2015 Dodge Durango: Real World Review

What is it? 2015 Dodge Durango — two- or four-wheel-drive, seven passenger SUV

Price as tested: $48,170 for an AWD Durango R/T Blacktop, with the 5.7-liter Hemi V-8

Competitors: Toyota Highlander, GMC Acadia, Nissan Pathfinder, Ford Explorer, Honda Pilot

Alternatives: Jeep Grand Cherokee

Pros: Hemi V-8; handles well for its size; solid interior

Cons: Hemi needs feeding — often; looks a bit like it melted

Would I Buy It With My Own Money? If I didn’t need three rows, I’d probably buy the Grand Cherokee, but my tricked-out Durango R/T surprised the heck out of me — it almost drives as well as the smaller Jeep, and yet it feels edgier and perhaps more unique (at least the R/T model does).

Get a giant marshmallow, stick it in the fire, and then let it sit on the table for a while. That’s what Dodge’s designers did when creating the Durango — or at least that’s what I presume.

That doesn’t mean it’s an ugly car — the Overweight Fat Boy Melted Vehicle Of The Year Award goes to the 2015 Infiniti QX80 — it’s just a tad, er, round for my taste. In R/T trim, though, the racy trimmings like the black grille and large wheels add some edginess that, to me, mask the fat nicely.

Sit inside the Durango and all is forgotten anyway. The seats in my well-equipped test car were comfortable and festooned in leather; the Uconnect infotainment system was pleasingly simplistic, and my kids adored the dual DVD screens on the second row. Even with the third row up, trunk space was adequate — similar to an Acadia or Pathfinder, but lacking the clever versatility of the smaller Ford Flex. Still, it’s big enough to handle a decent amount of shopping without issue.

On the road the Durango ticks even more boxes. It feels supple over bumps and yet it doesn’t wallow (the marshmallow facade appears only on the surface). In the turns it remains engaging, very unlike a traditional full-size SUV. Add to that the 360 horsepower Hemi V-8 that’s standard on the R/T model — growling like a well-fed American-grown lumberjack — and you have yourself a truly solid driving experience.

It’s perhaps not quite as well-sorted as the Jeep Grand Cherokee, but then this car has more interior space and more presence — melted or not. To me, the Durango feels younger; it possesses more bite and more attitude; I like that, and plenty of people I met during my week with the car apparently liked that too.

This is precisely the sort of reaction Dodge is after. The company says the brand will develop this edgier, cap-on-backwards, flip-the-bird (discretely, of course) character; something it hopes will attract a younger clientele and differentiate it among the Fiat/Chrysler Empire. So far, what with its Hellcats and Viper ACRs, it is working — and now it’s beginning to trickle down to the more mainstream models within its arsenal.

Starting at $30,495 for a 290 horsepower 3.6-liter V-6, you can buy a Durango for a reasonable price. But you want the options; they make it seem better value, and it looks more stylish. Above all else, you want the Hemi. Because the modern world we live in desperately needs more V-8.