Journeyman425

Have your dealer check for software updates to the transmission as well as for diagnostic trouble codes.

Hi Debra - A little crash course on sunroof design here: In the closed position, the roof panel is designed to seal out wind and most water. In order for it to be completely water-tight, it would have to seal in such a manner that it could not be opened. The gap between the roof panel and the roof itself is measured in micro-inches, but that can be enough to let a few drops of water past the seal. So, the roof panel rides in a tub assembly. The tub catches those drops and drains them under the car via four drain hoses, one in each corner of the roof. It's not that the car was designed to leak per se. Dripping into the tub is by design. Leaking into the passenger compartment is not. This type of sunroof design is not proprietary to Chrysler products. I have worked with Volvo, Mazda, Kia, VW, Subaru and Porsche as well as Chrysler, Plymouth, Dodge and Jeep. They all used a similar arrangement. I hope this helps clarify your Journey's design. More importantly, I hope it's repaired!

The biggest culprit at my shop is the 2005-2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I should preface that by saying that the GC is, far and away, the biggest seller at my store as well. But...even given that information, proportionally speaking, they leak the most. The problem, 99% of the time is restricted drains. That baffles me for sure. Most people keep their sunroofs closed unless they are driving. I just don't see how so much material gets down the drains with the roof closed that it causes the drains to clog. Nevertheless, it is a fact. We see it all the time.Most of our complaints center around water dripping in via the grab handles cast into the "A" pillar mouldings on the GC. Some complain of leaks around the rearview mirror/map light area as well. We remedy most of these leaks by simply taking a compressed air blow gun to the front drains and gently blowing them clear. We then pour water down the drains to test that they work, then close the roof and water test the car. Most of the time, that solves the problem. Sometimes, we have to partially drop the headliner to gain acces to the rear drains and clear them. Early GC's had leaks around the front door body cavity behind the weatherstrip at the top of the cavity. During assembly, urethane applied to this area was heat-cured and in the curing process, the urethane produced bubbles which would allow water in. So, some of these cars mimicked sunroof drain leaks by dripping in the aforementioned "A" pillar grab handle area, even though the vehicle was not equipped with a roof. Next in popularity is the Wrangler equipped with the Freedom Panel roof. Most water leaks stem from the fit between the front door and "A" pillar. A redesigned weatherstrip in that area along with a door adjustment solves that problem. Some Freedom Panels drains have also become clogged; removing the panel, clearing the drain and emptying the residual water is the usual fix. The Journey is not a very strong seller at my store (although I've helped pitch a few of them since last May ) and there has really been only one which leaked as bad a Debra's. With the water running on the car, I sat in the back seat with a flashlight and scanned the perimeter of the roof panel until I could see the water entering. By design, the roof gasket should allow a few drops at a time into the tub, and the tub drains the water in all four corners. What I saw was a steady stream of water entering the driver's side front corner. Her vehicle, as parked in her driveway, had a slant to the right which would cause the water to leak on the passenger side. So, even though the water leaking into the interior was present on the passenger side, the actual leak source was on the driver's side. All we had to to was replace the gasket around the glass roof panel, and adjust the glass accordingly. Cleared the drains with compressed air for good measure and she has been dry for over a year now. I own two 300M's in addition to the Journey. One is a 1999 and the other a 2000. Both have a sunroof. I factory-ordered the 2000 and it has never been in a collision. We use the roof all the time, and often leave it open in the vented position for hours on end. It has never leaked with the exception of when it goes under the dryer in the car wash. When the huge blower fan passes right over the roof panel, sometimes a drop or two of water spits out under the force from the blower. I accept that as normal as it is not at all representative of normal conditions. I have never used compressed air down the drains on that car, now 13.5 years old and 288,000 miles. I bought the 1999 used in 2008 with 92,000 miles. That car was hit two or three times prior to my purchase. It's had a much tougher life than my 2000, but the roof has never leaked on it since I've owned it either. That car has been sitting at my shop since May when we bought the Journey, and it remains dry inside. I have never cleared the drains on it in the 5.5 years I've owned it as well.

MIne also unlocks the doors and turns on the headlamps when I wash it with the key in my pocket! I've been doing a little research into your problem. There are five antennae located in various positions within the car. They are all connected to the Radio Frequency Hub. Do you know for sure that the dealer scanned ALL the modules in the vehicle for codes? The RF Hub will store codes if it or anything it interfaces with malfunctions. To me, the vehicle is erroneously reading the presence of a transmitter inside the vehicle when it is not actually there. Strictly a guess on my part, but the car behaves as if you are trying to lock a key in it as you stated from the owner's manual in your opening post. If the dealer has, in fact, checked all modules for codes and updates, they should open a STAR (Service Technical Assistance Resource center)case with your exact complaint and their findings.

Fingers crossed! Please share with us what was done. I am especially curious. Please post the cause and correction listed on your warranty invoice when you get a chance if it is not too much trouble. Thanks!

I have found this to be very true. I've been a member of the 300M Enthusiasts Club since its inception in 2001 and they are extremely helpful and friendly - the comraderie is contagious.

Cleanliness is short-lived. Temps are back down to 18 deg. F and 4 inches of snow predicted for tomorrow. Our roads have more salt on them than all of the Big Macs that McDonalds sold last year worldwide...

By the way, I have only seen one PTU leak at my shop. Honestly, I don't remember the exact cause, I just recall that we replaced the unit itself. I think there was a seal leaking which was pressed into the housing and the factory allowed a replacement PTU rather than a repair. The vehicle was an early build 2009 R/T. We don't sell a whole lot of Journeys at my shop but all except that one was free of this issue. Most of our sales have been AWD.

You are most welcome. The good folks at Chrysler want to keep their customers happy, and standing behind their product is the number one way to do it. In the big picture, some out-of-warranty assistance to a customer for an unusual failure is a relatively small investment to make in the hopes that the customer will become a repeat buyer. Think about it. How many millions of dollars do companies spend on Super Bowl Sunday just to attract buyers to their products? How much did Chrysler spend to satisfy you? A whole lot less, but it just may very well get you back to their showroom if you have faith that they stand behind you. I don't advocate people picking up the phone and complaining to the company about every nickel and dime they have to spend on off-warranty repairs. The vehicle has a stated warranty which we all agreed to when we purchased the vehicle. But some items are expected to last for a significant period of time or mileage, especially with proper maintenance. We have to show Chrysler that we did our part. If you have done so - and in this case you did - and you have a major repair just outside of warranty, then the company should step up and help. Glad to see that they helped you out.

There is no reason why the repair cannot be covered by the warranty. There are warranty claim codes that are written specifically for broken parts. If the vehicle is within the provisions of the warranty - and it is - a claim for a broken speed sensor will get paid by the factory to the dealer. To quote from the warranty booklet, which was supplied to you with your Owner's Manual: The Basic Limited Warranty covers the cost of all parts and labor needed to repair any item on your vehicle when it left the manufacturing plant that is defective in material, workmanship or factory preparation. There is no list of covered parts since the only exception are tires and Unwired headphones. You pay nothing for these repairs. These warranty repairs or adjustments—including all parts and labor connected with them — will be made by your dealer at no charge, using new or remanufactured parts. Do not pay for this repair; you are entitled to a warranty claim for it.

This was the only document I could find which might pertain: STAR Case Case Number: S1308000282 Release Date: 09/05/2013 Symptom/Vehicle Issue: Intermittent Passive Entry Or Keyless Go Operation Discussion: Intermittent passive entry or Keyless Go Button Operation: Cell Phones, Speed Passes, Phone Chargers, GPS’s, Electronic devices and or large bundle of Keys when placed in close proximity of the Key FOB (ie, in a purse, bag or pocket) can result in intermittent FOB operation; resulting in vehicle not unlocking/locking and or starting. Prior to replacing the Keyless FOB, test in a clear non-restricted manner without any suspect interference.

Temperature went over freezing today for the first time since last weekend...washed and vacuumed!

I hope there is resolution for your soon! Thank you for the update.

Thanks for the update and please keep us posted. Hope you get some assistance. Sorry to provide you with U.S. number; it was an assumption on my part - I didn't see any info in your profile or post that you were from Canada. Glad you got through!

Have you had the repair done yet? If so, have you picked up your vehicle yet and paid the bill? Regardless of the answer(s) to any of my questions, you may be entitled to some warranty assistance if the basic warranty or powertrain warranty has expired on your Journey. If, in fact, you do have documented PTU leak concerns that were not addressed and now you are facing PTU replacement, I would contact the number that I provided for you above and inquire about getting some assistance for this repair. You have absolutely nothing to lose and may only be faced with a co-pay which may be significantly less than the quoted repair amount. There are several factors - year and mileage of your Journey, are you original owner, maintenance history and records, etc - that come into play when determining goodwill assistance. Give it a shot.

Shocks are covered by the Basic Warranty for 36 months/36,000 miles. If your vehicle is within the provisions of the warranty, then your dealer will get paid by the factory to replace them.

Do you have an unresolved problem or just general questions?

You can call the Customer Care Center directly @ 1-800-992-1997 and they will direct your questions accordingly.

STAR Case Chrysler Group LLC Version 3 Case Number: S1218000027 Release Date: 07/06/12 Symptom/Vehicle Issue: Lack Of Throttle Responsiveness, Surge Feeling, Bump Feeling, Engine Delay Or Stall Diagnosis: When diagnosing any of the conditions above always check the PCV hose where it connects at the intake manifold. This hose should not be kinked or collapsed in any way. There are two photos showing the PCV hose in this document which will not populate over onto this forum from the document. If I can figure out how to put them up, I'll post them later. Sorry...

Did the check engine light come on before or after the engine stalled? Often times, people report to me that they saw the engine light on after the engine stops running. If the ignition is in the run position but the engine is not running, the light will remain illuminated. Also, if there is an electrical issue where the PCM is losing its power supply via a faulty wire or harness connection, any stored, pending or active codes will be erased, just like in a battery disconnect. There were a few early build 2012 3.6's which had faulty cylinder heads. In all the cases I've dealt with, none of them ever caused a stalling issue. At worst, the engine would occasionally idle rough depending upon the orientation of the burned valve on cylinder #2. I have not found any STAR cases or TSB's regarding your problem, but will continue looking.

Webslave and Doug are correct. The Journey is passenger car based and its tow rating should be strictly adhered to. I tow a 1200 lb pop-up camper with mine and it handles that just fine, but even with my family and our gear in the car with the camper in tow we are close to the limit. The rig is stable and secure but I would not want to load it up any more than we do.

That is correct, unless it's 2.4 with only one muffler.

There are condensation drains built into the mufflers to allow water to drain out. This helps prevent the mufflers from rotting out from the inside. Normal condition.

Post the last eight digits of the VIN and your mileage and I can check that for you.

Welcome to Journey ownership and to this forum! Enjoy your new car.