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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  Get some value for that money! - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Cheeky Monkey Mama - March 24 - 10:43 am

  I love my van. We do not have any of the problems that others have mentioned (whistling noise, road noise, poor visibility with dual screens, etc.) The controls are nicely laid out. Love the Uconnect, mygig, and the 6 speed transmission. I live on top of a hill, and rather than riding my brakes all the way down, I just downshift and let the engine do the work. We also love the piece of mind of the lifetime powertrain warranty (we added the lifetime wrap that covers just about everything else for $2700) For under 30k we have tons of features, people / cargo space, power, and safety, with the piece of mind that comes with only having to pay for basic maintenance. We think we got a bargain.

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  Dakota - 1997 Dodge Dakota
  By webert1 - March 23 - 9:36 pm

  Vehicle rides well and is more than adequate for hauling stuff around. Many trips to Home Depot and not one thing that could not be hauled home. I would recommend this truck for the average person who needs something to do the light household chores that need to be done. I occasionally tow a camper, but would not recommend it for long trips and hilly terrain. The truck seems to work a lot when you are pulling a camper.

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  great little car - 2001 Dodge Neon
  By pat72880 - March 23 - 4:56 pm

  I bought this car over 2 years ago and have had no major problems with it. Handles great, no leaks, smooth ride, and easy to maintain. I have already 75K on this car and it seems to get better the more I drive it. Couple minor things, factory wheels are 195- 50-16s. Very had to find and expensive tire. Also, highway gas mileage runs from 30 to 40mpg plus. City mileage however is only 20 to 25. And it has a small 12 gallon gas tank. Sound system is great but my speakers blew out 3 months ago and I had to get new ones. Mostly my fault I guess. Overall, best car I have owned.

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  Still love my Stealth - 1995 Dodge Stealth
  By Patricia - March 23 - 4:08 pm

  This car has been an excellent vehicle,and lots of fun to drive. Still dont want to give it up. It has 95,000 miles, is still running like new and the body still looks beautiful and stylish even for today. Only major problem I had wasan expensive part for the anti-lockbreaks. Great on gas, especially for a sports car. Every day I love to get in it and hug the curves or just listen to the nice sound of the engine. I ran iton synthetic oil (Mobile 1) since it was new. Purrs smoothy still, so maybe that helped. I also would love to see this car made again. I would love to have abrand new one again!

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  By far the best vehicle I have ever owned - 1998 Dodge Durango
  By Sandy Sherman - March 23 - 2:49 am

  We have a 1998 Dodge Durango and it is by far the best vehicle we have ever owned. It fits the whole family comfortably and best of all, we have not had one thing wrong with it. We love our Durango.

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  Best SUV - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By knorfolk - March 23 - 12:23 am

  This SUV has got some serious power it outranks any SUV on the road not to mention how cool it looks and how comfortable it is. If you want an SUV the Durango is the only way to go.

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  Dont Buy without a Warranty - 1996 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Stacey L - March 22 - 10:00 am

  We bought this nice looking, comfortable van mostly due to what we thought was a good rep for Caravans/Chrysler and nice interior design - what a nightmare. Thank God we had extended warranty! Repair/replace tranny 4 times since weve had it. Water pump twice, new a/c, weird brake troubles 4 times, blown head gasket, weird wiring gremlins that we had to bypass to make our headlights even work. A/c switches burning out - I will never buy another Chrysler product after this nightmare. Would have sold, except its paid off and the extended warranty paid most of the engine work - but we laid out $2k plus on other work.

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  Best value on the market - 1994 Dodge Stealth
  By Blake Hardin - March 21 - 11:33 am

  I had a lot of time to research the purchase of my first sport car. The Stealth/3000gt beats every car out there in options and value, just falling short of the new vette and cars of that class. This is unbelievable considering what you can buy the Stealth for these days. It is often thousands less than a VR4 with the same millage, even though theyare the same car! There are many ways to upgrade the car, and given the rarity ofthe Stealth many people think it is somesort of Viper. Performance will blow you away, put on an aftermarket suspension and there is no limit to the handling of this car. Upgrade the turbos, and you will be upthere with the new vette/911.

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  Best Car Ive ever had! - 1997 Dodge Intrepid
  By Amelia - March 21 - 10:48 am

  Truly the best car Ive owned in terms of reliability, handling, gas mileage to engine size ratio, and cargo/trunk capacity. Feels like a luxury sedan, but handles like a Nascar. Hard to shake loose on the turns, just hangs in there and remains stable. I plan to drive this one till the wheels fall off and they MAKE me go get something else!

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  Not your daddys old Dodge - 2003 Dodge Stratus
  By budnelson - March 20 - 7:25 pm

  Had this car 15 months....15,000 mile - no problems...lots of compliments on the looks....pearl white color looks sharp when washed....fun to drive