Journey_SeXT

Could be be as simple as snow build up in wheels , goto a do it yourself carwash
and hose the tire assys down thoroughly wit h high pressure spray.

Drive the car until the vibration begins at 2500 RPM. With your foot holding the speed steady on the accelerator, lightly apply the brake with your other foot and see if the vibration stops and then comes back. Please make sure the traffic conditions are safe for you to do this! Repeat the test a couple of times. If the vibration stops when the brake is applied and then comes back shortly after you release the brake, you may have a bad torque converter. Brake application often unlocks the converter; that is the purpose of this test. We had a 2010 3.5 Journey at my shop last week with the same symptoms as you describe, and that is the problem. Parts are currently on order for this customer's car. The problem could be snowpack too, but I would expect that to occur at a particular vehicle speed rather than engine RPM and would not expect it to affect shifting.

The "key has left the vehicle" dings are annoying but I think with what Journeyman425 pointed out is a necessary feature. The annoying dings for me is the seatbelt not fastened. Not that I am opposed to the use of seat belts but when you make a quick run to the corner store and the dings are constant you have no choice but to put the belt on to shut the thing up......damn that Chrysler and their safety vehicles!

The message is basically in response to the consequences of the design. In a conventional key-ignition system, short of theft, it is not possible to operate the car without the key. In a keyless system, you can start the car without the fob physically in the vehicle. If you forget to take it with you or it is lost, the system reminds you as such because if the car is shut off, you won't be able to restart it unless the key is nearby. If the system were programmed to not run without the key present, you a greater risk of being stranded should something happen to your fob once you leave. At least the car can be used to get you home or to get help as long as it is not shut off.

check the fuse

With the engine off, ignition in run position, operate the washers. Can you hear the pump running? If not, then try the rear washer and see if you can hear the pump running that way (the motor runs in reverse for the rear washer). If you can hear it running, check under the car for dripping. That means a hose is off somewhere if there is a leak. If nothing leaks and you hear the pump running, either the system is clogged or frozen.

Maybe your Journey was cursed. At least you can start over. We had a 1983 Plymouth Horizon that I swear people used for target practice. It spent more time in the body shop than on the road. Finally got fed up and got rid of it. Good luck with your new ride!!!

I hid the innappropriate posts. Sorry for the hijack Dominic58. Kenny, please post your rants in the proper section of the forum starting a new thread. Thanks.

:offtopic: Kenny, I understand your frustration but you just hijacked this thread which was an introduction and welcoming to a new and happy Dodge Journey member. VERY RUDE! If you wanted to vent your frustration about your vehicle start a new thread or search for one to add your comments with other disgruntled Journey owners. You could also lodge your complaints by getting in contact with Dodge Customer Service which I hope DodgeCACares will provide you with all the info you need.
If any moderators or site admins could remove these posts by Kenny and relocate it to the appropriate section that would be very helpful so our new member dominic58 can read his welcomings from other members instead of reading a SELFISH AND SELF-CENTERED post like this.

Stay away from the "Valueline" pads the dealers like to use. They are basically cheap pads that won't last long. A few years ago they used Valueline pads on my Ram (rear pads) and they have last 100K, but in the time since most posters that have used them recently report short lifespan of the valueline pads. You can opt for the higher grade pads, but they do cost quite a bit more. You'll probably have to ask for the higher grade parts. Otherwise they'll just use the same crappy pads.
Brakes are considered a "wear item" and are only covered under warranty for the first 12M/12,000 miles. Having said that, Chrysler did reimburse me the full cost of having to service the front pads at 22K miles on our first Journey (a 2009 - we now have a 2010 - long story). If you got the dealer to replace pads for no charge (goodwill gesture) consider yourself fortunate.
Class action suits only benefit the lawyers. As a participant you'd be lucky to see $50 and even then it won't be cash, it'll be towards future services or purchases.

Well lucky you that you can ignore the fuel consumption readouts as my eyes are totally fixated on it! It's almost become like an addictive challenge for me getting the L/100 km's as low as possible and then the wife will take it and wipe out all of the progress I've made.....ughhh! I'm just glad my daily driver doesn't have that feature cuz it consumes me when I drive and yet I cannot bring myself to switch it over to any other display....help!

Make sure oil filter is not leaking, especially if its after market, which you shouldn't be using.

I didn't even bother going to the dealer for brakes once I passed the first year, I just knew that they will not do anything for me so the work and maintaining the brakes i do myself. I guess your 2012 model doesn't have the bigger brakes that came with the later 2012 models and up? You do have that option to upgrade them to the bigger brakes (expensive to do) so your brake issues will not be so frequent.

i have a 2011 3.6 and used the free dealer oil changes which they use reg oil. now after the free oil changes used up i switched to full syn oil which i have used for the last 10-15 yrs do not use blended syn oil as what i have read its not as good. one note i tried to upgrade my free oil changes to using syn oil and my dealership couldnt give me a firm price to use the syn and then the last oil change they quoted me about $50. for them to up grade to syn . i laughed and told them no way... buy your syn mobil one or penzoil or any syn oil ( i always catch mine on sale ahead of time i have about 4 jugs of it now) should cost between $20 to $26 a jug and then i get a oil filter from the dealer for about $6-$7 and do my own oil changes( real easy to do) mind you will need an extra half quart (5.5 quarts) so about $30. to do it at home about $70. down at the quickee oil change. also i go about 9k between oil changes my old van went 10 to 11k and my daughter is still driving it on her postal route. doesnent use a bit of oil.....

The Pentastar is a lightweight, thin walled, aluminum motor with miles of timing chain. The chains are stronger than belts but will make more noise than a belt. Then once you consider that most of the bolted on components are plastic, there just really isn't much to suppress noise when its below freezing and you attempt a cold start. Noises that were once covered up by thick steel forged blocks are now a little more pronounced due to the lightweight aluminum blocks.
I am no master mechanic and someone else might have a better answer. But through extensive research over the past couple years, these are a few things I have learned. I also leave my car out in the weather and these noises really bothered me after I bought my Journey. Now it doesn't seem to bother me, as the sounds seem to have gotten better with age.
I wouldn't worry to much about it unless the problem becomes worse.

Tito Mon:
Here is a thread I started with a youtube clip showing the rear pad and rotor replacement......http://www.dodgejourneyforum.com/topic/3467-2009-dodge-journey-replace-rear-rotors-pads-video/

You can always sell it!!

Well now we know now who to blame if they discontinue the Journey due to low sales.

Yup, here in Toronto there are all kinds of Journeys out on the roads. I was kind of shocked while driving through the U.S. last summer and didn't see any of our beloved Journeys until one passed me on the interstate but had the Ontario plates....WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU GUYS!!!!

Unless things have changed, always start at the furthest wheel from the master cylinder. So you should go passenger rear, driver rear, passenger front, driver front. Now I learned how to bleed brakes waaaayyyy back in the 70's, but as far as I know it's still the same. VERY IMPORTANT NEVER LET THE FLUID LEVEL IN THE MASTER GET BELOW THE LOW MARK!!! If it does you could introduce air into the system. If that happens you may need to go to the dealer and have them bled due to the anti-lock pump system.
Good luck!!

The gauge is electronic...subject to being calibrated to the voltage put out by the tank sensor. Different calibration voltages yield different needle positions. Yours is just calibrated better than hers. If yours reads "full" and not more than full, then, when your needle says you have half a tank you are much more likely to have 10 gallons than she is, all things being equal. When hers reads a half a tank, she'll have less than 10 gallons. Her true half tank point would be the same distance above the half tank mark as her full tank indicator is above the full indicator line.
A full tank should read a "full tank". Nothing more or nothing less; full is 20 gallons (the size of the tank) and isn't changed by the needle's position on the gauge - that's calibration.

Yes we have other chains like Midas, Speedy, Master Mechanic etc...... Canadian Tire has been around forever so people like the convenience of their garage. Here is their website if you would like to see what they offer: http://www.canadiantire.ca/en.html They also have their auto garage attached to the store. They own Part Source which is the equivalent to Autozone & Advance Auto in the U.S. Advance Auto if I am not mistaken is also owned by Canadian Tire/Parts Source.

For simple maintenance like brakes, tires, oil changes, tuneups, etc... they are alright but any major repairs I would strongly suggest looking elsewhere.

There is a maintenance chart in your owner's manual that outlines exactly what Dodge specifies for maintenance at each mileage interval. If it isn't printed there, then you don't need it. The only exceptions to that is if there are driving and/or use conditions that warrant more frequent service for certain items (i.e. trailer towing, frequent short trips, etc) which fall outside of what the factory considers "normal" driving.
Things like fuel injection service and fluid flushes are a complete waste of your money and is nothing more than a revenue generating tool for a service shop. The factory actually issued a bulletin to us dealers a couple of years ago, dissuading dealer principals and service managers from these practices as they are harmful to customer retention and satisfaction. Fluid flushes, as per the factory, are not necessary unless the fluid has been contaminated or compromised by a component failure. Your manual outlines when things like coolant, transmission fluid and AWD/Differential fluids are replaced. For the record, a 2013 Journey has those services at 60,000 miles. The transmission fluid and filter are called for at 60K if used for towing or fleet/taxi use. Otherwise, the transmission service is due at 120K. Personally, I would change it at 60K myself - my 300M has had regular transmission services and still shifts perfectly at 286,000 miles. But at 41K - all of the extras they recommended to you are just that - extras.
This practice irritates me to no end. Jaysixspeed is correct in saying that dealers should keep prices reasonable to attract more business. I can tell you unequivocally that that practice does indeed work. Keep the prices competitive and the service honest and the customer will return to you because you have earned their trust. Trust = business.

I switched from my winter tires back to the all-seasons and surprise, surprise.....water under the right muffler! Thanks for the tip.