Faults:

Fog light relay went out.

Front drive shaft universal joints squeaked.

Engine Power Train Control Module went out.

Engine idle speed solenoid went out.

Battery went out at 55,000 miles.

Leaking thermostat housing gasket.

White sludge in coolant recovery tank.

General Comments:

The Dodge Dealers in Northern Virginia tried to beat me out of $3000 worth of repairs. If I didn't have 10 years experience working on automobiles, I'd be $3000 poorer right now.

First dealer issue. When the Power Train Control module went out, the dealer told me that I needed a complete tune up, and oil change, change wires, change of air filer, Positive Crankcase Ventilation valve, fuel injector service and serpentine belt replacement. All items required as a result of the faulty Powertrain Control Module. Dealer estimate for repair was $1200; I had them replace the Powertrain Control Module under warranty for $89 service fee. Incorrect diagnoses by the dealer.

Second issue. As a result of the Powertrain Control Module failure, the idle speed solenoid failed. The dealer told me that in addition to repairing this solenoid, I had evidence of oil in the intake manifold. Their diagnosis was ruptured plenum seal. I asked how the seal ruptured and what procedure they used to troubleshoot the fault. They told me that the ruptured seal was the only possibility, therefore they did not use a procedure. They also advised me that I would experience marked oil consumption. I declined the $2000 repair and have not lost a drop of oil since their warning. Incorrect diagnosis by the dealer.

Faults:

The engine had to be replaced with 56,000 miles on the car due to "sludge" in the engine. New (re-manned) engine has less than 15,000 miles on it and I am told it has "sludge" in it.

General Comments:

All 1998, 1999, and 2000 Durangos need to be recalled and Chrysler needs to step up and help the folks out who had faith in their product.

Faults:

Brakes are unreliable. I've had the brakes slip in numerous situations, mostly in rainy weather (the worst time).

Transmission started failing at around 69,000 miles especially when it's cold.

Seat belts are hard to unlatch.

The folding rear seats are very hard to latch/unlatch.

Air conditioner doesn't work very well.

General Comments:

I traded my reliable Chevrolet truck in for the Durango I own now so I could have a family car that would hold all of the kids. For someone that would never own a mini-van I thought this would be a good alternative.

The first thing we noticed was that the air conditioner didn't work very well even after having it serviced.

The next big thing was the brakes. They slipped badly when the weather was damp outside. We replaced them, but the problem didn't go away.

The seat belts are hard to unlatch, a minor problem, but I wouldn't want to have to fight them if I needed to get out of the car quickly.

The rear folding bucket seats are also hard to latch/unlatch. Another minor problem, but an annoying one.

In the last few weeks I've noticed that the transmission would refuse to shift into third gear when it's cold. I took it in to see if we just needed to have the regular transmission service. I was told by the tech that this was being caused by a leaking seal inside the transmission. The cost to repair it was approx. $2000.00. Since then I've researched the Durango transmission problem on the internet and found that it is a very common problem. I wish I would have done some research before buying this lemon.

I'm not knocking Dodge completely. I do own a 1991 D250 3/4 ton truck with 120,000 miles on it and have had only minor repairs done on it, so I guess not all of their vehicles are bad. But I do think that the Durango has some major design flaws that Chrysler should look into before unleashing it onto the public.