Team 44

Thanks for the update. We were told that the PTO seals were the problem with our Journey oil leak as well, but unlike what you were told, we were told that the seals themselves were not available, and therefore a new PTO unit would have to be installed. This was fine by us, as our fear was that if they only replace one seal, a week later we could have one of the other seals fail, especially if the vehicle's PTO was operating low on oil, causing possible lack of lubrication or overheating. I'd expect if they replace all your PTO seals you should be in good shape, and like you say, you have the warranty. Good news - got the call today that our Journey was fixed and ready for pickup. Bad news - I got the call at 11 am, and was told that Chrysler would stop paying for our rental at 5:30 pm, and we had a 3 hr trip one way to get to this dealer in the town our Journey broke down in. We didn't get any warning, like perhaps a call yesterday to tell us that the part was in earlier than expected, and that they'd have the repair completed today. We've scrambled to get the day off work tomorrow to drive there, and I can't fathom they'd have the gaul to request we pay for another day's rental (already made us pay for the first "diagnostic" day). But than again...... I'll post to let you know if we have any further issues, and please do the same if you don't mind.

All the best. It's amazing how similar our stories are. We're in Canada, and after reading some of the Journey quality horror stories on this forum and from other sites, we opted to purchase the extended service contract with our Journey, and less than 2 weeks later we're unfortunately already reaping the benefits. We've been told that Chrysler will cover the cost of the rental car for the length of time it takes to get the new PTO installed, with the exception of the first day which is considered a "diagnostic" day. They'll also cover other expenses incurred, like hotel, cab or food, if receipts are submitted, up to $100 per day for 3 days. We have yet to submit, as they don't even have us on file yet, because our Journey broke down quicker than Chrysler could process our purchase paperwork. I'm very curious to hear how long it takes for your dealership to get your new PTO installed, and what expenses they cover.

My wife and I just purchased our new AWD SXT Journey a little over a week ago, and decided to take it for a day trip the other day. We had just logged over 1000 km when we started smelling a burning oil smell. We pulled into the closest parking lot, popped the hood, and had a look under the vehicle. We were devastated to find copious amounts of hypoid gear oil dripping onto the pavement, and I estimated that most if not all had leaked out. The smell was from the gear oil leaking onto the hot exhaust manifold. Road side assistance towed our vehicle to the closest dealer, and our family of 4 was left standing alone in a parking lot, after hours, over 200 km from home. We asked roadside assistance if we could/should try to rent a car on our own in order to get home, or try to rent a hotel room for the night, and what would be covered, but they said we'd have to make those arrangements through the dealership. Unfortunately, the dealership was closed, and being the Sunday before a holiday Monday, it wouldn't be open for another 36 hours (2 nights). We went ahead, with lack of any direction from Chrysler Roadside assistance, and found a hotel room for the night, took a cab there, and then rented a car the next day to get us home. The dealer had a look at our Journey on Tuesday morning, and determined that a bad seal in the AWD PTO unit caused the leak, that the seal itself was not available, but rather the entire PTO unit has to be replaced. These PTO units are severely back ordered, and we could be out of our Journey for 2-3 weeks. This dealership alone has 2 other Journey's in with the same problem, and one owner has been in a rental for over 6 weeks waiting for a new PTO to arrive and be installed. One of these Journeys actually caught on fire from the oil leaking onto the hot exhaust system. How many other Journey owners out there have had this same problem, and how long did you have to wait, or are still waiting, for your Journey to be repaired? If this is a potential fire hazard, should a safety recall not be mandated?