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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  400,000 MILES AND GOING STRONG - 2008 Dodge Avenger
  By David Smith - November 4 - 10:56 pm

  I bought this car for my daughter after she got divorced in 2013. The car already had 331,000 miles on it. I knew the owner so I had a complete history. Except for normal maintenance the only thing he had to do was a transmission solenoid because it was starting to leak. We have spent some money on it this year: i.e shocks,struts, tie rods, wheel bearing, brakes, tires, an oil pan and the alternator finally went. Not bad for the mileage and certainly expected. The car gets 90,000 miles out of tires, drives great in the snow and on the highway, She has put over 70,000 miles on it in two years with my granddaughter in a car seat the whole way. It is the original motor and transmission. The 2.4 in 2008 went to a timing chain so no maintenance there. I work in a shop. I never see these for major repairs. I agree with some people that the interior is a bit cheap looking. Dodge did major improvements on their interiors in 2010. The styling is very attractive on the exterior. Like a mini 08 Charger. That being said I am a pragmatist. Dependability is more important to me. My lowest mileage car has 142,000 and we cover almost every make. It still is my favorite. At 404,000 miles the car shows no sign of slowing down and believe me, my daughter is not what you would call an easy driver. My youngest son totaled his car. Guess what Im looking for now?

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  Terrible vehicle !!! - 2003 Dodge Durango
  By Doug Bartee - November 4 - 4:59 pm

  2003 durango slt 4x4. Hands down the worst, most unreliable ,vehicle I have ever owned. This durango has been in the shop more than it has been on the road. The 4.7 could be the worst motor ever built. Drives like a tank and gets terrible gas mileage. I will Never buy another dodge. The only good dodges are the classics and a few of the trucks , mostly diesels 1st generation.

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  Great looks with a very poor heart. - 2012 Dodge Durango
  By Oscar Vargas - November 2 - 4:47 pm

  Currently own a 2012 Citadel V8 5.7 Hemi. The vehicle looks great very attractive lines, comfort, technology and gadgets... However where it lacks is in its engine this vehicle came with a few problems and Dodge does very little to help customers. The engine suddenly turns off while driving." Be a Magician when this Happens " Or embrace yourself for a potential accident. What do I do? I put the vehicle in neutral and with a soft touch to the brake pedal Start the vehicle again and go. This was supposed to be a recall and dodge is fixing it ... BS I did took the car to the dealership, corrected the recall and still doing it. The other issue is the rattling whenever you try to accelerate to pass someone or to floor the car a bit. Check engine light comes and goes, the computer shows cylinder misfires. Like I said I have nothing to complaint in the looks or technology is the engine that came with issues and Dodge dont stand behind it.

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  Horrible first car - 2004 Dodge Stratus
  By Karlina Tavarez - November 1 - 10:18 pm

  In overall it was a waste of money. The car was bought for $3,000 and today Im selling it for $1000 and still NO ONE wants to buy it. I have wasted so much money in relating this car. First it started by changing the batteries, then changing the spark plugs (now currently riding with 5 spark plugs out of 6, because one is messed up). Now the car needs a motor mount because it shakes crazily and the oil light comes on every time I break and the suspensions sound tremendously while going over the smallest little holes in the streets. Mechanics told me it now has low oil pressure and with all the problems that it STILL has, its better off junking it and buying a new one. The car has 130k miles and only had it for a year. Yeah, American cars arent worth it.

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  DODGE FIAT throw away cars - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By olsenancy@gmail.com - November 1 - 12:19 pm

  Buying new, my 2013 Dodge Dart is a great looking great gas mileage car, however, there is no resale valve, a/c problem with moisture in car, dealer says they made the part small for better mpg , well I get very close to 40 highway if it was 1or2 less I wouldnt care if the a/c worked good... they have changed for 2015 knowing there was a problem, I tryied working with dealer from the second day I owned and I would of lost 10k in one day.. that is crazy .... now after paying 24k new it is worth 9k .... it is a garage kept car, always clean and detailed. 26k for mileage.... the 6 speed auto shift is very it shifts when it wants... it is not smooth at all... I would never rebuy this car any any of the line up check Edmond FIAT DODGE JEEP made 5 of the top 15 autos NOT TO BUY this year.... I got screwed...I love the car but the problems are terrible.... as I need a/c when I ask what happens when I go to California,,, they said dont go a/c will not keep you cool.. other than computer problems the dealer says needs to be flashed.... I love the car... I cant even sell mine for 14k and have had it ad for 2 years now. reline with lots of nice things...

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  Journey 2010 stays parked more than we can drive i - 2010 Dodge Journey
  By john - November 1 - 8:28 am

  Well ive owned 4 dodges from when i was a teenager i got 70 T/AChallenger. That was a fun car no problems other than what i caused. An 87 Ram 50 new bad engine almost had to lemon law to get Dodge to get it fixed and that was a new motor. Then 2013 Charger sxt had electrical problems from day one traded it back in less than a month on a 2010 Journey nice lookig but has way more problems than i want to deal with. Go to start it next day click click wont start. Wouldnt take a jump wiggled the shifter it started so for a couple of weeks we did that then that didnt work all the time. Took it to tge dealer it wouldnt do it for them so we got it back and drove it for about 2 more weeks until it was just dead wouldnt start no matter what. Looked it up on line told them i want the WIN MODE replaced under recall welk until it did it to them they still fix it so we left it with the dealer for over 2 weeks paying for a rental car. The dealer called said they replaced battery alt,starter, win mode and we gt it back again. 2 days later we are still wiggling the shifter to get it started but it dont work every time. I just got it back again and ts still click no start sometimes. Couldnt use it fir 3 days rented another car. I am having a tough time making a payment on it now since i have to rent cars all the time now. The brakes are very bad car shimmys when applied even had the tlrotors replaced as i was told they were warped but they arent so i cant afford this car any more. The dash is dead nothing happens at all with flashers and esp ect, cruise dont work and it eats tires. I never liked front drive cars and this confirms my reasons why. I had so many missed days off from work and rented so many cars to get to work i actually lost my job with that company. At 59 years old try and get another job in this economy NOT EASY so i say if you buy a Dodge journey you will like me regret it big time. Dodge wont help they just said its a power train issue and your out of warranty. I can tell when someone is reading a script and that person was . I will now apply all my efforts and money to the media so that everyone will see how well Dodge cares about service and helping out the customer. With my big mouth and all my friends and news media will make Dodge pay in one way or another from lack of sales and loss of new and old customers to what ever it takes to get dodge to replace the car with another vehicle that dont have 15 recalls on it. Im just waiting for the day it shuts off while driving like someone i met told me they had happen and dodge knows all about these problems and does nothing about it. It will take a bunch to get me happy with a MOPAR again.

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  DONT EVER BUY DODGE DART - 2013 Dodge Dart
  By Greg - October 28 - 5:25 pm

  I have been having a problem with my dodge dart 2013 coming up with service transmission not once or twice but five time i brought it in to dealer and the first time they said it was my driving. I brought it back again and this time it wasnt my driving they said it needed to be reset so I said why does it need to be rest I got the best answer I have ever heard they dont know. Now it went back in this time I was having problems starting up car it wont turn over but I did have power to the car they couldnt figure it out for two weeks they had it at the dealer and NOW my car is blowing blue smoke out the tailpipe when i am sitting at lights why is now NO ONE SHOULD EVER BUY DODGE THEY DONT STAND BEHIND THERE CARS I TRYED TO GO THROUGH THE LEMON LAW IT WAS DENIED WOW WHAT A GREAT COMPANY TO BUY FROM ALSO THERE IS RECALL ON THE TRANSMISSON AND THERE IS NO FIX FOR THIS RECALL

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  221000 miles on her same motor and tranny - 1998 Dodge Durango
  By david - October 28 - 12:21 pm

  I got my 1998 dodge Durango 5.2 L at 20,000 miles on it first it was the only car me and the wife had so we had to be really nice to it then we raised six kids with it then we got a expedition el and the Durango had 100,000 miles at this time it became all mine I have a very heavy foot I treated it like a hot rod now for four years and 120,000 miles and still has the same engine,tranny,rear end,transfer case and front end and POWER that it did the day I got it takes snow rain mud very well I would never get rid of her I have money set aside just for her if anything ever did go wrong she WILL be fixed we have five cars and this is my go to ride for work or play the only bad thing is with me is I replace tires a lot (heavy foot)

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  performance meets practicality - 2015 Dodge Charger
  By Steve - October 26 - 10:32 am

  I went with the SXT AWD Rallye edition as this is my work commuter car and Maine winter roads can be treacherous and gas mileage was a factor. However, if the AWD was still available with the HEMI I probably would have gone with the V8, just because you know Im a man who doesnt want say "it has a Hemi". The Rallye editions comes standard with true factory duel exhaust and bumps the V6 up to a legitimate 300HP. Its no slouch and fun to drive. I love the active cruise on my daily interstate commute of 95 miles round trip. radio/navigation is easy to operate, much better than the one in my previous ford Taurus or the Rav 4 my wife had. Hands free is simple and intuitive. I have never averaged less than 25 mpg (heavy foot the first few weeks) in mixed driving and usually it hoovers around 27mpg, on one long 500+ mile road trip I averaged 29.5mpg, really great when you consider the cruise was set at 75 most of the time. the lane departure system works great on highway trips, but it can be disabled with a push button and on narrow roads that is relief as it can intrude on the driving experience. The breaks could be just a touch better if they went with 4-piston calipers, but they get the job with a bit of fade on the tail end of a hard stop. Build quality, material feel, ride comfort and ergonomics are outstanding, chrysler has come a long way from the cheap hard plastics of past vehicles. Overall no complaints and no buyers remorse after 5000 miles I still really enjoy this car.

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  Great for a new driver! - 2015 Dodge Dart
  By Wendy - October 23 - 11:21 pm

  Tire pressure sensitivity gauge too sensitive, like most updated vehicles. Just a pain to deal with. Tire pressure changes with the weather.