2000 Dodge Durango SLT 5.9

Summary:

At this point, I'm still happy with my Durango

Faults:

At 19000 miles the Air Bag warning light came on. Dealer replace the Clock Spring.

At 21000 miles the rear end started making a noise when you made a right or left turn. Dealer serviced the rear end (Changed oil in the Diferential) and noise stopped. I feel they did more, but didn't want to tell me.

At 23500 the Air Bag warning light problem came back. This time the change the Clock Spring again, Sensor and finally the Air Bag computer. They had the car four days. Problem seems to be fixed. But I have not driven the car, but a few miles.

General Comments:

The seats in my 2000 Durango are not very comfortable. I have the leather seats. The are hard on the butt.

The 5.9L engine gets an average of 16.7 highway. But I knew this before I got it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 31st May, 2003

2000 Dodge Durango SLT Plus 4.7L-V8

Summary:

Awesome vehicle. Fun, reliable, excellent ride and handling and looks.

Faults:

Driver seat loose.

Plastic cover over seat switch broke.

Power door locks activate on their own.

Front brakes wear often (replaced) rear never (60 K miles)

Rear axle clutch packs hang up (fixed)

Poor MPG, but afterall it is a truck

General Comments:

Great Styling and great handling.

Incredible comfort and conveniences.

Reliable.

Fun to drive.

4.7-V8 with 45RFE is quiet and quick.

Only downer is MPG (13.5) mixed driving despite the 14 / 18 on the sticker should read 12 / 14.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th April, 2003

2000 Dodge Durango SLT Plus V8

Summary:

Great Vehicle!!! :)

Faults:

The only thing that has gone wrong with our Durango is we have had multiple problems with the windows. Three out of our four windows have not worked in the past, requiring a window motor replacement. That has been a real headache, especially when the driver side front window stopped working. Other than that... no problems.

General Comments:

We LOVE our Durango. You cannot beat the look and style. It's a vehicle that makes people take a second glance. The V8 engine never hesitates. It does all I ask of it... which is a lot :). You can't beat the sound system and the leather is exceptional. It is truly the best vehicle I have ever owned. Our lease is up this month and we are getting a brand new one.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 16th April, 2003

14th Oct 2003, 07:43

You've been fortunate. We bought a new Durango in 1999 for $30,000. The oil and oil filters were changed every 3,000-4000 miles and we thought we could drive it for at least ten years.

We had no major problems, just a power window motor replacement.

At 69,000 miles the engine failed on I-40 outside of Asheville, NC. We have a $5000 engine replacement bill. The mechanic said the engine was clean and saw no reason for the failure.

We have bought two Chrysler products in the last five years-the Durango and a PT Cruiser, but there will never be another Chrysler product bought by our family.

1st Sep 2004, 22:02

I have had my durango for almost 2 years, and its been great, the only thing I have had to do is breaks, and now it needs new shocks, it as 110,000 kl on it.

2000 Dodge Durango SLT 5.9

Summary:

A very comfortable, good driving powerhouse

Faults:

While performing front brake pad replacement, I noticed the left front wheel (2WD car) was loose. While on jacks, the front wheel could be wobbled up and down. Further investigation revealed the nut that secures the wheel to the spindle had backed off. Because of the looseness, both inner and outer wheel bearings were wiped out. This condition is directly attributable to poor design. The wheel hub is held on the spindle by a fiber lock nut with conventional right hand threads. Right- hand threads on a spindle on the left side of the car will tend to loosen with the rotation in forward travel. Someone in engineering definitely had their head up and locked to allow this to make its way into a production vehicle. This spindle should have either left-hand threads and nut, or the more customary castellated nut with a cotter pin safety.

Anyway, the extended warranty ended up covering the $700.00 + bill for 2 new hubs with bearings. I guess the dealer wasn't happy with the right one, either.

However, had the nut come off completely, loss of the wheel would have resulted with the ensuing possibly tragic results. I'm very disappointed in Chrysler's engineering here, and just wonder what other little gremlins are in there.

Along with this repair, the rear hatch automatic lock was repaired, as it would no longer lock with the rest of the locks and had to be locked manually with the key.

The time before that, about April of 2002, the freeze plugs behind the motor mounts began leaking. The dealer handled under factory warranty.

General Comments:

I think the Durango is the best SUV of its size going. I wanted a very powerful and capable vehicle that rides nice and has the creature comforts. With the big motor, this thing gets the job done, but if you don't keep your foot out of it, will cost you running around town.

One other worthwhile note. The reports that the air conditioning is marginal in hot weather are true.

Being such a computerized machine, don't get caught without the extended warranty. It promises to be a very expensive car to maintain in its later years. When my extended warranty is up, I plan on trading it for something else---and I'm one of those guys who can fix anything and generally keep my cars 'til the doors fall off. I don't think I'll be able to do that with this one.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th April, 2003

2nd Jun 2003, 22:56

The Durango is a very nice and comfortable ride it was just a little underpowered for my taste. And yep it was the 5.9 360 magnum.

27th Aug 2003, 23:43

I own a 2000 Durango R/T. I bought the car new with the expectations that it would be as tough as a 4X4, as fast as a sports car, and as roomy as a minivan; and it is all that!

On the downside, I would agree that the A/C definitely could be improved. I specifically added the rear A/C package in hopes that the Sacramento summers would be bearable, however when its 108 degrees outside and roughly 140 degrees inside the vehicle it takes approximately 20 minutes to cool the inner temperature down to a moderate 70 degrees. Compare this to my sister-in-laws Suburban, which cools down in about 5 minutes in the same condition.

Additionally, I was a little disappointed that the wood-grain interior of the SLT was not available on the R/T version. The suede seat backs are great, but they would look much nicer and the vehicle would have an overall classier look with the wood-grain interior as well.

All in all, I love the Durango. It is the perfect size for an SUV and just doing the normal maintenance has been enough for the first 3 years. No other problems (knock on wood-grain).