January 2006

Rob McBride
(aka IndyDurango)

Hello. I'm Rob McBride from Indianapolis Indiana and I'd like to thank the Durango Owners Club for nominating me and my D as the Durango of the Month for January 2006. I'll consider it my January birthday present from the DOC! I was very surprised and honored to be awarded the title. With over 1100 registered users on the website, there are fewer than 75 Durango's of the Month ever awarded so to be part of that subset is certainly unique and exciting (the "I'm not worthy" phrase is running through my head.)

I purchased my Gen 1 Durango in late August of 2000. It has all of the options for 2000 and was being used as the dealer demo to show off the Durango and all that was available for that year. It was being driven around the block on test drives and occasionally home with one of the salesmen to show off. I hadn't been looking for an SUV at the time but, being in Boy Scouts, I knew there could be advantages to having one… I just never knew how many advantages there were! At the time, SUVs were either to big or to small and the D was the first to bridge that middle sized vehicle that fit my needs perfectly.

I've been very pleased with the reliability and durability of the Durango since day one. By no means do I pamper or baby the engine, drive train or even the stereo but, other than general maintenance, little has needed to be done to keep it in fit shape. The occasional rattle on a daily driver with over 146,000 miles can creep in, but that's to be expected. Having all of the factory options for 2000 meant for me there was little to modify for the first four years of ownership. Performance from the Full Time 4x4 with the 5.9L engine has always been strong and fairly fast for stock. Had I known of the availability of parts and options I've found since joining the Durango Owners Club, I'd have started my modification journey much sooner! I started the performance modifications with a home grown Cold Air Intake system and upgraded to a K&N FIPK2 CIA, primarily to gain the cold air box setup the FIPK2 provides. Billet engine items for show, a Superchips Tuner setup, a Flowmaster muffler and the recently added PPH Headers have added to the fun a daily driver provides. Even though the performance mods were late arrivals, appearance modifications started right away (you gotta have the 'show' to match the 'go'!) The final appearance items I plan to add are new rims and a new hood with functional hood scoop. Hope to have these in place for the July 2006 Carlisle meet. I may squeeze a set of new mirrors on the D but am still thinking about that one.

I consider the DOC one of my favorite sites on the internet. I try to review each and every post on a daily basis and, if I can help someone else on the path of D ownership, I consider that a good day. Plus, there seems to be friendships and fun (yes fun) debates that can develop too! I consider my D a 'pal' and more than just a vehicle, which sounds silly to some (Mrs. IndyDurango to begin with) but they don't understand how much fun having a fast, functional, nimble and good looking SUV can be. My 'pal' has got me out of jams in emergency driving situations (some I caused, some I avoided) where I honestly think other vehicles would have let me down. A daily driver has to be functional and fun and my D is both. With the flow of mods now, it's getting more and more so each everyday! I like to say it drives like a car when it needs to, drives like a racer when I want it to, and drives like a truck when I have to have one.

My performance mods: K&N FIPK2 CAI, Jet 180 Stat, Superchips 3715, Bilstein Shocks, Custom Ceramic Coated PPH Long Headers and Flowmaster 50 Series SUV Exhaust.

My appearance mods: Brushed Street Scene Upper & Lower Speed Grille inserts, Two-piece Billet Fuel Door, One-Piece Clear Headlights, Hella Optilux Angel Eyes Fog Lamps, PIAA 9000 Series Xtreme White Plus Headlamps, Gen2 D Rear Wiper Replacement Upgrade, Lund Shadow Wiper Cowl, Lund Solar Windshield Visor, Keystone Restyling Rear Wing, ToolDesign Billet Engine Dress-Up Kit, Carbon Fiber Altezza Taillights, Carbon Fiber Dual Wipers, Autoventshades Three-Piece Bug Shield and Ventvisors, Rebadged with Custom '71 Dodge Demon Emblems, Black Stubby 4" Aluminum Antenna and Black Westin Safari Bar.

Own but not installed: '68 Camaro Front Air Dam, 2006 Durango Badges and ABM Motorsports One-piece Chrome Headlights.

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