AZCentral.com's view

Big, brawny, rough and tough, the Dodge Durango was everything I’d imagined it would be.

But a head-turning, conversation-starting attention grabber? No, I didn’t expect all this attention, not at all.

People blowing their horns, leaning out windows, yelling, making the thumbs-up sign (instead of the usual digit) and striking up conversations when I parked. I felt like a movie star instead of a truck driver.

Not even the Porsche Boxster garnered this kind of attention. It really shows how popular the sport-utility-vehicle genre remains, despite the current assaults on their gas mileage, tailpipe emissions and safety.

The Durango marches to its own drummer, mapping out a new size niche in the sport-utility class, bigger than the Ford Explorer and its ilk, but smaller than the Chevrolet Tahoe and Ford Expedition. That’s smart marketing by Chrysler, which already has notched some impressive numbers for its latest offspring.

A major plus is the third row of seats, making Durango a solid eight-seater, in league with such big boys as Chevy Suburban, Toyota Landcruiser and a sea of minivans. The Durango’s rear seat won’t fit too many NBA players (well, maybe Muggsy Bogues), but it’s easy to enter, thanks to a well-engineered middle seat that folds well forward, leaving plenty of climbing space.

And because the Durango doesn’t sit all that high off the asphalt, climbing in is not that big a deal, even for those people of the skirt-wearing persuasion.

But the interior of Durango was a big disappointment. Functional and reasonably comfortable, but also boring and not very attractive. There’s some talk that Chrysler was worried about robbing sales from its own Jeep Grand Cherokee and, therefore, toned down the interior of Durango. Whatever, it’s a good thing there’s so much pent-up demand for this vehicle, because it never would sell on the strength of its amenities.

Part of the deal is that Durango is based on the Dakota pickup truck, and the cabin has been only slightly changed for the more upscale sport ute. But the Durango makes no pretense of being carlike, anyway. The ride can be jarring and the handling spotty, leaving no doubt that you are driving a truck and not some hybrid that tries to bridge the gap. For truck people, the broad-shouldered allure should have plenty of appeal.

Much of the favorable reaction from other drivers has to be the Durango’s striking appearance. Its “big rig” grille treatment, carried over from hefty brother Ram, rounded fenders and unique profile make for a strong presence and an implied statement that Durango is no wimpy, mall-cruising ute, but a powerful truck that can get the job done.

Backing up that claim, our tester rumbled around with a 5.9-liter (that’s 360-cubic-inch) V-8 stump-puller that puts out 250 horsepower and a massive load of torque. It will yank the nearly 4,000-pound vehicle to 60 mph in less than 10 seconds or tow a 7,300-pound trailer up Yarnell Hill.

There was a serious price to pay for all that power: dismal gas mileage. There is a V-6 available and a smaller V-8, each getting better mileage grades, but not all that much.

Our tester was also a heavy four-wheel-drive, the only way Durangos have been available for several months, with rear-wheel-only drive available soon. If you don’t need or use four-wheel drive, and the great majority of sport-ute drivers don’t, there’s no reason to pay the gas-mileage penalty of dragging around the extra weight. Or paying for it in the first place.

And that’s another plus for Durango. Though certainly not inexpensive, it’s not priced too badly, either. All tricked out with the big engine, big tires on modular wheels, power windows and locks, anti-lock brakes, hot stereo system, etc., Durango still undercuts many of its sport-ute brethren.

Not that it actually has any peers, coming in at anentirely new size. There have been persistent rumors of a sport-utility vehicle built on the mighty R am pickup chassis, which would be a big, bad ute designed to go head-to-head with Suburban, Expedition and the upscale Lincoln Navigator.

Could be interesting, unless the current backlash against these trendy vehicles results in a spoiling of their immense popularity. Though after the crowd reaction to the Durango, I kind of doubt it.

1998 Dodge Durango

Vehicle type: Eight-passenger, four-door sport-utility vehicle, rear/four-wheel drive. Base price: $25,810. Price as tested: $32,530. Engine: 5.9-liter V-8, 245 horsepower at 4,000 rpm, 335 pounds-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm. Transmission: Four-speed automatic. Curb weight: 4,700 pounds. Length: 193.3 inches. EPA fuel economy: 12 mpg city, 17 mpg highway. Highs: Great new size. Eight-seat capacity. Competitive price. Lows: Drab interior. Poor gas mileage. Trucklike ride.