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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  Good Enough - 2001 Dodge Dakota
  By DodgeOwner12 - September 11 - 2:00 am

  I got the truck in april of 2001. The Dakota has ample leg room in the front but it is not the best in the rear for tall people. I have the Dk. Garnet Red paint which is one hin coat and then the primer. It scratches very easily. The 5.9 V8 has a lot of power which makes it fun to drive. It has the Infinity 6 speaker sound system which has really great quality sound. The only problems are that it went back to the shop about every month till it hit 30,000 miles.

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  Perfect - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By bullwinkle - September 11 - 2:00 am

  It took me and my wife a while to find a car we liked but when we found our stratus sxt we fell in love it is so fun to drive plus it is a pretty car I wouldnt give it up for nothing its a small car that is sharp plus got the power to back it up

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  2004 Dodge Stratus - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By JJAR - September 11 - 2:00 am

  Great car! corfortable, sporty. Roomy on the inside, huge trunk space, lots of features, great speed, good on gas (improves the more you drive it).Handles likes a sports car, good for a family car. Would buy another!!!!

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  Stratus Review - 2001 Dodge Stratus
  By stangscg - September 10 - 2:00 am

  Excellent performance from a reasonably priced package. Design that gets many positive comments, even with the car being now 4 years old. Good sound system. Excellent reliability.

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  Durango does it - 1999 Dodge Durango
  By tntarizona - September 10 - 2:00 am

  The Durangos are very affordable when shopping for SUVs. Ive had no major problems with it at all, only scheduled maintenance upkeep. The 5.9 liter motor is great scaling through mountains with lots of power to spare and fuel economy is reasonable

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  Dodge Dakota R/T - 2000 Dodge Dakota
  By DrewD - September 10 - 2:00 am

  Dodge far and away builds the poorest vehicle I have ever owned. This truck not only depreciates the fastest of any American vehicle but the milage rating was overstated by almost twice what it got. Also when the dealership was questioned about the poor milage and the engine miss I was told "yes I can hear it but Dodge wont authorize us to fix it" For having as large of an engine as it did it was not fast. For a 2000 the idea that Dodge uses the same undercarrige as a 1970 car pretty much tell the story on the funding they put into research and development. Never will I look at a Dodge\Chrysler vehicle again.

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  the stratus - 2005 Dodge Stratus
  By shaggy2598 - September 10 - 2:00 am

  i have loved this car ever since I test drove. I would recommend this car to anyone.

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  200 Horses of Iron - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By Kevin Parrish - September 7 - 10:00 am

  I rote a review on the Mazdaspeed Protege and well this Dodge is the Best car ever. Its fast its quick its cofrontable. Its nice lokkin. Its the perfect car for American people. Dont go after Japaneese or European carz. Help Americas econimy by uying American Muscle. The real Muscle Carr.

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  The Customer Loses - 2003 Dodge Neon
  By The Customer Loses - September 7 - 10:00 am

  The car only has 5000 miles and the brakes make noise. The car has been back 3 times for this problem and the area rep from Chrysler states that this is normal. I didnt know noise from the brakes was an available option.

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  97 Dodge Caravan Sport--Great Van - 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By dthueson - September 7 - 10:00 am

  I have had excellent service with this car. Have only had a few minor problems. Mechanically has been sound.