The 4.0 Explorer isn't much of a slouch either though, my parents is 2002 is pretty spunky for as big as it is. I think on the highway they get about 20mpg which is pretty good. It is a tough car to beat IMO. The older ones are better off road, but really not many people buy their family hauler to wheel. The newer ones do beat the snot out of the older ones in ride and handling, no comparison.
I do not recomend a Durango, my grandparents have a 2000 with a 5.2/318. It is always either broken or almost broken, and chuggs gas at an alarming rate. When you are working on it you just get a feel for it being crudly made, it probably has IMO the best looking exterior of its class but I wouldn't give you much for the guts of it. They got it used from the bargain lot at a big dealership without telling anyone in the family about it until after they got it, so who knows what treatment it got before that, I still hate working on it though. The newer (02+) Explorer is also much larger inside, really our old 1994 Explorer is bigger inside too...
Escapes are nice too, if I was on the market for a SUV I would be shopping for a hybrid, with the talk of $4-$5 per gallon gas. They are pretty roomy inside as well, but I have just sat in them at car shows and have never ridden in one. I don't think they have a third row seat though, they get their room for the back seat by using up some of the rear cargo area.
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