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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  Not good! - 1996 Dodge Neon
  By kabarker - August 19 - 2:00 am

  The transmission went out on me within two years of purchase. There are numerous places where the paint is chipping off. All the other older neons Ive seen have paint chipping also. Put more money into it repairing it than its worth.

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  Reliable as Anything Out There - 1998 Dodge Intrepid
  By Ferrari_Rules - August 19 - 2:00 am

  This is my second Intrepid. I was going to buy new, but did a search for a Candy-apple Red ES with Climate Control, the Infinity sound system, Trip Computer and a tan leather interior. Found one with only 16k miles, paid what they asked for it and its been a real pleasure to own. Any car will go 100k miles these days with oil changes and new plugs every so often, and you get more car than a Honda.

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  Viper - 2004 Dodge Viper
  By gseely - August 19 - 2:00 am

  One test drive in this car, and I was sold. Love it.

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  So far, so good! - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By SXTDriver - August 19 - 2:00 am

  Ive only driven a few hundred miules thus far, so of course this review is brief, and limited to my inital impressions. Style - Great! Dodge has done a great job of keeping a somewhat old design looking fresh and stylish Ride/Handling - Great! Smooth and quiet for a car in this class. Power - Im still breaking the car in, but so far - more than adequete. Quality/Durability - The big question mark...Ill let yall know as time passes Cargo/Space - Extremely roomy: Im 62, and have plenty of wiggle room! Price/Features - Almost unbeatable - loaded to the gills, my Neon cost less than 13K after rebates/minimal haggling!

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  2799 miles and blown Headgaskets - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By cvman46 - August 19 - 2:00 am

  Well This car was fun as hell, untill a manafacturing default ( warped master cylinder ) caused the head gaskets to blow......not fun especially something that major with only 2800 miles on it, and i havent even done anything to it yet, and was going to take on my co workers Porche in the 1/4 mile which i know will be no contest per the srt-4 I drove for my friend and blew a SVT away, lol untill he got into 4th gear...lol but i think that blue flame had something to do with it..lol But cant wait to install the stage 2 turbo, comes with alot of extras that you probably have bought seperate already, that is why i was wating....

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  everything about the car is great - 2004 Dodge Neon
  By Linda Leonard - August 19 - 2:00 am

  I love this car its fast and cheap ! The best thing dodge has done next to the VIPER!!!!

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  Great Vehicle - 2004 Dodge Durango
  By Durangova - August 19 - 2:00 am

  Great engine (Hemi), wonderful ride, great handling. Dodge got it right. I recommend this vehicle to anyone who is shopping the mid and large size SUV market

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  Really good early impression - 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By Dave Gower - August 19 - 1:00 am

  My first Dodge van was a 1884 model, and this is my 4th since then. Although Ive like all my vans, this one is head and shoulders above the others. The build quality is good, but even more the ride and handling is far superior. I guess this is the Mercedes influence on the design. The seating position and comfort are excellent. A power seat helps here. The controls fall readily to hand, are very intuitive, and have a quality feel. Outward vision at first seemed blocked by thick pillars but I find I got used to that quickly and am not bothered now. I find that parking is far easier than with my old vans. The square corners may help here but the steering seems more precise as well.

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  DO NOT BUY DODGE/CHRYSLER! - 1999 Dodge Intrepid
  By AliasdislikesDodge - August 18 - 10:00 am

  Had to buy a new engine at a price of $3,000.00 with no help from Chrysler or Dodge... They would not release parts to any other mechanic due to the "newness" of vehicle. You know, nothing of this magnitude should happen to such a new car... So we were forced to see dealership to fix. Constant alignment problems- the car has never driven smoothly. New fuel injection pump also... and now mechanical problems. Also hubcabs are rusted through- no protected finish originally. We are presently looking to purchase a new car and will more than likely take a loss due to all problems.

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  TURDMOBILE - 1995 Dodge Neon
  By smug1 - August 17 - 2:00 am

  This car is a TURD. . . Shakes Rattles & Rolls along the road. I bought it for basic trans for work. Paid 2K for it with 47K miles. Every two weeks I have to add 2-3 quarts of oil, its quite embarassing. Somehow this car manages to start & drive me at anytime anywhere. Ive driven this car hard for 8 months & 20K miles and Its been pretty reliable.