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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  3 more days and its gone! - 1996 Dodge Neon
  By bilahn - July 19 - 2:00 am

  I have had many of the problems stated by the others, the worst of which was a catastrophic oil leak that cost $900 and 3 trips. Now they tell me theres a "miniscule" radiator hole. Plus, the car shakes and vibrates all the time! I wish I hadnt fallend for the hype back in 1996. Rotten car.

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  Fun to drive - 2002 Dodge Stratus
  By StratusRT - July 19 - 2:00 am

  The R/T package on the Stratus has one of the best handling suspensions I have ever driven. The 2.7 liter engine has very nice performance for this class. I find the interior design well thought out and attractive, much better than any of the Japanese cars I have been in in this class. My car gets driven pretty hard and in some pretty atypical conditions, but it has never let me down.

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  Neons are the worst cars EVER! - 1996 Dodge Neon
  By Lynnette - July 18 - 2:00 am

  This has been a horrible car to own. I have stuck so much money into repairs. Two fuel pumps, overheating problems, two EGR valves, AIS motor, struts, and many others. It has broken down while I have been in the middle of moving twice. Im sure the fuel pump went out on it before I owned it. If you like spending money constantly on repairs get one. Otherwise do yourself a favor and buy something else.

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  Cheap fast car - 1995 Dodge Neon
  By Blue 4 door - July 18 - 2:00 am

  Very reliable car, put 15000 miles on it and the only thing that went was the rear main seal, and that was from doing 100 mph for 2000 miles ($35 and a long weekend of work), other than that no big problems, Has 130k miles and it still kills all the imports, even v6s I race it almost every weekend and hit 120 more times than I can count and it still runs stong. Gas milage is not good, but I also have a lead foot. If you maintain it, it will last. drive 50 miles back and forth to work every day and it never broke down on me.

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  Great Family Van - 2001 Dodge Caravan
  By mto - July 18 - 2:00 am

  2001 Dodge Grand Caravan Sport 42,000 miles Purchased from a CarMax dealership in Spring of 2002. No major problems, Just oil changes and brake pads since purchased. Rate of depreciation seems high. I owe more than its worth, but then Im not planning on selling it...

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  Airwolf of the road - 2002 Dodge Stratus
  By T. Wilson - July 18 - 2:00 am

  This car is awesome. I have a 79 Dodge Little Red Express. I have always been a Mopar fan. I love the styling and looks of the exterior and interior. It is one sharp car. Yes, it does impress the women. As far as the mechanical aspect, it is all in how you treat the car. Changing the sparkplugs on the R/T is nothing at all. The sound system is great. A/C performs well. I just dont have much to complain about the 2002 Dodge Stratus R/T. It is just a great car. Super car for a single person and for the money.

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  Great Job! - 2003 Dodge Durango
  By Rhonda Brown - July 18 - 2:00 am

  I am writing this review on the 2003 Durango my husband & I purchased on May 16th 2003. This was a gift from him to me for my birthday and I cant tell you how excited I was to receive it. We are a family of 6 and I have always owned mini-vans for this reason. Its great that Dodge has a SUV that is affordable, dependable and safe for a family our size. I am more than pleased with my Durango and would recommend it to anyone. Thanks again to the great staff at Kidd Chyrsler and all employees of Dodge for a great SUV:)

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  Love My Caliber - 2007 Dodge Caliber
  By mittiegirl - July 17 - 4:13 pm

  I absolutely love my new Caliber. It is my 3rd car, and let me tell you, it is definitely the best. I drive it back and forth to college twice a week, which is 100mi each way. Ive never had any problems with it. The headlighs are awesome! Seats are extremely comfortable. I have both front seats the whole way back and my cousins who are all 510 and taller have virtually no problem getting in and out. It does lag a bit from 0-40, but once you hit 40 it just goes. One review said it was not agile, not at all true. Very responsive and safe. The 5 star saftey rating one reason I bought it. It can also go through quite a bit of snow, AWD or no AWD.

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  review - 1998 Dodge Stratus
  By lurch - July 17 - 2:00 am

  great car, has really lasted, have well over 100,000 miles and looks and runs like it is new

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  I agree! - 1996 Dodge Neon
  By Chandra - July 17 - 2:00 am

  I bought my Neon new and have tried to keep up with regular maintenance. At this point, I have replaced all of the engine gaskets and transmission gaskets because they were made of plastic and sprung leaks starting while the car was under warranty, the radiator broke (made of plastic, too!), and a number of other repairs that seem surprising for this car have been made. On top of that, the car gets dented if you look at it wrong. Luckily, I have not had the paint problems others have complained about.