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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  Great Vechile Would Recommend - 2007 Dodge Nitro
  By jdoggntiro - June 11 - 3:39 pm

  If you are looking for a great lower priced SUV, this is it. If you havent noticed the people that complain about the Nitro have bought the cheaper version. They have three versions the SXT, the lower priced, the SLT the medium priced, and the RT the higher priced. I recommend the SLT, comes with sun roof, uconnect and it doesnt have that ugly plastic. Very clean, love it.

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  SXT AWD 3.5, best car I have ever owned! - 2008 Dodge Magnum
  By JN - June 11 - 2:29 pm

  I went to the dealership thinking I wanted to charger. I started looking at the Magnums, but I did not like the headlights. I went home and was reading a magazine that the 2008 model will be the last year, but will come with a completely new front end. The 08 front end looks better than the Charger or the 300. I ordered one immediately. This is the coolest looking car I have ever owned. It is built well, rides great, and performs great! I usually get a new car every year because I put on about 50k a year, but I think I will keep this one at least 2 years. This will probably be a classic as only one year for the new design and the last year, with few made! Absolutely awesome car!

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  good truck ( except for mpg ) - 2001 Dodge Dakota
  By norsmn - June 11 - 12:54 pm

  I have been very satisfied with this vehicle, up until now when the fuel prices have gone sky high. Mileage not bad in summer highway driving, but in cold winter temps it is poor. One power window motor quit working at about 40k miles. Had 2 factory recalls for the ball joints and a shift lever block problem. They were easily taken care of by dealership.

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  Move from Jeep to Durango - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By pcc122 - June 11 - 10:00 am

  I had a Jeep 2001 Grand Cherokee, and i did love it expect it was to small in lodging. I was always lowering the seats to get more storage inside. I deciueded to trade it in for something bigger. I did check all the other suv on the market and thats the one i decieded to get. I have now 40 miles on it and i realy love the way it handles the road and espacialy in cornering. Now i have a seven seatter compare to 5 i had before. Now all my grandkids can fit in and no one is left behind.

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  problem with tie rods - 2005 Dodge Dakota
  By db - June 11 - 5:46 am

  Purchased new. Currently has 21,000 miles on it. Have been very happy with it up to this point. However, recently began hearing scraping noise when turning. Thinking it was the brakes we took it to mechanic. Turns out it is the tie rod which needs to be replaced. Told not to drive it until repair is done because it is unsafe. This is totally unacceptable for a vehicle with so few miles on it. Expected much better quality from Dodge. Would not recommend this vehicle to anyone. I believe that having to put out major money on a repair like this for a vehicle with such low miles speaks volumes about Dodge quality.

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  Lots of Compliments - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Chargerking - June 10 - 9:14 pm

  I love this car so far. I have only driven it 700 miles so far. Be prepared to get compliments daily about the style. I got the se plus with the 3.5 L. O. V-6 that supplies surprising performance and fair gas mileage. The 18 inch aluminum rims and brilliant black metallic makes it look stunning. Tons of interior room, very comfortable and is a pleasant choice from the boring cookie cutter cars. Highly recommend!

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  Love the Car but.... - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By The Simons - June 10 - 1:11 pm

  I will say I love the speed and the people in the rear view mirror. However there are some things that I am very upset with. A new car after $12,000 miles of use should not already need new rotors. I had to fight the dealership to get this warrantied. At the same time I was having radio issues as well as passengers power window would not roll down. Then came the navagation system, then a transmission leak. All in all it took 1 yr and 3 separate car dealerships to work out the rotor issue (two times), radio/nav. system, transmission leak, power lock. I think finally all the bugs have been worked out. Just hope the car holds up for the years we have to pay for it.

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  Grand Dads Hot Rod - 2006 Dodge Magnum
  By Dandeman - June 10 - 10:27 am

  This Inferno Red number turns the heads of young and old. This is not your ordinary grandads wagon.

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  Buyer Beware - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Jason Jackson - June 10 - 2:00 am

  It says 22MPG on city I am averaging 15 MPG and that is mostly HWY Driving. After one week of having the car the check engine light came on. Took it to the dealer they said it was an air inlet sensor that needed to be replaced. The turbo boost jumps even at idle. And some times the RPMs get stuck at 3k. And the car only has one key entry the drivers.No trunk opener inside you have to set your groceries down and open it with the key. But other then that things are great...note the sarcasim.

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  GRAND Caravan Sport - 2001 Dodge Caravan
  By GRAND Caravan - June 9 - 3:56 pm

  We purchased or Grand Caravan Sport new from the dealership. It has given us 7 great years with minor issues. We recently were going to trade it in on a new cross-over and instead traded in our Volvo for the cross over and kept the van. However now our needs are changing and the van is really not needed anymore, plan to trade it in for something smaller and more fuel efficient.