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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  Sound vehicle - 2000 Dodge Durango
  By bradleyk98 - March 19 - 11:08 am

  I had purchased this vehicle in 2002 and have never had a mechanical issue. I do my own maintenance and this vehicle is tough. The only thing we have done is tires brakes battery and shocks. These are expected things for a 120,000 mile vehicle. I am planning on this vehicle lasting our family of six (the third seat is great) at least until it has 200,000 plus on it. I would definitely recommend this product to anyone who wants a tough reliable vehicle capable of handling any of your needs.

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  2006 Charger R/T - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By WARREN37 - March 19 - 10:00 am

  My silver steel metallic R/T is so much fun to drive. the V8 with MDS gets me 28.5 mpg highway (no thats not a typo), so those boring drives to and from work dont drain my wallet. When I want to tear up the hometown over the weekend, she has plenty of power to turn heads. Granted, while "fun-driving" I get a much lower mpg, but thats not what you buy it for. The aggressive looking front-end practically pushes cars out of your way on the highway.

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  Still lovin it! - 2006 Dodge Magnum
  By simplijm - March 19 - 9:14 am

  I bought my 06 to replace my aging Durango and from day one it was a great choice. Even though I did not get the AWD, it still rocks in any weather, with the addition of Blizzaks for the winter. Im 64" and it is really comfortable, plus with two car seats in the back, the kids have enough room too. I put the whole family in and we go looking fo twisty turny roads to play on. With the autostick, I can run that car pretty hard and it just keeps asking for more. Cruises really nicely for the 25 mile each way commute, but gotta keep an eye on it. I tend to enjoy driving and sometimes look down and see 80 when Im just having fun. Definitely a family car for dad to have fun in!

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  Lovin The Nitro - 2008 Dodge Nitro
  By Yolanda H - March 19 - 6:32 am

  I purchased my 2008 Nitro in December. I went from the GMC Envoy to the Nitro and Im loving the Nitro. Road handling is great and the interior is very comfortable, I love the two-tone color of the seats, I wish there was a vortex engine to give the Nitro more power. I havent put mine on the road yet, but I cant wait to take my first out of town trip.

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  Get your own - 1998 Dodge Durango
  By Love It - March 18 - 10:37 pm

  This SUV is almost perfect. Its large, it powerful, great design, comfort like a spendy luxury, reliable as they come and very fun. I had to replace a $3 valve in the AC, a battery and the normal brakes and tires in the 8 years i have had it. Other than that all my paycheck goes toward gas but its worth it.

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  Gotchas all beat! - 1997 Dodge Caravan
  By Unhappy and Broke - March 18 - 7:56 pm

  I just may have you all beat on the repairs, lol.One thing a little different, when I turn on my wipers, sometimes theyll come on, and when they finally come on they wont shut off until you are totally aggravated by the wiper dragging across the dry windshield. I have replaced the tie rods, tie rod ends, sway bar, bearings, power steering pump, fuses,taken it in for 3 recalls, only to find I had to replace the tension pulley, the ac doesnt work, the only fan speed left for heat is high,the head lights wont stay on,the parking lights dont work anymore (rusted sockets). Needs rotors, brakes again, this year, had a strut plate put in for the rusted housing, other side needs now and struts, door stripping.

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  Its a truck Ill miss - 2004 Dodge Dakota
  By 2lman - March 18 - 2:51 pm

  Just traded in our 2004 Dakota Quad Cab 4x4 w/4.7L V8. The only reason why, poor gas mileage. Other than that we love this truck, super super reliable! We bought it new, put 42k on it and only had to put on new tires and change fluids as recommended. No problems at all and would have kept it but with the kids all in school now, my wife wants to back to school and finish her degree and the school is about 45 miles away and with only getting 12 mpg cty and hwy, we did get 14 mpg once with a strong tail wind, when we tow our boat it was 10 mpg maybe 11 mpg. We are all going to miss this truck!!!!!! We bought an 08 Jeep Liberty to replace it.

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  Changed Man - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By H2flint - March 18 - 2:25 pm

  This is my first non GM car ever. Luv the look and style plus GM has no good V-8s so I went with the Charger. The interior is much nicer than the 06-07 models. It handles well and has lots of power. It turns heads and is a real driving joy. I am late 20s and single but it is still probably the sportiest 4 door ever made. Recommend to anyone single or family

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  Will never buy a Dodge Again - 1998 Dodge Stratus
  By tarheel - March 18 - 8:47 am

  I bought this car in 2000, its a 1998 the oil light stayed on when I turned key on but dealer finds nothing wrong, after about 50,000 the head gasket blows, before that the fuel pump went bad,now the engine shakes needs motor mounts on the front, brakes wear down fast im disappointed in dodge/chrysler cars i will not purchase or suggest anyone buy one, dodge wont change until someone gets seriously hurt driving one of there products, i thought about getting a chrysler town and country but after reading reviews and all the complaints no way, i might go to hyundai for a nice ride now.

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  We love it! - 1998 Dodge Dakota
  By Graham - March 17 - 10:58 pm

  We have 175,000 miles on it, have driven it fairly hard, pulled trailers with it, towed a large trailer with a bulldozer on it, etc, and we have no complaints. We got our moneys worth! 318 5.2L V8 should never have been discontinued. We have just (3 weeks ago) put a rear end in it, and that might have been damaged in an accident a few years ago. No engine/tranny trouble (no rebuilds or repairs on either). The only things that have gone wrong are the ball joint (and I hear those go bad regularly, but Dodge has made parts available so you dont have to buy a whole new assembly) and the AC evaporator. We tell people were planning to give this to our first-born, who hasnt even been born yet!