page_title: Dodge
section_title: 1990s
hierarchical_section_title: Dodge / History / 1990s
caption_attribution_description: 1995-2000 Dodge Stratus photographed in USA.
context_page_description: Dodge is an American brand of automobile manufactured by FCA US LLC, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles currently include performance cars, though for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above Plymouth.
  Founded as the Dodge Brothers Company machine shop by brothers Horace Elgin Dodge and John Francis Dodge in the early 1900s, Dodge was originally a supplier of parts and assemblies for Detroit-based automakers and began building complete automobiles under the "Dodge Brothers" brand in 1914, predating the founding of Chrysler Corporation. The factory was located in Hamtramck, Michigan, and was called the Dodge Main factory from 1910 until its closing in January 1980. Both the Dodge brothers died from the Spanish Flu in 1920, and the company was sold by their families to Dillon, Read & Co. in 1925 before being sold to Chrysler in 1928.
  Dodge branded vehicles mainly consisted of trucks and full-sized passenger cars through the 1970s, though it made compact cars and midsize cars.
  The 1973 oil crisis and its subsequent impact on the American automobile industry led Chrysler to develop the K platform of compact to midsize cars for the 1981 model year.
context_section_description: The Omni and the Horizon ended production in 1990, and were replaced by the Dodge Shadow/Plymouth Sundance, which were both introduced for 1987. Both the Monaco and Premier were discontinued during the 1992 model year. However, its state of the art manufacturing plant and the key executive from American Motors behind the Premier/Monaco design, Francois Castaing, would lead to the successful and highly rated "cab-forward" LH Dodge Intrepid, Chrysler Concorde, and Eagle Vision versions in late 1992 when production resumed at Brampton Assembly.
  The Dodge Spirit sedan is comparable to its contemporaneous Ford Tempo, and was also compared with the Ford Taurus, Honda Accord, and Toyota Camry by Consumer Reports. The Spirit sold well and had higher consumer acceptance than the Stratus that replaced it. Dodge-branded Mitsubishi vehicles were phased out by 1993 except for the Dodge Stealth running through 1996, though Mitsubishi-made engines and electrical components were still widely used in American domestic Chrysler products.
  In 1992, Dodge moved their performance orientation forward substantially with the Viper, which featured an aluminum V10 engine and composite sports roadster body. This was the first step in what was marketed as "The New Dodge", which was an aggressive advertising campaign with a litany of new models, with television ads narrated by Edward Herrmann that pointed out the innovations in the vehicles and challenged their competitors. Also,he would go on to serve as the brand's spokesperson for the rest of the decade.
  Later that year was the introduction of new Intrepid sedan, totally different from its boxy Dynasty predecessor. The Intrepid used what Chrysler called "cab forward" styling, with the wheels pushed out to the corners of the chassis for maximum passenger space. The Intrepid was available in two trim levels: base and the sportier, better-equipped ES, which added four-wheel disc brakes, 16-inch wheels with better tires, and stiffer "touring" suspension damping. All Intrepids received driver and front passenger airbags, a rarity at the time, as well as air conditioning and the four-speed automatic transmission. Anti-lock brakes were optional, as was traction control and the more powerful 3.5 L SOHC engine rated at (214 hp).
  In 1994, the new second generation Dodge Ram pickup was introduced with bold styling that departed radically from the boxy designs of trucks made by the Big Three for two decades prior. The second-generation Ram began development in 1986. The original concept, dubbed the "Louisville Slugger" by Chrysler's Advanced Packaging Studio, was to be a modular platform that would accommodate a full-size truck and full-size van, which would have provided a roomy cab and cargo bed. The design featured a big-rig-looking front end and a large grille that was deemed risky at its introduction, but ultimately proved popular with consumers. The redesigned 1994 Ram was a sales success and was named "Truck of the Year" by Motor Trend in 1994. Sales increased from 95,542 units in 1993 to 232,092 in 1994, 410,000 in 1995, and 411,000 by 1996. That year, it was prominently featured as the hero vehicle in the film Twister. Sales of this generation peaked at just over 400,000 in 1999 before declining against the redesigned Ford and GM trucks.
  They followed up on this idea in a smaller scale with the Neon and Stratus. The Dodge Stratus was the middle entry of the Chrysler JA platform (with the Cirrus being the higher-end model and the Breeze being the lower-end model). The three cars differed only in the front fascia, rear bumper, taillights, and wheels. The interiors also had little variation between the three models; being almost identical, save for the name on the steering wheel, and a few available options. The Stratus directly replaced the high-volume Spirit (United States only). The Stratus, Plymouth Breeze, and Chrysler Cirrus were all on Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 1996 and 1997. It received critical acclaim at launch, but ratings fell over time.
  The car was badged and sold as both 
caption: Cab Forward Design on a 1996 Dodge Stratus
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot A540", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image DateTime": "2007:03:14 14:57:15", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "196", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "180", "Thumbnail YResolution": "180", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "5108", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4742", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/250", "EXIF FNumber": "4", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2007:03:14 14:57:15", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2007:03:14 14:57:15", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "3", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "255/32", "EXIF ApertureValue": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "11/4", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "80", "EXIF FocalLength": "29/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2816", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2112", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "2816", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "2112", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "2824", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "112640/9", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "2112000/169", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}