- The 2025-model-year Dodge Durango’s details are out, and V6, V8, and Hellcat options remain
- That said, the 6.4L variant of the Hemi is gone, and the number of trims has been slashed from 14 to five
- The range-topping Hellcat is still here! But it’s now scarily close to CDN$200,000 including taxes
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With an in-yer-face design, rear-drive architecture, and available V8 engines, the Dodge Durango serves as one of the old guards of Real SUVsTM. But, as life and Star Trek has taught us, all good things will eventually come to an end. For the 2025 model year, there are fewer trim choices than ever — though a selection of engines remain.
Gone are the SXT and SXT Plus trims, leaving the GT serving as a V6-powered $62,290 entry-level trim for the model range. There is a GT Plus as well, swapping in the likes of leather upholstery and a sunroof for an extra eight grand. Last year’s SXT started just under $60,000, which means the price of entry has risen. However, the 2025 GT is actually a few simoleons cheaper than the 2024 model.
Those of you still wanting a V8 engine will have to look at the $74,590 R/T or $79,585 R/T Plus, which incorporate the venerable and hairy-chested 5.7L Hemi as powerplant. Atop the heap is an SRT Hellcat, providing a 710-horsepower 6.2L supercharged V8 in exchange for a stunning $169,441. (Last year’s costliest Durango SRT Hellcat stickered at $151,732, so, yeah, smelling salts were required for this author after learning that fact.) We should note this is still an SUV which can rocket to 100 km/h (62 mph) from zero in just 3.5 seconds, and obliterate the quarter-mile in 11.5 seconds.
If you were comparing last year’s V8 selection to the list above, you may notice the tally is off by one: that’s not your going crazy, Stellantis has indeed scrubbed the 475-hp 6.4-liter version of the Hemi from the equation. It’s down to just the 5.7L and the 6.2L Hellcat, now.
Truth be told, the Durango line was getting a bit bloated, with no fewer than 14 different trims last year, ranging from base SXT to SRT Hellcat Premium. Culling the herd to include just the GT, R/T, and Hellcat was inevitable, but we will note Stellantis did exactly the same thing with its Cherokee just before it took that model behind the barn and shot it between the eyes. No one expects the Durango to live forever, so fans should probably get their fill while they can.
Dodge is still Dodge, of course, continuing to offer entertainingly-named paint shades like White Knuckle and Frostbite even on the least expensive GT. There will also be anniversary-edition option packages to honour two decades of Hemi-powered Durango production, along with special packages such as Hammerhead and Brass Monkey for the Hellcat.
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