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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  Screeching noise - 2012 Dodge Avenger
  By matchbox20fan - July 18 - 9:17 pm

  My avenger makes a horrible screeching sound when I back up in low speed and apply brakes. My backing plate, rear rotors pads and clips have been replaced only to make the sound worse and now noise is heard when I go forward also. I have notified Chrysler only to be turned away because no dealership can find a problem. Yet all heads turn when my car is leaving

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  Done with dodges - 2010 Dodge Journey
  By nomoredodges33 - July 18 - 1:42 pm

  The 2010 Dodge Journey sxt is the last straw for me. I have owned Dodges in all shapes and forms for 13 years. Neons, (fantastic) Dakotas not so good, Durango 2005 finally sold that last week. Nothing but problems with 2010 Dodge Journey. Owe 2 yrs and transmission is out. Electrical problems with Durango . Very expensive to be a Dodge customer these days. This is the thanks we all get for trying to buy American.

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  2.0 Rallye 6 speed powershift auto. - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By elvis765 - July 13 - 6:07 pm

  The paint job was aweful. Thin and scratched easy. Had 2 major defects the dealer should have spotted before putting it on the lot. No paint below the passanger door just bare metal, and a big half dollar sized swirl mark. The buttons felt cheap and "wobbled" and the touch screen back up camera was cut off at the lower part of the screen and rolled up to the top part. Like an old t.v. with horizontal hold off. (Kids ask your folks). The seating was just o.k. and on longer trips somewhat uncomfortable. The brakes work by being on or off. No happy medium and this is bad. The duel exhaust rattled when you turned the car off like it was hitting something. Gas mileage was just o.k.

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  I Must Have Got A Lemon - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By worpt1 - July 12 - 11:24 pm

  Ive got 5000 miles on this car and have had nothing but issues since day one. There has been a consistent rattle from the front doors that has yet to be fixed. My headliner is sagging and fraying. My interior brake light is falling down. The transmission dropped at 4000 miles. The dome light fell off and had to be taped up. My right rear turn signal chooses when it wants to work. This car has just been a piece of crap.

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  So far so good :D - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By kennysdead - July 12 - 10:02 pm

  The reviews Ive read were either amazing or money pit. I got lucky and so far nothing is wrong with it and its at 100,000 on engine. I did buy this from a mechanic though so I could trust that it wouldnt break down. This was my first car too.

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  200,000km and still counting - 2007 Dodge Charger
  By phatgreatwall - July 12 - 10:00 am

  had absolutely no issues with this vehicle, had it since 33000km. all the repairs to this vehicle are of regular maintenance, ball joints, steering ujoints etc. never had to "repair" due to a defect on this vehicle. gets 750km to a tank on highway, mix local highway gets about 350. parts are dirt cheap, especially aftermarket. if you are in the market for a used sedan, definitely test drive a charger with a v8.

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  Great Car With Lots of Versatility - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By scdjng - July 10 - 10:48 pm

  I purchased my Dart SXT 1.4L turbo 6 speed manual in the beginning of January and have put almost 13,000 miles on it. I do lots of driving for work and the car does great on the open road. The worst gas mileage I got on a trip was 35 mpg, and that was with below zero temperatures and and a strong head wind. The car may not be as quick as some of the competition, but is perfectly adequate. I have taken my family of five (three grown adults, one teenager and myself) on short trips and it has proven to be very roomy with little complains.

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  Great First Car - 1998 Dodge Stratus
  By michaela96 - July 3 - 9:09 am

  I bought this 15 year old car for $1500. It had 180K on it but still runs smoothly. It handles great and should last anyone a long time so long as they keep up the maintenance and do repairs as needed. Before when I thought of the brand "Dodge", the first thing that came to mind was gas guzzling trucks. To my surprise this car gets pretty good gas mileage. Ive had it over a month now and I love it. My goal is to get it to last me through this winter with out having any major problems.

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  "Lets run em!!" MOPAR OR NO CAR!!! - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By imboosted - June 29 - 9:33 pm

  At first i wanted an MS3, theyre great cars. Only problem is, theyre as plentiful and as common as roaches!! Every1 i know has on and it sucked for me in making my nxt performance decision. I looked at the cobalt ss supercharged, but then i remembered my brother had 1 and i was always told to stay away from civics. so the nxt logical choice was the srt-4. I cant tell you how glad I am to be the owner of this car. IT IS AWESOME!! picked mine up, she was stock. added a few things..(Mpx exhaust,, BIG front mount, greddy turbo timer, AEM intake, and AGP wastegate) and now shes unstoppable. I eat stngs, comaros, Zs, WRXs, GTIs, MS3s for breakfast!! I can even hang with GS vettes. Great car!!

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  Why the Dart is underrated - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By dartman4 - June 29 - 12:55 am

  The Dodge Dart is a highly underrated new car. I own an SXT 1.4 Turbo manual six speed. At 7,000 miles it has had NO glitches. The power, which most reviewers seem to complain about, is awesome considering its mileage averages. Yes, its heavy. Thats why its comfortable on highways and longer trips - UNLIKE some of the lightweight competition which brag about better zero to 60 times. What are we? Kids on a playground at recess? Third grade? Actually, a lot of people DO drive like they are in third grade, so I guess it makes sense. Compared to literal HORROR STORIES like those told by Scion FRS and Subaru BRZ owners - my Dart is a DREAM COME TRUE . Come on people.