Dodge Durango or Ford Expedition

[ChristyH]

Our deal with the Suburban fell through so we are still looking for a new vehicle for DH.

If you had to choose what would be your choice and why?

We have seen several deals on '04-'05 Durangos and '03-'05 Expeditions. Most of the Expeditions we've seen have 8-pass seating and most of the Durangos only 7 so 8 would be a plus but not completely necessary.

Anyone have any info on either of these vehicles?

 

[skitle1802]

I would go with the Ford. The suspension is nicer, rides smoother, and the seats hold up well.

The Durango my FIL had, rode really bumpy and the upholstrey started falling off the third row seat after a year and a half. (So if you get a 04-05, the seat have probably been repaired with spray adhesive)

Sorry, not safety reasons, just brand preference. I prefer the Ford suspensions and the way they drive over Dodge and Chevy.

 

[Guest]

I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I've always had the Expedition ranked higher than the Durango. Both from quality and reliabitly standpoints. Not sure about safety. The Expedition is just a "better" vehicle in terms of materials used, components, etc. Chrysler has really been struggling this past decade. Their Ram and 300C (and all the derivatives) were their only competitive products, and the 300C was actually just a previous (now 2 generations old) Mercedes E-class chassis so they can't even really take credit for that.

I'd still be on the hunt for a Suburban tho. I much prefer the Suburban over either of those two cars. I might be slightly biased by my general preference for GM vehicles tho. I can usually be objective, but I haven't really thought about my prejudices btw Ford and GM too much like I have with imports.

 

[ChristyH]

Well I talked to my dad too (he's a car guy) and he told me to stay away from the Durango so I guess I'll be on the hunt for either an Expedition or a Suburban now.

I'd love to have a Suburban but they seem to go for so much more even with 150,000 miles already on them. I was so bummed when we missed out on the 2001 with only 65,000 miles on it.
I like that the Expeditions have shoulder belts on all of their seats even as far back as the 2003's but the still have lap belts for the center seats.

We're not in a huge hurry so I guess I'll keep my eyes out.

 

[chpiper]

We have an Expedition and we have been pretty tough on it (4WD beaches, hunting, living in the mountains so driving in tons of bad weather, long trips, etc) and it still rides so nice. I joke around that we just can't kill this vehicle! lol The inside is roomy, but limited cargo space when all seats are in use. We have quite comfortably made several trips with 4 kids and 3 adults...

 

[stjemmes]

We bought a 2005 Expedition last year and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Everyday I get in it and love it. We got the Eddie Bauer model and it has the three across both rows. With four kids and three cars seats we have tons of room.

 

[canadiangie]

I too would do an Expedition over a Durango.

 

[SavsMom]

Expedition - the Durangos are known to have transmission and a/c problems. Also the Expedition will give you more room and a better ride.

 

[ChristyH]

Well we've decided against the Durango or the Expedition and DH is getting what he reallyl wants. A Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab that seats 6. It will be his truck that I won't use all that often so we still trying to figure out how to configure seats but it won't be used as much as the Expedition would have been.

But I will be getting a new minivan in the next couple of months so that will help