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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  2016 Charger RT - 2016 Dodge Charger
  By Warren Rodrigues - March 7 - 4:51 pm

  Nice mix of performance, particularity, comfort, technology and value.

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  Would buy another one! - 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Bryan B. - March 7 - 10:00 am

  We bought this car just after the birth of our third child. The sliding doors on both sides were the best feature at the time. It has been reliable with the exception of having to have three speed sensors , a water pump, and a belt tensioner. The van rides great and the seats are very comfortable. We get about 24 mpg on the highway and 18 to 19 around town. With about 65000 miles on it, I have no major complaints.

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  Good - 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Hung Chung - March 7 - 10:00 am

  ....

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  Once it starts! - 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By blindguy27 - March 5 - 10:00 am

  Nice style and drive. But once the transmission went! Three trannys in 10k miles, then a CV shaft, now wheel bearings! Van has been service faithfully every 3k, all scheduled maintenance, highway miles. Come to findout this is very common with Dodge vans...oh, and there is a ghost in the wipers turning on for no reason. Dealer cant/wont bother to figure it out (there are TSBs) unless I pay a diagnostic fee to look them up!

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  Dodge Caravan Sport - 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Stephen Johnson - February 26 - 2:00 am

  I have driven this van on vacations and hauled lumber. With the tow pacage it works as good as a truck. The 6 cylinder uses gas. about $30 a week. I bought another toyata car to drive casue it was too expensive to drive in the city. I still have the van. It sure last any value quick.

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  Not A Bad Car - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Ronald Johnson - February 19 - 11:20 pm

  Bought this car as a demo in 12/2007. First time purchasing a Dodge as Ive always heard that Dodge transmissions and motors usually go bad at around at 100K so I was a little nervous about buying it. Car gets great gas mileage and lots of stares. Very fun to drive. Ive had some issues with the brake bads and rotors.

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  Going on Two - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Patty - February 16 - 2:53 am

  I have had my R/T AWD for almost two years now. It has about 27,000 miles on it currently. I like it but it does have faults. Road noise is one big one, and blind spots. You have to be very careful when changing lanes with this car! Other than that, it looks great when its clean (black shows everything)!

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  Good Van - 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By 2rd dodge - February 5 - 8:30 pm

  Overall it was a descent van with OK features. Seats were more comfortable then the new Dodge stow and go ones. Good amount of storage when 3rd row seat is moved forward.

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  Neon SXT - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By George Russo - February 5 - 3:46 pm

  Its a great car for commuting. Comfortable with the pep that you need. I would definitely recomend this for a first car or for someone that drives a good distance for work. I like the 6 disk changer in the dash and the sound system, even though it could go a little louder.

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  Happy Caliber owner - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By VeroWing - February 2 - 3:33 am

  After seeing ads on TV for new Dodge Calibers, we (wife and I) decided to go check them out. They offered good fuel mileage(we routinely get high 20s), plenty of cargo space, and good looks. We have just passed 45,000 miles on our Caliber, and we are very happy with our purchase. First set of tires (Firestone) were just replaced with better riding (General Altimax HP), although I could have gotten a few thousand more miles from the originals. Other than new tires and occasional oil/filter changes(5,000 miles), car has not had any problems at all. Still looks good,and performs like new. Very reliable car. Only complaint is that armrests are hard and uncortable. Overall,very happy!