Hi Group,
I'm new to this board, this is my first post but have been on the Cummins Turbo Diesil board in the RAM section. They are a very knowledgeable and helpful group.I hope that's true here too. I'm about to buy an 04 D, 4WD, HEMI with about 87K on the clock. I want to use it occasionally to tow a travel trailer on vacations and for my wife to tote around our 15 month old twins with a greater safetyfactor than she has in her current oldTaurus.Is there anything special that I should look out for, be aware of or any reason that I should outright avoid this vehicle? It is immaculate, inside, outside, under the hood and under the car, no leaks, never in an accident, comes with a warranty from the dealer that is extendable for a price. The only warning sign I saw when I looked at it yesterday is that it has new tires all around and that's not much of a warning considering the miles it just may have been time for new tires. As might be expected the dealer is making numerous concessions to get me to buy, offering a free tow package installed, and to pay taxes, tags and title. All this with the ticket at only 11K rounded up to start with. Any counsel would be apprciated.
I bought a 2004 Durango Limited about 2 years ago and I have to say that I liked it so much that I bought a Dodge Ram about a year later. The Hemi is really sweet and not as bad on gas as I thought it might be. I average 15.8 to 16.7 and on the highway around 20-22 mpg. Mine is 2wd so I can't comment on any fuel mileage drop due to 4wd. It had 32,000 miles when I got it and now has around 48,000. I have had it in for service on the instrument cluster (just a recall notice, took 15 min. to fix) , replaced a egr sensor once at the dealer for about $160. I did have to have the ring gear and pinion replaced but I haven't seen where this is a common problem. I have really been impressed with the handling considering that it is an SUV. Mine also had new tires but it seems like everything I buy at a dealership has new ones. The price doesn't sound too bad either. Hope this helps.
Thanks Sparky, that's encouraging. I'm probably going to buy it tomorrow unless I hear something that would indicate otherwise.I hope to hear from some others too.
Should be a solid and reliable vehicle. Durango's have the best ride of all suv's on the market imo. Only negative I can add is service intervals come pretty quick. 30k for plugs(16 of them on the Hemi) and with 4wd front and rear diff. has to be changed every 15k and it's important to stick to that. Also at that mileage you should be due for transfer case change, coolant, air filter, and tranny change.
Thanks Wishbone for the positive review and especially for the maintence tips. I need to hear back from my insurance rep and as long as that coverage insn't a killer I think I'm going to buy it today.
About to buy 04 D
