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:

• 

  Awesome - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By STEVE - May 5 - 4:16 pm

  I went from a Ford Explorer to a Magnum.

• 

  6.1 HEMI - 2006 Dodge Magnum
  By Rocket Wagon - May 3 - 8:03 pm

  The up grade from my 05 R/T has been very exciting. The acceleration and roar from the HEMI makes it hard to drive it slow. My gas mileage has been the same as my R/T.

• 

  Thank goodness for mopar "Mo"! - 1998 Dodge Avenger
  By Jewels - May 1 - 11:51 pm

  Well, I actually just got into a serious accident with this car. Poor Mo (I always name my cars) was writen off when a lady hit me after failing to stop for a stop sign. The car is in rough shape! I walked away with literally only a bruise to speak of. The car saved me! I mean I loved this car, how could you not? This is one hot lookin car! Even though it was eight years old I always had people stopping and asking me about my car, commenting on how the exhaust sounded or how the engine purred. Now begins the hunt to find another Avenger.

• 

  Love it - 2002 Dodge Stratus
  By mikey - April 30 - 7:38 am

  I love the look of this car. I love the pickup it has and everything. I wish they would have made the interior a little sharper and the brake dust has got to go!

• 

  Long term relationship - 1994 Dodge Shadow
  By shiba - April 27 - 12:46 pm

  Used as dolly vehicle, and everyday car shopping, church etc. Takes curves well mileage to 30 MPG. No problems, stick shift.

• 

  Fun to drive - 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By johnwanamaker - April 24 - 10:15 pm

  As 2 over 70 people we like the upright seats of a mini-van. Visibility is great in all directions. Power was very adequate on a recent trip in the mountains. It was helpful to downshift with the lever because it would try to shift up too soon otherwise. Mileage was very good even when doing lots of driving in 4th. Mileage is much better (27+ at high speeds (70+) than around town (23) Stow and go seating is the only way to go. We haul a lot of stuff and need to put the seats down often. Very easy to do.

• 

  Great Full Size Alternative - 2006 Dodge Dakota
  By L.T. - April 24 - 12:24 pm

  I bought this truck to downsize from an 03 1500 4x4 and have really not looked back. The gas mileage is so much better and that saves a lot of money. The only real difference is the bed space, but I rarely used all 8 ft. of my old bed anyway. The Dakota is very nimble, easy to park, and extremely quiet on the highway. I would recommend this truck to anyone that occasionaly needs a truck for hauling, but still needs comfort, economy, agility for everyday use. Probably not the best choice for the hardcore rancher with 12,000lbs. to pull, but a great choice for the active weekender. I am very happy with my purchase!

• 

  Love it - 2001 Dodge Neon
  By Shawn - April 23 - 2:48 pm

  I got the car used, it has 150,000 kms on it now. The car has never let me down. I bought it when in school, and it was a great buy. The car seems to have a bad rep, I however really cant find many bad things to say about it. I sold it to buy a new BMW 3 series when I finished school mainly because I needed a more grown up machine. If you want a cheap, long lasting little economy car, with a bit of sport, but an RT Neon.

• 

  Loving It! - 2006 Dodge Magnum
  By Len - April 22 - 10:58 am

  Only had a couple months, but Im loving it so far. Very fun to drive, and plenty of power. Fuel economy just under the 17 MPG city. But, this car needs the 8 cylinder, not the 6. I dont have the navigation, but the satellite radio, electronics group, sun roof and convenience group are great additions. This has more storage room in the back than our mini-van when both of the bench seats are in it. Im 62" and feel very comfortable in this. Takes a little bit of time to get use to the viewability out the windows, but with the small round mirrors added to the side view mirrors, you should do fine. No regrets so far!

• 

  Great Value, Great Van, Great Economy. - 2005 Dodge Caravan
  By BillMcguire - April 21 - 2:21 pm

  I bought this van with 21,000 miles on it used. Now I have 59,000 on it and it has had no problems. Many of the people I know drive Honda Oddyeses and Toyota Siennas and have many problems from electrical to axle problems. The Honda even lost the transmission at 42,000. My last Dodge Caravan was a 1998 and I just sold it with 213,500 miles on it and I did the transmission at 198,000. The resale isnt better in the long term on the Honda and Toyota product, you just pay more initially and it seems that way. In 5 years they are worth about the same. I sold my 98 caravan for 8k after 7 years of faithful driving.