Compare the2024 Honda PilotVS 2023 Dodge Durango

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Honda Pilot have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Dodge Durango doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Pilot are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Durango doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Honda Pilot has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Durango doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite has a standard Low-Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Durango doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Pilot’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Durango doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

The Pilot’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Durango and is not available with SXT.

The Pilot TrailSport/Elite has a standard Multi-View Camera System to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Durango only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The Pilot’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Durango doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Pilot and the Durango have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Pilot for 2 years or 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Dodge doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Durango.

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the Pilot has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the 5.7 V8 in the Durango.

As tested in Motor Trend the Honda Pilot is faster than the Dodge Durango V6:

On the EPA test cycle the Pilot gets better mileage than the Durango:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Pilot uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Durango with the 5.7 V8 engine requires mid-grade for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 51.4 cents more per gallon.

The Pilot has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Durango doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Pilot higher (7 out of 10) than the Dodge Durango (5 to 7). This means the Pilot produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Durango every 15,000 miles.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Honda Pilot, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Durango.

The Pilot stops much shorter than the Durango:

The Pilot has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Durango doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Pilot TrailSport has a standard full size spare so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare costs extra on the Durango. Without the option you must depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

The Pilot has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Pilot flat and controlled during cornering. The Durango’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Pilot is 3.4 inches wider in the front and 3.5 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Durango.

The Pilot TrailSport handles at .85 G’s, while the Durango GT pulls only .75 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Pilot Elite executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.1 seconds quicker than the Durango GT 4x4 (27.7 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 28.8 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Pilot TrailSport’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the Durango’s (37.7 feet vs. 41 feet). The Pilot’s turning circle is 3.2 feet tighter than the Durango’s (37.8 feet vs. 41 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Pilot TrailSport has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Durango (8.3 vs. 8.1 inches), allowing the Pilot to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Honda Pilot may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 pounds less than the Dodge Durango.

The front grille of the Pilot uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Durango doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Pilot uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Durango doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

As tested by Car and Driver while cruising at 70 MPH, the interior of the Pilot TrailSport is quieter than the Durango GT 4x4 (66 vs. 67 dB).

The Pilot offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the Durango can only carry 7.

The Pilot has 17 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Durango (158.4 vs. 141.4).

The Pilot has .6 inches more front headroom, .7 inches more front legroom, 1.4 inches more front hip room, 3.4 inches more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 2.2 inches more rear legroom, 1.9 inches more rear hip room, 4 inches more rear shoulder room, 1.5 inches more third row headroom, 2.2 inches more third row hip room and 9.1 inches more third row shoulder room than the Durango.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Pilot’s middle and third row seats recline. The Durango’s third row seats don’t recline.

The Pilot’s cargo area provides more volume than the Durango.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Pilot Elite/Touring’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Durango doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

The Pilot Elite has a standard heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Durango doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Pilot’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Durango’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The Pilot’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Durango’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Pilot to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Durango doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Honda Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Durango doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Pilot, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Dodge Durango isn't recommended.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Pilot third among upper midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Durango isn’t in the top three.

The Honda Pilot outsold the Dodge Durango by 80% during 2022.