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:

• 

  Love My Intrepid - 2004 Dodge Intrepid
  By D Bascone - October 27 - 2:00 am

  For the feel of the spaciousness of a minivan, but the comfort and ease of a sedan, I would recommend this car. Large trunk space. Convenient access to all controls for the driver. Rear seat comfort controlls for heat and airconditioning an extra bonus. Love the styling of the exterior of the car. My model has a sun roof which I highly recommend. Good gas mileage.

• 

  Sweet Ride - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By RIP - October 26 - 8:20 pm

  I love my Charger, it performs great. 0-60 fast, even pulling 4000 pounds. Lots of room and you still feel cool driving down the road.

• 

  99 intrepid es mechanical problems - 1999 Dodge Intrepid
  By altagent - October 26 - 2:00 am

  I was driving to Lake Tahoe on a Saturday and the engine just started spazzing out for no reason. It felt like the timing belt jumped or I lost fuel but I let it sit for 10 minutes and it ran fine. 20 minutes down the road the same thing. 10 minutes later it ran fine. I drove another 100 miles to Tahoe and parked it. I started it up 2 days later and the wipers were spazzing out now. I drove it 120 miles and half way home it Spazzed out again. Idiot light was on and I brought it to the shop. Code was misfire. Light promptly went off and I drive it daily now. These cars are so heavily computerized that I think there is a hot wire somewhere to the trans thats causing this.Disappointe

• 

  New Durango Customer - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By TWolf - October 26 - 2:00 am

  This is my first Durango. I drove a 2001 a couple of years ago, and I liked it very much, however, a deal could not be made with the dealership, so I went and bought a used 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Replaced the front and rear differentials as the transfer case in one year. Drove the 2004 Durango, love how it performs (despite the not so great mileage), and needless to say, Im extremely happy!

• 

  A GREAT FIRST NEW CAR - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By Rich in Pa. - October 25 - 10:00 am

  I bought this 2003 neon back in Oct. 2002, and havent had any problems as of yet. I would say to all this is a very good car to consider.

• 

  dodge man - 2005 Dodge Viper
  By vrod - October 25 - 2:00 am

  The best day of my life

• 

  Avoid the 2.7L at all costs!!!!! - 2000 Dodge Intrepid
  By Avoid 2.7 L!!!! - October 25 - 2:00 am

  Whatever you do dont buy the 2.7L. Ours just blew up after 50,000 miles. If you dont beleive me do an internet search for "Dodge 2.7 sludge", you will see hundreds if not thousands of other people complaining of the same thing at even lower milage! The 2.7L has a design flaw where the top half of the engine overheats and causes oil to turn to sludge, it makes it look like it hasnt had an oil change in years even if it has and they void your warranty over it! If the sludge wasnt bad enough, the sludge screws with the timing belt tensioners and loosens the timing belts in a lot of cases too! Causing damage to lifters and requiring thousands in repairs! Class action suits have been filed

• 

  amazing performance for a 6cyl.!!!! - 2001 Dodge Stratus
  By sir looshus - October 25 - 2:00 am

  the 01 stratus is fun to drive with the optional auto stick. the top of the powerband is very responsive. handling is great on dry or wet surfaces. interior design is awesome, everthing is within arms length of the driver. could have added heat to the power leather seats for the cold winters, but ya cant have everything! would purchase another in a heartbeat. only problem i have had was a timing belt tensioner at 90XXX miles

• 

  high maintenance - 1992 Dodge Caravan
  By Blowngasket - October 24 - 2:00 am

  While it is a practical vehicle, there are some design flaws that have proven costly. Ive had multiple blown head gaskets (costly repair) that apparently are the result of incompatible metals used in the pistons and the cylinders. There were numerous other repairs, but the heag gasket is the back breaker. I would not recommend this vehicle or any Dodge van from the 1990s.

• 

  2 Dr SLT Extended Cab Standard bed - 1998 Dodge Dakota
  By notnamedjess - October 24 - 2:00 am

  I just sold my Dakota after 6 years. Over all I really liked my truck and was proud of it. It was fun to drive and anyone that drove it liked it. It was comfortable with plenty of room in the front seat for passengers but the back seat was not comfortable for adults. The bed was a good size for anything I needed. I got an average of 18mpg, up to 23 and as low as 9mpg when pulling my boat.