Mopar54

I previously reported on my first 2000 miles, well, this past week I've had a road trip and just surpassed 3000 miles on the odometer. One interesting thing I've realized is the drastic improvement in fuel economy by driving about 70mph. I previously drove compact 4cyl cars and never cared about fuel economy. Once you're over 32 mpg all the time you begin to lose track. Anyway, I've made a couple seperate road trips, a few doing my normal 8-9 mph over the speed limit putting me around 78 and 79 mph. That gave me a fuel economy read out averaging about 20.5. This past week I was stuck in some traffic and not able to break out, but I was able to set the cruise control at 70mph. I noticed that the avg fuel economy reading kept climbing. Once I was past 22 mpg I let it go the entire road trip, about 300 miles. I pegged it at 70mph, and when I reached my destination, the fuel economy read out was displaying 24.1 mpg. Well, thats my two cents...I think 70 mph is a nice "sweet spot" for the journey in terms of fuel economy.

One thing about cars for salesmen is that crossovers have been extremely popular. Especially in a poosition where you may need to load up customers, products, who knows what, a crossover is perfect. Chrysler Pacifica's may have been a dud, but they were popular with the sales set. That being said, a lot of my co-workers have been eyeing my Journey and the flip up passenger seat is one of the most popular features thus far. They all love it. As far as the curvey roads, the Journey has the ability to hold a line on them with some speed. Unfortunately though, the seats are the limiting factor. The seating position is well above the center of gravity, so you as a driver get thrown into the door or center console depending on the turn. However, its a mild complaint that acutally will end up saving me from doing something stupid anyway. You're right, I should save the fun in the twistys for a motorcycle. Gas mileage is within expectations, I just think $75-$80 fill-ups are going to take some getting used to. Good thing I get paid for mileage.

So, My odomoter crossed the 2000 mile threshold yesterday. I have to say I am loving the Journey thus far. Some high points: - Since I'm in sales I frequently drive around with papers, catalogs, manuals etc on the front seat. Flipping the seat up and placing all my documents in the storage area has elimnated the dreaded "slam on the breaks and watch your papers fly into the passenger wheel well" phenomenon that anyone in sales is all to familar with. No longer do I need a milk crate seatbelted into the passenger seat to organize my junk. - I've done a couple long trips and the Journey has handled extremely well. Comfort is good, seats stay firm and comfortable throughout the trip. - The Journey is at home piling up miles on the highway. The Journey is quiet, responsive and just a pleasure to drive. One thing that is a big plus is that I can adjust the seat height, and steering wheel position very well with the power drivers seat and telesocopic steering wheel. This helps on long trips so I can adjsut how I sit and stay comfortable. - AWD handling in heavy rain is fantastic. The journey was surefooted in some pretty driving rain, and i was able to maintain 70mph on the interstate without feeling the least bit uncomfortable. - Road noise is very well controlled. The Journey is quiet. Wind noise starts to creep in above 75 mph, and I think its mostly from the mirrors. Some Low points; - The Journey is not at home in twisty curvy roads. I definitely notice some drastic body roll when trying to corner at a decent speed. I feel as though the car can handle it well, however the seat doesn't give adequate support. - Fuel Mileage, I knew the fuel mileage wouldn't be fantastic, and perhaps prices rising so rapidly right as I bought the car may be another factor, yet I'm averaging about 20.5 mpg on the highway (average 75mph speeds) Thanks for reading, I'll probably be passing 4000 miles in another couple of weeks. (I'm reasonably sure that with as much as I drive for work, I may be putting on 25,000 miles a year.) Good thing I have that Lifetime bumper to bumper additional warranty.

The tires are available through Discounttires.com. They are in stock. John

Expect to see more traffic on this site soon. http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2008/04...es-largest.html Looks like Dodge is hitting the web hard with advertising for the Journey. Almost a third of all advertising dollars for the Journey will be via the internet. The linked article says yahoo.com will be taken over by the Dodge Journey on Friday. I'm eager to see it. Also, looks like the Journey sold as many units as the Durango in March without any advertising support. Seems like thats a sure sign of success. John

Those videos are great. Not much intursion into the cabin and with all those air bags...I feel pretty safe in the Journey.

Dodge has always been "odd" in the fact that they are proud to advertise the towing capacity of all their models. Heck, my dad owned a first model year 1993 Dodge Intrepid. It was rated at (if my memory serves me) 3500 lbs. We towed a 12 foot travel trailer, a boat, two snowmobiles etc. We had good success towing these (for perspective, we were towing in the flat lands, not the mountains.) But we often towed 100 miles at a time (sometimes much longer with the camper) So, I wouldn't worry too much about the towing capacity of the journey as long as its under the weight recommendations. Dodge prides itself on towing. Heck, they advertised towing capacity of our neon. What other compact car manufacturer even puts towing capacities of their vehicles in the brochure.

There's an addional ad I saw today (Every commercial break during Law and Order on TNT) Its the Journey driving through an animated landscape...pretty good overall. I'd like to see an add that focuses a bit on the performance aspects of the AWD versions, but oh well. I already own one so the ads aren't aimed at me. I bought one without even seeing an ad.

The Kuhmo Solus is the only tire of that size on www.discounttires.com. I'm sure alternate sizes may work for the Journey. Time will tell. John

There isn't a "Schedule A vs Schedule B" maintenance schedule. There are some differences depending on engine size (more on the 4 cyl). So, the only requirement is oil changes every 6,000 miles. John

So, when we bought the car, our salesman said, "John, congratulations on your new Journey." Our insurance broker said, "I hope you enjoy your Journey." Now, the name Journey invokes the mindset that you're going somewhere. For my wife and I, we don't have kids yet, but in 4 years time, we hope to have at least two kids (I'm pulling for a set of twins.) So, the Journey name actually makes me think. If my dealer or insurance agent said, "Enjoy your Magnum, or congrats on the Caliber, I wouldn't think twice. Anyone else notice this phenomenon? I think its cool.

Considering how spaced apart the required maintenance is on the Journey, I'm 90% sure I'll run synthetic in the Journey.

We ended up adding the Lifetime Maximum Care Plan. Essentially that continues the Bumper to Bumper warranty for as long as my wife and I own the car (with a $100 deductible per visit). We paid $1750 for this additional warranty. Our plan is for me to use this car for my work for a few years, then it will be our family car. We fully intend to have our Journey for at least 10 years. If you want to look up some warrantys, check out www.chryslerwarrantys.com You can find out all the info on the maximum care warrantys (including the lifetime warranty) John

I started looking over the maintenance schedule myself. One thing that is curious is that the spark plugs in the 2.4 L 4 Cyl engine need to be replaced every 30,000 miles while the 3.5 L V6 Engines only requires spark plugs being changed at 102,000 miles. So, by the time you need to replace the spark plugs on the SXT or RT Models, you will have had to change plugs 3 times already on the SE. Heck, this required service (and added cost of this service) may end up making the difference in cost between the SE and SXT.

No problem. Yes, today I was maintaining 75 mph in some pretty strong rains. And, like I said I never felt like the car was having any problems or traction issues. I've never driven an all wheel drive car before buying my journey, so I don't have a lot to compare it with. However, I have driven multiple 4wd trucks that felt no where near as stable.

So, my 3 day old Journey got its first test today. I have the SXT AWD Journey and had a 80 mile trip this morning before dawn. At times, I was driving on the interstate in driving rain. My Journey stayed true the entire trip, I never felt even the slightest slip in handling. Its nice to ve in a vehicle that feels so driveable in sub-par weather conditions. I've driven 4WD SUVs that felt no where near as steady and sure-footed in the rain. In short, the AWD works fantastically. John

My SXT AWD Journey is a pleasure to drive. Its got plenty of "on-ramp" and passing power when needed. And it drives very smoothly and quietly. The 19" wheels that come with the AWD versions stand out. Right now I live in a new subdivision that has a lot of young families (like my wife and I). Today I had a few neighbors I haven't even met yet impressed with the Journey. They loved the 3rd row seat for emergency situations (extra kid at carpool etc.) More to follow. John

Its an Inferno Red AWD SXT Journey with not too many options outside of the SXT package besides the sunroof and 3rd row seat group. As far as the Lifetime extended warranty, it was $1995, but as my wife and I plan to drive this car for 10 years, it seemed well worth the cost. John

My wife and I picked up a new 2009 SXT AWD Dodge Journey this morning. Its got the 3rd row seat, and Sunroof. We love it! Lifetime warranty on the powertrain, and we also purchased a lifetime extended warranty. Essentially it extends the bumper to bumper warranty for indefinitely as long as we own the vehicle (with $100 deductible). I actually bought the car for my work. We don't have kids YET, but plan on some rather soon. My work requires me to have a relatively new car, and with their generous car allowance I can operate the Journey just fine on my allowance. After I'm done using this for my work, it will be the family car. All in all, we're both very happy. More to follow. John