2014 Durango gets m.p.g. boost with new transmission

Dodge is boosting the fuel economy and enhancing other features of the Durango SUV in hopes such improvements can provide a much-needed sales boost.

The 2014 Durango, unveiled Thursday at the New York auto show, will be equipped with a new eight-speed transmission that Chrysler and German supplier ZF Group developed. Chrysler builds the transmission in Kokomo, Ind.

According to Dodge, the transmission will shift gears more efficiently and improve Durango’s fuel economy by 9%. Dodge also is replacing the shifter handle with a rotary knob and paddle controls so drivers can shift manually.

Dodge did not disclose the exact fuel economy for the 2014 Durango, but the current Durango gets a combined 19 m.p.g. on the highway with a 3.6-liter V6 engine. A four-wheel drive Durango powered by a V8 gets a combined 15 m.p.g., according to fueleconomy.gov.

While Chrysler reintroduced the Dodge Durango in 2011 after a one-year hiatus, U.S. sales fell 17.6% in 2012 to 42,589. Dodge dealers play up the SUV’s seven-passenger seating that is popular with families.

“When the Durango was first launched in 1998, it represented a breakthrough in power, size and style,” Reid Bigland, CEO of the Dodge brand, said in a statement. “Now for 2014, we’re upping the ante by making it our most technologically advanced, fuel-efficient and dramatically styled Durango ever.”

The refreshed version of the three-row Durango also gets a new signature tail-lamp with 192 LEDs. Similar tail-lamps have been popular design features on the Dodge Dart and Dodge Charger.
The Durango also has a new, slimmer “split crosshair” grille with mesh textures unique to each trim level.

Inside, the Durango will get Chrysler’s latest 5-inch or 8.4-inch Uconnect touch screen navigation and entertainment control system.

The 2014 Durango is available in five trim levels: SXT, Rallye, the new for 2014 Limited, R/T and Citadel.

It will be built at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant in Detroit. Production is scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2013.

The price of the new model will be announced later.

Courtesy of freep.com