jaymista

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to drive a Ford Edge for the first time. I can't say I examined everything but the Edge did not seem to drive as smooth as our Journey. I noticed the difference. Maybe I am biased but I definitely was taking more hard bumbs on roads that I am used to driving over relatively good with the Journey SXT I have. I don't know what model of Edge it was but most things I have on the Journey were also on the Edge.

There is a lot of good information on this site. It talks about what changes might occur now that Fiat is involved in the world of Chrysler. Check out http://www.allpar.com/corporate/chrysler-g...-year-plan.html

I try to keep in touch on this news group. I hope I am not upsetting anyone when I talk briefly about my web sites. Web sites are my hobby. I started out my webmaster "career" by posting some personal poetry. And then I made a web site called Canada Heros and followed a year later with USA Hero. I meant for these web sites to be helpful to students who are doing school projects or essays. The trouble was that these sites never got enough support to pay for themselves. Then my brother-in-law suggested I try posting a car picture site and/or a truck picture site. So I went looking for pictures I could use on the internet. It takes hours of work to locate pictures and hope no one gets upset when you use them. I am guilty with copying the odd picture from this forum and posting them on my site. But the point I really wanted to make was, thanks to the support especially on my truck site, I now am getting enough to pay for all my expenses involved in maintaining all my sites. What is it they say, if you had breakfast today, thank a truck driver. Sincerely, Don Jones

Glad to hear things went well with your dealer.

That sounds like a good plan. I will follow up this week.

I am having a problem with my Journey in that sometimes when I turn my steering wheel to the right I'll get an audio "ding" sound and my airbag light will come on. It only stays on for a few seconds and then shuts off. This is very annoying, especially the "ding" sound. I took the car into my dealer and, after investigating the problem, I was asked to just put up with it and told that the air bag would not pop out accidentally. Why can't this be repaired? Has anyone else had this problem? What might be causing this to happen?

Well, you just tell your girlfriend she has to get out when you are smoking in the Journey!! :rolleyes:

This doesn't sound normal to me. It may not be the brakes either. Suggest you bring this to the attention of the dealer when you get a chance.

I haven't seen them on a journey yet. They would look good too.

Me too, me too! I want to learn about anything that I might have to deal with in the future.

I use the mid-grade only because the manufacturer recommends it in the manual.. From what I understand, unless you live in higher elevations, you really don't need to use the mid-grade. I decided with gasoline prices being as high as they are, I could spare the extra two bucks or so it takes to fill up with mid-grade. I used the lower grade for a month or so and I don't see any performance difference. I just thought it was meant to burn cleaner.

That sounds like the noise I get when I apply the brakes on ice or snow. It is supposed to be normal in those cases. I wonder if it might be related in some way.

I'm glad there are a good number of Journey fans building up. I know there have been some guys who have had some problems with this vehicle but when I read their stories, I am not sure the dealers are giving them the service that Dodge expects. Well, maybe I shouldn't say that as I haven't had any real problems yet after driving for a year. I was reading that the Journey's sales are up 80% over last year. (Sold around 10.000 vehicles in 2008 and so far have sold around 18000 in 2009.) I've read several reviews that don't seem to reflect what I have experienced with my Journey SXT. I know they knock the non-leather seats but I have never had a back ache from driving so that must mean something. I see these RAV 4's and Ford Escapes and I really can't see why they are rated so much ahead of the Journey, especially when you consider the prices paid for them. Anyway, I'm starting in my second year of driving a Journey now and I expect to have some problems come up. (This web site is a great place to discuss problems and keep up with Journey news.)

I have 27,000 kms (16,000 miles) on my SXT. I have never asked for my brakes to be checked before and I have done quite a bit of towing a utility trailer with around 700 pound loads. From what I read above, I should get my brakes checked for sure. I'll be also checking into ceramic replacement pads. What other things should a guy get checked out in a first year inspection that maybe a dealer doesn't tell you much about? Anyone got some items that should be checked in a first year inspection?

That was worth watching!!! It gave me a chill; really great. Good luck in the future.

Hi guys, I have over 15,000 miles on my Journey now and to date I am pretty satisfied with it. The only problem I have had, and my dealer doesn't think it is a problem, is every once in awhile I hear the thud sound when going from reverse to first or is it vice-versa. I found if I put my foot on the brake good and not be in a hurry to switch gears, I don't get the thud sound. (I have a 6 speed automatic.) Other than that, this vehicle has been excellent on the road, in rain and snow too. I have had some Dodge Dakotas and Mercury Topazes that by now would have been serviced with a major problem. I am satisfied so far. I am using 89 Octane gas and synthetic oil and nitrogen in the tires. I firmly believe in the nitrogen tires and would recommend them as the tire pressure seems to stay up a lot longer than regular air, in my opinion. Also I have hauled a 16 ft. travel trailer plus a good sized utility trailer hauling hard wood. I had the fear of getting a first year vehicle too but thought I would live dangerously. The van will be a year old next month and no real problems with it so far and I even let my wife drive it! I think I have been lucky so far after reading some of the problems others have had ... hope my luck holds up. Jay

I still am hearing that thud sound going from reverse to first and vice-versa but not nearly as much if I press the brake pedal hard when I am shifting. It brings the car to a dead stop for sure before I switch gears. I took my Journey into the dealer to have them check it out and the mechanic told me he heard the thud sound sometimes but they didn't know of any problem with it and they haven't received anything from Chrysler on it. I told them that I just wanted it on record I had complained about it in case something comes up further down the road. They understood. I have never had a 6 speed trans before and maybe this is normal. It is just that I am bugged by having this thud every so often.

Thanks for this info. I did some checking around on the internet and I found some good US dealers that handle these grills for the Journey. It pays to look around too. Right now, just after Christmas, I won't be buying any but it looks like something I might get in a few months. My wife wants the chrome strips on the side doors first. jay

I am wondering how these kits are installed. It seems like a lot of bars to put in the grill. Do you take it to a mechanic?

I am getting the clunking noise when going into reverse and vice-versa. My wife says I am not stepping on the brake peddle hard enough when switching gears. I am going to be watching this problem and if it persists, I will take it to the dealer.

Correction on that size above ... should be 227/65/17.

I just ordered 4 Michelin X-ice winter tires for my SXT, 222/65/17 from my Dodge dealer. I had a hard time getting tires the right size. The local tire dealer could not come up with that size in any brand. I also tried Wal-mart and Canadian Tire and they couldn't come up with that size either. It seems that Quebec does have a law this year re winter tires and I figure the dealers there must have bought up a lot of tires from the manufacturers. Oh, right, price ... ouch ... $978 including tax, installation, balancing, nitrogen. I have never had winter tires before but I make quite a few 25 miles trips at night in the winter and sometimes the roads are snow, black ice, slushy, etc. and it is tricky when passing. My journey just wants to go ... ever notice that??

I have just over 6000 miles on my Journey. I am getting excellent mileage, around 24-26 US mpg. The dealer said when I bought the Journey you would have to break it in to get good mileage and they were right.

Can you (or did you) post a pic showing those door edge protectors please? Are they a mopar add-on or did you pick them up at a local hardware?

I ordered a fog light kit from my dealer for $210 plus taxes. After the kit came in, the dealer told me I would have to order a switch that didn't come with the kit for another $70 plus. The switch took 3 weeks to arrive and it took the dealer 1.6 hours to install the lights. They work very well and I am satisfied with the way they work. I wasn't aware before that you cannot run fog lights with your high beam as there is a law against it. I think I will have my dealer check out re being charge for the fog light switch.