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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  Favorite Car - 1997 Dodge Stratus
  By MBV - January 12 - 1:19 pm

  I have never ben more satisfied with any other car. Never had to take the car to the shop for any reason other then a tune up or to fix something I did to it. Has 132k miles on it and hopefully will last another 100K. Ideal car for small people though. Could use more leg/head room for driver. Very comfortable on long trips too.

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  Awesome Dodge Stratus SXT - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By Carmen19 - January 12 - 1:01 pm

  I got into an accident where the impact was on the drivers side. The Stratus side crushed, but I was not injured at all thanks to the unique saftey design of the doors. It is an amazing car. If you want to turn heads, this is the car for it. It is very reliable, does well on long trips, and the sound system is great. The interior could be a little more sporty, but otherwise, I love this vehicle.

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  Trading Down? - 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Sheryl - January 12 - 10:06 am

  I bought my 97 Dodge Grand Caravan in November of 03. I was driving a 01 GMC Yukon, and I needed to cut my expenses. Having four kids with friends eliminated a 5 passenger sedan and the only thing left that would fit my needs and my budget was this Grand Caravan. It was in immaculate condition but it had 109k miles on it. After signing the papers, I got in my "new" van and started it. The digital read out reminded me again of the high miles and at that moment, I closed my eyes and said "God, This is my new van with only 9k miles on it, a program vehicle, right??" One year and 30K miles later I can say kuddos to Dodge. Great ride and gas mileage.

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  High Country Nitro - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By BearlyNitro - January 11 - 8:10 pm

  Works well in the snow of Big Bear and the sand at Pismo Beach. Very fun to drive, so much fun that we have another on order and are trying very hard to sell my 2004 Toyota Sequoia. The first is an SLT w/auto trans, but mine will be an SXT with the manual trans. Getting all the options added to an SXT 4x4 w/manual is not easy. Good thing I know the general manager at the dealership real well.

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  Great Car! - 1995 Dodge Neon
  By Robert20876 - January 11 - 2:24 pm

  I bought car with 13,000 miles on it. Have driven it from Utah to Maryland 3 times with no problems! Cruises at 80 to 85 mph all day with no problem. 12 hr drive days are great, not tired at the end. Car has over 130,000 miles on it, and the interior still looks new! has the usual wear & tear. The only thing major was the tranny (I let the car set for 6 months while getting it licensed, this probably was not good for tranny.) I love the car. It has great handling, and gets great mileage (32 to 35 on highway, 28 around town.) Still looks good. I want to keep it for another 10 years! You cant go wrong with getting a 95 Neon!

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  Excellent for the money - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By William - January 11 - 2:22 pm

  I purchased this vehicle in november of 2004 and I love it. Dodge is building their vehicles much better then they used to. I recently found out that they partnered with Mitsubishi and merged with Mercedez Benz. I have the four cylinder and it gets 25 mpg between both city/highway driving, yay! Horsepower is decent. It wont win a race, but its enough, and the interior design is sweet.

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  Best Viper Ive owned yet! - 2005 Dodge Viper
  By Mopar Fanatic - January 10 - 1:32 am

  This is my 4th Viper and compared, (especially with price in mind) to my new Ford GT, hands down a winner. Convertible, American, Muscle and drop dead gorgeous at half the price (with out the additional 65K over sticker I paid for my GT), I have only one complaint! It is more predictable at, at the limit driving than my other Vipers but have owned several other cars ( other than Vipers) that communicated what they where doing a helluva a lot better. Also does not draw as much attention as I would have thought, but, thats just a side note.

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  Modern day muscle car - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Crono - January 9 - 2:48 pm

  This is by far the most fun car I have ever driven. The power is unbelievable and the suspension is very tight while only being a little harsh. The brakes bring you back down to legal speeds in a hurry, which will be necessary if this car is driven like it shound be. The steering is quick but very heavy and a bit on the numb side. Being 66" I could use a little more headroom and legroom. Its not quite as roomy as my previous car, a Ford Focus ZX3. The heavily bolstered front seats are actually really comfortable while making sure you dont slide around when taking that "suggested" 30 mph off ramp at 70 mph. Best car buy ever.

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  Very surprised - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Pat Lippy - January 9 - 9:04 am

  Was looking for a daily driver for my wife. She had a 96 Ford Windstar and my kids are grown, so I was looking for something good on gas. After looking at Corolla, Scion, Protege, and Aveo, I decided on the Neon. Got the best price (leftover 2004), more of the "creature comforts" (CD player, AC, power everything) and the dealership was offering free maintenance and tires as long as you own the car - now how can you beat that? The resale of the car concerns me but my wife had her Windstar for nine years and never complained, so I hope to have this car as long. She is happy and so am I but I never, ever, thought I would own a Dodge - had a bad Omni experience years ago.

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  New Durango - 2005 Dodge Durango
  By Joanie - January 6 - 8:06 pm

  We just got our Durango in May but have already taken it on a vacation and it was great. We had a van before but this is much roomier and drives great. You feel like youre on your living room sofa.