The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) named the 2011 Dodge Durango a “Top Safety Pick.” The 2011 and up Durango was given a ‘good’ rating on all front, side, rollover and rear crash test evaluations. Add in standard electronic stability control, and Chrysler LLC’s latest SUV is now a IIHS Top Safety Pick.
“The Durango is the eighth vehicle from Chrysler to earn the Institute’s highest safety honor,” said IIHS president Adrian Lund. “The performance of the Durango means buyers are getting the best protection in the most common kinds of crashes, and electronic stability control for avoiding many crashes altogether.”
This “Top Safety Pick” offers consumers 45 safety and security features. These features include standard Electronic Stability Control (ESC), which delivers three security features to improve overall vehicle stability both on- and off-road: electronic roll mitigation (ERM), which reacts and applies brakes during extreme situations, and Hill-start Assist (HSA), which works with standard Trailer-sway Control (TSC) to enhance off-road and towing capabilities.
Being rated this way by IIHS, 2011 Dodge Durango joins seven other Chrysler models that also earned the title of Top Safety Pick. Now the Durango can stand alongside the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee, Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger, Chrysler 200 sedan, Dodge Avenger, Dodge Journey and Jeep Patriot (when equipped with available seat mounted side airbags).
“With the latest addition of Dodge Durango, coupled with the new Jeep Grand Cherokee and Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger, Chrysler Group has eight Top Safety Picks for 2011. This recognition by the IIHS underscores our commitment to engineering safety and security technology across all vehicle segments,” said Scott Kunselman, Senior Vice President of Engineering for Chrysler Group LLC.
As a refresher, 2011 Durango’s power comes from two engine choices. Standard is Chrysler’s 290-hp 3.6L Pentastar V6 and optional is the 360-hp 5.7L HEMI V8 with fuel-saving, Multi-displacement system (MDS) 4-cylinder mode. The Pentastar V6 has a towing capacity of 6,200 pounds while the V8 can pull 7,400 pounds. Prices for the 2011 Dodge Durango start at $29,195.
Source: IIHS, Chrysler
