***Wimmer testdrives the 2012 Dodge Durango 3.6 V6 and 5.7 V8***

[cawimmer430]

So I had a shoot today with two Dodge Durangos for this importer in Munich. These shots are going to go into their brochure. Since the good locations are getting less and less here, we drove over to nearby Austria, specifically the region around Kitzb?hel because those mountains and rough terrain would work excellent with these cars. I stopped by the dealership in the early morning, parked my car and hoped into the car the man gave me: the white Durango.

I've always liked this design ever since it came out. It's the best-looking American SUV ever (Suck it, 93JC! Suck it!  ) - that and the International Scout and Jeep Wagoneer! 

I trailed the big boss in a white 2012 Dodge Durango 3.6 V6 CREW while he and his girlfriend and daughter drove ahead in the black Durango 5.7 V8 CITADEL. The drive from Munich to Kitzb?hel was relatively uneventful. We cruised on the Autobahn and at one point I was doing 170 km/h with the Durango. It didn't feel that stable at that speed to be honest and the light steering, which was fine at lower speeds, didn't inspire much confidence. Wind noises were very loud at 140 km/h+ though, but when you cruised at a leisurely 120/130 km/h the car was very quiet and comfortable. The steering feedback was decent at lower speeds. Although the steering feedback was light, there was enough feedback to let you know what the front wheels were up to. Only at higher speeds did the light steering become a bit of the problem. I've driven many European cars that also had light steering, but our light steering is different from your "lifeless" light steering. Naturally I refrained from driving the car aggressively since it didn't feel like a handler. I mean you could semi-sporty drive it and it would do ok, but only at lower speeds. At higher speeds it felt better just to drive it in a straight line. The suspension was good at lower speeds where it felt sturdy and supportive, but at higher Autobahn speeds I just didn't have the balls to try anything sporty since the suspension became kind of "floaty".

Anyway, the V6 felt pretty good. It was smooth and quiet. Very impressive. I could feel that it was more than adequately powered with its 290-horsepower. In fact the Durango drove pretty well in the city (once I got used to maneuvering this monster through tight Munich traffic) and even on those mountainous passages in Austria. It could speed uphill without problems and overtaking power was pretty good overall. The only thing that hampered its performance was the extremely lazy automatic transmission. It never downshifted when it needed to and the only way to get it to downshift was to aggressively press the vague gas pedal or manually downshift. The gas pedal was also a bit vague. When you initially pressed it nothing happened. You had to press it deeper before the car got going. It took awhile to get used to that. On my 1-Series (Suck it, Rupert. Suck it! MY 1-SERIES! SUCK IT!  ) the gas pedal is SENSITIVE AS SHIT. You tap it lightly and the 1er takes off like that! Boom! Just like that!

I was very impressed with the fuel economy the V6 returned. We filled up in Munich, spent a about twenty minutes in stop-and-go Munich traffic, drove spiritedly on the Autobahn, arrived in a mountainous region where we drove uphill 70% of the time and the fuel clock was still pretty much at "Full". The computer fuel economy readouts gave me a figure of 10.2 L / 100 km which is damn good for such a heavy car with a gasoline V6 engine in such conditions - if they turn out to be true.

The brakes though were the worst part of the car. Utter crap. Lifeless and "slow to respond" and they simply felt UNDERPOWERED (just weak). The drive home to Munich on the Autobahn needed my fullest concentration because this huge car was pretty difficult to control on those narrow lanes at night and with heavy crosswinds to. I cruised home on the German Autobahns at 120-140 km/h max. because anything faster didn't feel as safe - plus it's not my car and I had to bring it back to the dealership in one piece. Plus, slowing down from higher speeds with these brakes was a bit of a challenge, so I played it safe. By the way, I liked this V6 engine but at higher cruising speeds it was screaming hard and when you hammered it it was wailing. The performance at higher speeds also wasn't that great. The acceleration was slow. I blame the automatic transmission, not the engine. The A/T was just so lazy and I believe the gear ratios may have not been favorable. Guess the boys at Chrysler were like "Fuck it. 99% of Americans will buy the V8 anyway! Why waste time on tuning the A/T for the V6?" 

The interior was nice. The materials for the cabin were more than decent. This isn't a luxury car as far as I can tell so the interior materials don't have to rival a Rolls Royce. I thought the interior was nicely designed. Good ergonomics and good materials. I hated the leather or fake leather on the seats though. So slippery. Why do people insist on having leather in their cars? Leather sucks. It's annoying. Fuck leather. Some other observations: I couldn't figure out the radio at all, the A/C / heater was easy to use, the signal stalk had some extra options for the wiper and it took me awhile to find cruise control (it was a little button on the right-hand-side of the steering wheel). The seats were decent though I missed some lumber support on them and after a while my back hurt (the drive from Munich to our location was about 1 hour and 30 minutes).

Overall though, the Durango V6 was kind of fun to drive. I enjoyed the car. I think this is a nice product that could use a few improvements but other than that it's a pretty nice car. It was fun driving this big car on country roads where there was ample space (not so much in the city and on those tight narrow mountain roads). I can imagine this car can only get better if it was offered with a powerful V6 diesel engine and a more responsive automatic transmission and some sportiness (nothing drastic a la "track driving" but just more responsiveness and sturdiness in regards to steering/brakes/suspension respectively). And better brakes! A nice car overall, but it is definitely not made for Europe. I couldn't live with such a car here because maneuvering and parking it in Munich is suicidal. It's just to large and the fact that no diesel is offered will limit its appeal to those who would consider it if size didn't matter.


So here's what my dream Durango needs:

- A V6 turbodiesel motor
- A responsive automatic transmission
- Tighter and more direct steering
- Sportier suspension for more stable highspeed cruising
- Cloth seats
- Seats with better lumber support

I mostly drove the V6 throughout the day, but on set I maneuvered the big V8 Durango in position the way I wanted it, so I sort off got to "drive it". 

Anyway, the shoot was successful and I have some cool ass images to edit. The big boss stayed in Kitzb?hel with his girlfriend and daughter and I had to drive the Durango V6 back to Munich all by myself. When I left Munich with this brand new Durango, it had 23 km on the odometer. When I got back, it had 363 km on it. I love this guy. He's so chilled and cool (he's Russian) and funny and he allows me, a total stranger to simply drive his merchandise back to Munich. This is the same guy who let me drive the Dodge Challenger SRT-8. I definitely look forward to working with him in the future! 

By the way, I asked him if he imports classic American cars from the '70s like a Dodge Diplomat. He said he has contacts in America and if I wanted one he could arrange it. SWEET!!! I want a Dodge Diplomat or another '70s American cop/taxi cruiser! 



Some shots...


So the day starts with a stop at, you guessed it, McFuel! Those Durangos need their food!



Then the big boss forgot his wallet at the dealership. He had to speed back to the dealership to pick it up and pay the fuel bills for both cars (OUCH! FUCKING OUCH!!!!) and that meant I had to park this huge behemoth. I think I did rather well. Looking at this photo I see I had ample space on my side, but it sure didn't feel like that when I drove the Durango!



On the Autobahn to Austria...



We drove up this mountain range to the top where I photographed both cars with a breathtaking view of the valley below. There was a restaurant at the top where we ate. Some pictures of the place. Check out the PONTIAC GTO!!!






Maneuvering these Durangos through downtown Kitzb?hel was hard. These cars are so huge and these streets here are so narrow. In fact this photo shows a "wide road".



Kitzb?hel is home to the rich and famous and is known in the region for its classic car shows. It's one of the "Pebble Beaches" of Europe. So here are just two cars I saw. Other cars I saw but couldn't get shots off are: Ferrari 612 Scaglietti,. Ferrari 599 GTB, Mercedes CL63 AMG, Mercedes SL63 AMG Black Series, Ferrari Mondial, Fiat 130 Coupe  , Aston Martin Lagonda,





From my nightdrive back to Munich...



Parking the car at the dealership. This back-up camera comes in handy!



VIDEOS: Hear Wimmers sexy voice and English!

Video 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXZoWfMfmI4

Video 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLs7H4qYYNg

Video 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uvrI8H05XE

Video 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxRE4g7McxY

Video 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-N2tYsSJF8





Some quickly edited images from the shoot. I still need to do so much on these like clean the tires, clean the cars, get rid of dirt on the floor etc. etc. etc.













Is that a European stroller for babies? Looks good in yellow! 

[Colin]

Surprised that this going to be sold in Europe....... no diesel and, as you say, just too big for all but those WAGs who want (and purchase) an Escalade!

I rather like this model of Durango, though, and see it as a vast improvement over the previous one. Hopefully, I can source one from a rental fleet in its native land to try out sometime soon.

Some great photos there.......... looks like your business network is spreading.   

[cawimmer430]

Surprised that this going to be sold in Europe....... no diesel and, as you say, just too big for all but those WAGs who want (and purchase) an Escalade!

I rather like this model of Durango, though, and see it as a vast improvement over the previous one. Hopefully, I can source one from a rental fleet in its native land to try out sometime soon.

It's gonna be fun. I had fun driving this Durango. I'm sure in its native environment it'll be much more enjoyable to drive with bigger roads, bigger parking spaces and cheaper gas. 

Some great photos there.......... looks like your business network is spreading.   

Thanks!

Business right now is good. It can only get better. I shot two cute girls at a lake in the late afternoon a week ago and the pictures look great. Used one of my huge softboxes and 400W lights for the action. So I won't only offer car photography.

[CJ]

Your complaints about the transmission are shared by everyone.  It's getting an 8-speed gearbox next year.

[Mustangfan2003]

Your complaints about the transmission are shared by everyone.  It's getting an 8-speed gearbox next year.

Aren't these things still using the old Mercedes 5 speed?

[CJ]

Aren't these things still using the old Mercedes 5 speed?

A similar unit, I believe.  It's outdated, for sure.

[cawimmer430]

Your complaints about the transmission are shared by everyone.  It's getting an 8-speed gearbox next year.

Should make it better.

I bet the V8 version drives better though since it has more torque.

[cawimmer430]

Aren't these things still using the old Mercedes 5 speed?

That's what I was wondering.

We had the old 5-speed A/T in our ex-2002 MB E320 and it worked fine there. It was tuned differently in that car as compared to the Durango. I've also experienced this transmission is other MBs when I worked for an MB dealer and I've never had any complaints with the way it worked in different models with different engines.

[SVT666]

The new Durangos are quite large, but I still want one as the replacement for our Explorer in a couple years.

[MexicoCityM3]

Business right now is good. It can only get better. I shot two cute girls at a lake in the late afternoon a week ago and the pictures look great. Used one of my huge softboxes and 400W lights for the action. So I won't only offer car photography.

Please post that instead of these Durangos. Get you priorities straight.

[cawimmer430]

The new Durangos are quite large, but I still want one as the replacement for our Explorer in a couple years.

Are you gonna go for the V6 or the V8?

[cawimmer430]

Please post that instead of these Durangos. Get you priorities straight.

I shot a nude model today. Want me to post those pics here? 

[Madman]

Who the hell in Germany is going to buy a Durango?  I can't even understand why anyone in America would buy a Durango!

These things hold no appeal for me whatsoever. 

[SVT666]

Are you gonna go for the V6 or the V8?

Probably the V6.

[2o6]

Who the hell in Germany is going to buy a Durango?  I can't even understand why anyone in America would buy a Durango!

These things hold no appeal for me whatsoever. 

[cawimmer430]

Who the hell in Germany is going to buy a Durango?

I asked the big boss the same question. Apparently the Dodge Ram 5.7 Hemi Pickup is selling "quite well" (it's their best-selling product here along with the Ford Mustang). Generally the people buying these things are first off all not concerned with gas mileage and they simply want something "big and fun". I've seen a few of their customers in their showrooms. They look like the "rich playboy types". 

[cawimmer430]

Probably the V6.

Which was surprisingly powerful. I could feel its potential. Only the A/T (I think it was the old MB 5-speed) and its lazy tuning reduced performance. The new Durango V6 with that new 8-speed transmission should be perfect.

Would be even better if it was sold with a diesel!

[Madman]

I trailed the big boss in a white 2012 Dodge Durango 3.6 V6 CREW while he and his girlfriend and daughter drove ahead in the black Durango 5.7 V8 CITADEL. The drive from Munich to Kitzb?hel was relatively uneventful. We cruised on the Autobahn and at one point I was doing 170 km/h with the Durango. It didn't feel that stable at that speed to be honest and the light steering, which was fine at lower speeds, didn't inspire much confidence. Wind noises were very loud at 140 km/h+ though, but when you cruised at a leisurely 120/130 km/h the car was very quiet and comfortable. The steering feedback was decent at lower speeds. Although the steering feedback was light, there was enough feedback to let you know what the front wheels were up to. Only at higher speeds did the light steering become a bit of the problem. I've driven many European cars that also had light steering, but our light steering is different from your "lifeless" light steering. Naturally I refrained from driving the car aggressively since it didn't feel like a handler. I mean you could semi-sporty drive it and it would do ok, but only at lower speeds. At higher speeds it felt better just to drive it in a straight line. The suspension was good at lower speeds where it felt sturdy and supportive, but at higher Autobahn speeds I just didn't have the balls to try anything sporty since the suspension became kind of "floaty".

That's funny, I thought the Durango had been "getting handling and steering lessons on those sporty European roads". 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgrBtGpHySc

Yet another case of marketing bullshit at odds with reality! 

[ifcar]

What? A large SUV that doesn't feel comfortable at 100+ mph? Outrageous! Everything that was said about how it handles better than other large SUVs must be a lie!

[Madman]

What? A large SUV that doesn't feel comfortable at 100+ mph? Outrageous! Everything that was said about how it handles better than other large SUVs must be a lie!

If Dodge is trying to imply the Durango is an Autobahn-bred sports machine then it had better damn well live up to the hype.  Marketing 101: Do not make absurd claims about your product.  This is almost as ridiculous as driving a Durango on a racetrack.

Oh wait.......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr2aANJxZLQ

"The only SUV that hasn't forgotten the "S" stands for "Sport"!"  What a load of bullshit!   

[2o6]

Pretty sure that any of those little small vans you go nuts for feel just as bad (if not worse) at those speeds.



Madman, you are really annoying.

[Autobahn]

What? A large SUV that doesn't feel comfortable at 100+ mph? Outrageous! Everything that was said about how it handles better than other large SUVs must be a lie!

A Cayenne, Touareg or Q7 or GL feels comfortable at 100+ mph. Whether you need to drive them at these speeds, is another question. Here you can and people do (hell, they drive Sprinters at 100 mph) so it is a valid concern for a German "review"...

[2o6]

A Cayenne, Touareg or Q7 or GL feels comfortable at 100+ mph. Whether you need to drive them at these speeds, is another question. Here you can and people do (hell, they drive Sprinters at 100 mph) so it is a valid concern for a German "review"...

Those are luxury cars.


The Durango is a Dodge....a Dodge developed primarily for the US in mind. It probably feels as fine as those other cars.....Wimmer just really doesn't drive cars like this normally.

[ifcar]

A Cayenne, Touareg or Q7 or GL feels comfortable at 100+ mph. Whether you need to drive them at these speeds, is another question. Here you can and people do (hell, they drive Sprinters at 100 mph) so it is a valid concern for a German "review"...

Yes, but Madman is talking about the U.S. It's not valid for an American review.

[Madman]

Yes, but Madman is talking about the U.S. It's not valid for an American review.

True, the average American Durango buyer isn't going to drive at triple digit speeds.  I was simply pointing out the absurdity of Dodge claiming the Durango was somehow an Autobahn-bred, Nurburgring-tested performance machine when it clearly isn't.  Why does Chrysler need to make such an outragous claim when the Durango has plenty of other attributes they can legitimately advertise without making fools of themselves?  I would never expect a seven-passenger SUV to race against a sports car on a racetrack, so why does Dodge imply the Durango can?

Cars, like people, always look foolish when they pretend to be something they're not.

[CJ]

Drive the Durange, Tahoe, and Expedition back to back and tell me which feels sporty in comparison.  It'll be the Dodge, guaranteed. 

[MexicoCityM3]

I shot a nude model today. Want me to post those pics here? 

email will work fine, thankyou.

Also if I get those, you can count on me defending your H&H even if you get a Camry.

[S204STi]

Handsome looking trucks for sure.  The latest Jeep GC is also an apparently excellent car, and it looks great.

[cawimmer430]

That's funny, I thought the Durango had been "getting handling and steering lessons on those sporty European roads". 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgrBtGpHySc

Yet another case of marketing bullshit at odds with reality! 

The steering was ok at lower speeds up to around 120 km/h. After you passed 120 km/h the vagueness was a bit scary, especially at higher speeds on the Autobahn. Hard to imagine I had it up to 170 km/h at one point and it felt scary. The suspension and steering just didn't inspire confidence at those speeds.

As Autobahn said, a European SUV is tuned for this kind of driving. I had a GL320 CDI 4Matic on the 'Bahn once and the suspension and steering were "sporty" (for an SUV) and I had no issues pushing the car to higher speeds because of this.

The Dodge Durango was decent at lower speeds (it wasn't as soft in corners as say a 1970s landyacht) and handled quite well on country roads. Just the higher Autobahn speeds proved that it's still designed with the US market in mind IMO.

[cawimmer430]

email will work fine, thankyou.

Also if I get those, you can count on me defending your H&H even if you get a Camry.