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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  Theft for this car - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Gina - March 23 - 11:29 am

  This car is a good car and is reliable and simple to fix if something is wrong but the theft on this car is terrible! Ive had my car for 5yrs and its been broken into 4times. And its not the area because Ive moved 3 times. Everytime I put in a police report, the police officers always say "you got to get rid of this car because its # 1 for theft". Thank god they did the upgrade.

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  Great Van! - 2007 Dodge Caravan
  By mike - March 22 - 9:03 pm

  Now have just under 80,000 miles. Van has been excellent. Still have original tires and brakes. Only part replaced was a rear bearing hub. Highway mileage on straight run is 26 mpg, consistent 20 mpg in town. Van has been my first van ever and would easily buy another due to versatility. Have not had the transmission issues mentioned in other posts. I have zero complaints.

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  Stalling and not starting - 2003 Dodge Caravan
  By trek01 - March 22 - 5:13 pm

  My vehicle has 83000 miles and is not over five years old. It just recently stalled while driving on the highway for about an hour. It would start but die again. Let it cool down some minute and would drive a little bit and stall again. After letting it sit for a day, it would not stall while sitting idle or driving around town. These situation did not happen to me but family members. When I finally was able to test the vehicle with the above mentioned problem, I discovered the stalling problem is caused by a bad "Speed Sensor Circuit Malfunction", P0725 trouble code. You needed to go highway speeds for stalling not idle. Also, the starter goes in the 6th year.

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  No Major Complaints - 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By RRJ - March 22 - 10:00 am

  Bought the van with 68k mi about 16 mos ago (now has 82K). Transmission oil looked a little dark at the time--had it flushed before I would purchase van. Since then, had small problems, but overall, have been happy with the van. Problems include a starter that went out at 79k miles, CD player plays sporadically, and broken connector in cable running from antenna to radio. It also burns more oil than I prefer (one qt per 2000 mi +/-). So far, have experienced none of the major problems listed in other reviews. Is very comfortable, starts/runs well and has served well during my ownership.

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  In a world of compromise, dont - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By Mike - March 22 - 12:23 am

  Went in to buy a fuel economical car for work but walked out of the dealership with the SE Charger and I havent looked back since. (fuel economy is still not bad for a V6). Now I find any reason to go out and drive around the area love the comfortable ride and solid handling. Ever time Ive gone to the gas station people ask about her. On the highway have to watch your speed. Its easy to get going fast without noticing youre blowing out the other cars. SE trim is nice, but adding on the other features will make this beauty a diamond in the rough.

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  Disappointed - 1998 Dodge Intrepid
  By Disappointed - March 21 - 8:00 pm

  I just bought my 98 intrepid and the dealership checked it out and said it was in perfect condition. Within 2 weeks the alternator went out and now the body shop is telling me to prepare for a new tranny!!! I only paid 5,000 for the car and as of now it is costing me an additional 4,000. I was warned to never buy a dodge I just wished i had listened

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  Go Topless - 2000 Dodge Viper
  By ViperVenom - March 21 - 10:00 am

  Absolutely the best topless modern muscle car on the road. I look forward to each chance I get to drive it and always get out with a smile on my face.

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  the jury is still out - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By A.Green - March 21 - 12:49 am

  I bought this car with 14,000 miles on it 8 months ago.It has ample power and plenty of interior space.It has more than its share of blind spots and a rather cheesy interior. I like the sound system and smooth ride.But....without warning at 20,000 miles,when attempting to put the automatic transmission in gear one night after start up it would not budge.I tried everything suggested in the owners to no avail.Ended up getting towed to a dodge dealership where they somehow managed to unlock the shifter.They claimed to have replaced the shifter because it was broken which was an obvious lie.I have since learned that this "locking" shifter is a common Chrysler problem yet no recall is issued.

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  good car - 1995 Dodge Avenger
  By bkr2010 - March 20 - 9:19 am

  I have this car about a year and when we bought it the motor was shot and it did not run so we went and bought a new morto and put it in and i have only had a couple little things go wrong i had to change the brakes in the alot, I hade one tran seal brake on me bu other than change the oil and check the fluids i have dorve this car to alot of different states and she still going you would be happy if you bought the attract attetion to your self

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  I Love my Nitro! - 2008 Dodge Nitro
  By PLC - March 19 - 2:47 pm

  I drive, a lot! I spend about an hour a day if not more in my car so I really wanted something I could rely on and like. I LOVE my nitro!! Its super cute and just what I needed. I chose between this, the Pontiac G6, and the Ford Mustang. Yeah, a wide variety. I got this because of all the room!! I can take my 2 Labs everywhere with me and they ride comfortably. There are a couple things I would change but for the most part I absolutely LOVE it! It hasnt given me any problems yet (knock on wood) and Ive put almost 17K miles on it in 7 months! If you get one, give in and get the sound system. I didnt and wish I would have!