It’s not far off from a Hellcat starting in your driveway. Poke the 5.7 litre HEMI V8 in the Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go into action with the red starter button, and a deep, building-penetrating bark explodes from the up-sized tailpipe artillery, before settling into a deep and pulsating idle that’s anything but discreet. In motion, this hilarious exhaust system has a snarl that responds and morphs with your throttle inputs, and accentuates many gear shifts with a loud snap from the tailpipes. It’s silly, but it’s a lot of fun.
If you grew up loving your family minivan, as I did, but you wished it was cooler-looking and had a V8, something like this is probably what you were dreaming of.
Ticking the Tow ‘n Go box on your Durango R/T AWD adds about $5,500 to its sticker, in exchange for a performance-enhanced version of the Durango R/T that gets significant upgrades to its looks, handling, and towing capacity. On the latter, standard Durango R/T AWD models are clear to haul up to 7,400 lbs, while the Tow ‘n Go package bumps the figure to an unbeatable 8,700.
In addition to the elevated towing capacity, the Tow ‘n Go kit adds a top speed boost, drive modes for Track, Snow, Tow and Sport, and a complement of on-board performance meters and displays. A new electronic Limited Slip Differential and active damping suspension system are bolted up, with 20-inch wheels bolted on. Red SRT Brembo brake calipers peek out from behind.
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
If you’re after high-capacity stopping power for trailering, these race-engineered brakes will have you sorted. Enthusiast drivers will be disappointed in the brake pedal feel, however. The brakes have deep reserves of aggressive clamping force and pull the Durango down from speed with confidence to spare — but a relatively numb upper brake pedal means plenty of leg is required to get the big red calipers clamping. If you’re a driving enthusiast who prefers a hair-trigger brake pedal feel, you won’t find it here.
Elsewhere, the driveline gets an 8-speed automatic with paddle shift and AWD, while the new front end end hood features SRT body parts for optimized cooling and air induction for the engine behind them.
After 1,200 kilometres of testing for various assignments, I came away most impressed with the Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go’s suspension system.
Unlike conventional springs, the adaptive dampers on the Tow ‘n Go are alive and intelligent. With the ability to actively control their springiness with high precision in response to the road surface, this suspension all but annihilates unwanted body motions. By triggering changes to damper response in real time, Durango’s body returns to rest almost immediately after even larger bumps. The result is a simple up-down-done body motion, as the suspension works actively to eliminate bounce and rebound.
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
2021 Dodge Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go Photo by Justin Pritchard
The body (and therefore occupants) are at rest more of the time, and that’s a more comfortable ride.
The system enhances handling as well. By all but eliminating unwanted body motions, the driver’s inputs and expectations are more directly transmitted to the pavement. It’s race-car tech that also works wonders for ride comfort, and you’ll enjoy it on every drive.
The thing is, Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go’s sporty intentions mean it’s far from your best pick for the dollar for frequent use on rough roads. Though body motion control is exceptional, impacts from rough road surfaces cause ride comfort levels and smoothness to fall off sharply on very badly beaten back roads, camp roads, and the like. With thin and sporty tires and an athletic suspension system, you’ll need to slow way down to keep things smooth when the going gets very rough.
That’s no fun, after all — the Tow ‘n Go is built to, well, hustle: the sound effects encourage it, the solid build in power and exhaust volume at full throttle are addictive, and in all, the noise and feedback from the HEMI driveline aren’t the top choice if you like smooth and quiet, but it puts on a heck of a show.
The sporty driving experience is rounded out by special tuning of the suspension, steering, and drive modes. The Durango’s size and mass aren’t trying to hide. Rather, it’s a quick steering feel that provides a good sense of the Durango’s size and weight for drivers to form the basis of their relationship with the machine. From there, it generates grins with its quick responses, heavy and locked-on handling feel, and a surprisingly no-problem approach to fast corners, on-ramps, or your favourite empty backroad. It’s no Hellcat Widebody in the corners, but it’s more fun than it’s massive size probably leads on. Leaving that signature exhaust note in your wake never gets old, either.
So, is it a towing package with handling benefits? A handling package with towing benefits? In any case, it’s an interesting equipment combination to be sure: a new take on the Durango that’s built to handle and haul, but without going full SRT or Hellcat under the hood.
Be sure to consider the Ford Explorer ST as well.
Though its 5,600 pound towing capacity can’t match the Durango R/T Tow ‘n Go, its twin-turbo V6 is more powerful, faster, and easier on fuel. According to NRCan, the annual fuel costs of the Explorer ST are about $575 less than that of the Durango R/T. If you’re a Mopar fan looking to upgrade from a HEMI Charger or Challenger into something with 3 seating rows that can haul heavy stuff, you’ll feel right at home with the more entertaining side of the Durango RT Tow ‘n Go’s driving experience.
Keyword: SUV Review: 2021 Dodge Durango Tow 'n Go