2025 Dodge Durango vs 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport was designed to project a sportier image within the Range Rover family. Its tall stance was complemented by a shorter wheelbase and a chopped top, giving it an athletic appearance. Large front air intakes and faux vents on the hood and fenders added to its sporty look, though from certain angles, it appeared a bit too tall and narrow, lacking the wide, planted look of some luxury SUVs. The lineup included SE, Dynamic SE, Autobiography, and SV Edition Two trims, with the Dynamic SE offering a Stealth appearance package. Our test car, the SV Edition 2, featured 23-inch carbon-fiber wheels and a carbon-fiber hood, presenting a subtle exterior in Marl Grey. Inside, the SV Edition 2 boasted red leather upholstery, sport seats with illuminated inserts, and a minimalist dashboard design, though the high console and dash created a somewhat cramped front-seat experience.

The 2025 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Premium, particularly with the Silver Bullet special edition package, exuded a more aggressive visual attitude. The package included Triple Nickel paint, a satin black hood, unique wheels, dark badges, and black exhaust tips, enhancing its expressive look. Inside, the SRT Hellcat maintained a subdued atmosphere with dark red premium Nappa leather seats and a suede headliner. The interior felt solidly constructed, though some plastic surfaces detracted from the premium feel. The Durango's cabin was designed for comfort, with heated and ventilated front seats, a leather and suede steering wheel, and forged carbon fiber trim. Despite its performance focus, the Durango offered a practical and comfortable interior for everyday use.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered a range of powertrain options, all paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission and standard four-wheel drive. The base SE model featured a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six engine producing 355 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. The Dynamic SE offered a higher output of 395 hp and 406 lb-ft, along with a plug-in hybrid powertrain rated at 454 hp and 487 lb-ft. The Autobiography trim could be equipped with a plug-in hybrid powertrain delivering 543 hp and 590 lb-ft or a BMW-sourced twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 producing 523 hp and 553 lb-ft. The SV Edition Two used the same V8 but with an output of 626 hp, making it the most powerful Range Rover model. It could accelerate from zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 180 mph. The Range Rover Sport excelled in both on-road performance and off-road capability, with features like sport-tuned air suspension, four-wheel steering, and brake-based torque vectoring enhancing its agility and comfort.

The 2025 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat was powered by a supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V8 engine producing 710 horsepower and 645 pound-feet of torque. It used an eight-speed automatic transmission and had standard all-wheel drive. The SRT Hellcat could accelerate to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds, reach a top speed of 180 mph, and tow up to 8,700 pounds. Despite its powerful engine, the Durango's fuel economy was poor, with an EPA rating of 12/17/13 mpg in city/highway/combined driving. The Durango SRT Hellcat featured a full-time AWD system, electronic limited-slip rear differential, competition-tuned adaptive damping suspension, performance steering, and Brembo brakes. It drove like a taller previous-generation Charger, with firm road manners, creamy steering response, and immediate braking capability. The Durango excelled in performance, offering outstanding grip and body motion control, making it feel track-ready despite its size and configuration.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport was positioned between the Range Rover Velar and the full-size Range Rover in terms of dimensions. It was a two-row, five-seater SUV, offering more room than the Velar but remaining in the midsize range. Front-seat occupants found similar headroom to other midsize luxury SUVs, though the Acura MDX and Audi Q7 offered more legroom. The sloping roof didn't significantly impact rear-seat headroom, and reclining rear seats were standard. The Range Rover Sport provided 31.9 cubic feet of cargo space behind the second row and 53 cubic feet with the rear seats folded. It had a maximum towing capacity of 7,716 pounds for turbo-six and V8 models. The interior featured deep door pockets and large center-console cupholders, though it lacked a split tailgate like the larger Range Rover.

The 2025 Dodge Durango excelled in form and function, offering a roomy and comfortable interior with thoughtful features. The SRT Hellcat Premium test vehicle had heated and ventilated front seats with Nappa premium leather, though they didn't securely hold occupants during spirited driving. The heated second-row captain's chairs provided good leg support and legroom for taller passengers. The Durango featured a large center console with ample storage, rear climate controls, USB charging ports, and a household-style power outlet. The third-row seat offered enough room for adults and a supportive seating position. The Durango provided 17.2 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, expanding to 43.3 cubic feet with the third-row seats folded, and a maximum volume of 85.1 cubic feet. The power liftgate made loading and unloading cargo easy.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport featured a 13.7-inch digital instrument cluster and a 13.1-inch touchscreen for infotainment functions. It included wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with Amazon Alexa integration. The screens looked great, but the minimalist design left few options beyond the touchscreen, making some functions less convenient. The Pivi Pro infotainment system was responsive and offered natural-language voice recognition. The SV Edition 2 test car had "Body and Soul Seats" with embedded transducers that pulsed with music or vibrated in time with relaxation programs. The Meridian audio system offered up to 29 speakers, depending on configuration.

The 2025 Dodge Durango came with a Uconnect 5 infotainment system featuring a 10.1-inch touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a native navigation system. It included SiriusXM 360L satellite radio, Dodge Connect and SiriusXM Guardian subscription services, and a 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot. The system supported dual-phone Bluetooth pairing, was Alexa-compatible, and offered wireless smartphone charging. The SRT Hellcat test vehicle had a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system. The Uconnect system worked well, though the voice recognition sometimes required more specificity. The SRT Hellcat included SRT Performance Pages for tracking performance metrics.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport came with standard driver-assist features, including automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, traffic sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and a driver attention monitor. A 360-degree camera system and digital rearview mirror aided parking, though the parking sensors were overly sensitive. The IIHS and NHTSA had not released safety ratings for the current-generation Range Rover Sport at the time of publication.

The 2025 Dodge Durango's safety features were limited by modern standards, with forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and rear parking sensors as standard. Upgrades included adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, and front parking sensors. The NHTSA gave the Durango a four-star overall rating and a three-star rollover resistance rating for AWD models. The IIHS's small overlap frontal-impact test results were concerning, and the Durango hadn't been assessed in newer evaluations.