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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  Love It So Far ... - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By argus - March 10 - 10:00 pm

  Bought an auto. Wouldve likely bought a 5spd had I found one. Transmission shifts just fine though-- Im impressed and overall extremely happy. Deep Red color is really beautiful--this car gets plenty of looks. It has more power than I need and not so much that Id get myself in trouble. Good job, Dodge

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  Excellent overlooked choice - 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By dm3 - March 10 - 8:30 pm

  Just switched from a 2005 Sienna to 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT. The Caravan has much more torque making it more responsive in normal driving, brakes are far better, excellent handling. Feels like a relatively nimble mid size sedan. Surprising to look behind and see how large the interior is. Lots of open space in the cabin is great for holding stuff and allowing easy movement within the cabin. Build quality appears to be excellent. Much better choice than a Sienna. Sienna is all hype. Gas mileage on the Caravan although rated 18/25 has been better than the Sienna rated 19/26.

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  Map Light - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By 08sxt2.7v6 - March 10 - 6:26 pm

  Having owned this car less than a month, I couldnt say much about reliability. I can say that it is fun to drive, and has gotten me compliments from anyone thats seen it. The ride is smooth and great for cruising around over long distances or for short trips, but this car still manages a feeling of control and sure- footedness in the turns.

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  Love it Hate it - 2000 Dodge Neon
  By Mkidd - March 10 - 3:30 pm

  I love driving my Neon but I am only 51, so it fits me great. But my husband is 63. Not so good for him and my tall son, so it needs more room. I have had my Neon for years, and it now has 100,000 miles on it. It has taken me all over the USA and at 100,000 miles the motor mounts went bad which made for a very shaky ride until the water pump and timing belt went out also. Lucky it was not too much to fix. It is a great starter car at a great price.

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  Good Car - 1999 Dodge Intrepid
  By Brian - March 10 - 2:33 am

  Weve had the car now for 5 years, we bought it 1 year used. We currently have 166,000 miles on the 2.7 V6 and its doing fine. Weve had Honda Accords in the past. Compared to the Hondas it rides smoother (except over sharp bumps), similar seat comfort, and is much larger inside and in the trunk. It is not as tight or refined as the Honda. Problems weve had include: Window motors, wiper motors, front ball joints (lower control arm), input and output speed sensors. Overall were talking maybe $1000 repairs over 5 years and 166000 miles. Though we had fewer repairs on the Honda, I would still consider the car to have been very reliable. Its still running strong and we love driving it.

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  Beware, stay away, run for you life - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By Kimmy - March 9 - 1:43 pm

  Ive own this car since March 2007 and had a first great year, thats it! Ever since my car have been to the dealership almost every month. I had and still have the squeak sound in the back suspension, the mechanics seem to be clueless about it even after they changed from the chock to the bushings and some other things then the was and still is something weird. When I start the car, the RPM rev up and down about 5 seconds and if I try to put it in reverse the motor just stops and its hard to start it again and I have to wait until the car warms up about 15 mins to be able to leave and sometimes the motor even totally stops at a red light.

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  Fun Car At Great Price - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By Larry S. - March 9 - 7:17 am

  The car only cost me $ 11,500 after rebates. A Honda Civic EX was $ 5,000 more! The car is quick with the manual tranny, looks sportier than Honda and others in this class of cars. No mechanical problems after 24 months and 22,000 miles, handles great (in snow). Where can you get a new car so cheap, with many of the gadgets offered on cars costing several thousand bucks more, and look better than all the competition in the market segment? I get about 28 mpg average (60% city).

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  A little bit about my durango - 2012 Dodge Durango
  By Steven Jimenez - March 9 - 6:35 am

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  Keep Waiting For the Other Shoe to Drop - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By BarryE - March 9 - 6:16 am

  I am approaching 36,000 mi & have had no problems at all. I keep waiting for something to give me a reason to trade, but its almost perfect. Im in Eastern NC & easily average 28 mpg on our rather flat terrain. My wife likes the vehicle size & heated cloth seats. My hands-free phone through my cell is better than her setup through her Camry.

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  So far lovin it. - 2001 Dodge Intrepid
  By yng_byr - March 9 - 3:32 am

  Got this vehicle with lots of highway miles, which made me worry about the engine but so far I have gotten great mpg... It handles very well... Great power for such a large vehicle with a 2.7L V6. Only goes 115 mph tho, and cruise doesnt work when driving faster than 86 mph. Havent had any engine trouble. Big back seats and large trunk.