The Power Wagon positively churns through hostile terrain, the HEMI singing a song of unembarrassed horsepower, yet the steering remains responsive even with all three differentials locked up.

Prices down, ability up? That’s the kind of deal truck guys like to hear about.

Lost in the shuffle between the roaring of Dodge’s burgeoning performance lineup, which includes the 500-horsepower Viper, the 215-horse Neon SRT-4, and the new Hemi-powered Ram pickup, is a decent, stylish and affordable family car.

No, it’s true.  You might not have noticed it behind the squealing tires and exhaust smoke, but the Dodge Stratus is still a big part of Dodge’s lineup.  Additionally, they’ve added an entry-level SXT model, which combines popular options in a package that doesn’t feel “entry-level” at all.  With 16″ wheels, cruise control, a CD player …

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to actually be that mythical eight hundred-pound gorilla who sits wherever he wants?  Dodge has just introduced a pretty good way to approximate the experience.  The 2005 Ram SRT-10 is, conclusively, the Next Level in performance pickup trucks.

The idea seems at once preposterous and obvious; why not drop the monstrous Viper V10 powertrain into a Ram pickup and go out hunting Ford Lightnings and whatever else dares get in the way?  And that’s exactly what the folks at Dodge’s Performance Vehicle Operations (PVO) …

You’ve almost certainly seen the commercial with the wannabee Duke boys pulling up alongside the truck and shouting, “Hey!  That thing got a HEMI?”  And Dodge is very proud of the legendary HEMI engine’s return.  All through the week that I had the big Ram with its bold chrome “HEMI” badge, I got the same question, over and over again:
“What’s a HEMI?”

Perhaps that’s not the response Dodge was hoping for, but it’s a valid question; perhaps Dodge is being a big vague to those of us who don’t bleed gasoline.  …

At the risk of offering too much personal information, I would like to announce that I once ate an entire bag of marshmallows for breakfast.  The Dodge Neon SRT-4 feels like the morning that resulted.  In a word, it’s frenetic.  Not once during our test drive did this little red rocket even consider calming down.  “Go!” it seemed to scream from the moment the key was turned.  “Hurry, hurry, hurry, we have to go go go go go!”

That the SRT-4 is in serious need of a Valium should be obvious …

Considering the highly competitive nature of the mid-size sport-utility market, it’s amazing that the Dodge Durango soldiered on for as long as it did.  The Durango has survived since its introduction in the mid-1990s with only detail changes thanks to its intermediate sizing and V8 power.

The aging Durango is completely revamped for 2004, and it’s a good time to take notice, because Dodge is applying the same boundary-breaking program to its smaller trucks as it did on the full-size, big-rig-styled Ram pickup.  The ’04 Durango is bolder, more powerful, and …

No way was Dodge going to stay out of the heavy-duty pickup truck market.  When the all-new Ram pickup debuted last year, it was only as a half-ton truck.  Dodge chose to wait a year before unveiling its updated and upgraded heavy-duty truck.  Now it’s time to go toe-to-toe with Ford’s Super Duty and General Motors’ HD Sierra and Silverado pickups.

Heavy-duty trucks are the body-builders of the automotive world.  Style doesn’t matter much with them.  Smoothness doesn’t either.  These trucks are born to tow and haul huge loads, and anything …

As the mid-sized sport-utes from Ford and Chevrolet drift farther away from the small pickup trucks that originally spawned them and provided their underpinnings, one truck remains boldly loyal to its pickup counterpart.  The Dodge Durango’s long nose is shared with the Dakota pickup truck, and the relationship doesn’t end there.  While the others are playing up their carlike attributes, the Durango remains first and foremost a truck.

For 2002, Dodge is boosting the Durango’s value with an entry-level SXT package.  Similar to the EX package available on the Caravan, the …

The Dodge Dakota enjoys a comfortable spot in the competitive light-duty pickup truck market.  Considerably larger than the compact pickups that it’s considered to be in competition, yet smaller than the full-sizes, it’s got next to no direct competition.  The Dakota doesn’t need competition to be a decent truck, however, and it’s earned its particular catbird seat by combining the strengths of large and small pickups into a “just right” package.

The Dakota is available as a regular cab, an extended two-door Club Cab, and a Quad Cab with four full-size …