This three-row SUV nameplate debuted for the 1998 model year as Dodge’s answer to buyers who wanted truck-based utility with family-friendly packaging. The original version was closely related to the Dakota pickup and helped fill the space left by the Ramcharger, combining a body-on-frame layout, available four-wheel drive and towing-friendly capability with seating for more passengers than a traditional midsize SUV. Early special-performance versions, including the R/T, gave the model an enthusiast edge that would become part of its identity.
The first production run ended after the 2003 model year, and the nameplate then returned for 2004 with a larger, more upscale second generation. That era pushed the vehicle into full-size SUV territory and broadened its role from rugged utility toward a more refined, road-oriented family hauler. After the 2009 model year, the nameplate again disappeared briefly.
Following that gap, the model was revived for 2011 as a thoroughly redesigned third generation. This return marked a shift toward a more modern performance-SUV character, with stronger emphasis on styling, technology, and available V8 power while still retaining three-row practicality. Over time it has become one of the brand’s best-known modern SUVs, especially in higher-performance trims that lean into Dodge’s muscle-car image.
Because the nameplate had separate production periods with a temporary absence between them, its history is best understood as two distinct eras of the same model lineage: the original 1998–2003 and 2004–2009 runs, followed by the revived 2011-present generation.