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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  Good car - 1998 Dodge Neon
  By boodog - January 14 - 2:00 am

  All in all a good little car. Fun to drive and king in corners.

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  Overall, pretty well done... - 1999 Dodge Stratus
  By Fred George - January 14 - 2:00 am

  I have been pretty satisfied with my Stratus thus far. The only major pitfall-I had to replace the head gasket 18 months into ownership ($900). However, the dealership I bought it from helped pay for labor, since the vehicle was much too young for this major of a problem. I like the power I get when I take off, a real neck-snapper!

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  decent value, decent car - 2000 Dodge Intrepid
  By daver - January 14 - 2:00 am

  The quality of constuction is decent for a Dodge. Except for a MAJOR problem, I have not had one issue regarding build quality. The MAJOR issue had to do with a wiring loom that was being cut by a bracket and shorted under acceleration. After 6 trips to my 5 star (joke of a dealer in Fairmont WV), the car finally shut down on the interstate going 70. With no electrical power at all, my wife was lucky to be able to move from the fast lane to the breakdown lane. 30 days later, another dealer found the problem. No apologies by Dodge or the dealer. They really did not care at all.

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  Excellent car for $$ conscious buyer - 2000 Dodge Neon
  By Kboyle - January 13 - 2:00 am

  The Neon SE is a significant step up from the Geo it replaced. I drive it up and down the eastern seaboard once a month to visit my daughter, and the car performs well on the highway. The cargo room is immense for a car this size, and it has a lot better pickup than other cars I test drove. The biggest problem I have is the gear ratios. I have a manual tranny, and I find that I am constantly looking for a 6th gear once I get to around 70 on the highway. The engine noise can be significant at higher speeds, but the exceptional audio system easily overcomes it. Ive put 71.5K miles on in 2.5 years, and the only problems Ive had were from accidents -- which were easily fixed.

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  new RT 2003 - 2003 Dodge Stratus
  By chuckdog - January 13 - 2:00 am

  love the car. i drove a 92 chevy corsica for 10 years...so this is great. Ive only had the car for about a month, but ive had a lot of compliments. I have never seen another 4 dr R/T on the road though. Not as quick as Id though it would be, but it handles better than I thought. One complaint is that there are only 4 color options

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  A mistake Im stuck with! - 1998 Dodge Intrepid
  By BCmickey - January 12 - 2:00 am

  I fell immediatly in love with it. The seats were comfortable, the car drove great. Everything about it was just what I always wanted. Until I got it home. So far it has died on a off ramp of a highway after the cruise control kicked in automatically and i couldnt stop the car, I took the next exit off the highway and it died. That was the relay sensor.we had to bring it in twice for that problem. Then we were at a gas station, and once in our driveway when the car died. We had to join AAA just to get this car towed to the dealership these two times was due to the battery terminal being corroded. and just resently The car died again, same thing.

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  Great car for the money - 2000 Dodge Intrepid
  By josho - January 12 - 2:00 am

  The car is excelent to drive and is very reliable. Only had one small issue with the power stearing cooler but was very quick and inexspensive to fix.

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  My Tank - 1994 Dodge Shadow
  By kjane - January 11 - 2:00 am

  I bought my Shadow brand new in 94. It has been through many road trips 300+ miles, a couple of fender benders, harsh winters (-30)and hot summers (110) and all types of road conditions. It takes a licking and keeps ticking!!

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  SOLID 5.9 R/T - 1999 Dodge Dakota
  By roxtro - January 10 - 2:00 am

  Very well built, red standard cab,255/55/17 wheels tires. Handles great, NO PROBLEMS at all, good heat and ac.Whats not to like?

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  So Far So Good - 1999 Dodge Durango
  By Ghostmirage - January 10 - 2:00 am

  I have recently purchased a 1999 Durango with 20000, great so far. I have had nothing but GREAT things to say about it so far but the mileage is low and so far so good. I find the vehicle to be comfortable, and a please to drive in the SNOW. Looking forward to making some improvement to extend gas mileage.