Dodge Durango SLT 4x4 vs. Ford Explorer XLT 4x2
Before you write us angry letters, we'll just say it right up front: This is an unfair comparison. We know it is because we designed it that way. How could we pit a 4x4 against a 4x2? Well, for starters, their prices are so close as to be considered identical. As a baseline for this comparo, we selected the best-selling "compact" sport/utility, Ford Explorer, in a two-wheel drive, 5.0-liter V-8 configuration, which came in at a base price of $27,960, including the $775 optional V-8. The challenger, a 2000-model Durango is newly offered with a 4.7-liter Magnum V-8 (first introduced on the '99 Jeep Grand Cherokee), but the catch is that it's only offered in four-wheel drive (for now). The price of entry for this sport/utility is $27,975, or a mere $15 difference. Of course, optional equipment on these two bring their as-tested prices to just about exactly $30,000.
Another good reason for this test is to settle an ongoing debate living both inside and outside our offices: How much further can a 4WD vehicle go than a 2WD? Is it a useful distance that means one of you makes it to the backwoods fishing hole while the other doesn't, or could an experienced off-road driver get the rear-drive Explorer to the same places as the four-by Durango? Our resident hunter/fisherman, Senior Road Test Editor Mac DeMere has driven all sorts of MT test vehicles to "off-pavement" recreation locations with varying degrees of success. Upon returning from a trip, he usually reports something like, "I didn't get stuck, so it must be a good off-road vehicle." We'll find out if he changes his mind on this trek.
Both the Durango and Explorer call themselves "compact" sport/utilities-though the EPA classifies them as "special purpose"-and are available in a wide range of configurations, models, and prices. A sales figure of 431,000 units last year clearly shows the Explorer to be the best-seller in the compact segment. In fact, that really big number makes it the fourth-best seller of all vehicles in the United States. The vast majority, roughly 85 to 90 percent, of those sales are attributed to either of the two 4.0-liter V-6-powered versions, with the remainder going to the 5.0-liter V-8 Explorer for a share of about 64,000. Although it can't boast the way Ford does, the Dodge Durango shouldn't be ashamed either, with over 180,000 units sold last year-all V-8s.
For 2000, the base engine in the Durango is the OHV 5.2 with the option to upgrade to either the OHV 5.9 or the new SOHC 4.7-liter motor certified as an Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle (ULEV) in California. As with the Durango, all Explorers offered in the 2000-model year are LEV certified, and the three engine choices include a 4.0-liter/160-horse OHV V-6, a 4.0-liter/210-horse SOHC V-6 (consumers' favorite), or as in our tester, a 5.0-liter/215-horse OHV V-8.
As for model and trim options, suffice to say there's a wide enough array of prices, discounted option packages, and amenities to suit just about anybody. Expect a price range for the Explorer at about $21,000-$37,000 and about $26,000-$32,000 for a Durango.
When the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration performed frontal crash tests on these two, the Explorer came through with a "four stars" rating for both driver and passenger, while the Durango earned only two stars for the driver and four for the passenger. It's also worth noting our Explorer test vehicle was equipped with side airbags for front seat occupants (a new $395 option) and the reverse sensing system, borrowed from the Expedition, also a new option, for $225. Neither is currently available on the Dodge, and we hope to see these options on all future sport/utes because they're well worth the price. To the Dodge's credit, there's an optional third-row seat that folds nearly flat into the floor and enables the Durango to be outfitted for five to eight passengers and still retain a distinct cargo capacity advantage over the Explorer with no such third row available.