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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  5 Year Review - 2006 Dodge Caravan
  By joegiant - September 28 - 9:21 am

  Have had "Bonnie" now for 5 years. #1 thing about the van - value. Bought new and Chysler was giving these away at the time so I thought Id take one since we needed the "family vehicle" for kids sports etc. etc. As noted on Edmunds reliability rating, our SXT 3.3L did in fact have the water pump go at 45k. The rack and pinion steering was replaced within the first year of ownership. Aside from regular maintenance, thats about it. Currently 71k on the odometer. Will admit, for a lower hped V6, not real good on gas. 21mpg all around Im guessing, lil better on the hwy but nowhere near the sticker 26 mpg. Very comfortable ride IMHO. American made (Fenton, MO) which is hard to find today.

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  Dodge for Life!! - 2011 Dodge Avenger
  By johntesh71 - September 22 - 11:25 am

  Bought the Avenger Heat with the Pentastar V6. Very powerful and sporty car, Getting just around 33MPG Highway way above the est. 29MPG and about 25 in the city....Just hate those Early shifts from the transmission, and also the unavoidable torque steer from the 300 HP engine bogging down the power steering. The entire is like a jump into a lavish sport sedan....Soft touch leather everywhere, Dodge U-connect phone is sometimes awful....The touch screen gets gummed up really easy, but the seats are stain resistant and everything is easy to see and very user friendly. Love this car and hope to keep it for many years to come.

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  Wow, what a vehicle! - 2012 Dodge Durango
  By jasonmoore - September 22 - 9:04 am

  (BTW, this is a review of the Citadel V8 model, not available to choose from the list) I origiannaly had a 2011 Traverse and it was a nice vehicle with some great room and features. I was however, unhappy with the looks of it as well as the cheap "feel" of the interior. (I owned the LTZ model) I was always looking for a nice suv that had a more manly style and still had the luxury inside without paying for an escalade. Enter the 2012 Durango Citadel! OMG, this vehicle has it all. All of the cool tech features you could ever want, super luxurious interior, and a badass look on the outside! If there is one caveat I have, it is the plastic rim covers. An amazing vehicle overall!

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  My first car - 2001 Dodge Intrepid
  By mmg16 - September 21 - 12:17 am

  This was the first car I ever had, and I must say I loved it. I got it when it was just over 100,000 miles and I had it until 118,000. It would be still running today, but a drunk driver hit it and it was totaled. It was a great, reliable car. But it is important to keep up with oil changes and services. The interior is very comfortable and can easily fit five people-six uncomfortably. The trunk is huge, which was a great plus. This body style looks a lot nicer than the old one, all in all I think this is a great car.

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  This car is awful... - 2009 Dodge Journey
  By jfogs - September 17 - 8:57 pm

  If you want a car where you need to replace the brakes and rotors every 15k miles and will start when it feels like it, then this is the car for you. Think Im kidding? Just google it. Do not buy Dodge/Chrysler. This company deserved to die and you and I are paying to keep them on life support. Never again.

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  Perfect first time, long time car! - 1998 Dodge Neon
  By ch_burne2 - September 16 - 10:20 pm

  Ive had this car since about 07, when I acquired it from my mom who was the 2nd owner (originally bought from a dealership). Ive been driving it since I was 16 so its been through a lot. Aside from regular maintenance this car has been very low maintenance. Ive had the oil changed about every 5k miles and a few tune-ups but this car has not asked for much more. In terms of repairs this is what Ive had to have done: -brakes a couple times in 7 years -fuel pump twice (wear in the fuel line which was unnoticed) -various parts of the cooling system Still has the original clutch after 13 years! This car lasts forever if you care enough.

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  Would I do it again ? NO - 2001 Dodge Dakota
  By fatuglyold - September 16 - 5:43 am

  I bought my Dodge Dakota, October 2000 for $22,000, from a Shelton dealership that was a pleasure to buy from. A crew cab with a V-8 , plenty of power for towing my twenty foot trailer. It was the perfect fit for my growing family of four. It ran great for the first couple of years. It needs a new fuel pump to replace a check valve. It has had two radiators, a new AC pump, new front brakes and needs a new rear end. Will I buy another Dodge ? NO

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  I cant Believe its American - 2011 Dodge Durango
  By islah - September 15 - 8:54 pm

  We Recently bought this car after much research and tons of test drives. We test drove pretty much every single SUV out in the market today and settled down on this one. We got a huge discount and rebate on the 2011 model. This crew has more than what you ask for, for the price that we paid. For 31,000 it has a lot of stuff. The best part is that it is AWD, looks beautiful inside out. The ride is amazing. It is very quite on the road, especially on the Highway, once you get to the fifth gear, the engine becomes very quite that you can barely hear it. In one week we did 400 miles with 20 mpg combined, fabulous.

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  First dodge - 2011 Dodge Journey
  By powemicj - September 15 - 8:38 pm

  I have had this SUV for about 2 months and have put 2500 miles on and I love it. It fits the family and the 3 dogs comfortably.

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  Great Usage - 2007 Dodge Durango
  By tlc872 - September 14 - 10:55 pm

  I have had my Durango for 4 years and it has not given me any problems. I find that the space is great for transporting my big family, and has not complaints.