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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  Disappointed - 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Charles Mooers - February 15 - 6:16 am

  The battery went dead at 3900 miles and again at 5,922 miles. My first few tanks of gas I only got a little over 10 MPG. Now I only get a little over 13 MPG. Very disappointed with this vehicle. I will never buy another Daimler Chrysler product.

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  Great truck with a lot of power - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By NJNOMAD - February 14 - 9:18 pm

  Though we had a few issues with the drive train (Dodge covered everything) after about a year, overall we love it. It is large enough for the 5 of us and all of our camping gear. It has been fun to drive and very responsive for a large truck.

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  All you could ask for - 1999 Dodge Dakota
  By stuffingmonkey - February 13 - 7:47 pm

  The truck has been solid if not spectacular during my ownership of about 85,000 miles. If it has received $1000 in repairs, that would be a lot. The cat was replaced early on (covered by warranty), and the alignment went awry early such that I only got 15,000 miles out of the two front stock tires (alignment fix was warranty). Other than that, no serious issues to report. Power with the V6 is good with some pep when you need it, and MPG has been right around 20 with a bias toward highway miles.

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  A throwback - 2007 Dodge Charger
  By JC - February 12 - 12:16 pm

  If you are looking for a 70s muscle car (albeit four doors) with modern features this is it. I love the cars looks and the 420 ft/lbs of torque at the rear wheels. This car can double as a muscle car or family car as long as gas mileage is not an overall concern. A very safe feeling car with crash test results to back it up. You either want a car like this with these attributes or you dont.

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  Not Satisfied - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By Joe C - February 12 - 9:00 am

  My wife liked this car so we bought it, luckily, I dont drive it often. It is impressive looking, even if not to my taste. This car has the most limited visibility of any car I remember driving. I cannot see the trafic light if I am the first car at an intersection without literally moving my head under the windshield. The only unobstructed view is straight ahead. The car seems to be leaking something, not sure what that is yet. Glad I only leased this thing. Even with the leather interior, all of that beer cooler plastic elsewhere makes it cheap looking.

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  I love my Stratus - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By Billie - February 11 - 8:35 pm

  I bought my Stratus in June of 2005. I bought it used and it has been a wonderful car for me. At first it took a while to get used to, because my previous car was a roomy 4 doors Grand Prix. I love the sporty design.

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  Roller coaster - 1995 Dodge Neon
  By Kesha - February 11 - 8:11 pm

  The Dodge Neon is the worst car I have ever had. I wanted the car because it was cheap. But the car repairs make up for the money that I was trying to save. I had to replace the head gasket. It cost me a thousand dollars to fix. The brakes are bad. They have to have a heavy duty liner on it to help it last a little longer. The car is loud when you drive it. The axle was bad. The heat doesnt work well at all. The clear coat on the paint is coming off. It just is a sad little car what can I say.

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  Cant believe I bought a Dodge - 2016 Dodge Durango
  By Jonathan Schade - February 11 - 9:06 am

  Compares and wins against Tahoe, Acadia, Explorer, etc

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  Worst Ever - 2001 Dodge Durango
  By Bob - February 10 - 7:37 pm

  Have spent more on repairs for this vehicle than all others owned, combined, over past 40 years. Drives fine, but electric problems, several hard to diagnose computer sensors blown out, water pumps, fuel pump (in gas tank), etc.

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  Must be good luck - 2000 Dodge Durango
  By Bronco - February 9 - 10:37 am

  Have owned this vehicle since it was 1 year old (16,600 mi). Have had only one issue of note. The cam position switch failed, $200 repair and good to go. This has been and continues to be a good reliable vehicle. The gas mileage is horrible but the interior layout and design is nice. The quality of the interior components is not the best, the plastic will fail (esspecially with kids). However the parts are inexpensive to replace. Maybe Ive been lucky, but I have had less problems with this than friends and family with 2002 Montero, and 2001 Tahoe.