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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  Winner - 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By bob - February 2 - 9:56 pm

  This vehicle has a great design, large headlights .Tail lights stand out at night, body design is attractive. The van has no rattles and is quite air tight. The van has a lot of storage space and a good visibilty. Anti Lock Breaks work with little effort applied, seats are comfortable.

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  Excellence! - 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By G Claussen - January 24 - 6:23 pm

  I love this thing! Super value and all the storage I could ask for. The kiddies love it and the wife, well, who cares what she thinks. Nice rig for SURE!

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  Happy Family - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By Tracy K - January 24 - 6:06 pm

  We purchased the Journey R/T AWD and we are so very happy with it. Its sporty, handles well, has lots of room and storage. We bought one with all the bells and whistles and are having fun with it. My kids love the DVD player and the temp control in the back.

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  I Love My Van - 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By KH2OS11 - January 24 - 10:00 am

  I have driven a Dodge caravan for 5 years now and I love it. Everytime they come out with something new we upgrade. It is like driving a car but with the room of a bus! I like all the room. With three kids to take around it is very nice to have a van that I can count on to meet all my need with the kids.I love the automatic slid doors!! I would never drive anything eles!! That is the truth

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  Rock on Charger - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By Red Thunder - January 23 - 11:30 pm

  I purchased a Charger SRT8 and paid a mark up because I wanted it and I wanted it now!!! It has amazing power. I particularly liked the SRT8 because of the amount of interior space. It is nice to have a car with great looks, speed and comfort for 4-5 adults. Lot of people are speechless when they see the car and even more when they look under the hood at the 6.1 liter bundle of joy. I got all the SRT packages and they are worth it. The navigation system is easy to use as are all of the onbourd computer systems. All in all, worth every penny. So happy I have mine.

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  Neon, Americas Little Car - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By abcubbie - January 21 - 4:43 pm

  Great car. It handles like its on rails, and is much better than that Toyota I had. Very smooth automatic transmission, not clunky and slow to shift like European cars.

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  My new car - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Dave H-Albany, NY - January 21 - 11:16 am

  Have only owned my Caliber a short time, but it seems like it will be a great car. Had an Accord for many years, and decided to try American. Keep up the good work, Dodge!

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  I love my Grand Caravan - 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Bob - January 20 - 7:53 pm

  I have had 3 Windstars and a Honda Minivan. The Dodge Grand Caravan is by far the best of the 4. The stow and go seating is absolutely wonderful (and thats why I bought it). I have had no problems whatsoever in 10K miles and year and half of ownership. It rides like a dream, handles great, (could use a little more pep, Quiet interior, but its OK) Gas mileage around town about 18, on the road 23 both with AC on. No problems folks and thats the truth! Im so happy with it, Chrysler sure has changed since Mercedes took them over- I feel like Im driving a Mercedes. Ill buy another in a heartbeat. Just love it!

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  Where is the HEMI?? - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By The Dude - January 20 - 7:16 pm

  wooooh! excellent vehicle, I have my caliber since april 2007, and Ive been able to do everything with her. Her gas mileage is awesome, performance is great when you want it thanks to the CVT if you press and depress the pedal quickly the car changes from economy to max performance and believe me it turns out to be a "little monster". Traction, brake force, and cornering is awesome with her. Interiors are great, I dont have the musicgate sound system, just stick with the four speaker system that sounds better than any car in its category, with an extremely deep bass, and high treble there is no need for an upgrade. Cooler works out perfectly, roomy and quiet

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  Great Van! - 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Mike in PA - January 14 - 4:13 pm

  We moved into this van from a 200 Chevy Venture WB Edition. This is by far a better van. It is ultra-roomy and the seats are very comfortable. The new options for 2006 are a big plus. I love the Stow n Go seating, and the tailgateing seat feature of the third row will make drives ins a comfortable experience. I highly recommend this van. We drove the Freestar and Sienna and this van was better in size, and overall drive quality.