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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  Great Commuter Car - 2008 Dodge Caliber
  By Mike G - March 14 - 12:11 pm

  I was driving 400-500 miles per week on my Lexus and with soaring gas prices, I needed something smaller. I really liked the looks of the Caliber so on a whim I stopped at the local Dodge dealer. I ended up driving one home. I was hesitant on reliability so I opted for an extended warranty. I now have had the car for over a year and a half with 20k miles and not a squeak or rattle. Absolutely no warranty work. I could have saved the cost of the extended warranty. I average 30 mpg and have the utility value of a small station wagon, and its very good looking. Its way beyond my expectations. Bottom line - Its small, reliable, and great as a 2nd car commuter vehicle.

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  Never Again Dodge/Chrysler - 2009 Dodge Charger
  By Larry Jackson - March 14 - 11:31 am

  I bought a new 2007 Dodge Charger R/T which brokedown at 1143 miles and has been a nightmare since. motor has knock in it and Dodge/Chrysler will do nothing to fix. Nothing but lies from the top down. MY FIRST/MY LAST.Visit Edmunds.com and view reports by other customers,you will be amazed at what you see. Recommendation,spend your money on another vehicle. Stay away from Dodge/Chrysler products.

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  Roof rack - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By NitroGirl - March 13 - 6:07 pm

  I love My Nitro, But I have had many problems with it like I have had head lamps changed more than once and I have a water leek through the roof rack (theres a recall coming for it)my carpet in the back seat area gets soaked when it rains or washed and I live on the wet west coast and my tail light has moisture in it from somewere.

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  07 2.7l Dodge Intrepid - 2004 Dodge Intrepid
  By ld71 - March 13 - 3:13 pm

  I love my 04 intrepid but I am scared now because I have been hearing a lot of other owners have been having a lot of problems with their vehicle. I love the comfort and style of this car and really do not want to trade it but also do not want the engine to blow up on me. Any suggestions??

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  Not bad for the price - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By bigd_74 - March 13 - 1:51 pm

  Bought this 2008 used with 18k at the beginnning of 2009. Got a good deal on it & it is perfect for our family with 3 little kids. The stow & go is a great feature. Ive had the dealership do all of the oil changes every 4k or 4 mos so I have solid records on file. They did the 36k check up as well. I had to replace rear rotors & pads at 32k as well as have the front rotors turned & new pads - did all this work myself and saved about $400. I was shocked that it needed brakes so soon. Did the brake fluid flush & power-steering flush myself - saved a few $$$. I had the dealer flush the transmission fluid. Lots of recalls & it seems to need more maintenance than my Japanese cars.

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  It is what it is, I guess... - 2008 Dodge Caliber
  By lovethemwahoos - March 13 - 8:24 am

  OK Ill start by saying impulse buy. This was my 4th Mopar product, and sorry my last. I bought this car, and really dont know why in the end. From the plastic interior, satellite radio with no info display, to the awful road noise. I do like the Sunroof, and Yes Essential seats. The CVT seems to work well, corners OK, but in all a massive let down. I swallowed the loss and traded another vehicle off to cover some of the loss to purchase a Pontiac Torrent. Sorry this car is great if you really enjoyed the Neon I guess. Dodge has dropped quality so far, it’s just sad. I am so happy with Torrent, sorry Dodge Caliber just needs to many improvements, glorified Neon for sure. Look around first!

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  Good old all American work truck. - 2006 Dodge Dakota
  By Steven - March 12 - 11:35 pm

  At 50k I replaced: tires the brake pads I’ve installed K&N air filter and Bosch Platinum 4 spark plugs. About a month ago the cam shaft and the crank shaft sensors vent bad 400$, #2ingnition coil replacement was 35$. Belt replacement coming too. Paint is very sensitive. Body dents very easy. Factory speakers sounds like you have a bucket on them later upgraded with Infinity speakers now the whole door panel rattles.I have broken the parking brake release 18$ and once I have slammed the glove compartment door and the opening mechanism broke inside 50$. Idles a little rough. And the tranny are slow.I may going to have some problems with my differential. Highway I do 20mpg city about 15-16mpg.

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  Never again - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By TRAVERS - March 12 - 4:20 pm

  I have an R/t 08 fully loaded.The car has been back to the dealer 4 times for excessive thumping and rattling in rear of vehicle.So far they have replaced the rear shocks and mounts twice.Still having same problem.The gas mileage is awful (16 mpg). Since owning the vehicle it has been in for service 7 times including 3 for recalls, and 1 time it was towed in because the computer went crazy and the car would not shift into gears properly. I bought the car brand new. I have had in for about 1 year, it only has 8,000 miles on it, and I can not wait to get rid of it. I do not want to be all negative the car does have some good qualities, but not enough to want to keep the car.

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  Tie Rods and Tires - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By steve - March 11 - 7:40 pm

  The car is nice to drive, but has had numerous service issues. From day 1, there was a front tire thumping/noise issue that was never resolved even after 6 visits to 3 different dealerships. They never found anything. At 31,000 miles, a front tire blowout caused from excessive wear. Replaced all 4 tires with Coopers. After only 17,000 miles on these, they are showing the same wear patterns. Now, the front tie rods and control arms need replacing at a cost of $970! This car costs too much in maintenance to keep.

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  Thankfully I Leased - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Ram Horns - March 11 - 7:03 pm

  Absolutely the worst vehicle I have ever had! I leased an R/T and parked it for the last month of the lease not because of high miles but this car was so noisy inside, rode like a truck, wore out all four OEM tires in 27k miles, junked one battery, had no handling at all, no throttle response and poor mileage for a 2.4L. Other owners of the same car agreed with me and family members that had the opportunity to drive my R/T could not believe how bad a car is was.