Jay Sixspeedrt

Well, knock on wood - the light has stayed off and no issues with the AWD, and I've driven her quite a bit in the last couple weeks, and in some serious snow too. When the weather gets better, I want to pull the modular connectors to the hub sensors apart and spray a little Fluid Film on each one, to ensure a good connection. Not sure what the fault was, but with the weather we've had, crud can work its way into connectors.

I just had this same issue occur on Saturday. The lights kept coming on and off, then it stayed on for about 40 miles. Yesterday morning going to church it was on. But when I went to watch football at a friend's yesterday afternoon it was off, and has stayed off, and didn't come back on today. AWD seems to be working normally - I took the Journey to a parking lot that had a light snow cover and accelerated strongly - no issues. Now, it warmed up on Saturday, and we got rain. Not sure if moisture got into something, and now it's gone? Dealer said not to even bring it in unless the light is ON because there are no codes that stay in memory - and that they can't trace the defect without the light on. Makes me worry that it happen at any time, especially when I need AWD and anti-locks during a snowstorm, etc. I don't feel warm fuzzies, that's for sure. If moisture got into something, it will happen again, and corrosion will occur and the problem will get worse.

Boy, that's not my experience - my AWD Journey handles great on snow covered roads - it's very stable and secure. I make it a point to not exceed 85 km/h (50 mph) when roads have several inches of snow just to be safe - I could go faster than that, but it isn't wise. I just drove home (25 miles one way) at night in a pretty good storm the other night (county sheriff had declared "No unnecessary travel") and I was tooling along on the country two lanes at 50 mph. In fact, I passed a few vehicles driving under 20 mph, which was just TOO cautious. I wonder if there's an alignment issue or front end problem with your R/T? Has it ALWAYS been the way you describe, or has it slowly worsened?

Yeah, but you'd think that the dealer would adhere to the service schedule that Chrysler recommends for their vehicles - LOL I do feel bad about it because people could get ripped off - I suppose they aren't "cheated" in that the fluids would get changed, but it wasn't necessary or beneficial either. Also, you'd think dealers, would keep their prices more reasonable in order to GET more service business. It's a vicious circle - the dealer has to charge MORE because the volume is LOWER.

Shampooed the engine? did they actually DO that, or was it just a nonsensical charge tacked onto the bill? Not quite sure how one would 'shampoo' an engine - cleaning/detailing the engine compartment - sure - but shampoo???? Maybe they shoulda offered a perm too? LOL At any rate, I am inclined to file a complaint. A lot of people could end up paying for service more often than the factory recommends, particularly older ladies I'd imagine.

Yep, DIY is the way to go. It's VERY easy work - I changed the fronts (pads and rotors) in about 1 1/2 hrs in my garage, with just a floor jack. Parts are about $100 for rotors and pads per pair. If you have decent tools, and are somewhat handy, you'll KICK yourself for having paid someone else 400 or 500 dollars for a pair of brakes. Make sure you BED THE BRAKES properly immediately after installation - so often this is NOT done but it's important for maximum brake life. My rotors and pads came with instructions on how to do this- 5 consecutive moderate to hard brake applications from 45 mph to 10 mph, spaced together as quickly as possible (hard acceleration back to 45) followed immediately by 5 moderate brake applications from 35 mph to 5 mph, again, spaced as closely together as possible, then drive the vehicle 5 minutes without stopping to let the rotors/pads cool.

Took my 2012 Journey to the dealer for a routine oil change (I bought a package of oil changes from them) today with 41k miles. Nothing wrong with the vehicle - has brand new tires and brakes, as well as a relatively new K & N airfilter. Dealer service guy comes into the waiting room after a bit with some suggestions for me to get serviced - transmission fluid and filter replacement, rear differential service, and fuel injector cleaning. I said - "Really, the transmission and differential? How often are they supposed to be changed?" He told me every 36,000 miles or so. The differential service, which I would assume is a simple fluid change, was $110 by itself!!! I didn't even ask what the other items cost - I'm guessing probably $400-500 by the time all is said and done. I said, "Well we'll just stick with the oil change today". 36k for servicing those items didn't sound right to me from what I remembered from the manual's maintenance schedule. Well, I just checked the manual - at 64,000 miles, the manual recommends rear differential fluid change, as well as power transfer unit fluid at that time. Transmission fluid change is recommended ONLY at 64,000 miles if the car is used in fleet or police service, OR frequent towing, which my vehicle isn't used for. And there's no mention in any of the service intervals of a 'fuel injector cleaning'. As I recall reading in the past, it's just snake oil. First, since this is the dealer - how can they not know the service intervals for a late model Dodge vehicle? My Journey isn't going to need any diff or transmission service for probably another year and half, not until 64,000 miles. And I thought things like "fuel injector cleaner" were the Provence of those rip-off 5 minute oil changes places? Diff and tranny I'll just do myself - that way I know it will be done right. At any rate, I was kind of disgusted. Plus, imagine people paying for unnecessary service because they don't know any better??? Lots of people, if the dealer tells them the service was due at 36k, would just go ahead and do it.

That's been my only beef with my 2012 SXT, which I otherwise love - the mediocre brakes. Rears wore out at 36k, the fronts at 40k. AND.... there was vibration and noise starting about 10k.... I would 'bed' the brakes, and it would disappear for a while, and then return a few thousand miles later. And the overwhelming bulk of my miles are rural 2 lane and expressway, and I would scrupulously use auto-stick to downshift to take some of the load off because I'd read about the inadequate brakes. For the brakes to wear out in as few miles as they did was ridiculous. If I regularly carried 3 passengers, or cargo, and drove more urban or city streets, I would guess the brakes would wear out in 20k miles or less. The upgrade shows that Dodge clearly acknowledges that it was a problem - there should be some kind of monetary credit given to owners of previous model year Journeys towards an upgrade to the new rotors/calipers.

Now that I've changed both the front and rear rotors and pads, my impression is the brakes on the 2012 and earlier Journeys are just too small for a 4200 lb plus vehicle that's supposed to carry cargo, passengers, and tow up to 2500 lbs- that's why there's premature wear - small surface area requires a higher pressure per sq inch to stop. The upgraded late 2012 and 2013 brakes is the proof in the pudding so to speak. The new brakes have about twice the surface area. That's how they should have been in the first place. I've driven my Journey about 150 miles since I changed the pads Friday morning.... what a difference - I had gotten slowly used to the vibration, noise and chatter of the front brakes... it's so nice to have brakes that perform PROPERLY again, smooth, quiet and vibration free. I took a photo of the removed factory pads from the passenger side of my Journey. There was some life left on the outside pad - you'd figure a few thousand more miles, but the inside pad was heavily worn towards the top of the pad - the top was thinner than the bottom, and metal was showing through. We'll see how well the Powerstop aftermarket replacements will hold up. At any rate, the factory brakes are definitely substandard, and my feeling is that Chrysler should provide some sort of financial assistance to Journey owners to upgrade to the current generation of rotors and calipers.

Well, I changed my FRONT brakes today! When I got my new tires last week, I noticed the pads were getting down on front - rather do 'em sooner than later. Ordered pads and rotors late Monday night from Amazon - delivered by "Callahan Brake Parts" - lololol!!! I had purchased the rear rotors and pads from them as well. Quick shipping, and no delivery cost. They were waiting for me when I got home last night - two days - can't ask for much better. It's so easy too with decent tools - I have a good shop jack, and Craftsman hand tools. A little over an hour, not much longer than an oil change and saves so much. Bedded them properly too.

I ended up getting my new tires installed yesterday, after 40,300 miles on the factory tires - they were ready for it - all but one of the tires was down to the wear bars, and the other was close. I compared a new one to one of the dismounted 225-65-17s - They're a good 1/2" to 3/4" of an inch wider - they look noticeably meatier on the Journey. This is my Journey when she was brand new on the dealer's lot with the OEM Kumhos; And here she is with the new 235-60-17s - I think they look a lot better. Overall diameter is only 0.2 inches different, which is negligible. At any rate, all set for winter now.

Well, I have 39,400 miles on the OEM Kumhos..... when I hit 40,000 miles I'm going to replace the tires. I have just never liked the looks of the factory tires - they seem too skinny for my tastes. I wanted something meatier. But I wanted to keep the diameter close to original for fuel mileage, etc. I have found that 235-60-17s are almost 1" wider, are only 0.2" less diameter (28.1" vs 28.3") and the factory 6.5" wide wheels are within the rim-width range listed. I'll be doing the swap in a couple weeks - I'll post some photos.

BTW, this is NOT the Journey - on Allpar's forum a link was posted showing that mule to be the new Lincoln MKC http://www.allpar.com/forums/topic/152243-an-first-shot-of-the-next-journey/page-3

Since Chrysler indeed upgraded the brakes on the Journeys mid-model year 2012, it seems like confirmation of what many of us have already discovered - the brakes on 2011 and early 2012 Journeys are clearly under-designed. I wonder if we should file complaints, or possibly a class action suit? I'm still not pleased that the REAR brakes wore out at 36,000 miles - especially since interstate/expressway/open highway is the majority of my driving. For comparison, my 2008 VW Rabbit, which I traded in FOR the Journey, still had the original factory brakes at 91,000 miles front and rear. My guess is the fronts will be shot by mid 40s - they already vibrate badly when slowing from expressway speeds.

which is also reminiscent of the Magnum wagon roofline.

Please someone post some photos of both front and rear so we can judge. I saw a newer Journey and the brakes to me looked visibly larger than my 2012

Thanks! Yeah, it was enjoyable and gives me a feeling of satisfaction to have taken care of it myself. Here's a photo of one of the rotors and the pads - metal was just starting to show through the pad - so when the dealer told me "zero percent" on the back brakes last Saturday, they weren't kidding. LOL

Ok, I just experimented with this - if I connect my DroidX to the car with a USB cable, THEN the songs saved to the onboard memory card in the Droid will show up on the display with track name, track time, artist, etc. However, bluetooth streaming - NO - there's no information on the display. You can't browse, or do anything except pause and skip tracks. If you want to select a specific song, it has to go thru the phone's player menu. As far as internet streaming over the phone - Pandora for example - there's no way to do that thru the USB cable of which I know. That has to go thru Bluetooth, and like the stored songs, no track information displays. Al Hope this helps.

Well, the rear rotors and pads arrived from Callahan yesterday - installed them in my garage this morning in about 1 1/2 hrs. I was delighted to find the pads are actually Power-Stop pads which seem to be fairly well regarded. My brake piston kit didn't arrive yet (delivery is supposed to be next Thursday), so I borrowed an Astro-brand kit this AM from a good friend who owns a local garage. Very easy to compress the twist pistons with this This youtube video is a very good reference for what to do and what not to do. Just be careful (I was) pulling the slider off not to over stretch those little rubber boots - slide off with your fingers then pull the slider, because you don't want to tear them - they help keep dirt out of the sliding rods. Also, go very slow on the first 1/2 turn of the caliper press to allow the piston to rotate in the rubber surround, AND that also lets you make sure that the pins on the tool are seated in the slots on the caliper piston At any rate, install was breeze. The Callahan kit also comes with a detailed instruction sheet for proper brake bedding - 5 moderately hard brakings from 40 to 10 mph, followed by another 5 from 35 to 5 mph in rapid succession, and then drive without coming to a complete stop at moderate speeds for about 5 minutes. The rotors look nice and 'blue' where the pads bedded. I don't think I'm going to bother with a complaint - this wasn't that expensive DIY ($105) and it's something to do only every couple years.

Normal. If I stream Pandora, or music from my DroidX, via bluetooth on the 4.3 it only shows "DroidX" on the screen - no track info, etc. I can pause, or skip to the next track, but the controls are minimal.

Thanks, Journey! I have changed brake rotors and pads before, just not in years since I haven't had a vehicle since 2008 that's needed brakes - LOL Just ordered from Amazon a Callahan brand rear brake kit with rotors and ceramic pads for $105 and free shipping. Also ordered some CRC synthetic caliper lube to lube the sliders, and a can of 3M brake parts spray for cleaning stuff up. Lubing the sliders is crucial for a good brake job. Clean them up good, and lube them. Not sure I could count on a garage to do that properly, carefully, and thoroughly. it's an old cliche, but if you want it done right, do it yourself! I was aware of the wind back rear caliper issue - so I ordered an OEM brand disk brake tool set. Rather than get a cheap tool, rather have good quality stuff that can be used on multiple vehicles. This will come in handy when I do the brakes someday on my Challenger too. The whole deal with the tool set, and with tax is only $160 - that's still $230 less than just the pads and rotors at the Stealership. What a rip off - lmao!!!

Well, the REAR brakes are almost worn out on my 2012 Journey SXT with only 36,000 miles (mostly rural and interstate) That amazes me because about 75% of my driving IS interstate with the cruise control on. And I'm usually driving light - no cargo and by myself. And I've only towed trailers for maybe 500 miles total, with lots of rural driving and interstate in that as well. AND I scrupulously use the autostick to engine brake going down grades, and to corners. I'd figured I'd get 60,000 miles out of a set of brakes. When I traded my 2008 VW Rabbit for the Journey, that car had 91,000 miles on it - STILL with the original brakes. I've owned a couple trucks that I towed with far more frequently than the Journey, and never had pads wear out that quickly. Someone who lives in a more urban area with 3 or 4 passengers on a regular basis - they'd probably be lucky to get 15,000 miles out of a set of these brakes - a horribly bad design! I will definitely be filing a complaint with Chrysler next week. Even the dealer's service rep told me the rear's tend to hang up and drag, causing them to wear out much faster than the fronts. The dealer wanted $390 for rear pads and rotors, which is incredibly expensive. I'll just do them myself - I've seen the Youtube videos it looks straightforward enough. Recommendations for replacement rotors and pads? Amazon sells a Powerstop K4569 rotor/pad kit for $130 with a pair of slotted, drilled rotors and ceramic pads. Is anything going to get better life than stock? Thans.

Well, went in for an oil change today and the dealer told me my rear brakes are almost shot at 36,000 miles. I've only towed a handful of times, and 80%+ of my driving is interstate with the cruise control on - very little braking. AND I use the auto stick religiously to engine brake going downgrades, etc. i've had other SUVs that I've gotten over 60,000 miles on the brakes with far more frequent towing of my boat - I just don't seem to do much fishing any more. At any rate I'm pissed about it. Dealer service rep told me the rear calipers are prone to hanging and premature wear, but didn't offer me any break on the price - and I have the extended warranty too! Wanted $300 for just the rear brakes. Powerstop makes a rear sloltted rotor kit for $130 with pads AND rotors. Brakes are fairly easy to change. How do these work? And should I complain to Chyrsler about it? Is there any TSBs for the brakes? I think it's ridiculous - the brakes seem clearly under-designed for the car - and the 2013 brake calipers look noticeably larger than my vehicle's. I've never gotten so few miles out of a set of brakes -when I traded in my 2008 Rabbit for this vehicle, it had over 90,000 miles on the original front and rear pads.

I had to take my snowmobile in to the dealer for service. My 5 x 10 landscaping trailer was parked being the garage, and buried in snow. There must have been 1000 lbs of snow on the deck of the trailer, at least (some of it was deposited by my snowblower too!) I did snowblow a truck width path across the lawn back to the trailer, but I didn't take into account the turning radius with trailer attached - I had to swing out into unplowed lawn that I'd just thrown snow onto (we got about 12" settled packed snow on the ground ) I was amazed how the Journey bulled it's way thru that snow, while pulling the trailer - it just kept digging and digging - I could feel the torque shifting around from wheel to wheel as the AWD worked its magic. And I'm running the OEM Kumho tires with 25,000 miles on them now. And yeah, there was a lot of snow on that trailer too.... I had to use the snowblower to clear it off - drove it up the ramp and onto the trailer.

Thanks for posting - it's been on the list multiple years now, I believe. So far, for me, uses virtually zero oil too.