealer 13 times in the first 4 months. AWD transfer case vibrated - fixed first time, replaced second time. Three new radios replaced in succession - radio ate my CDs. Steering rack vibration - unit replaced. OEM self-sealing tires replaced under warranty after only 8,000 miles. Major suspension rattle. Wiper switch defective. Cupholder lid defective. Front brake rotors warped after 5,000 miles - replaced under warranty.

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  Dodge Intrepid - 2002 Dodge Intrepid
  By Patsy Warlock - June 27 - 9:59 am

  I just purchased a used Dodge Intrepid because the 1994 Intrepid I owned was totaled while parked in front of my home. So far I am very satisfied with the 2002. It has a comfortable ride, gas mileage is acceptable and I am looking forward to a good ownership with the vehicle. I also purchase an additional warranty just in case.

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  Charger RT - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By RichCheryl - June 27 - 7:26 am

  Initial problems: Front brake discs needed to be replaced (Guess I couldnt keep my foot off the gas) and stangely, the interior ceiling fabric came down during a passing event on the highway. Windows being down at high speed may have had something to do with it. This is my wifes car and she loves it. She has told me this is the last car she will ever have.

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  Electrical System - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By realtypro - June 25 - 2:20 am

  I had new car fever and I fell in love with the looks of the Nitro. I was really enjoying the car. I took three teenagers on springbreak to Florida. On the way home while going 70 mph, in the far left lane, the car cut out, all the lights came on - for several seconds (which seemed like hours) the car was stalled. Thankfully, it came back and we were not killed. I took the car in and after two days and being insistent on cause and repair, there was an electrical module replaced. According to the Dealer, who stated they had contacted the engineers, there had been 10 reported problems. I hope this is the real problem and it was fixed. However, now Im leary of the car.

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  Family car - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By anika honhart - June 24 - 9:08 pm

  It is a nice car to have for a family. Very roomy! Do not like sunroof open unless I had a wind guard. Has a lot of power with Hemi! Love the navagation system. Came in handy when traveling. Gas milege is not very good! 18 miles to the gallon! The head rest is not very comfortable, kind of bulgy. But drives very smoothly!

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  DODGE SPORT GRAND CARAVAN - 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By AVANBUFF - June 20 - 10:00 am

  GREAT TO DRIVE ON TRIPS DEALER SERVICE UNACCEPTABLE. BRAKE PROBLEMS, ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS WITHIN TWO YEARS OTHER WISE REALLY LIKE THIS MININVAN

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  I Love My Stratus! - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By Chris - June 16 - 1:59 am

  I will admit, when I bought my Stratus, I was not pleased at the fact that I was going from a V-6 1997 Toyota Avalon to this four cylinder car, but after about a month of ownership, I fell in love. With the gas prices the way they are, my Stratus sips on gas and has adequate enough power to roll with the big boys! Its quite fun to drive, it has double wishbone suspension, so its nice on curvy roads. It has a humungous trunk, 6 x 9 speakers in the front and the rear (no need to put twelves in the trunk). And its pretty to look at, too.

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  Dakota R/T - 2001 Dodge Dakota
  By Dakota R/T - June 15 - 11:38 pm

  I have the R/T and obviously love the power. It is only rated for towing 2,000 pounds, but Ive towed well over 3,500 pounds without any problems running the air conditioning full blast while driving up the mountains in the summertime. However, Ive had lots of electrical problems, and the truck has broken down on me in the middle of the Arizona desert. In addition, I get 12 mpg in the city and 15 on the freeway.

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  Good value, not best van out there - 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By DonnaH - June 15 - 9:50 pm

  We have just about 4K miles on the van. Rides very nice. Interior is versatile, hauled a full size couch using Stow and Go which is cool. The compartments in the floor are handy storage when the seats are up. The leather seating is firm and driver/passenger seats are not comfortable compared to Honda. The Stow and Go seats are surprisingly comfortable even for an adult considering the compact size. Have had a few minor problems with trim coming off after only 2 months. Front bumper cracked, how, I dont know, no marks. The dealer said too bad, no warranty, $750 repair. I would have bought the Odyssey, but Dodge came in $5K less plus 0% financing for 5 years. Overall, a decent value. You get what you pay for.