Dodge
- For other uses of the word, see Dodge (disambiguation).
| Dodge | |
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| Type | Division |
| Founded | 1914 |
| Headquarters |  Auburn Hills, Michigan, United States |
| Industry | Automobile |
| Products | mid-prices cars, muscle cars, performance vehicles, sports cars, SUVs, vans, Pickup Trucks |
| Parent | Chrysler LLC |
| Slogan | Grab Life |
| Website | www.dodge.com (U.S.) www.discoverdodge.com (Global) |
Dodge is a North American brand of automobiles and light to heavy-duty trucks from Chrysler, sold globally. It was first manufactured in 1914, by the Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicle Company; after a brief period of ownership by Dillon, Read & Company, Chrysler acquired Dodge in 1928 and has since run it mostly as a brand of midrange cars and trucks.
Before Chrysler
In 1901, John Francis Dodge and Horace Elgin Dodge moved their Dodge Brothers Bicycle & Machine Factory to Detroit, Michigan from Windsor, Ontario where they were making intricate auto parts. Their bearings and other parts were in demand with the early automobile industry, and they helped design motor parts for early Oldsmobiles.
In 1902, the Dodge Brothers were approached by Henry Ford, who was looking for help in financing his own automobile company. They helped finance the start of the Ford Motor Company as well as manufacturing parts for early Fords, to Ford's and the Dodge Brothers' mutual financial benefit. Through 1913, nearly all Ford running gear (chassis, suspension, brakes, engines, transmissions, etc.) were built by Dodge.
In 1914, the Dodge Brothers started their own auto company, which they named the Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicle Company, choosing 50 dealers initially from hundreds of applications, some of which remain today. In that first year, Dodge introduced the "Old Betsy," a rugged car built for reliability and durability. That year Dodge built a total of 249 cars. In a boost to their fortunes, the Dodge brothers brought a successful lawsuit against Ford in 1917. In the same year, Dodge Brothers began building motor trucks as well, at first for use by the United States Army during World War I, then commercially after the war's end.
In 1925, the Dodge Brothers Company was purchased by Dillon, Read & Company for US$148 million, said to be the largest cash transaction in history up to that time. Dillon Read in turn sold Dodge to the Chrysler Corporation on July 31, 1928.
Dodge as a brand of Chrysler
Dodge was a part of DaimlerChrysler AG, based in Stuttgart. As of 2005, the Dodge brand has become known primarily for its trucks and vans, which account for 78% of the division's sales. Dodge is attempting to change this with the introduction of many new car models including the Dodge Caliber, Dodge Avenger, Dodge Charger, Dodge Magnum and the soon to be released Dodge Challenger.
In Spring 2007, DaimlerChrysler reached an agreement with Cerberus Capital Management to sell off its Chrysler Group subsidiary of which the Dodge division is part.
In Canada, the Dodge lineup of cars was merged[when? — see talk page] with the Chrysler lineup so Canadians instead of receiving the Dodge Intrepid, Dodge Dynasty or second gen Dodge Neon, received the Chrysler Intrepid, Chrysler Dynasty and Chrysler Neon. As of 2003, this decision has changed and the car line of Dodge in the US are now badged as Dodges in Canada.
In Mexico, the Hyundai Accent, Hyundai Atos, and Hyundai H100 are branded as "Dodge" or "Hyundai by Dodge" and sold at Dodge dealers.
Outside of North America
Dodge vehicles are now available in many countries throughout the world. In 2006, Dodge sold more than 1.3 million vehicles in the global market.
Dodge in Europe
Following Chrysler's takeover of the British Rootes Group, Simca of France, and Barreiros of Spain, and the resultant establishment of Chrysler Europe in the late 1960s, the Dodge brand was used on light commercial vehicles, most of which were previously branded Commer or Karrier, on pick-up and van versions of the Simca 1100, on the Spanish Dodge Dart, and on heavy trucks built in Spain. The most common of these was the Dodge 50 series, widely used by utility companies and the military, but rarely seen outside the UK, and the Spanish-built top-weight 300 series available as 4x2, 6x4, 8x2, and 8x4 rigids, as well as 4x2 semi-trailer tractors. All of them were also sold in selected export markets badged either as Fargo or De Soto.
Following Chrysler Europe's collapse in 1977, and the sale of their assets to Peugeot, the Dodge British and Spanish factories were quickly passed on to Renault Véhicules Industriels, who gradually re-branded to Renault the range of vans and trucks through the 1980s, eventually dropping the products altogether and using the plants to produce engines in the UK and some real Renault truck models in Spain. Dodge would not return to the UK until the introduction of the Dodge Neon SRT-4, branded as a Chrysler Neon, in the mid 2000s.
The Dodge marque was reintroduced to Europe in 2006. Currently, the Dodge lineup in the Europe consists of the Caliber, Avenger, SRT-10 and Nitro. These models are soon to be joined by the Dodge Journey.
Dodge in South America
Dodge in Australia
Dodge recently re-entered the Australian market in 2006 after a 30 year absence. Dodge Australia plans to release a new model every six months for the next three years, amid plans to re-ignite the brand's interest down under. The first of such models is the Dodge Caliber, which was well received at the recent 2006 Melbourne Motor Show. The second model to be introduced was the Nitro with the Avenger to join them shortly.
Logos
 The original Dodge Brothers logo, used from 1914-1927 (seen here on a modern belt buckle).
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 "Fratzog" the Dodge logo from 1962-76.
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 "Pentastar", the Dodge logo from 1976-95
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The original Dodge logo was round, with two interlocking triangles forming a six-pointed star in the middle; an interlocked "DB" was at the center of the star, and the words "Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicles" encircled the outside edge.
From 1962 to 1976, Dodge's logo was a fractured deltoid, assembled from three stylized arrowheads. Between 1976 and 1995, Dodge shared a version of Chrysler's logo, a five-pointed asterisk surrounded by a pentagon.
Dodge introduced its current Ram's-head logo in 1993; it standardized on that logo in 1996 for all vehicles except the Viper.
North American model lineup
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Military trucks
 Dodge T214-WC54 ambulance
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 Dodge WC 51 Weapon Carrier
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 Dodge WC 53 Carryall
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 Dodge WC-52 Weapon Carrier 1942
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T202 — ½ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-505)
T203 — ½ ton, 4x4 series truck
T207 — ½ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-505)
T211 — ½ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-505)
T214 — ¾ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-502)
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T215 — ½ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-505)
T223 — 1½ ton, 6x6 series truck
T236 — ¾ ton, 4x4 series truck (Canadian built)
M-37 — ¾ ton, 4x4 series truck (G-741)
T137 — 1 ton, 4x4 series truck
M-880 — 1¼ ton, 4x4 series truck
4x2 variants:
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European models
- Simca / Dodge VF2
- Commer / Dodge Spacevan
- Dodge / Renault 50 Series (including 4x4 and military 4x4 variants)
Dodge / Renault 100 series "Commando" - Dodge 300
- Dodge 500
Dodge concept vehicles
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See also
- List of Dodge automobiles
- List of automobile manufacturers
- For the historic Dodge (UK), see Rootes
External links
Official websites:
Mopar enthusiast-created websites:
- Allpar An AdSense-supported site dedicated to everything mopar.
- History of Dodge in the UK from fleetdata.co.uk, website of the Road Transport Fleet Data Society
- ww2dodge.com Wiki about the military Dodge's produced 1939 - 1945
- Old Dodges.com Site devoted to Dodge Medium and Heavy-Duty Trucks of the 1960's and 1970's, primarily focusing on the Dodge Bighorn Trucks (1973-1975).
- Sweptline.com sweptline.com, an anonymously-managed website with history of 1967-71 Dodge Pickups, Vans and other trucks
| Dodge road car timeline, North American market, 1970s-present - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Type | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | ||
| Subcompact | Omni | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Charger | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Compact | Colt | 400 | Shadow | Neon | Caliber | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dart | Aspen | Aries | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mid-size | Magnum | Mirada | 600 | Spirit | Stratus | Avenger | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coronet | Diplomat | Dynasty | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full-size | Monaco | St. Regis | Monaco | Intrepid | Magnum | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polara | Charger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport compact | Daytona | Avenger | SRT-4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sports | Charger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Challenger | Challenger | Conquest | Stealth | Challenger | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Super Bee | Viper | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chrysler LLC |
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Automobile Brands: Chrysler • Dodge • Jeep Parts Company: Mopar Finance: Chrysler Financial Services Commercial Vehicle Brands: Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) Defunct Marques: Commer (1905–1979) • Barreiros (1959–1978) • DeSoto (1928–1961) • Eagle (1988–1998) • Fargo (1920–1972) • Hillman (1907–1976) • Humber (1898–1975) • Imperial (1955–1975, 1981–1983) • Karrier (1908–1977) • Plymouth (1928–2001) • Singer (1905–1970) • Simca (1934–1977) • Sunbeam (1901–1976) • Valiant (1960–1966) |
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