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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  Some Hits, Some Misses - 2009 Dodge Charger
  By HFish1212 - December 22 - 1:48 pm

  Just purchased a used 09 SXT base with only optional power driver seat. This was a rental but I got a great price ($16,400) with only 29k miles. Some things are a hit while others are a miss. Pros: Styling (these with 22" rims and tint look awesome!), reliability, available features (not saying the one I got had any of them), price, size (hate small cars), rear wheel drive, interior which appears very easy to keep clean but is cheap plastic (good compared to other things that rip, weather). Cons: fueling cuts off during fill up because of tank design, cloth seats are uncomfortable- lumbar hits in upper back/ headrest is too far forward, no programmable seat positioning, weird key fob

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  Charger - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Josh - December 20 - 5:04 pm

  I have 2008 Charger with 60,000 miles. I lease 2 years and go only to 60 K. I have bought Impalas, Intrepeds, magnums and now a charger. I love this car. I am up for a new one and have ben looking around. I like driving a big rear wheel drive car. What I really love the way it handles. I have had one issue, the key stopped working and I had to have the car towed. I am always scared about the Trans.

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  The Last In Line - 2008 Dodge Caliber
  By JohnD - December 20 - 6:46 am

  My black 2008 Dodge Caliber SRT4 has been nothing but outstanding. As of 12.20.09, it has ~2900 miles on the odometer & sits in my garage off the road in the winter. This is the last of the old Chrysler designed/engineered cars from the 80s prior to the Fiat buyout. You Mopar fans need to find these cars if you are interested, as the SRT4 has been discontinued for 2010. It is a one-of-a-kind. It will most likely be a collectors car in 20 years (similar to the FWD Shelby cars of 1980s era) Great Buy!

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  2008 Charger - 2008 Dodge Charger
  By Josh - December 19 - 8:12 pm

  I have a 2008 Charger 60,000 miles. w2.7 v6. The car is bid and I have had only two issues with this car. One I had to tow it bad key. Also bad tow problem. They replaced the front tie rod. It has been fine since. The car is coming off lease and surprising I think I am going to buy another Charger. The car is big and handles well. It also get good MFG. I am looking at Camry (Boring and slow) Impala (fast but sloppy handling) Ford Tourus (Close second) Accord (Nice but slow and back hurts) They say Dodge stinks but $22,000 its hard to beat!

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  The truth... - 1998 Dodge Avenger
  By ptr1ck - December 18 - 7:48 pm

  I purchased this car 2 years ago, it has been great. I now have almost 150,000 on the ticker and its still going strong. Could use some more power but overall its really not as bad as many want to say. I am about to purchase a BMW and am sad to see this car go. I have had some issue with the sun roof popping but I dont even want to mess with that.

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  Great little car - 2005 Dodge Neon
  By Brock - December 18 - 3:28 pm

  Ive owned my dodge neon for just about four years now. I bought it brand new off the lot. Its a sxt model with an automatic transmission. The past two years, Ive been commuting eighty plus miles a day to work and home again. With the exception of a new battery and four new tires, my neon drives and performs well. I do all the maintenance my self. My neon has a few squeaks and rattles which is normal for the amount of miles it has, but it continues to serve me well.

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  2nd dakota - 2008 Dodge Dakota
  By bluedak - December 18 - 8:10 am

  Bought this 08 crew cab to replace my 01 ext. Cab due to growing family. I loved my 01, and this one is starting to grow on me. The new 4.7 has much more power than the prior version. I have 28k on the truck, and no mechanical problems yet. I guess my 2 gripes with the 08 are the interior feels a little cheap (few rattles from arm rest and more plasticky overall than my 01). And the 05 to current dakotas sit too low to the ground, esp. Compared to Tacoma and frontier. But I like it overall and would buy my 3rd Dakota in the future. Mpg 16-17 in mixed driving, similar to my 01 4.7, except with about 70 more hp.

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  Love it - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Keith - December 17 - 1:49 am

  Bought the 2 litre turbo-deisel model and getting the promised 6 litres to 100km. The motor is 100% reliable and I still have the original tyres at 46,000km (approx 29,000 miles. Maybe we got the export quality version, but everything looks good and goes well, only standard servicing costs spent, and we are about to travel across Australia in it with complete confidence. I did test drive the 1.8 petrol and found that wanting in power, but I can assure you that this one has plenty of go. Im a 6 footer and am very comfy. I cant understand why some complain so bitterly about it. Hey, and Im an Aussie supporting the US motor industry!!

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  These cars can go a long way - 2003 Dodge Intrepid
  By David E - December 16 - 11:36 am

  We purchased this car for my daughter with 177000 miles. These miles were accumulated mostly be a salesman in rural Oklahoma. Shortly after we purchased it, we had to replace the alternator. I have replaced one of the mirrors where my daughter backed into a pole at Sonic. All new drivers should have cars with black mirrors so they dont have to go to the body shop for mirror replacement. Car has a huge back seat. My daughter complains about lack of power merging onto the interstate. If we get anywhere near the Edmunds private party price for this car, it will have exceeded our expectations for value. Presently has 193,000 miles.

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  I like it despite a sometimes jerky tran - 2005 Dodge Dakota
  By dodgeman - December 16 - 11:23 am

  Bought mine new. Love the look once i changed the wheels and tires out. The interior room is great. Only problem / complaint is with the transmission. Since 36K miles this trunk will from time to time jerk shifting from 1st to second. Comes and goes. Was worried at first but now with 77K miles not so worried. It is a guys truck. I like it.