If you've spent some time reading about crossover SUVs, you may think you've seen it all. Then, you try to decide which one is the best for you and you discover that every review pretty much says the same things. How can you tell the difference between, say, the Dodge Durango and the Kia Sorento for traversing the roadways of Chittenden County from South Burlington to St. Albans, VT?
It's true that both of these are great crossovers, but they do have some significant differences overall. Compare the 2021 Dodge Durango vs. Kia Sorento and discover which offers a superior range of features, performance, and drivability for your daily needs.
Main Differences Between the Durango and Sorento
This year, the 2021 Dodge Durango delivers a new base trim level in the SXT, which features a powerful V6 engine putting out 295 horsepower. Other trim levels get a new hood design, which is designed to provide outstanding engine cooling and airflow. You also get standard Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™ for smartphone apps, an available 10.1-inch touchscreen, as well as a rearview camera.
The Sorento comes with only a few minor upgrades and shuffles to standard and optional features. In the end, the Durango brings a lot more newer features to the table this year. In addition, the Sorento's audio system is far less fully featured at the base level.
Engines and Performance
This is another area where the Durango simply rises above the Sorento.
The base engine for the Kia is a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, which delivers 191 horsepower and 181 lb-ft of torque. Another option is the Turbo-Hybrid engine, which manages to achieve 227 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque.
Then there is the 2.5-liter Turbocharged engine. Available on higher-level trims, this decently powerful engine can generate up to 281 horsepower and 311 lb-ft of torque.
Compare that to the Durango, which comes at its base level with a 3.6-liter V6 engine delivering 295 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. It only gets better from that, as the higher you climb the trim levels, the stronger the engines become, which are shown as follows.
The next step up is the 5.7-liter HEMI® V8 engine, coupled with Variable Valve Timing (VVT) Fuel Saver Technology and an 8-speed automatic transmission. This setup allows the Durango to put out 360 horsepower and 390 lb-ft of torque. Additionally, when properly equipped with the Tow N Go Package, it can tow up to 8,700 pounds.
Following that, there is the 6.4-liter HEMI® V8 engine, which is a controlled monster, being able to generate a generous 475 horsepower while additionally providing 470 lb-ft of torque. This engine can naturally tow up to 8,700 pounds when properly equipped.
The final engine option is the Supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI® V8 engine. As the saying goes, "If it can be built, it should be built." This philosophy led to the 6.2-liter HEMI® construction. It puts out an incredible 710 horsepower, 645 lb-ft of torque, and a natural towing capacity of 8,700 pounds when properly equipped.
There's no question about it-the Durango's engines are in an entirely different class than the Kia Sorento's, which can't even come close.
Interior Space
The Durango also comes out ahead in interior comfort and room. It's one of the most spacious 3-row SUVs on the market today. With the room inside, you can comfortably seat up to seven adults with no problems.
To be more explicit about the spaciousness of the Durango interior cabin, we've brought out some hard numbers to highlight our claim, which are as follows:
- Legroom (front/rear): 40.3 inches / 38.6 inches
- Headroom (front/rear): 39.9 inches / 39.8 inches
- Hip Room (front/rear): 57 inches / 55.5 inches
- Shoulder Room (front/rear): 58.5 inches / 57.7 inches
As you can see, the numbers speak for themselves. The Durango has incredible space for not only the driver, but also whomever they bring along on the adventure. Not to be left out, there is also generous cargo space, with a maximum interior cargo volume of 85.1 cubic feet.
Not only is it a great place to enjoy the driving experience, it also comes equipped with some neat features. Like we mentioned above, this year's model includes an available 10.1-inch touchscreen that is seven degrees oriented toward the driver. This screen upgrade is part of the upgrade to the Uconnect® 5 system.
The Durango also features a new ICS (Internet Connection Sharing) dashboard screen that includes hard-button controls for the available heated/cooled seats and available heated steering wheel. For added ease and convenience, it also offers a wireless charging pad and wireless Apple CarPlay® support and Android Auto™ integration.
The same cannot be said of the Sorento, which boasts seating for seven, but if you put adults in the third row, they're going to be crunched. However, let's see what kind of convenience and comfort tech the Sorento has.
It starts with an 8-inch touchscreen that features Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™, and it's helped by the available Bluetooth® connectivity. A unique feature is the 4.2-inch Trip Computer Display, which offers an array of functions right at your fingertips, including a trip meter, odometer, estimated range of remaining fuel, and current average MPG.
There is also the steering-wheel-mounted audio, hands-free phone, and cruise control buttons. With these, you can conveniently adjust the radio volume, change channels, handle calls with your Bluetooth®-enabled phone, and adjust your cruise control settings.
Test Drive the Durango at Goss DCJR
In the end, there's pretty much no sector in which the Sorento matches the 2021 Dodge Durango. If you'd like to check out this fantastic 3-row sport utility for yourself on the roads of South Burlington, St. Albans, or all over Chittenden County, Vermont, you should stop into Goss DCJR and get in for a test drive today. Contact us!