Journey_SeXT

The mat is sufficient for the purpose we use it for. It is not the exact size, maybe a 1/2" gap all around and it is thin and light. Wewant it mostly for when we have the dog back there it will help at least contain the dog hair (white dog/black carpet dont mix well). I looked at weathertech splash guards, but I'm a cheapster. I found these on ebay for $46 for the set of 4. Probably Chinese knockoffs, the directions were in German though and from what I could tell from the instructions, they were for a BMW.
Yes, I installed them myself. Did not have to drill in any sheetmetal, just the plastic fender liner. I bought some plastic pins like that hold the plastic pieces on the underside of cars and drilled a few holes and pushed the pins in.

I didn't bother with TPMS sensors on the winter wheels. The warning light came on the first time I drove with the winters installed and after that the dash was clear. It all quietly goes back to normal when the summer tires are re-installed.

You people and your "KM's".....remember us backwards American's don't know squat about the metric system.....
I could never wait for 10,000 MILES before changing oil in a vehicle. I'm old school 3 month/3000 miles. I will, however, be changing at 6 months/5,000 MILE interval when I do the first oil change and start using full synthetic.

Bramfrank makes a very valid point about aftermarket service contracts. I was on the fence about elaborating the cons of aftermarket warranties since you have already purchased it, but if you have a cancellation clause that does not fiscally hurt you then you might consider doing so.
Aftermarket service contracts (often, but not necessarily always) make the owner and the shop jump through many hoops in order to get a claim paid. The contracts are often worded with all kinds of terms which, if not followed to the letter, allow them to sidestep payment to the owner or the shop. It is for those very reasons why my shop will not accept any aftermarket warranties, nor do we sell anything but the Chrysler Service Contracts.
The factory Service Contract is very straightforward. All repairs correspond to an eight digit Labor Operation Number (LOP). There is no guesswork - if a customer's vehicle needs a repair, we simply type the LOP number into the customer's Service Contract. If the LOP is covered by the plan, we get paid no questions asked, and the customer is only responsible for the deductible as stated on their plan. No adjuster to call, no records to show, nothing is open to interpretation by a third party adjuster, often sent to the repair shop by the aftermarket warranty company to verify the shop's claim. Plus, as bramfrank states, all OEM parts are used and the contract is good at ANY Chrysler Group dealer, anywhere. Often times the aftermarket warranty companies will specify their own parts rather than OEM or worse, will pay only for a used part! The store I used to work for years ago sold these aftermarket warranties, and often times we had to leave the car on the lift for days, waiting for an adjuster to come to verify our claim. The customer was left with a disabled car at our shop and the contract company would not pay for a rental while you waited for them to authorize payment. This never happens with a Chrysler plan.
I purchased a Lifetime Maximum Care Contract of our Journey even though I work for a dealer and pay cost for parts. These cars have some very expensive electronics in them, not to mention the engine and tranny. I'm still driving my last new car - a 2000 300M with 286,000 miles on it. Our Journey may very well follow suit, especially if it will only cost me $100.00 to put a motor or a tranny in it, not to mention replacement of that nice 8.4" touchscreen which is bound to go bad after a few years. Plus, should anything ever happen to me, my wife will never have to worry about a repair bill exceeding $100.00 for as long as she owns the car. Something to think about.

Having been through the mill with aftermarket policy writers (including having had to take one to court to get them to pay) I would NEVER buy an extended warranty from anyone except the manufacturer.
The OEM policies are easier to deal with, don't force you to pay for diagnostics and replacement fluids, they provide for rental cars if there's an overnight repair and best of all, no haggling - and you get your vehicle fixed at a dealer who uses factory original parts.
I ran a buyer's group for factory warranties for Canadian owners last year - it went well enough and we had about 15 buyers (though the selling dealer has since closed their doors, not that it affects the policy). So I have the 7/115 with zero deductible on my '11 - that, or the 7/160 make the most sense IMO, since a 5 year policy really only covers things like the radio, power windows and air conditioning, given that the power train is covered for 5 years anyway.
My DJ turned 2 in September and runs just fine. I've been to the dealer only once to have a few issues resolved (mostly minor, the big one being a leaking valve cover gasket) and they gave me a loaner, did the work and gave me the vehicle back washed. All dealers should be so accommodating.

I hope so too....Welcome to the forum!!

If the engine shut itself off, damage was done.
Only way to truly know is to open the block.

A vibration does not make it a lemon. Its probably something simple and can be fixed with the right help. You shouldn't have to pay for anything out of pocket if you bought it new. Why did you change your tires 4 times? The 1st tire change should tell you that you don't have a tire problem. Does it vibrate at all speeds? Or does it vibrate at certain times in certain gears?
Calling Dodge will not help until you have someone that can diagnose the problem correctly. As much as people here would like to help you, its up to you to find a reputable dealer and have them diagnose the problem. If you apply for a lemon law then it could take months to get any results from it and even then you are not guaranteed the results you want. I would devote hours if need be and call every local Chrysler dealer in your area and try to get some info from the technicians. Then you can decide where to go based on your phone call with different dealers. You might have to try multiple dealers but it will be worth it in the end.
It sucks to buy a new vehicle only to have problems with it immediately. I to went through this with a Ford Explorer that was slipping in and out of gear with only a few thousand miles on it. Through research I finally found a dealer over an hour away that knew what the problem was and fixed it while in warranty and I never had the same issue again.
Be patient and good luck to ya!!

I switched over to synthetic after my free oil changes were used up. If you are doing your own oil changes like me then it is a must to switch over to synthetic and enjoy the benefits that it gives to your engine. If you are getting the oil changes done at the dealership then its up to you if you want to spend the extra money for synthetic oil. You can do the OCI at twice the mileage of conventional oil so it works out to the same cost. If you plan on doing your own oil changes then remember to save all your receipts, use a genuine Mopar oil filter and mark the date and mileage of the oil change to keep your warranty valid.
BTW my favorite synthetic oils to use are Castrol Edge (Syntec) & Mobil1. Pennzoil Platinum and Quaker State Ultimate Durability are used when the auto parts store have their dirt cheap specials and they are great quality oils too!

Years ago I used K&N filters to save money since I could get a lot longer service life out of them than the stock paper models. However, in today's newer systems I've found that not to always be true. With the 13's replacement schedule of 30,000 miles I can live with the cost of buying one and chucking it every three years. I don't have to worry any more about periodically removing the K&N and cleaning it and re-oiling it. With the new computer systems in the intake system, K&N doesn't really gain you anything as the computer will automatically make the adjustments to the fuel injectors based on air supply, getting an "easier breathing engine" with today's systems doesn't apply any longer. You get a different sound and that leads to many thinking of "great gobs of power" and "gee, it's got to get better mileage", but, the reality is far less impressive. In fact, over-oiling your filter will cut your air intake. You would need to re-program your computer to take advantage of any flow improvement and that really is a warranty killer. Back in the carburetor days, easy breathing, better exhaust scavenging coupled with appropriate changes to carburetor needles could yield improvements in everything from horsepower to mileage, but, in today's computer controlled fuel and ignition systems, the computer already wrings just about everything that can be gotten out of new engines.
The new systems are geared for the paper filters, a 30,000 mile replacement is pretty cheap, the warranty is based on the paper usage, there's no cleaning and re-oiling with the paper (even when I was a K&N fan, the extra work always annoyed me). What's not to like. Don't get me wrong, I used to be a K&N fan, and for some applications, I still am, but, with today's computer derived fuel management and longer service life of the stock elements, I don't see any advantage to using them with most modern vehicles. With warranty issues being what they are, why should I give the dealer any ammunition at all if there isn't a large and overwhelming reason to...and I don't see the "large and overwhelming" reasons to use the K&N filter at all, either while the warranty is in effect or after it has expired.
If you want K&N, by all means go that route, but, with today's new systems, longer service intervals and the intended use of my DJ (face it, a Challenger it isn't), I, for one will stick with the paper filters.

hate to say but if you had your old rotors turned all you did was make them thinner and they are now ready to warp even faster, you should have paid a little more for the wagner rotors that come with a unlimted warrenty against warping. if they did go bad later take them back and they will exchange them for free. i was just talking to a guy at advance auto on how they determine if the rotors are bad and he said just bring them in and they would replace them since they have no machine to check them for warpaged. that is what i plan to do next time my brakes start giving me problems

wingit11,
Excellent question ! ! !
Whenever discussing warranty, it is important to understand the parameter and component in question and why it may have failed.
A vehicle warranty is in place to protect the consumer against manufacturing defects. In other words, if a certain part or component failed within the warranty period due to said defect than it would be covered. If a certain component fails for reasons such as abuse or lack of maintenance, then no coverage would apply.
With regards to aftermarket components, surely no manufacturer's warranty would be applied to any component that failed due to this aftermarket component.
Essentially, there would be no warranty applied to any component that fails to due the after market filter that would have normally been covered.
Overall, the installation of an aftermarket part does not void the warranty on it's own, however a restriction may be applied if warranty components fail due to that aftermarket part.
Be cautious when installing aftermarket parts.

Now, on to the procedure....
The first step is to jack up the truck and remove the wheels. If you need instructions for this part, perhaps you should consider getting someone else to help you or pay to have this done .
Once the wheels are off, remove the calipers. You can remove them as complete unit with the brackets, but I chose to do it seperately as there is more clearance for the bracket bolts with the caliper out of the way. The first thing I did was to remove the brake lines. I used a small pair of needle nose vice grips to clamp the hose so you don't loose too much fluid. Put a bucket under the caliper to catch the fluid that leaks out. You need a 15mm wrench to remove the banjo bolt holding the brake line to the caliper.
Once you have the line off, you need a 15mm and a 13mm wrench to remove the caliper from the slider pins.

With the 2 x 13mm bolts removed, the caliper should wiggle off. Now, you can easily access the 2 x 21mm bolts holding on the bracket:

I needed a breaker bar to get enough leverage to brake those bolts loose. If you don't have one in your tool box, they are not expensive at Princess Auto (Canada) or Harbor Freight (US). You could also use a pipe on your ratchet handle too.

Once it is broken loose, finish with ratchet:

Next step is to remove the rotor. I had to pound mine off with a rubber mallet. It had rusted to the hub. These brakes were changed 1 year ago and 16,000 km (10,000 miles) by the dealer. I was surprised at how stuck they were. To prevent this from happening again, clean & lube the hub before reinstalling the rotors.
I used a wire wheel on the end of a drill to clean up the rust on the hub:

I then applied some anti sieze to the hub to prevent the new rotor from rusting to the hub again. You will be glad you did this when you go to change your brakes again. Coat the entire mating surface:

The next step is to reinstall the new components. Install the rotor first. I like to use a lug nut to hold it in place while I attach everything else so it doesn't wobble around. I use a wrench as a spacer as the stud is too lung and will bottom out in the nut before it gets tight.

Then, attach the bracket and caliper. It fits the original spindle with no issues at all. You can also change the backing plate as well. They are not expensive, but I didn't in this case as I was just test fitting the parts I had before spending money on new plates. I will replace my plates when I do my next brake job.
Here is the new caliper installed:

At this point, you will need to bleed the brakes. I don't want to go into too many details on that. I'm sure there are enough tutorials on the web & you tube that you can figure out how that works. Basically, you need one person in the vehicle to pump the brakes to pressurize the line, then, while holding down the brake pedal, you crack the bleed screw to allow the air to escape. the pedal will sink to the floor, then close the bleed screw and repeat till there is no more air coming out of the caliper, only fluid.
The bleed screw is 11mm:

I use a piece of clear hose to help direct the fluid into a bucket to keep the work area clean. You can also see the fluid passing through it and can tell if there is any air coming out as well:

Once all the air is bled out, tighten the bleed screw. It does not have to be really tight. Just snug it up. if you make it too tight, it may snap. Cap the screw with the rubber boot, replace the wheel and repeat on the other side.

Here are some before & after pictures:
Old caliper:

New caliper:

Old with wheel (wow, they look tiny inside a 19" wheel ):

New with wheel:

That's about it. Just a couple of things before I go.....
Be advised that with these bigger brakes, you will need a minimum of 17" wheels to clear. So some Journey owners with smaller wheels will have to budget for new wheels as well as the bigger brakes.
Parts list:
Part Part number Qty

Pads 68159579AC 1
Rotors 04779712AA 2
Caliper (L) 68144161AA 1
Caliper ® 68144160AA 1
Carrier (bracket) 68159578AA 2
Pin Kit (sliders) 68144165AA 2
Spring kit (pads) 68159523AB 1
Dust shield (L) 04779907AA 1
Dust shield ® 04779906AA 1
As mentioned before, to save some money, you may be able to find the pads & rotors aftermarket. The calipers, brackets, pins and backing plates are probably dealer only items, but can be found cheap on line at the following sites:
www.factorymoparparts.com
www.moparoverstock.com
Tools required:
11mm wrench for the bleeder screw
13mm wrench or socket to remove caliper
15mm wrench to hold slider pin
21mm socket to remove bracket bolts
vice grips or a clamp of some kind to crimp the brake hose.

Just get a nice Garmin and use that. Its a much better GPS than the OEM one. The Garmin Nuvi 3597 is a fantastic GPS. You can even sync it with your smart phone and you can use your voice to tell it where you want to go. Ive had built in GPS in other cars and never used it. I much prefer my Garmin Nuvi.

If your worried about warranty issues then use a K&N and when you go into the dealer for service then swap it out for the paper one and they wont even know. K&N are the best filters you can get.

Glad to hear it was a breeze for you to do the rear brakes! You saved yourself a tonne of cash and probably did a better job if it was done at the dealer or autoshop where they don't have all that time to give it TLC.

No problem. I am a firm believer in preventative maintenance. I live by it. As a service manager, I have to be. But I hate to see people charged for services that are a complete waste of money. That is one of them.

I don't know if the 2012 and up has it in the evic but in mine a 2011
SXT the evic shows hours-minutes-seconds in the trip menu and it
starts timing when you set the trip odometer,I have used this method
myself.

I'm glad everything worked out with you and Costco! Now you can hit the Caps Lock one more time to stop the shouting. :D

If you have to add a special additive with the flex fuel and also have a drop of 30% in fuel mileage using flex fuel then why bother? I would just stick with 87 octane.

Haven't done my Journey yet, but, have done plenty of jobs on other MOPARs with the ABS system. Unless you dismantle, for repair, the ABS system, there is no need to bleed it unless you've used it a lot (not likely for most of us) and you have a boatload of air in the fluid (also not likely). Just ignore the ABS bleeding and do the "normal" manual brake bleeding as there is a very small likelihoood of you having introduced any air into its system. The ABS system only cycles brake fluid when it is used and usually doesn't take up air unless you've run the brake system virtually dry or you've dismantled for an ABS system type repair.
No need for the scan tool if you use the bleeders on the calipers and a suction device or the "pedal pushing" system.

You definitely nailed it on this one!

With that many problems for a 2012 DJ it would probably be a good idea to see if Dodge will buy back your vehicle.

Do you realize that you just paid almost $1000 on labor to install brakes? You can easily get good quality 4 rotors and 4 pads for around $300. It's about a 3-4 hour job do replace all 4 corners.
I don't feel bad for people that complain about the labor costs for things. That's why I do it all myself; saves a lot of money.