Dodge Durango Years to Avoid and the Best Years

Years to avoid: 2012 and 2013 At least twice the 57 complaints of a typical Durango year. Most described: stalling.
Best years: 2022 and 2023 Under three quarters of the 41.5 complaints of a typical Durango year since 2016, with no open NHTSA investigation or do-not-drive or park-outside recall. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less.

Based on owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, not adjusted for sales. The 2024 to 2026 models are too new to judge. See every year ranked

Data: US EPA and NHTSAUpdated Nov 11, 2026

Every model year since 2011 in one place: EPA fuel economy, NHTSA recalls, owner complaints and crash test ratings. The best fuel economy rating, 21 mpg combined, arrived in 2016. Crash ratings for the Durango Pursuit police vehicle are left out. NHTSA files its recalls and complaints under the regular Durango name, so they appear here.

Durango problems by year, ranked by owner complaints

How the years are ranked

Model years ranked by owner complaints filed with NHTSA in their first three years (model year Y: filed by the end of Y+2), so every year is measured over the same time on the road. Years without three full years of data, and launch or final years with very few sold, are left out. Counts are not adjusted for how many were sold.

A typical Durango year drew 57 complaints in its first three years: the median of all its ranked years, higher than the median of its years since 2016 (41.5). Years to avoid drew at least twice that, and at least 50. Best years are up to three years since 2016 with the fewest complaints, each under three quarters of a typical year since 2016 (41.5), with no open NHTSA investigation and no do-not-drive or park-outside recall that covers all versions; the 2020 is never picked, as its first three years fell in the pandemic. How the verdict works.

Model year	First 3 years	All complaints	Recalls
2013 Durango Avoid Most described: stalling or shutting off	167	640	11
2012 Durango Avoid Most described: stalling or shutting off	121	640	10
2014 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	87	787	11
2011 Durango Most described: stalling or shutting off	75	800	8
2018 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	59	234	5
2015 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	58	505	4
2017 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	57	215	2
2016 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	52	161	3
2021 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	50	208	8
2019 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	33	146	4
2023 Durango Best Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	20	39	3
2022 Durango Best Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	18	62	7
2020 Durango Most described: headlight or exterior light problems	11	56	2

Compare other models' worst years in the worst model years guide.

Check your Durango for open recalls

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Dodge dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Year by year

Model year	Best rating	Recalls	Complaints	Crash test
2026 MPG · Recalls and problems	20 mpg Gas	1	15
2025 MPG · Recalls and problems	20 mpg Gas	0	8
2024 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	0	14
2023 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	3	39
2022 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	7	62
2021 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	8	208
2020 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	2	56
2019 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	4	146
2018 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	5	234
2017 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	2	215
2016 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	3	161
2015 MPG · Recalls and problems	20 mpg Gas	4	505
2014 MPG · Recalls and problems	20 mpg Gas	11	787
2013 MPG · Recalls and problems	19 mpg Gas	11	640
2012 MPG · Recalls and problems	19 mpg Gas	10	640
2011 MPG · Recalls and problems	19 mpg Gas	8	800	Not rated

Owner complaints by model year

All complaints filed so far. Counts rise with sales volume and with time on the road, so recent years look better than they may turn out. The highlighted bar is the model year with the most complaints in its first three years.

2013: 640 complaints

Show as a table

Owner complaints by model year, Dodge Durango
Model year	Complaints
2011	800
2012	640
2013	640
2014	787
2015	505
2016	161
2017	215
2018	234
2019	146
2020	56
2021	208
2022	62
2023	39
2024	14
2025	8
2026	15

Best combined rating by model year

The best-rated version in each model year. Gas: 19 to 21 mpg (every year from 2011 to 2026); highest in 2016.

2026: gas 20 mpg

Show as a table

Dodge Durango best combined mpg by model year
Model year	Best gas version
2011	19
2012	19
2013	19
2014	20
2015	20
2016	21
2017	21
2018	21
2019	21
2020	21
2021	21
2022	21
2023	21
2024	21
2025	20
2026	20

Every Durango year's ratings in one table

Questions

Which Dodge Durango years should you avoid?

The 2012 and 2013 Durango are the years to avoid: each drew at least twice the 57 owner complaints of a typical Durango year in its first three years. Owners of the 2013 most often describe stalling. Complaints can't tell you whether a particular car is sound, so whatever the year, check its open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy. Safety recall repairs are free at Dodge dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

What are the best Dodge Durango years?

The 2022 and 2023 Durango are the best years: they drew 18 and 20 owner complaints in their first three years, each under three quarters of the 41.5 complaints of a typical Durango year since 2016, and none has an open NHTSA investigation or recall telling owners not to drive or to park outside. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less. Only years since 2016 are considered, since owners filed fewer complaints in the early 2010s. The 2024, 2025, and 2026 are not ranked yet: they have had fewer than three full years on the road.

Which Dodge Durango years have the most problems?

Counting owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, the 2013 (167) drew the most, then the 2012 (121). Owners of the 2013 most often describe stalling or shutting off.

Which Dodge Durango years have the most recalls?

The 2013 and 2014 have the most safety recalls in NHTSA's file (11 each). A recall can cover a problem that affects only a few cars, so open a year's page to see what each one covers. No recall for 2011 to 2026 models tells owners not to drive the car or to park it outside.

What are the most common Dodge Durango problems?

In the 4,530 owner complaints NHTSA lists for 2011 to 2026 models, owners most often describe stalling or shutting off (645 complaints, most of them for the 2011 and 2012); headlight or exterior light problems (443 complaints); and the engine not starting (298 complaints, most of them for the 2011 and 2012). One complaint can describe several problems. Each year's recalls and problems page lists what owners describe for that year.

Which Dodge Durango year has the best MPG?

The best EPA fuel economy is 21 mpg combined, first reached by the 2016 gas version.

Sources and method

US EPA fuel economy data (fueleconomy.gov), file dated Nov 4, 2026.
NHTSA recall file dated Nov 12, 2026 and owner complaint file dated Nov 11, 2026; NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.