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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  Electrical, transmission problems - 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By tcandre - September 10 - 10:00 am

  I guess it has generally been a decent car, no super performance, no great acceleration or handling, but it does the job. Some reliability problems; see suggestions for improvement.

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  The Caliber does it all for me! - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By KMG - August 20 - 1:00 pm

  I love this car. I have been waiting for an economical mini SUV and this is a dream come true. This car gives me the ability to carpool and not apologize for the ride. I also love the car for weekend camping/fishing trips. I can pack the tent, supplies, and even the dog with no problems. My daughter is counting the days until she turns 16 and can stake her claim for the drivers seat.

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  Forced into a minivan - 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By No More Sportscars - August 18 - 11:20 pm

  We already have a 14 month old child and now my wife is expecting twins, so we needed a vehicle that could fit our growing family comfortably. Our biggest problem was finding a vehicle that could fit three car seats along with everything else a growing family demands. The grand caravan won by default with the great combination of price, comfort and 0% financing. We chose the leather seats and purchased a dual dvd player from Walmart.

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  Why not more??? - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By Yvonne from Vegas - August 15 - 9:20 am

  My main complaint is its a wimpy V6. Now maybe Im used to the bigger Cummins Diesel power, but this thing needs a little more juice, and the gear ratio makes shifting a full time job when traveling & doing hills. If you want the best performance, you MUST shift manually, and that gets tiring, after all, I bought an automatic! I think they could have done better. I also think the passenger side seat should be power also. The ride is very comfortable, my husband finds it almost impossible to stay awake when we are traveling, thus, I end up doing all the driving! For the price, I love the car, will I keep it? Probably not after 2 years.

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  Initial impressions - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By KCfromCanada - August 13 - 8:33 am

  I was looking for a stylish affordable midsize AWD, especially for our winter. Considered the Fusion (didnt like the looks), Legacy (pricey) and some of the Chrysler models. Then saw the new Avenger and liked it (and the price) immediately. Good headroom and space, front and back. High sides on front seats may be uncomfortable for wider bottoms. Nice dashboard and interior lighting. Dont care much for the hard plastic finishes. Didnt bother with the Navigation system - the technology is changing too fast. Getting lots of admiring looks in the parking lot.

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  Sweet - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By fewk - August 4 - 2:00 am

  This car is great! I love the power that it has. Once I stepped on the pedal I was suprised at the power it had. The suspernsion is great.

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  So far, So good! - 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By KeKe - August 2 - 12:26 pm

  We are at 108,000 miles and the van is still running well. Oil change every 3,000 miles and routine maintenance at the dealer every 30,000 miles. It has never left me stranded. There have been a few problems, but they were corrected at the dealer and there were no return trips for the same problem. I feel that all of the problems, except one, were just normal wear and tear items. We have been very happy with this van and a Dodge Grand Caravan will definitely be on the list when it is time for a replacement!

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  10 months and 15k miles later - 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By stekicar - August 2 - 1:02 am

  No problems until 11430 miles. Check engine light came on with P0128 indicating stuck thermostat. Took it to the dealership and they told me that it was not the thermostat but computer which did not know how to act on some data. They did the update on computer and immediately I noticed that transmission shifted from first to second gear with a "thud" sound while Econ button was on. When Econ button was off transmission was shifting from 1st to 2nd gear smooth but from 2nd to 3rd with hesitation (shudder). I thought it is because when they flashed computer everything was lost so computer had to learn all parameters again. Well, after 3500 miles nothing changed and I took it to dealership.

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  MyMag - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By LDYnFL - July 25 - 10:00 am

  Love my new Cool Vanilla Magnum SXE..Truely a head turner. The only thing I find is it is sensitive to the road crown and always veers in either direction.Had it inspected and aligned but they say its the Florida roads. Until they figure out how to fix it, one must put up with it.

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  170,000 miles and still going! - 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By cprevbhayes - July 25 - 8:24 am

  Bought used in 2003 with 35k. Now has 170,000 and still running strong. Did have to replace shift solenoid in tranny at about 100k, but that was only a $300 repair. Motor is still strong and doesnt use any oil. Transmission will use a little fluid occasionally. Only complaint (if you can complain about something that is 11 years old) is that the paint on the hood is fading out. Still drives great. A/C compressor is currently out and weighing whether or not it is worth the $1000 price tag to have that fixed. All in all, it has been a great vehicle. Not that exciting to drive, but great for the family. Hey, its a minivan after all!