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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  I Can Drive 55 - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By Debera - March 13 - 11:53 am

  After trading in my 1993 SHO for this I am jumping for joy. I have two 6ft 4 sons who fit in the back seat with room to spare. The trunk to the wagon has more then enough space, I call this my truck. Handling a load of one adult size wheelchair and four suit cases. The get up and go with my SXT 3.5 ltr high out put engine is enough for me, think of the tickets I would have with the R/T. Handles well in all weather, only problem I have is it sits very low to the road watch out for plastic bag they will get hung up on exhaust and start melting. Over all, I know I will have this wagon for atleast ten more years. And yes I can drive 55 but it does want to use its power which is there

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  Fun To Drive, Big Go-Cart - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Michael McIntyre - March 12 - 6:44 pm

  The 2004 Neon was a vast improvement over previous years of this vehicle I had owned. It looked sporty and it still had the fun driveability that I had loved in this car. I have experienced no maintenance problems, but I did opt for the 70,000 7 year optional warranty just in case.

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  Styling and perfomance is back .. Magnum - 2005 Dodge Magnum
  By Mr. High Hat - March 11 - 10:00 am

  Magnum is a head turner. Ive been asked at stop lights and parking lots, What are you driving. When I tell them its a Dodge they are surprised. They are expecting a foreign car badge name.Due to the 50s look this car is begging to have performance items and dressup pkgs available before the year is out. The 3.5 Liter engine performance is ample,but it aint a hemi !! This car will have a strong appeal for drivers of all ages. With 1300 miles on the odometer the gas milage is around 22MPG city and hwy Enough, Im taking my wife to Big Boy for more adulations.

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  DO NOT JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By Bob1972 - March 11 - 10:00 am

  THIS IS MY THIRD DURANGO I LEASED A 00 AND 02 BEFORE THIS. I WAS NOT IMPRESSED AT FIRST WITH THE NEW LOOK BUT THE DRIVE IS UNBELIEVEABLE. SO MUCH BETTER THEN THE OLD. I AM VERY HAPPY WITH HAVING MORE ROOM AND A NICE SMOOOOOTH RIDE.

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  Kids Love the Rear Seat Video! - 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By boblor3 - March 11 - 10:00 am

  Dodge continues their excellence with the 2005 Grand Caravan. Its a joy to drive this vehicle. The kids love the rear seat video . . . they have never been so quiet on trips, short or long! The automatic side doors and rear hatch are way cool! We like the Butane Blue we got (almost got Inferno Red), but the other available colors are a bit blaw.

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  An awesome car - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Scott - March 10 - 9:50 pm

  I love this car. I thought with having just a 2.7l V-6 that it would lack in performance. But no way, this car goes as fast as you need to go. And the fuel economy is awesome. It might not win drag races (big deal) but it will definitely pass "ole slow poke" on the interstate. Extremely comfortable, ultra-quiet, and just plain fun to drive.

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  Surprised "downgrade" - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Steve - March 10 - 1:42 pm

  I was going from a 4 cylinder Mercedes to a larger car. Liked the look of the Charger and just thought Id drive it without any real intent to buy. It drove surprisingly well. Ive some minor issues like the hood has come unlatched by itself a couple times and the child safety lock keeps re-engaging itself, but other than that the ride is surprisingly quiet and smooth and it is very responsive. It is deceptively large inside even for me standing over 6 feet tall to have leg room to spare front and rear seats.

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  The best truck i have ever owned. - 2000 Dodge Dakota
  By Bill O - March 10 - 6:43 am

  This is the most reliable vehicle I have ever owned. The engine is very strong and its great in the snow. Annual repair cost for me is under a $100. All I really do is change the oil, rotate the tires and give it a tune up every 4 years. The only big expense was I needed to do was put rotors and new brakes on the truck.

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  Ok car with bad brakes - 2000 Dodge Stratus
  By Jake - March 10 - 4:14 am

  We drove this car for 5 years and put about 75,000 miles on the car. All in all it was a pretty good car. One issue to watch out for is the front brakes wear very fast. When we sold the car it had 102K on it and We had put 4 sets of brake pads and two new rotors. I checked the drums at about 90K and they were less than 1/2 worn. We never had any major issues with the car other than a shift solenoid going bad. The engine is pretty weak and the MPG is less than average.

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  Not a Safe Car! - 1996 Dodge Intrepid
  By Marc H - March 9 - 6:41 pm

  I may have only had this car for a year, but since then I have experienced a broken inner left tie rout and outer right tie rod. The inner left one broke and made it impossible to steer while going around the corner. The transmission is absolute garbage and has a rough 2-1 downshift. The oilpan is almost rusted through. Car has gone though a set of brand new front tires within 25,000km, with no alignment issues. Engine overheats periodically, and there has been a mysterious check engine light for about 3 months now. Ill be honest with you, this car may have been wrecked before I even bought it. But many of these problems are far too serious to be blamed simply on abuse or negligence!