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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  Phenominal - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By Grizzly Grey - June 30 - 2:00 am

  The ride and handling is suburb for such a large vehicle. It truly handles like a much smaller SUV. I rated the 4.7 but actually the Hemi is truly a great engine and well worth not getting the best gas mileage. Comfort is unparalled.

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  Intrepid - 1996 Dodge Intrepid
  By drrice opinion - June 29 - 2:00 am

  Sporty, Well-designed vehicle! Decent gas mileage for this sporty a look. 3.5 litre with 24 values runs great.

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  1996 Intrepid - 1996 Dodge Intrepid
  By Smith Family - June 29 - 2:00 am

  The original paint job was poor. We will have to re-paint the hood, top and hood of the car. Other than that, very dependable and fun to drive.

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  Great car! - 1998 Dodge Avenger
  By Joshkev - June 29 - 2:00 am

  This is a great car! I have enjoyed driving it for 4 years, and it is the 1st car I havent been ready to sell until my loan was up!

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  Nice, nice van - 1994 Dodge Caravan
  By Sniperlg - June 28 - 2:00 am

  We bought this van brand new in 1994. We have 137000 on it and never had a tune-up or changed spark plugs. We just changed oil, replaced the battery every few years and service the brakes once. It just keeps on going with mininum hassles.

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  Great Truck - 2002 Dodge Dakota
  By big_george - June 28 - 2:00 am

  Have a 92 Dakota Club Cab and needed more room in back for my kids. The Quad Cab is perfect. Ride and handling are great, seats are confortable on long rides and cabin is pretty quiet when I leave the kids at home. Love the power of 4.7 V8 engine have a 3.9 V6 in the 92 and that engine is weak. Both trucks have automatic transmissions. My gas milage for the V8 (14/18)is not much different from the V6 (14/19) but have to use 89 octane in the V6 to keep it from pinging. The V8 uses 87 octane no problem. Get the V8, youll be happier.

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  Great Family Car - 1998 Dodge Caravan
  By luvmycar - June 27 - 2:00 am

  My husband and I have had little troubles with this car. It has been a great family car. In fact we just bought another Dodge Caravan.

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  Best Bang for the Buck - 2001 Dodge Stratus
  By JRTC - June 27 - 2:00 am

  On my way to buying another Mustang GT I stopped at the local Dodge dealer to test drive the Stratus SE 3.0. matched everything about the Mustang except the price which was considerably lower. This car is really fun to drive and at 50 I need all the fun I could get.

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  Not my Vanagon but pretty darn good - 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By gsned57 - June 26 - 7:00 am

  Bought this one the first day of the bailout when Chrysler said theyd match the C4C money. Traded in my 86 Vanagon and got a $29K van for $17,5. I never thought Id buy a chrysler product and really loved my VW, but there were a lot of things that needed fixing and with a new baby I wanted something safer for her. I test drove the Japanese and Korean vans and I cant see why anyone would pay 2X as much for one of them. Stow and Go is the single greatest feature. Ive already hauled full sheets of plywood in the van and also carried 7 people on a moments notice. Well see what happens in terms of reliability but Ive driven 2 1000 mile trips and its been great.

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  Great Car - 1998 Dodge Avenger
  By morgen - June 25 - 2:00 am

  I have had no major issues with my avenger. It has alot of pep and is fun to drive.