Big ute Dodge Durango handles, looks like a winner
a007apl
01-15-2002, 09:40 AM
By Mark Savage
of the Journal Sentinel staff
March 30, 1998
Dodge has been touting its new large sport-utility truck, the Durango, as the Goldilocks of the truck world -- one that's sized juuuuust right.
Well, it is, just about right.
Basically Chrysler's argument is that size matters, but biggest is not always best.
1998, Dodge, Durango
Chevrolet and GMC have ruled the big ute market with their Suburbans and more recently their Tahoe / Yukon twins, which are about 20 inches shorter than the Suburban.
Well, the Durango, based on Dodge's mid-sized Dakota pickup, is about 26 inches shorter than the Suburban and six inches shy of the Tahoe / Yukon.
Likewise, it rides on a shorter wheelbase (less than two inches shorter than Tahoe), is narrower, shorter and weighs less.
It's a lean, mean hauling machine when compared with its GM counterparts. But it's larger than all those so-called compact utes, such as Ford's Explorer and Jeep's Grand Cherokee.
It lands plop in the middle ground on people hauling, too. While a properly equipped Suburban will seat nine, Durango comfortably seats seven, like a minivan. Dodge says eight, but I had six teenagers in the test truck and we were full up.
In the engine department Durango and the GM utes are nearly identical at the top of the line. The SLT+ test truck had a 5.9-liter V-8 that cranked a vigorous 245 horses with 335 foot-pounds of torque.
Even though this is a large truck, acceleration is good, both in town and on the highway. The base engine is a 3.9-liter V-6, the same as used in the Dakota. It generates 175 horses and 225 foot-pounds of torque. A 5.2-liter V-8 also is available.
But handling is where Durango knocks some heads. This is the best-handling large ute and, among all utes, it's second only to the Mercedes-Benz sport-utility, which is much smaller. A stabilizer bar that is stiffer than Dakota's is a big help. The result: Cornering is not vague as in most utes, and parking is easy.
Durango rides on a stiff Tower Automotive frame, which provides a firm, solid feel. Riders up front found it fine, but it was a little too firm for folks in the rear.
Braking is good. Front disc and rear drum brakes are standard, but the test truck added a $565 anti-lock system front and rear.
Visually, Durango is a winner. Like the Dodge Ram and Dakota, it features a big grille and raised hood with well-defined fenders -- sort of a semi-trailer tractor look on a smaller scale.
Climbing aboard is not as big a problem as in most utes. This one requires only a moderate step up and no running board is needed.
Inside, the cloth seats were comfortable for most, but the driver's seat seemed to have a bulge near the back that pushed on my tailbone. That proved tiring on a drive to Chicago and back. Naturally, head and legroom are good in the first two rows of seats. The third is less generous, but not bad, and the interior seemed roomy and quiet.
The dash is neat and clean with buttons easily reached and good-sized radio, CD and equalizer buttons. Cruise control is on the steering wheel hub and overhead is a console with trip computer and compass, part of a $3,250 option package that includes everything from power windows and locks to fog lamps.
There are a lot of other goodies in here, too, including lighted visor mirrors, big overhead map lights, a storage box between the front seats, and a large coin tray by the four-wheel-drive shifter on the floor. That shifter was smaller than most and quite easy to use -- no balking here.
In addition, there are rear seat air ducts and controls.
The nifty rear seats also fold down quickly and completely, providing a sizable area for hauling long loads.
There are a couple of drawbacks inside, however. The gear shift lever on the steering column blocks the view of the rear wiper knob and defrost button on the dash.
Mileage also is pitiful. I got a measly 13 miles per gallon in a 70/30 mix of highway-to-city driving and 16.1 in nearly all highway driving, according to the on-board computer.
My figures showed the highway drive at 14.4 mpg. The EPA says to expect 12 city and 17 highway. This is a heavy drinker.
Price? Well, Durango starts at $26,440, which is well below its major competitors. Chevy's Suburban begins at $27,665 with four-wheel-drive, and the Tahoe, which seats fewer, starts at $31,985 with four doors and 4WD. GMC's Suburban and Yukon are priced slightly higher than Chevy's trucks.
The test truck hit $32,570, which puts it up there among the decked out Yukon / Tahoe and Suburbans.
Durango, though, is a better value before all the goodies are tacked on. Then its price tag is not too high, not too low, but . . . well, you know.
of the Journal Sentinel staff
March 30, 1998
Dodge has been touting its new large sport-utility truck, the Durango, as the Goldilocks of the truck world -- one that's sized juuuuust right.
Well, it is, just about right.
Basically Chrysler's argument is that size matters, but biggest is not always best.
1998, Dodge, Durango
Chevrolet and GMC have ruled the big ute market with their Suburbans and more recently their Tahoe / Yukon twins, which are about 20 inches shorter than the Suburban.
Well, the Durango, based on Dodge's mid-sized Dakota pickup, is about 26 inches shorter than the Suburban and six inches shy of the Tahoe / Yukon.
Likewise, it rides on a shorter wheelbase (less than two inches shorter than Tahoe), is narrower, shorter and weighs less.
It's a lean, mean hauling machine when compared with its GM counterparts. But it's larger than all those so-called compact utes, such as Ford's Explorer and Jeep's Grand Cherokee.
It lands plop in the middle ground on people hauling, too. While a properly equipped Suburban will seat nine, Durango comfortably seats seven, like a minivan. Dodge says eight, but I had six teenagers in the test truck and we were full up.
In the engine department Durango and the GM utes are nearly identical at the top of the line. The SLT+ test truck had a 5.9-liter V-8 that cranked a vigorous 245 horses with 335 foot-pounds of torque.
Even though this is a large truck, acceleration is good, both in town and on the highway. The base engine is a 3.9-liter V-6, the same as used in the Dakota. It generates 175 horses and 225 foot-pounds of torque. A 5.2-liter V-8 also is available.
But handling is where Durango knocks some heads. This is the best-handling large ute and, among all utes, it's second only to the Mercedes-Benz sport-utility, which is much smaller. A stabilizer bar that is stiffer than Dakota's is a big help. The result: Cornering is not vague as in most utes, and parking is easy.
Durango rides on a stiff Tower Automotive frame, which provides a firm, solid feel. Riders up front found it fine, but it was a little too firm for folks in the rear.
Braking is good. Front disc and rear drum brakes are standard, but the test truck added a $565 anti-lock system front and rear.
Visually, Durango is a winner. Like the Dodge Ram and Dakota, it features a big grille and raised hood with well-defined fenders -- sort of a semi-trailer tractor look on a smaller scale.
Climbing aboard is not as big a problem as in most utes. This one requires only a moderate step up and no running board is needed.
Inside, the cloth seats were comfortable for most, but the driver's seat seemed to have a bulge near the back that pushed on my tailbone. That proved tiring on a drive to Chicago and back. Naturally, head and legroom are good in the first two rows of seats. The third is less generous, but not bad, and the interior seemed roomy and quiet.
The dash is neat and clean with buttons easily reached and good-sized radio, CD and equalizer buttons. Cruise control is on the steering wheel hub and overhead is a console with trip computer and compass, part of a $3,250 option package that includes everything from power windows and locks to fog lamps.
There are a lot of other goodies in here, too, including lighted visor mirrors, big overhead map lights, a storage box between the front seats, and a large coin tray by the four-wheel-drive shifter on the floor. That shifter was smaller than most and quite easy to use -- no balking here.
In addition, there are rear seat air ducts and controls.
The nifty rear seats also fold down quickly and completely, providing a sizable area for hauling long loads.
There are a couple of drawbacks inside, however. The gear shift lever on the steering column blocks the view of the rear wiper knob and defrost button on the dash.
Mileage also is pitiful. I got a measly 13 miles per gallon in a 70/30 mix of highway-to-city driving and 16.1 in nearly all highway driving, according to the on-board computer.
My figures showed the highway drive at 14.4 mpg. The EPA says to expect 12 city and 17 highway. This is a heavy drinker.
Price? Well, Durango starts at $26,440, which is well below its major competitors. Chevy's Suburban begins at $27,665 with four-wheel-drive, and the Tahoe, which seats fewer, starts at $31,985 with four doors and 4WD. GMC's Suburban and Yukon are priced slightly higher than Chevy's trucks.
The test truck hit $32,570, which puts it up there among the decked out Yukon / Tahoe and Suburbans.
Durango, though, is a better value before all the goodies are tacked on. Then its price tag is not too high, not too low, but . . . well, you know.
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