Shopping for a SUV with third row seating
 

So we have had our 2012 GX460 for five and a half years which is the longest we have kept an automobile. One of the reasons we have kept it for so long is that there really isn't anything out there we currently like. My wife really liked the Land Rover LR4 but since we knew it was getting a major overhaul last year we waited until the Discovery (LR5) came out because we thought it would be a more up to date version of the LR4. Unfortunately while it is a nice SUV, we just don't like the looks of it at all (which is kind of ironic since the GX is pretty ugly too) and we wished we had gotten a LR4 when we had the chance.

So we have looked at a handful of SUVs with third rows but none have really wowed us. We looked at the Q7, X5, XC90, etc. and we weren't feeling excited about any of them for various reasons. For example, we liked the XC90 but I have a hard time paying $65k+ for a four cylinder. We don't want another GX because it is the same thing we have but with a different front and rear bumper.

So it just so happened my wife saw a Durango SRT on the road last week and she thought it looked pretty good. I have tried to get her interested in one a while back but she wouldn't entertain it because it's a Dodge. I love the SRT products so we checked a couple out today. It was really nice inside and out. The tech in it is way better than what I have now with my Lexus' and the panel gaps/fit and finish weren't as bad as I have read on the SRT forums. We both loved it but we didn't have time to test drive it and won't have time until next weekend. Gas mileage is abysmal but it can't be much worse than my GX and IS which is about 16mpg and 18mpg, respectively, but at least it has the horsepower to make sense of it.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on the Durango SRT or even Durango in general or if anyone had any experience with them. I know it is no Lexus in terms of fit and finish and reliability or holding value but I plan on leasing this so I am not too worried about that. Any insight would be appreciated.

I did a review of the present-generation Durango when it debuted several years ago. Here it is, though many of the images I posted with it expired and are no longer visible.

I was generally impressed with it, but, as you are also concerned, its reliability, even today, is somewhat of a roll of the dice.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/car...e-durango.html

Also, besides Dodge, have you looked at any other American-nameplate SUVs?...there are many others, from Ford, Lincoln, Buick, GMC, Chevy, and Cadillac, that offer the third-row seating you want. Subaru is also about to introduce the three-row Ascent.

A few other names, CX-9, Atlas, Explorer Sport, Highlander, Traverse

I didn't say that Durango owners didn't like them. Charger, Challenger, Chrysler 300, and Dodge/Chrysler minivan owners also, as a group, according to Consumer Reports, tend to have high owner satisfaction, though all of vehicles, except for the Pacifica, rate below average in reliability...the Pacifica, so far, is average. My own Lacrosse, according to Consumer Reports, dropped drastically from 2016 to 2017 in reliability, but I still liked the car enough to buy a 2018.....hopefully, the improvements for 2018, such as the new transmission, and the implementation of previous service-bulletins on the 2017s, will bump the reliability figure up somewhat. So far, no major problems with mine.

Yes, I take Alex seriously, and he probably has reason to like the Durango...I liked it myself when I reviewed the 2012, which is the same basic-generation as the one still sold today. And, of course, it's done on the same platform as the Jeep Grand Cherokee, though the JGC hasn't (yet) stuck in a third-row seat.

Does the Durango SRT have AWD standard like the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT??? V8+AWD= drinking problems worse than old country music stars.

Other than that, I think the Durango is a pretty *****ing SUV. Big, does truck stuff like tow heavy things, is unapologetic in its manliness. And if Anchor Man 2 was completely insufferable, that turd was worth it just for the Ron Burgandy Durango commercials.

Check out the Ford Flex while you are there. It has more space in it than the Explorer, same car under the skin. I know the wagon/bread van look is love or hate it, but IMO its a better vehicle than the Explorer due to the superior utilization of space.

I'd be looking at the new Atlas. It's new tech, fresh on the road, and something different. The Durango, if I recall, is nearing it's lifespan and winding down. The Explorer is also tried and true, but due for a redesign soon. I also don't think there's any harm in keeping the GX. It's built well, trouble-free, and has luxury status.

I thought of the Atlas, but suggested the upcoming Subaru Ascent instead, because I thought it would be more reliable (and have a better AWD system)