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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  car is ok - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By jeni740 - July 20 - 4:43 pm

  I traded in a 02 Taures ses for my Avenger. The Taures had better speed and was much more comfortable. The look of the Avenger from the front is awesome!! From the back not so much. I am having problems with my Rpms going up by itself. Yesterday while in park in my driveway my Rpms shot up to 4 all on its own, I had to shut it off and that stopped it. My windows squeek if rolled all the way down and the steerling feels off. I am going to have it looked at Wednesday I hope the can diagnose the problems and fix it asap. For a new car I did not expect all the problems I am having.

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  The Worst Vehicle I ever owned - 2001 Dodge Caravan
  By TP - July 20 - 4:34 pm

  Bought new and have had nothing but problems - Heres a short list: Power steering twice Two Air Conditioning condensors Check Engine Light twice Heater Coil leak Arm rest fell off after 30,000 miles rear wiper does not work properly Radiator leak This car is 8yrs old but only has 103,000 miles on it. I changed the oil religiously and did not drive it "hard." How can anyone look at the above list and tell me this is acceptable. Next time its a Honda or Toyota.

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  The Good and The Bad - 1996 Dodge Intrepid
  By Mr. Rogers - July 20 - 9:53 am

  I was given this car as a hand down. So it was not my first choice in a car. The intrepid is about to go to the shop as i am writing this review. Over all this vehicle has been reliable. For the size of the car and what you get it could be considered the 7 series of Dodge. (haha) There have been many parts that have needed to be replaced. The headlights especially, $500+ for the two headlights, and they are broken again not even 6months later. Steering is another huge problem. Basically its a great car if the proper time and money is invested, reliability is great. But I would have to say that i would not purchase another intrepid, but a challenger would look great in the driveway!

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  No wonder Chrysler went bankrupt. - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By tavella - July 17 - 10:44 pm

  From the first day I had the car it jumped forward at a deadstop almost rearending people. PCM and TCM reprogrammed six times. Now Speedometer is off. Had a caliper bolt fall out while going 70mph on a highway. Caliper came free, locked the front passenger rim. Cheap plastic parts inside car CONTINUE to break, cheap plastic cooling housing separated and started leaking, various codes kick for no reason. A/C lines clogged and flooding passenger side. Stay away from this peice of junk.

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  Buy extended warranty - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By Jeff - July 16 - 6:52 am

  Traded a 99 model for this 05,mainly for upgrades.At 19000 miles the temperature gauge quit working.Gauge is part of $515 instrument cluster. Had Chrysler max care extended warranty so cost me $100 to fix. These cars were after all the cheapest Chrysler made,so an extended warranty is a good idea.Also they were most likely the only cars Chrysler actually made any money on and stopping production was kind of stupid in my opinion. Not saying it would have kept them out of bankruptcy procedings but who knows. Maybe they will bring it back as a Fiat!

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  All talk no walk - 1999 Dodge Intrepid
  By Bill C. - June 30 - 9:56 am

  The car is roomy, the interior and exterior styling is attractive and comfortable. I thought it was a lot of car for not a lot of money. It was in and out of the shop on a bi- monthly basis and eventually had the motor lock up. Not at all surprising for this year and model.

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  Lots of problems - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By Audrey - June 20 - 3:14 am

  Bought it new in 2013. Has a brake recall and its been months, still no parts. Dash keeps flashing saying service airbag system, passenger seatbelt unbuckled(and they are!) Blower motor went out. Senors going out. Love the style but now I wish I had bought a different vehicle. Oh and when I drive on a rough driveway/road the whole car rattles

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  Unfortunately Not Happy - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By CSilva - June 5 - 8:51 pm

  Ive had my car for a little over 3 years and I was really enjoying driving my car, until recently. I guess I was 1 of the unfortunate owners. It all started with a ticking noise, which then turned into a knocking noise, which then turned to my engine rattling and car stalling. And yes, this all happened after my warranty ended. Apparently the rocker arms went bad on the right side and was told the left side would break in time. The shifter broke as well. I had to take it into the shop and 1100.00 later, no noise and the shifter works. Both are known problems and its very disappointing that they werent recalls. Thought buying American was better, guess not Dodge proved me wrong.

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  UGH--should have bough a buick or toyota - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Renae - May 29 - 6:10 am

  My family has had Grand Caravans since 1998. Loved them up until the 2008 Grand Caravan. It is a nice car to drive and comfortable but too many problems. Here are the problems: antifreeze leak when purchased new-- took 2 repairs, roof rack bars in wrong position and on backwards, have had 1 shock replaced, 1 strut replaced, front brakes and rotors at 29,000 mi, back electrical "cage" in ceiling loose, rear bumper pad replaced, still squeaks when going over bumps, wind whistling noise, doors dont always open when pushing automatic key fob. Plan to trade for an SUV as soon as I can. Cannot believe this is a $31,000 car.

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  Not sure all the bugs are worked out - 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By ballcap - May 24 - 10:00 am

  I have owned this van for 1 year. In the last year, the following items have had to be replaced. Torque converter in transmission, alternator, power steering pump and now another phantom noise from the rear of the van. Also, with the quad seating, it is nearly impossible to get into the rear bench seats. Thank god the warranty is decent, I am sure I will be back the service dept soon.