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:

• 

  DODGE STEALTH ES - 1991 Dodge Stealth
  By Jason Wampler - May 22 - 2:00 am

  WOW

• 

  awesome car - 2002 Dodge Viper
  By seth parr - May 22 - 2:00 am

  this is one of the best cars that you could ever want to by you will be amazed by the ability of this car wow

• 

  Fun little car! - 2002 Dodge Neon
  By Osoler - May 22 - 2:00 am

  This is a car for people that are on a bugget!Its all around a performer.

• 

  Amazed at a good Dodge product - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By frank - May 21 - 9:50 pm

  This car is awesome. Its very loud, but thats the only complaint Ive had so far. Most of the noise is due to the tires, which Ill replace once theyre worn out. Overall, incredibly fast, good handling, very comfortable ride. Lack some amenities inside, but for the price and performance, I dont miss them.

• 

  Best Car Ever - 2002 Dodge Viper
  By Treyman - May 21 - 2:00 am

  The best car ever. No complaints.

• 

  Best of mini vans as good as Chevy subs - 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By quapaw - May 20 - 8:33 pm

  Replacing a 92 Caravan. Only a few hundred miles and cannot truly say about reliability. My two previous Dodge minivans were excellent. This one is as close to the Chevy Surburbans that I owned in the70s and 80s with much better mpg. Stow and go is very handy. Wife says the seats are a bit hard bit I disagree. The interior lighting is not what I would want, too dim. Handling is excellent. Fit and finish is excellent. My dealership is one of the best. I bought it off the lot and if I had speced it out I would have left off some of the features and maybe added a few. Price was better than the imports and quality better too. Not sure I like the keyless switch but time will tell.

• 

  Best car for family - 1991 Dodge Shadow
  By Stone - May 20 - 2:00 am

  My 91 shadow american is the best car for a family. Its not made to get up and go like a sports car but a family thats looking for a reliable car that goes and goes, this is it. The only thing replaced in this car was the fuel pump. Everything else has been perfect. My car doesnt have power windows, cruise and all that. What it does have is quality and dependablity. Thats what makes it a great car. Two car seats in back fit fine. The kids enjoy riding in our car.

• 

  Great car, we love it - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By r/t caliber - May 19 - 8:10 am

  We purchased this car in december of 2006 right off of the showroom floor. It now has 31,000 miles on it and has been 100% trouble free. The car is very reliable and is fun to drive and the boston acoustics sound system with subwoofer sounds awesome! We are very pleased with this car! We even took this car up the four peaks mountain road and it worked great.

• 

  My 2004 DGC - 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Vicki1250 - May 18 - 2:00 am

  Smooth riding and sits high enough up to see, plently of room for storage and great gas milageSwap 2nd and thrid row seats

• 

  Doge Caravan is still tops in my book! - 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By JKWinters - May 18 - 2:00 am

  Best Price and features, I have owned several Caravans and they have all been reliable and Very comfortable to drive. After lookin at Odyssey and Sienna the Caravan is still tops. When then come out with the In floor seating, WOW that will really be nice for the 2005 model.