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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  1997 Dodge Grand Caravan Sport - 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Shoe - July 5 - 8:36 am

  Overall great vehicle. Maintainance has been normal and the Dodge dealers Ive had to deal with have been great too (Im military, so have moved around a bit). The engine has held up well and the only real disapointment Ive had is that the a/c went bad and had to be replaced. Ive been coast to coast and from Florida to New Hampshire with no major probems. Will likely consider a Grand Caravan again.

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  Looks nice... when it works! - 1997 Dodge Avenger
  By Lally - July 5 - 2:00 am

  I have always liked how my Avenger looks. Its a car that will get you the chicks, but I am so sick of major repairs every six months! Ive had to fix things Ive never even heard of. And trust me, the repairs arent cheap! Also, Im seeing places where the paint is starting to bubble, indicating rust.

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  Repairs and more repairs - 1998 Dodge Caravan
  By jscnurse - July 2 - 2:00 am

  Purchased used with 38000. Has a 3.0 V6 engine. Purchased an extended warranty with the bank loan, our saving grace. Have repaired/replaced: valve cover gaskets, loose hose over sol pack, rack and pinion steering and sway bar. Now it is leaking oil again and looks like a head gasket at 67000 miles, dont think that we will wait for the tranny to go...

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  I love It!!! - 1994 Dodge Shadow
  By Baxinator4 - June 30 - 2:00 am

  I am a proud owner of a 94 ES V6. Ive had it for 7 years and have over 100,000 miles on it. There have been no serious problems. My only complaints are the noise that is typical with older Chryslers, and the overall fit and finish is very simple. On average the car gets between 20-24mpg in the city and I always get around 28mpg on long trips on the highway. The car feels quick and has lots of torque for a car of its size. DO NOT buy one with an automatic transmission. My brother had a 92 Duster (same car as the shadow) with an auto that was replaced 3 times and is typical of Chryslers. This car is definitely a great buy.

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  A great Sport Van - 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Larry Baran - June 30 - 2:00 am

  This is the 3rd generation Dodge Caravan we have owned. (1985, 1992, and, now, 2003). Much to our kids confusion, we have kept the 1992 Caravan as our in-town vehicle. They BOTH are easy to drive. It is fun to drive, for me at 62" and my wife of 50". We both can feel comnfortable, see well, drive long trips (a periodic requirement for us) and arrive after 12 hours of driving without feeling fatigued. It is interesting that we have come from driving a VW Combi-van in the 1960s to Caravan in the 00s!

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  So far, so good. - 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By joel770 - June 29 - 8:26 pm

  It may be a bit early to tell, but I just bought the 2007 Grand Caravan SXT and so far I really like it. You can feel how well she handles and the engine runs smooth and quiet. The stow and go feature has already paid off and my kids think the brilliant black pearl color I chose is "hot". So far the gas mileage is proving to be a thousand times better than my old 1996 Chrysler Town and Country. That van ate through gas like termites on a toothpick. I hope this van keeps up the performance because so far its been a good buy.

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  Good vehicle for the price - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By Satisfied - June 29 - 4:13 am

  I have a had my Journey for a year now and so far, no problems at all. It is a comfortable ride, reliable, reasonable gas mileage for its size, lots of storage and plenty of leg room for back seat passengers. Quiet, and has good visibility when changing lanes.

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  Poor integrity, unreliable, fun to drive - 1995 Dodge Intrepid
  By tony_millionaire - June 28 - 2:00 am

  Fun to drive, nice to look at, comfortable w/plenty of interior room. Unreliable transmission, A/C, heating and electrical. Lots of "little things" failing -- passenger side power window wont go up from driver side control, trunk lid doesnt stay up, radio stopped working, traction control starts in park, stalls after long trips. Lots of $$ spent on maintenance and repair. Drove a Honda for 250,000 miles and never saw the kind of problems I have with the Intrepid at 70,000.

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  Darn dependable Durango - 1998 Dodge Durango
  By walterplankaert - June 28 - 2:00 am

  The Durango is the first American made vehicle I have ever owned. I bought it mainly for long road trips in both summer and winter and I commuet to work in it daily. It has been bullet proof. I have never had this vehicle in for any repairs other than scheduled maintenance. I have 88,000 miles on it in 4 years. I bought the Durango fully loaded with the 5.9 V8. It is an extremely comfortable, fast, dependable ride and is an excellent touring vehicle. One of the best cars I have ever owned. Great stereo to boot. I upgraded shocks and tires and both made a big difference.

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  Another tremendous sport compact - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Levey - June 26 - 10:00 am

  The market right now is glutted with tremendous performance sport compacts. I really believe there is one to suit every personality out there. But if all out performance (and particularly acceleration) is what is most important to you, then there can be no other choice then the SRT-4. It can sprint like a V-8 Mustang and corner like a compact.