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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  i miss this van - 1997 Dodge Ram Van
  By JLJones - June 4 - 2:13 am

  I purchased this van 1 year old used, a former fleet van. I have owned a 1991 dodge van previously. 1997 van had 3.9l v6 and 3-speed automatic trans. drivetrain not high on power but reliable and the transmisson worked well only problems were a cracked catalyst caused by using bosch platnum plus-4 spark plugs. ran this van overloaded most of the time and regularly exceeded tow rating bu 1500-2000 lbs van held up well to 3-years of my abuse then i traded it for a new 2001 dodge van. my 1997 sold to a friend of mine had 56,000 miles at trade now has 130,000 with no trouble while my 2001 van has been a nightmare 38,000miles 3 sets brakes weak 318 v8 and terrible tranny, eats rear tires, leaks, junk. will buy a ford van next time

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  Not ever again - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Misery - May 4 - 5:18 pm

  I bought my Neon brand new with only 10 miles on it. I wanted a safe car for my family. I have a infant. The car rode great. All the ammenities were great. A little small when traveling, but overall its good. Six months after owning my car I got into a little "finder bender" or at least I thought it was little. I hit a Camry from behind, scratched their bumper and totalled my car. YES TOTALLED!! These cars are not very safe. I wasnt even going over 20 mph. I am just lucky that my son nor I were hurt. I would never buy a Neon again.

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  Stay Away from this Model! - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By blackstone114 - April 28 - 9:23 pm

  I just spent $988 to replace all four brakes on a Grand Caravan with just under 18,000 miles. The rear brake shoe was frozen and the front brake pads were 97% worn. This after the dealer told me last week to watch the front brakes, never mentioning the rear. This Canadian assembled from Chinese made parts piece of junk is by far the worst vehicle I have ever owned. Their dealers are even worse. Dont be fooled by the American nameplate. Move on to another brand.

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  This was the best minivan in the 90s? - 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By CWD - April 28 - 10:00 am

  This minivan was advertised and reviewed as the best minivan of the 90s. Thank goodness the 90s are over. This van has been unreliable. We were a block from home heading to the airport and both the input and output transmission sensors gave out. This was at 4:00 a.m. and we had to catch a plane at 6:00 a.m. We have had to replace all four power window motors, and we have had to replace the drivers window motor 3 times and it just went bad again. This vehicle is totally unreliable, and it is a shame, as the concept is quite good. Unfortunately, the reality is, this vehicle sucks!

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  Piece Of Junk - 2000 Dodge Neon
  By Shy - April 27 - 10:51 pm

  Ive had the worst experience with mine. I have only owned it 3 years and replaced a cam sensor, speed sensor, spark plugs, freeze plugs, all the belts, thermostat, rotor, motor mounts, the upper and lower one, 2 window motors, and a door motor. Still waiting to replace the power steering pump too but am broke because mine is in the shop every 3 months. If you love spending money for your car to be in the shop all the time, this is the car for you.

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  BIG Transmission issue - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By jlcc - April 24 - 4:43 pm

  My family loved this car...while it worked. We took it back to the dealer when the transmission literally broke into a thousand pieces and it will be, at the earliest, July 16th b-4 there will be any transmissions available. NOT OKAY! Not sure where to go from here... save your money and buy a Ford

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  Intrepid - 2001 Dodge Intrepid
  By whit - April 20 - 10:55 pm

  Great feature such as cruise, power windows, power seats, and electric trunk lid. But, I dont feel like the engine is all that great. Had to install a new timing chain tensioner at a little over 80,000 miles and now at a little over 100,000 miles its doing the same thing. Pretty sure it needs another timing chain tensioner installed. This is definetly not normal. Ive been using Sea Foam which seems to be taking care of the problem pretty well but when ever I change the oil I have to add more Sea Foam. Eventually this will not work any more.

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  Rip-Off! - 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By kj - April 20 - 3:06 am

  Since buying this vehicle, we have replaced the tie rods, replaced tires 3 out of 4 years, replaced brake pads almost annually, replaced the brakes, had the motor in the driver side power window fixed, replaced the alternator belt, did the tailgate lift recall, and now we are having to have the fuel injector replaced and the computer system repaired. The rubber on the edges of the doors has been glued twice, the air conditioner leaks on the passenger floor boards, the little cup holders on both passenger seats have also broken. You would think I worked to tear this vehicle up. It gets regular maintenance. I drive on interstates and main roads. Its in the shop for the 4th time this year!

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  Great car unless you go through car washes. - 2015 Dodge Charger
  By Joehonea10@gmail.com - April 16 - 10:55 am

  I bought this car in July of last year. Had been a great car until about 2 months ago. The door handles have cheap plastic covers over them and when I went through the touchless car wash and got to the end where the blowers dry the car my passanger side door handle flew off. Didnt notice until i parked to vaccum I found the peice but some of the clips were broken so it wasnt a tight fit thats when I realized they are kind of flimsy they move around a little when you wiggle them. So I brought it to the dealer and told them what happend and they told me to super glue it back on. I wasnt going to do that to a brand new car and had to talk to a few people before somebody helped. They dont sell just the cover so I had to get a whole new handle. They paid for it after I exchanged words with the manager. I got my new handle with cover. I figured the first one was just defective because the drivers side and others held ok in the wash. I went through the was a few more times and it popped off again on the same door and at the blow dryer at the wash again. When you spend a good deal of money on a car you dont expect door handles to just snap off in the car wash. Especially a brushless one love the car but this one issue is vary frustrating and I wouldnt have bought this car if I would have known what I know now. In the mean time I guess Ill be washing it delicately by hand.

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  Not worth it - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By Willaim - April 1 - 5:22 pm

  I wouldnt recommend this vehicle. I purchased mine in nov 04 and have had problems with the brakes, windshield leaking, car stalling, and the engine. The car is very noisy and the engine makes all kinds of funny sounds that the dealership keeps rubbing off as wind noise. Had to have my windshield resealed and the brakes are very loud. Now the car acts like it wants to stall in idle and its an automatic transmission. I have recently purchased a Camry to replace it. Im almost willing to let the bank repossess the car, so what does that tell you? Definately not worth your time and money.