2018 dodge durango safety and driver assistance reviews
The Durango’s crash-test results are acceptable, but they’re far from class leading. Optional automated emergency braking adds an extra layer of protection, and its standard backup camera helps with safely reversing the big beast.
What’s New for 2018?
Rear parking sensors are now standard across the lineup.
2017 Dodge Durango
Two agencies evaluate vehicles for crashworthiness in the United States. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) rates tested vehicles from one to five stars in front crash, side crash, and rollover tests. NHTSA also assigns cars an overall rating out of five stars. The non-profit, independent, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) uses a different set of tests to evaluate front and side crashworthiness, roof strength, headlight reach, and ease of child seat installation. IIHS grades cars on a scale from Good to Poor in each test, and awards the cars that perform best across all its tests with Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ honors, the latter of which requires that the vehicle’s automated forward-collision-braking system performs well in IIHS’s tests.
A four-star rating from NHTSA and mostly Good results from IIHS are decent for the segment; the Durango’s aging platform is likely to blame for its average crash-test results. The all-new GMC Acadia scored much higher on each of the tests, but its more modern architecture was specifically designed to meet these requirements.
Airbags, Child Seats, and Spare Tire Location
In the event of an impact, the Durango protects occupants from all sides with front, side, and curtain airbags as well as a driver’s-knee restraint as standard.
For parents whose children aren’t yet at video-game age, the Durango has second-row anchors and tethers for two child seats and third-row tethers for two more. Installing a rear-facing infant seat in the Durango is challenging since second-row room is limited. The LATCH anchor points are easy to access, and the passenger doors open wide enough to allow for simple maneuvering of the carrier. The front seats, however, must be moved forward in order to accommodate a child seat—which presents a comfort issue for taller drivers or passengers.
A compact spare tire is provided and mounted underneath the cargo area. It’s accessible only from outside the vehicle.
Active Safety Features
The Durango offers blind-spot monitoring as part of the Safety and Security package on GT models, and forward-collision warning and automated emergency braking are part of the Technology package on Citadel and R/T models. The blind-spot monitor uses lights in the side-view mirrors to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from behind, while collision mitigation utilizes both a visual alert in the gauge cluster and an audible chime to alert the driver to take action. If the driver doesn’t act, the system will intervene and apply the brakes to help avoid a collision.
Backup Camera
While the image is low res, the backup camera incorporates handy gridlines that move with steering inputs and indicate where the vehicle is headed. The image is large and provides a good field of view, especially with the optional 8.4-inch infotainment screen.