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Replacing the Durango SRT 392

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Mr. Bill

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Hi Everyone. I am coming up to the end of a 3 year lease of my 2018 Durango SRT. It has 60k miles on it and some things are starting to go haywire on it. Still, I have enjoyed the vehicle immensely. I generally try something different whenever I get a new car. I am interested in the Hellcat Durango as well as the TRX Ram. However, I refuse to pay over sticker for any car, and it seems that these vehicles are commanding a premium over MSRP. I would like a vehicle that has similar capabilities to the SRT 392, and this seems to be difficult to find. The one vehicle that interests me is the BMW X5 M50i. This is not the full on M version, but looks like a pretty nice SUV. The BMW looks like a lease will price out a few hundred dollars more per month than the SRT. This might work, but I am still considering my options. My must have options are:

High output engine
Tow package
Second row captain chair option

I would like a third row, but am prepared to give that up if necessary.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
#2 ·
There are a few dealerships that still have some allocations for Durango Hellcats. I believe Koons has some left and is selling them at MSRP. Otherwise you can get comparable performance from a Grand Cherokee Trackhawk or SRT with slightly lower towing capacity (7,200 vs 8,700) than the Durango Hellcat or SRT.

Otherwise finding a three-row SUV with the performance that you're coming from in your SRT is difficult. There's the Audi SQ7 and BMW X7 M50i, but you're looking well over $100k for those.

Either way, best of luck with your search.
 
#3 ·
Its a different animal entirely but you could get a Livernois tuned Explorer ST and be at the SRT performance (reports are ~4.0 0-60) Would be alot cheaper than the SRT. If you are leasing then tuning may be an issue for you.
 
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#6 ·
My folks have a BMW X5 M50i, gotta say, I love borrowing it when I'm back in town but. Not without some electrical issues they complain about (tailgate, brake sensor) and it drinks a quart an oil a month. Too refined for my tastes but if i was in the 60+ crowd, i'd probably swing for it.
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
Thanks for the responses. My wife has an X7, and it is a sweet car. The tech is a bit overwhelming. She had two X5's before this X7. I've had a couple of M cars (M3 and M Coupe), plus a couple of 3 series sedans. They were all great drivers. I am thinking of the X5 b/c it will make it easier to drive the X7 whenever we need to switch.

I tend to shy away from modding my cars anymore. I had an Audit TTRS that I had modified, but the transmission could not take all of the extra power. When I took it to the dealer to fix, they denied warranty coverage. So now I try to get them amped up from the factory.

Things going haywire on the SRT:

Engine detonated at about 55k miles. It was replaced under warranty.
Infotainment center shuts off at random times and sometimes wipes out all of my presets.
Rear hatch has gotten a little tentative when hitting the close button, so it won't always close on its own, or sometimes I have to hit the button twice for it to close (after it doesn't close the first time). Now I wait for it to close before getting in the car.
Sometimes makes a scraping noise when turning the wheel slightly to the left. Sounds like a bearing is going.
Sounds like a leaf is stuck in the vent when turning up the fan. I can't find the leaf anywhere. Now I leave the fan on low.

FWIW, the 60k miles are hard miles. It's my company car, so I drive it like the rental that it is. It's so much more satisfying when you can drive it balls out all the time, especially when you don't have to pay for the gas.

If you see a black SRT from NJ going off lease in June, 2021 with b/n 63k and 65k miles on the odometer, and a blown engine showing up in the carfax, STAY AWAY!!! DO NOT BUY THIS ONE.
 
#9 ·
DDSRT0311 said:
Otherwise you can get comparable performance from a Grand Cherokee Trackhawk or SRT with slightly lower towing capacity (7,200 vs 8,700) than the Durango Hellcat or SRT.
Click to expand...
I started cross shopping the Grand Cherokee, but was a bit bummed that Jeep didn't upgrade the '21 GC interior with the new 10.1" display / UC5, the upcoming Grand Cherokee L has a slick new interior. Guess the "regular" GC will be updated for '22.

mjreiland said:
Its a different animal entirely but you could get a Livernois tuned Explorer ST and be at the SRT performance (reports are ~4.0 0-60) Would be alot cheaper than the SRT. If you are leasing then tuning may be an issue for you.
Click to expand...
I guess I'd be concerned over the hassle/failure/warranty issues, plus the bigger gains on those tunes are with E30 or E50 (so there's dealing with sourcing corn). Don't get me wrong, I tune the "other car", but since this one will do double duty as the family/trip vehicle, I like it as reliable as possible.

Pretty sweet that extra power is on deck, that's of course, the big advantage with factory FI.
 
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#10 ·
Unfortunately nothing currently comes close to the SRT in terms of performance and towing.....even if you go deep into six figures on something "german" or "italian" (in quotes because national origin becomes a little blurry these days). Some of them match the performance, but none match the towing and none match the price.

The GM's with the 6.2's (Denali, Escalade, Suburban Premium) have a lot more guts than their 5.3L counterparts, but they can't hold a candle to the DDSRT or the Hellcat. The 2019 Suburban RST held some promise (6.2 motor, plus some street performance goodies), but GM seems to have quickly relegated the RST to a cosmetic trim package.

I can only hope that Stellantis will continue the FCA/Marchione (sp?) ethos of slowly but surely putting stupid big motors into everything and thus will come up with an SRT and possibly Hellcat equivalent of the next-gen Durango....or at least continue the DDSRT if they can't continue the Durango Hellcat....
 
#12 ·
I’m in the exact same boat as you. My lease end date is next month and I thought I could extend it but they said I couldn’t (which is weird because other cars I have had allowed this). I need a third row so I too am considering a M50i (although space behind the third row is smaller than the Durango) as well as a Hellcat Durango. I also don’t want to turn mine in because I only have 26k miles and almost $10k in equity on the truck so I may have to buy it and trade later.

I have a tuned M340 as our other car and my first BMW and I love it so that’s one reason the M50i appeals to me (and it’s just as fast as the SRT). I test drove one and it was really nice.
 
#13 ·
Mr. Bill said:
Thanks for the responses. My wife has an X7, and it is a sweet car. The tech is a bit overwhelming. She had two X5's before this X7. I've had a couple of M cars (M3 and M Coupe), plus a couple of 3 series sedans. They were all great drivers. I am thinking of the X5 b/c it will make it easier to drive the X7 whenever we need to switch.

I tend to shy away from modding my cars anymore. I had an Audit TTRS that I had modified, but the transmission could not take all of the extra power. When I took it to the dealer to fix, they denied warranty coverage. So now I try to get them amped up from the factory.

Things going haywire on the SRT:

Engine detonated at about 55k miles. It was replaced under warranty.
Infotainment center shuts off at random times and sometimes wipes out all of my presets.
Rear hatch has gotten a little tentative when hitting the close button, so it won't always close on its own, or sometimes I have to hit the button twice for it to close (after it doesn't close the first time). Now I wait for it to close before getting in the car.
Sometimes makes a scraping noise when turning the wheel slightly to the left. Sounds like a bearing is going.
Sounds like a leaf is stuck in the vent when turning up the fan. I can't find the leaf anywhere. Now I leave the fan on low.

FWIW, the 60k miles are hard miles. It's my company car, so I drive it like the rental that it is. It's so much more satisfying when you can drive it balls out all the time, especially when you don't have to pay for the gas.

If you see a black SRT from NJ going off lease in June, 2021 with b/n 63k and 65k miles on the odometer, and a blown engine showing up in the carfax, STAY AWAY!!! DO NOT BUY THIS ONE.
Click to expand...
Btw ... the fan noise, you just need to replace the fan motor. I did that recently on my 2014 .. it sounded like I had a card in my bike spokes lol.
 
Discussion starter · #14 ·
I can't believe I have been suffering through a faulty fan motor for two years. I'll suffer for a couple more months and let them deal with it when I turn the car in.

Patgilm, how did the BMW compare to the SRT 392.

I just found out that the 2022 Jeep Wagoneer has 3 rows and the 392 engine in it, so I will add that to the list.
 
#15 ·
Mr. Bill said:
I Iust found out that the 2022 Jeep Wagoneer has 3 rows and the 392 engine in it, so I will add that to the list.
Click to expand...
I'm in the same as many others. Our lease ends in September but have started looking at what to get. The Wagoneer news certainly doesn't help.

Our original plan was to purchase this 2018 SRT Durango at the end of the lease. However, the last two years we bought a 7x18 (+5' V nose). Snowmobile trailer. The DSRT tows it just fine with 3 snowmobiles in it. Could possibly fit 4 in it and still would not be close to the max of the trailer as well as the Durango. It is 1800lbs empty and with 3 I think it is around 4,000lbs with some other gear. Again, no problem...

The problem is the brake controller is a pain in the ass. I have the extension wire over to center console and it is hard to get it just right. It needs to be mounted but I wasn't going to start drilling holes.

Also, it hasn't been a problem yet. I know there capabilities of the DSRT in the snow without a trailer. Have been through a few blizzards no problem. It hasn't been bad when towing. With the nature of these all season tires and the limitations of AWD it could lead to a situation of getting stuck with 4,000lbs of weight spinning the tires off had to stop in any amount of deep snow over 6". Like starting from stop sign or pulling into an unplowed parking lot. Again, surprisingly have only towed it in about 4"of snow with no problem.

The Wagoneer sounds interesting. It can tow up to 10,000lbs. It is based off a modified Ram. And would have dedicated 4x4 instead of AWD. But in lower trim it has the 5.7 hemi. Would have to get the Grand Wagoneer to get the 6.4. I'm not looking to spend $10,000 to 20000 plus for either of these. And not really a fan of driving a bus like the Tahoe that these are competing with.

Another option is the Grand Cherokee L. It has 3 rows but there isn't much info out there.

With my troubles I've had with the brake controller. Whatever we get next it has to have integrated brake controller. The Durango SRT and Wagoneer do. Not sure about the Grand Cherokee L.

Without driving a Wagoneer and seeing more info about the L. Right now I'm leaning towards another DSRT. It is likely the cheapest other than maybe the L. Just have to be mindful when towing and plan ahead. Maybe could look at snow tires.
 
#16 ·
I have driven and spent some time with the Wagoneer (short wheel base), Grand Cherokee L (3row) and own a 21 DDSRT. There is no replacing the SRT imo. Awesome tech in the other 2, but pure excitement does not come from them. If you need big, go Wagoneer. If you want comfort and midsized, go JGCL. If you want the performance, go with DDSRT. There is no one vehicle that checks all boxes at the same time, but for me, the SRT comes the closest. As our family grows the 6.4 in the GW is promising.. its pretty quick. Just not willing to give up the pure fun factor on the SRT anytime soon.
 
#17 ·
I bought a used 2018 DDSRT a year ago with 28k on it. The dealership offered an extended warranty from Allstate which I negotiated down to $2,000. It covers everything but wear items up to 7 years or 125k miles. We have already used it for about $1,100 for heated seat elements and an electronic control module. It is piece of mind no matter what fails for as long as I'll own it. I recommend an extended waranty if you can get it.
 
#18 ·
Mr. Bill said:
Hi Everyone. I am coming up to the end of a 3 year lease of my 2018 Durango SRT. It has 60k miles on it and some things are starting to go haywire on it. Still, I have enjoyed the vehicle immensely. I generally try something different whenever I get a new car. I am interested in the Hellcat Durango as well as the TRX Ram. However, I refuse to pay over sticker for any car, and it seems that these vehicles are commanding a premium over MSRP. I would like a vehicle that has similar capabilities to the SRT 392, and this seems to be difficult to find. The one vehicle that interests me is the BMW X5 M50i. This is not the full on M version, but looks like a pretty nice SUV. The BMW looks like a lease will price out a few hundred dollars more per month than the SRT. This might work, but I am still considering my options. My must have options are:

High output engine
Tow package
Second row captain chair option

I would like a third row, but am prepared to give that up if necessary.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Hi . Are you tired of the 392 or it’s just a ritual that you like to change cars.? As for the most have options you got it for 392, hellcat also of course and you’re right not too many things come to these cars.
Wish you all the best in a good hunt
 
#19 ·
6to12motorsports said:
Hi . Are you tired of the 392 or it’s just a ritual that you like to change cars.? As for the most have options you got it for 392, hellcat also of course and you’re right not too many things come to these cars.
Wish you all the best in a good hunt
Click to expand...
I meant to write not too many other cars come close these cars.
 
#20 ·
Mr. Bill said:
I can't believe I have been suffering through a faulty fan motor for two years. I'll suffer for a couple more months and let them deal with it when I turn the car in.

Patgilm, how did the BMW compare to the SRT 392.

I just found out that the 2022 Jeep Wagoneer has 3 rows and the 392 engine in it, so I will add that to the list.
Click to expand...
The M50i is a very nice SUV. The interior and tech is much better but it should be because it’s much more expensive. I launched the shit out of it twice on my test drive and it was fast, about the same as the DDSRT.

Funny you mention the Grand Wagoneer as I am looking at that as well but at $100k it better be really nice. It looks to be but that’s a lot of money for a jeep.
 
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