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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  STAY AWAY - 1994 Dodge Caravan
  By dodge NO MORE - February 3 - 2:00 am

  Im now on my third minivan, I can only say that Im the jack--- that continued to buy these vans. the first van: replaced tranny, two air conditioners, two evaportor cores, and finally a blown rod=$25.00 from junk yard to haul away (at 114,000 miles) The 2nd one a 93, air compressor and tranny b 4 55000 miles (sold it) The 3rd, well alot worse than the first!!!

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  cant beat it for the money - 2003 Dodge Intrepid
  By monster - February 3 - 2:00 am

  having taken out 7 cars for a test drive (in this price range) I was convinced that I would be settling for a four cylinder econobox. The Intrepid proved me wrong and I bought it right after the test drive was done. What a great car for the money! Handling, ride, interior space are all excellent...not to mention its not hard to look at either!

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  good mix of sports car & truck - 2000 Dodge Dakota
  By Rich B. - February 3 - 2:00 am

  Excellent truck has the handling, acceleration & still can tow a trailer or haul lumber. 5.9 is just brute torque. No high tech here, just good olpushrods. Handles great. Rear axle gets a little upset over stutter bumps. ABS works well but traction control would be a welcome feature when you arent trying to toss the ass end out while turning. Very comfortable on long rides & good interior ergonomics...

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  DONT BUY THIS CAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - 1997 Dodge Avenger
  By JKauf05 - February 2 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car with 58K and I have had nothing but problems with it. Here is a list of what i have had to fix in the last year. New tie rod and tie rod ends $960, New automatic trans. $1200, All new breaks $450, New control arm $120, All new coolent hoses $100. If you are looking at Avenger I would strongly suggest you change your mind. The car has been nothing but a headache and a money pit. And the performance is not that good.

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  ash - 1996 Dodge Avenger
  By ashlee - February 2 - 2:00 am

  This car has been a great car, very fun to drive, very comfortable, good stereo, looks good overall. The only complaint i have is that when something goes wrong it cost a lot to fix because how they put the engine together.

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  Great Car - 2001 Dodge Neon
  By Mkfax - February 2 - 2:00 am

  This is the BEST economical car that I have ever owned! It looks sporty but at the same time the price is less than that of a real "sports" car. It has a lot of "guts" for a little car. I live in the mountains and it is great going up and down the hills.

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  I thought we were in the 21st century - 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By jb36 - February 1 - 9:22 pm

  Im forced to drive this thing quite often due to my work. I think its despicable. Interior feels cheap, especially the seat fabric, steering feels barely connected at highway speed, theres very small but constant pitch motion in the rear when theres no load in the back. Brake, like steering is over-servoed, and transmission. Its not a very smooth shift to begin with, but it gets worse and worse as you drive on for a long time, like over 4hrs. Its big sure, and pretty useful, but its not very clever either. People buy this not because its cheap - its not THAT cheap. People buy this I think just because they havent really tried anything else. Its a throw away.

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  Nice to drive for a van - 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan
  By kennedyma - February 1 - 1:03 pm

  Bought for 6K from a private party, who kept all their records. We have put 40K miles on it since and have had basically no problems. Goodyear Triple Treds were on it, and at 95K we put another set on. These are really good tires for this van. Everything still works fingers crossed

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  Stratus 96 2.4L - 1996 Dodge Stratus
  By asdfjkl - February 1 - 2:00 am

  Overall car is good. Love the look and interior space.

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  My Dream Car - 2006 Dodge Charger
  By kcp4921 - January 31 - 3:43 am

  This car has it all. Looks, performance, and comfort. I purchased it without test driving it. I just loved the look. Oh my God when I got in for the first time I was blown away. This car has the power of a muscle car, and the comfort of the Chrysler 300. Everyone takes notice on the highway. Great job Dodge.