doubleO7

I have an iphone, company supplied. I had a droid before. I must say, it took some getting used to but I enjoy the simplicity of the iphone. No "widgets" to mess around with. Phone starts up from off in about 30 seconds (droid took forever to "boot up"). I dont connect it to the car, but if I do, I just use a cable from the audio jack for music. It does not connect to anything using the USB port in the DJ, won't even charge. I dont text and drive so I have no need for voice activated anything. If someone calls or texts while I'm driving, I ignore it until I get where I'm going.If it's important they will call back. Too much distraction in cars these days. Heck,I hate just trying to change the vent position for rhe HVAC cause I have to press buttons which makes me take my eyes off the road.

I used your idea about taking a photo of the problem as it happened again last week. I had Mrs DoubleO7 in the vehicle with me and she took photos with her I-phone. I had to exit the freeway and shut the vehicle off as nothing seemed to work in getting the problem to self correct.
The next day, I printed the photos and took them into the dealer. My service rep took one look and talked to someone and now a part (sorry I can't remember what part it is) has been ordered. When I take my vehicle in for servicing on the 28th, they will have the part and hopefully problem solved. Will keep you informed.

You make some very good points Caper. I see that type of driving/braking all the time. Myself, I see a red light ahead, the foot comes off the accelerator, and I coast up to the light. More times then not, the light turns green and I haven't had to come to a stop. Not only does this save wear and tear on the brakes, but I get better gas mileage in town because I don't have to start up from a full stop. I've been lucky I guess, I have never had anybody give me the "horn."
I also make use of the autostick on hills, using compression braking instead of the brakes.
I guess time wil tell when I get my Journey, if driving the same way will help reduce/ eliminate the excessive brake wear others are experiencing.

No thanks necessary, just speaking the truth! I've learned so much from everyone on this forum. Much appreciated.

I for one, really appreciate Chis and Denny for being here, Other than PM'ing me a car build, fortunately I haven't had to use either one and obviously I hope that remains as long as I own my car. I am not so naive to understand that there isn't problems with these cars, I know ther is because there have been numerous instances where they have shown up. Chis and Denny have been very forthcoming with the help (or as much as they can do) necessary to rectify the problem. As an example, I think everyone understands the trailer hitch problem is Chrysler's not them. Don't think for a minute I don't sympathize (if that helps) with all of you. As such I truly hope that all the problems can be dealt with.
I was a GM person growing up, but because of the service that my small town dealer provides and the product Chrsler has produced, I have been a loyal customer to Chrysler for the past 25 years. This post is just my own thoughts, you are certainly entitled to disagree. I am not "sucking" up to Chis and Denny, just my own opinion.
Terry

I have had my Journey for seven months now and find the seats far more comfortable then my 2001 Grand Caravan. I couldn't drive more then two hours in the Grand Caravan without my right knee hurting.
Not so with the Journey. I tried many different seating positions until I decided on the one I liked the best. The different positions I tried were for only to try and maximize my visibility looking outside, and none of the positions caused me to have any discomfort. I finally settled on what I would term a postion between low and mid height.
Have you tried adjusting the seat back angle, as it could be your spine angle that is putting pressure on a nerve in your leg. For me a seat back position just short of being straight up the most comfortable. To far up, I can feel pressure on my spine and to far back I just don't feel comfortable at all.
I would suggest having a pencil and paper handy and then try some different seating positions. After each adjustment write down what you think the seat height is, how far back from the steering wheel you have the seat at, whether you have the seat tilting down or up, and seat back angle. Then take the Journey for a sping and see how you like the comfort and see how it feels. Repeat the process and when you find one you like, make sure you keep a copy of the adjustments. In that way, if you take the vehicle in for service, or someone drives your vehicle and they change the seating position it will be easier to return it to what you find comfortable.

DoubleO7 says: Avoid Forbes Magazine :D

Thanks DodgeCares. I received a PM for DodgeCaCares and he will be sending a copy of my post to the dealer, so they have a better understanding of what the problem is and is also keeping a look out for any TSB regarding this problem.
I must say, we are well looked after on this forum, by both you and DodgeCaCares. Yours and DodgeCaCares efforts I'm sure are greatly appreciated by not only me, but by others on the forum as well.

Yeah, the heated steering wheel would have been nice. No buyers remorse though. One could be waiting forever to get everthing they want in a vehicle. Like DodgeCACares says the Journey gets better and better.

I have had my Journey just over two months so I thought its time to write a review
Model: R/T
Colour: Storm Grey
Options: Trailer two prep
Navigation
Sunroof
Current Odometer reading: 3600 km (2236 mi)
Vehilce rating 9 out of 10
Driving has been mainly in a combination of rural/city (60/40) percentage. Finally had the vehicle on a 100% road trip.
To say the least, I have been very happy with my choice. After looking at many other CUV's, the Journey just stood out for me. I looked at other CUV's in the same price range, nothing over $36,000, so I was comparing apples to apples and not apples to oranges.
The three deciding factors that led to the Joureny purchase were as follows:
1. Penastar engine- love the smoothness of this engine and when called upon, it really moves the vehicle with
authority
2. Interior is well laid out (one expection-will mention in the Dislikes)
3. Depsite Dodge reputation for "poor quality" , my experience with my 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan, kept me in the Dodge family. Over 200,000 km and other then regular and preventative maintenance, absolutely no issues.
So, yesterday, I took the vehicle out for a drive in the mountains here in BC. I filled up the vehicle just before entering the freeway and knowing that I would be returning the same way, I could fill up at the same location, which should give me a fairly accurate reading for straight highway driving.
First part of trip was in the Fraser Valley(completely flat, tailwind, avg speed 110 to 120Km/hr ( 60-70 mph), and the EVIC for that part of the trip was showing 7.9l/100km (a switch of the unit measuremet to US gallons indicated around 29 mpg)
Once we got into the Fraser Canyon ( mainly a two lane hwy except for some short streches of 4 lane, and started to do any signifcant climbing, I dropped it into manual mode and downshifted once the climb started. I was able to find the right gear very quickly and wow, I had had no problems, in fact a light touch on the accelerator peddle and I was gaining speed with ease. In areas where I was descending, I would drop down one or two gears and not have to use the brakes at all. This vehicle is made for mountain driving.
Of course once we were in areas where there the road was flat, back into auto mode.
Had once incident where some moron who was doing 30km under the speed limit. Speed limit is 100, they were doing 70. So there was a line of cars (we were third in line behind this person). Behind me is a lady driving a Chev Cruze, who decides when we get to a passing lane, that she is going to get right on my bumper. The first two vehicles, a Hundai Accent and a Chev Silverado pulling a trailer with a dragster on it, are ahead of me and they have no guts to pass quickly. So this lady behind me won't back off, but I can't get over as I haven't passed anything yet. Well once the other two vehicles got over, I dropped down a gear and floored it, the lady in the Cruze couldn't keep up. Once I got over in the other lane, I settled back down to around 110 km but she was determined to get ahead of me, and I thought go ahead, better to rear end someone else.
The return trip took us over the the Coquihalla Hwy, a four lane (sometimes six lanes). When you in a hurry, this is the road to travel on. Speed limit is 110 km/hr, but most people do between 120 and 130 km/hr ( 70-80 mph). I usually do somewhere around 110 to 115 km/hr
Out of Merrit, there is a steep climb heading south, but I thought I would keep it in auto mode, to see (experience the downshift lag that others have talked about in the forum). Yes, it occured, back into manual mode for the steep climbs only then back into auto mode, however where the climbs were more gentle, a slight push of the accelerator and the vehicle found the correct gear quickly.
For those not familiar with the Coquihalla Hwy, heading inland from the coast, the first part of the highway from Hope to where a toll booth used to be, is around 60 km of very steep climb. Consequently heading from the interior to the coast, you have a very steep descent. While everybody is riding their brakes, I just geared down on the steepest parts and I never had to use the brakes once.
I got this vehicle for highway driving and more then thrilled with the performance. So on the way back, I filled up at the same service station.
Before trip: fill -46.81 litres -distance travelled 352.6 km l/100km - 12.5
After trip: fill 46.97 litres- distance travelled 515.3 km l/100km- 9.0
I could probably go onto Fuelly and get more accurate numbers, but for the few times I was on there and entered my data, I was probably .5 yo .7 km/100 over what the evic says. Not enough to worry about. So, I will just go by what the EVIC reading is.
Likes:
Performance - I don't think anything in its class can come close.
Interior comfort - outstanding
Exterior styling - love the presence it has on the road. From the front, only Kia comes close to having a front end that I like the looks of
Air conditioning: since I have a five seater, I don't have the rear air like I did in our van, but when its 33 celius (91 degrees fahrenheit) and my sister inlaw complains that its to cold in the back seat, I don't see a problem with only having air up front)
EVIC display - love the information it provides
Steering wheel controls - I have had no issues with the steering wheel controls, love that I can change stations or volume without having to take hands off wheel, or use voice commands. Had this feature on the van and thought it was great
I have also had not issues with the steering wheel controls for EVIC, I am able to change the display without taking my eyes of the road. Just takes practice (feel) to know which button your thumb is going to push.
Neutrals:
LED light pattern: Not enough to be a dislike, but I really don't care for the LED design. I knew of the design when I bought it, but would think it would have been more of presence if the leds on the body panel area went horizontal to meet the leds on the hatch.
Windshield wipers block view: I listed this as neutral, as it may have more to do with my driving postion. It would have been nice if they sat below the windshield surface. I know I can raise my seat, but if I do, I block
Gremlins: mostly with radio/ bluetooth (and not a dislike because I don't think this problem is just a Dodge thing)
Voice command: sometimes it just doesn't understand. So when she says "she doesn't understand", I just say shut up and she comes up with "she doesn't understand", the Mrs and I have a good laugh.
Presets for Radio: sometimes when I start the vehicle, it has switched stations.
Using voice command to play a particular piece of music - when I say the song, it goes to the song but then immediatley goes to the next one. Oh well, I just use the steering wheel control.
Dislikes:
Drone between 60 and 70km/h - apparently only an issue with AWD models, and is only noticeable when accelerating lightly. According to dealer it has to do with clearances between the exhaust and the AWD appratus. You would think, the design team woud design for the more complex applicaton (AWD), rather the the simple one (FWD) and then try and adapt.
Gear Selecotr location: I missed this when I test drove the vehcile, because I didn't test the manual shift mode. My problem is that when I go into manual shift mode, my arm is at my side, which feels very unatural. I think if the gear selector and the cup holders were reversed, a more natural feel of having the arm slightly extended for shifting manually would be achieved. Again, it may be more that I have to have the seat up a little closer then others. I consider myself average height at 5'8", so I don't think it could be a "short" thing.
Accelerator pedal: Again it just may be me, but I find the accelerator pedal a little on the small side, as once in awhile my foot slips off for no apparent reason.
None of the disikes makes me think I made the wrong choice. NO vehicle is perfect.
Cheers
DoubleO7

onecrazyfoo4u
In the interior of BC (which is the province I reside in) there is a community called Osoyoos, which is right on the US/Canada border.. Believe it or not this area is the northern tip of the Sonara Desert. Not uncommon for the temperatures in the summer to reach 40C or just over 100F.

First of all you don't have to apologize for your English, you comments were very readable and welcome to the forum. Love the colour combination. That was the colour combination I wanted, but Mrs DoubleO7 wanted a different combo. So she got to select the colours and I got to select the options. A good trade off in the end.
Secondly, awsome photos, not only of your Journey, but of the area you live in. What a specactular place to live. Not only the area, but the photos taken of the Journey, I take are from your house. Love the landscaping.
I am interested in the 'ribbon' (in Canada we call it body side moulding). Were you able to purchase this from the dealer where you bought your vehicle? Or did you have to buy if from an automotive custom shop?