Lame. I thought the Durango/Aspen were heading for the graveyard.

45k for a dodge durango is reasonable? I don’t know about that. Also, you think Dodge would see how GM’s big hybrids are not selling for ****. People don’t want land boats anymore, hybrid or not. I think regardless of the claimed mileage, people will be/are turned off by the size, associating that with terrible mileage.

Not a bad deal If you can get the hybrid with the cylinder shut down and the 2.99 gas card
If Chrysler can do this for the 300 Charger and the Sebring Avenger then they can sell those cars

21/22 is good? My F150 5.4 liter averages over 20mpg in real world driving. Who the hell would drop an additional $18k to save about 300 dollars per year?

I think it is a pair of great vehicles, except very expensive. I think Chrysler would be better served by offering V6 hybrids. There is no need for torque with electric motor’s help and on highway V6 would do better (as well in a city since there is help from electric motor to attain steady speed). The price could be few grand cheaper as well, since “HEMI” is not part of V6 package.

Toyota’s selling what, 50k Prius’ a month or pretty much every one they can make. So Chrysler comes out with a rival for GM’s dinosaurs that probably sell less than bear testicles on the black market. I’m guessing this is yet another remnant of the sh*tstorm that was Daimler/Chrysler.

johnnycanuck, true enough. Prius can accommodate 4 comfortably. This dinosaur 7-8 plus a boat behind for twice as much gas and double the price. Seems fair to me. If you have 3 large size offspings and a dog Prius will not make a good ride to a picnic. If wife has all American appetite Prius will not make it out of garage. I can feel my people’s pain

i agree with mayer.

how come nobody is going with a diesel hybrid???

xyunya, the smart ones will just go out and buy a two year old Aspen or Durango for probably 40-50% of original MSRP and use the rest to buy the boat.

johnnycanuck, you are right. Maybe even for less: a lot of them are repo at this time.

1) Chrysler, GM, and BMW co-developed this technology. GM getting a 4-month jump start on selling the Tahoe/Yukon hybrids was not enough a) for Chrysler to stop development to launch, and b) to show a clear picture of how these vehicles will sell long-term.

2) The GM hybrid twins aren’t selling well because few were built due to the American Axle strike. If someone can provide me numbers that show they’re piling up on lots, I’ll be happy to believe it. Until then, it’s all speculation.

3) Mayer, your F150 is rated 14/18. If you’re really getting 20, then it wouldn’t be a stretch to say these will get 25.

4) $45k is what people pay for large SUVs. It just is. $53 might be high to a Tahoe, but it’s not stratospheric based on what these things normally, actually cost.

5) Toyota isn’t selling anywhere near 50k Priuses a month. More like 15k/month.

6) A diesel hybrid would be even more expensive than a petrol hybrid because diesel engines are more costly to build. Plus, the price of diesel is far higher than petrol across the country. So a diesel hybrid would sell poorly. Anyone remember the Liberty CRD? I didn’t think so.

The Aspen is graveyard bound, the Durango is destined to become more car like.

Let’s say you actually need a large vehicle like this. The hybrid drive MIGHT save you $1,500 a year in fuel costs.

You can spend $50,000 on one of these bloatliners. Or you can spend $20,000 to pick up an 18-month-old Expedition in some yuppie’s panic sale… a well-kept, low-mileage gunboat that never left the suburban boulevard.

How many rational people are going to spend a $30,000 premium to save $1,500 a year? And on top of it, they’d be driving a Chrysler.

If this is their brightest idea, Chrysler is doomed.

I suspect the Durango and Aspen will be headed for the grave in not too long. Dodge no longer needs the Durango, and the Aspen is **** anyways.

Where is Chrysler marketing headed anyways? They sure aren’t luxury cars… so why does Chrysler need a version for $300 more? Should of kept the Plymouth brand alive, all Chrysler really needed was a reconfiguring of priorities.

I could see a hybrid SUV sell for figures around 38k, not 45k. I can’t quite believe the hybrid system costs 10k alone, I have a feeling that the Durango twins and Tahoe twins are fully loaded with the hybrid option. I don’t think Chryslers really committed to making good cars anymore, and their sales show. I don’t want them to make a comeback for five years and go back into the pits.

TomF- People do, people do…
And no, this wasn’t their brightest idea. The Sebring and Avenger twins, a long with this new Hornet is pretty much as creative as Chrysler will get, not nearly good enough.

inline6- Prius is ninth best selling in the United States. The Liberty CRD flew off the lots pretty fast, they had some of the lowest lot sitting periods for Chrysler products. I can’t say much for Chrysler products flying off the lot, but the CRD sold fairly well.

I think a diesel hybrid would do better. Aside from that, be the first to do so, you have your European engines and hybrid drive train, no crazy investment needed. E85 would be a great step that’s already there as well, no investment needed and the expense of modifying an engine for E85 is pretty small.

Timming sucks

jayjc08 — I know they do; the Toyota Highlander hybrid options out at about $45-$47k loaded, and it’s a smaller vehicle than the Aspen. But, rational or not, people have a whole different view of the Toyota value proposition.

jayjc08, the Chrysler people have said that the Durango name stays, just will be applied to a different kind of vehicle, probably a crossover.

People have a whole different view of the Toyota value proposition-
I love how people act as if Toyota’s PROVEN reliability and build quality is “perception” lol

I must have imagines the engine sludge problems, the broken axles, camshafts, and the cracked tailgates on the Tundra, the rusting Tacomas and such.

TomF- True about the Toyota Value proposition. I see most of these non-standard hybrids being optioned out anyways, but it’s great to advertise that lower price for better saving comparisons.

nonamedenton- Same name but totally different concept. Thanks for clarifying that though.

I always liked the Durango name.

Remember jayjc08, SUVs are passe now, the big money is having more crossovers then your competition. Chrysler said the Aspen is going as part of the attempt to axe lap over models.

I must have imagines the engine sludge problems, the broken axles, camshafts, and the cracked tailgates on the Tundra, the rusting Tacomas and such.
You must have bc I dont see a recall or any substantial proof

Yeah, except the story about Toyota giving away Tacomas to people whose Tacomas rusted, and I remember the Tundra recalls, I was laughing about them. For the most part though, Toyota never admits their is a problem, would tarnish their image. Plus I also remember the Toyota CEO saying declining quality was what happened when you are expanding so much.

Just get an Explorer or Expedition

noname- I also read about the Aspen going. I never saw what the Aspen was aspiring to be in the first place. A luxury Dodge? A more family oriented Chrysler? Useless in the first place…