Of course, the Forester will track a bona fide trail, and its four-wheel independent suspension affords a supple ride whether terrain is smooth or rough. But there's a distinct difference between tackling an existing trail and blazing one of your own. Almost 30 years after the Chevrolet K-Blazer kicked off the craze, Dodge Durango rolls into the ring with all the benefits of watching and waiting built into its clever design. The strategy has allowed Dodge to question what consumers really want in their SUVs, and the Durango is the company's clever answer. Aside from seven-passenger seating, Durango also provides versatility.
Seats fold every which way to make room for additional cargo.
But you don't have to fold 'em all. To load a box behind the driver's seat, for instance, leave the rear seat up and just flatten one section of the three-way middle row while the kids scamper to the back row. Or fold the rear bench and then fold just the center section of the second bench, so that two can ride in the middle row on either side of that four-foot filing cabinet. Durango's towing capacity, with a 3.92 rear end, is an outstanding 7,300 lbs. Put another way, the 5.9 Durango can haul 12,000 lbs. of people, cargo and trailer load in any combination you want to mix 'em.