Darkpaw

Well, opinions will differ. I am very particular about my sound, and I can hear what many would probably consider an extended frequency range from "average" (I can hear well over 16kHz, so doing sweeps when testing is difficult for a few moments). The stock system in the DJ can handle power full blast without distortion, but it's because the range of it is so severely limited. The stock sub at the back is useless; it should be tuned about 6db louder than it is. Since these are the same speakers used in the LX cars, I know that they are capable of so much more than they are doing with them. The woofers in the doors can hit way harder than they do; it's all about a poorly spec'd amp (crossover is in the amp) and/or from the head unit (poor equalization). The door speakers are low-pass and start a cutoff about 250Hz, 6db/octave. The dash speakers are high-pass and start the cutoff about 150Hz (or they just can't handle below that range). On my previous vehicle (Charger SRT8 with the same "upgraded" Alpine system) it had the same horrible range that the DJ does (bottom drops off at 80Hz and top drops off dramatically at about 8k on the one-way dash 3.5s). When I ran my own amps through the setup, I turned the punch bass (boost at 45Hz) up on the Rockford 45.2 that was running the door speakers, and it had as much depth as the 12" DVC sub I was using in the back. So much so, in fact, that the 12" sub made little difference until things with "bass only" like Hip-Hop or techno would be on. The dash speakers just outright suck. They really could have put in the extra effort to at least use a coaxial. In the Charger, I replaced them with a set of JBL GTO329s and the difference is uncomparable. The setup I'm planning in the DJ will be different (come on, warm weather). Still keeping the door speakers, but my initial plans are to keep the horrible 3.5s in the dash but only use them as a midrange. They'll be the bottom section of a passive crossover (cutoff is around 2k, 12db/octave) and the top section is going to a pair of Rockford Fosgate Fanatic-Q tweeters. At least that's the plan. If the sound test to it fails, then I'll haul all of that out and go with a pair of coaxial JBLs again. If anyone's curious what the stock ranges of the speakers are, I'll be doing an RTA test of it prior to the install, and will post the videos to it. I like a baseline test to see how drastic the changes are after modifying it, and it's the only way to find where the bumps and gaps are to properly EQ it. Expect this to be posted in the next couple weeks. My current plan, assuming the weather cooperates, is to rip it apart over the Easter weekend.

A question about this conversion....so which wattage rating is used on the DJ? There seems to be 3 options...35w, 55w, and 100w. Too much power would damage the lens housing, but too little power and it defeats the purpose of using HID over Halogen. Which one works best on our vehicles? Or rather, which one is rated for it...?

I would like the ability to do what the tuners for most Jeeps allow...to change the lights that are enabled as DRLs. In the Jeeps, if you have the tuner, you can change the DRLs to the fog lights. I'd love to be able to do that, instead of using the high beams at 50%.

Is there any real difference between the Curt, Reese, and Hidden Hitch versions? The Curt one really seems to hang down below the rear bumper. Are any of the other ones any closer to the bumper cover?

Sorry, yes....I meant that it has both the side rails and the cross-supports. There are two cross-supports, that adjust to various clamp-in spots on the rails. Odd that some have it and some don't. I wonder if this is a Canada vs. US thing, or something package-related? I have a Blacktop package, but can't see that mattering. Why does Dodge do stuff like this? They do the same thing with the LX cars. They are all built in the same factory, but have different "option packages" in the US and Canada. Wouldn't that be more costly to maintain? Just seems unusual to me.

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I checked when I got home (I had the van today)....my 2014 has the roof rails on it. Did they add this back in as a stock thing in 2014? I noticed that the EBay listing that's posted here says it is for model years 2011-2013, so maybe the new ones have it?

Interesting. I never ever payed attention to this detail. I'll have to check it out when I get home. Too bad it isn't like the roof rail setup on the vans, where the crossbeams actually fold into the side roof rails when not in use (to save on gas mileage).

These "chips" should be considered an obvious scam, but seem to be able to still be sold to people that don't know any better. But please don't try to lump them into the same category as a SRI/CAI. There has been a lot of argument about these over the past couple years, but regardless of where you stand in the argument for or against them, you can't break the laws of fluid dynamics. Upgrading to a SRI/CAI WILL put a higher volume of air into the manifold, period. Without being able to make use of this air increase with being able to tune the PCM, the difference is not significant, but it IS there (shown really only on a dyno). Eventually the engine computer will adapt to the change in air flow, and you'll go back to the same power you had before. So without tuning the PCM, you're going to have to reset the computer every month or so if you actually want that unnoticable extra 10hp at the flywheel. That being said, I'm still putting one on my DJ. It will never be tunable, and I don't care about an extra couple horsepower...I just like the way it sounds. Consider it an appearance mod, and nothing more, since DiabloSport will never make a tune for the Journey.

Ironically, this exact thing was planned. If you do some digging on the oil catch cans, Mopar had one in process of OEM development from Billet Technologies. The plug was pulled on the project, with no explanation given. I imagine lots of people can have ideas of why this happened, but the most logical to me would be that they would be admitting there was a problem in design and be opening themselves up to a marketing nightmare. Also worth noting is that it isn't just Dodge with this problem. The LT1 engines are notorious for oil blow-by, and even the new engines on the ZL-1 Camaros have owners screaming about it. It's just about basic physics...you have too much oil condensate in the vapor, and the PCV system isn't able to remove it. It has to go somewhere. People that aren't experiencing this problem are probably light on the gas pedal, as this is most likely to be seen only from high vacuum pressure generated while under WOT.

That isn't surprising, since the Journey has been the #1 selling crossover in Canada every year since it was introduced.

Only on the driver's side. On the passenger side, it's just a vent. If you have the "premium" (and I use the term loosely) audio system you will have a shitty DVC 8" sub in the panel on the driver's side. It has no gain control, and is way underpowered (the exact same problem exists on the vans, too, though the system sounds much better in the vans). If you don't have the premium system, I don't think the wiring is even there to add anything. Personally, I can't wait for the weather to get warmer so I can start ripping this thing apart. I don't know what the policy is here on this forum for external links, but assuming this post doesn't get deleted, here's what I did to my Charger SRT8 LAST YEAR on Easter weekend. Time is coming close to making this a yearly event for me. Ha. Part 1: http://www.chargerforumz.com/showthread.php?t=151537&highlight=MODtacular Part 2: http://www.chargerforumz.com/showthread.php?t=151538&highlight=MODtacular I build everything from scratch, and do all my own customizations. Did I mention I'm working on getting us an actual aftermarket lift kit? Talking with the R&D department of a lift kit company this week. I'm hoping they'll let me donate my DJ for it so I'll be the guinea pig. I'll post pics of clip/screw locations once I start pulling everything. I try to take lots of pics along the way, in hopes it will help other modders save time.

+1 I think this is a great idea, actually. Other forums I've been on (especially the Z forums, which there doesn't appear to be one for the Journey) often have group meets...especially the Chargers and Challengers. I'd be willing to drive anywhere within a 1,000 miles or so of here (ie: pretty much anywhere in New England/Maritime area) for a Journey group meet/weekend.

That is all great, in theory, and that's how things are supposed to work. It's also great for marketing. But in practice, things are not always as they seem. Did you ever have the plenum off your 3.8 with 200,000+ miles on it? The problem isn't seen on the TB, though a clean butterfly valve may suggest less of an issue. People put them on their 5.7s because there is so much oil in the vapor that even from regular use, after a couple years there is so much oil build up in the intake manifold that it's hard to believe that somebody didn't just pour a quart of it into there directly. If you Google "hemi oil intake manifold" in Google images, you'll see plenty of examples as to why you need one in a 5.7. It took a few years of use after they started production before these issues were found out. It's around the same amount of time that the 3.6 has now been in use. That being said, I'm curious if we'll start seeing these same types of issues in the 3.6. You won't "see" a problem unless you pull the plenum. Eventually (with the 5.7) the problem becomes more obvious when you start seeing blue smoke on startup, and poor performance due to gummed up valves. Time will tell on the 3.6. I'm not installing one yet, but I will be watching my oil levels closely. If it's down more than "slightly" between changes, it's throwing it into the intake, which means I'll be installing a catch can. If you don't plan on keeping your vehicle more than a couple years, it won't matter to you. I'm not planning on changing either of my vehicles (and both have a 3.6) any time in the next 8+ years. If I start seeing oil issues, a catch can is going onto both of them. It could greatly extend the life of the engine.

Can somebody who had this change done (to the new "synthetic" fluid) possibly pull the part number off their work order/invoice and post it? it should be listed in the shop materials section.

But it should be the exact programming as the Avenger. All they would need is a list of the CAL IDs, which Chrysler will usually provide to them (so they have claimed in the past).

I know this is mentioned already in the other power steering thread, but I'm curious as to if they made note of what type of "synthetic" power steering fluid they are putting in. Out of the factory, they are all supposed to be using ATF+4 (automatic transmission fluid) in the power steering, and this is already synthetic. So what is the new fluid?

0% chance. I asked DS about this and told flat-out that it won't be done. Seems stupid, because the DJ and DGC use the exact same PCM as the Avengers.

It is designed for the Avenger, but since the engine bays are nearly identical (both build on same platform) it "should" fit. I thought I saw mention earlier in the thread that "bigunclejethro" had put one in his 2013. If so, this implies that it should fit.

69-2546TS is for the 3.6 (2011+ models). 69-2543TTK is for the 3.5 (models up to 2010). Check the "vehicle application guide" of each to see what it applies. Personally, I'm trying to find a way to custom-build the K&N I pulled off my SRT8 before I traded it in. Will take some work, but I'm determined to fit it in there. I'm not buying another kit when I already have a massive filter and really just need to customize some kind of aluminum case for it and a 4" (OD) pipe to the existing straight-pipe section.

FYI, all 3.6 Pentastar engines will do this when "very" cold. If you're not seeing it on your DJ or DGC/CT&C, then it's just not cold enough where you are for you to see the issue. It's embarassing, and not normal. I hope a fix is done for this soon. A bad pulley sounds like the best explanation I've heard on this so far. I expect a recall for both of my vehicles once they get this resolved. If not a recall, then a TSB noted on it, so I can go in and point to the TSB and say "replace it".

Hello, everyone. New to the forum, and probably should have started here (I posted in another thread, and am very happy at all the help I got here so far). So I guess I should start with my background.... A Mopar driver pretty much for life. My first "owned" Dodge was an 83 Charger 2.2. Great car, no power. Have had a variety of Mopar vehicles since that point. Currently in the stable is a 2012 Grand Caravan R/T and my new 2014 Journey Blacktop edition. The real shocker (especially to my dealership) is that I traded in a 2012 Charger SRT8 SuperBee to get my Journey. My current priorities have changed somewhat, and I felt that the SRT8 was no longer what I needed. So here I am. The mod list is heavy, and I'm trying to lay out what I will be doing once it gets warmer here (I'm in New Brunswick, Canada). The top of the list is major stereo modifications, because even the "premium" Alpine system in this is just awful. I've been doing stereo installs since the mid 80s and have a shelf full of IASCA trophies from when I used to compete (including 1st place state championship in 1999, which won me an invitational to Nationals, in Texas, which I unfortunately never attended). The Journey has lots of space, and lots of potential, but it will take me a few weeks to figure out what I'm going to do with it. I'm thinking of keeping it to a single amp and just using signal processors to tune everything. Lots of pics will be posted once I get the ball rolling. I was torn between the Journey and a Cherokee, but the Journey had a lot more power and was a lot bigger than the Cherokee. I had a Cherokee out for a test drive for quite some time and practically destroyed it by the time I returned it. Just wasn't what I wanted. The Journey is a much better vehicle, and had a lot more space and options for a comparable price. The only unfortunate thing with the Journey is that aftermarket parts seem to be pretty scarce for it. It's like nobody feels that they want to upgrade it. A 1.5-2" lift would be nice, but doesn't seem supported unless I can come up with something custom. Diablo Sport has been perpetually working on a 3.6 tuner for FWD, but probably won't release it until some time next decade (3.6 RWD is released, though, even though there's way fewer of them on the market). Lots of other appearance-based mods planned. Can't wait for it to warm up so I can start tearing it apart.

It wouldn't be so bad for OEM if the sub at least had some kind of control on it. The low-end 3-band "eq" that is built-in to the system could easily be made into an 11-band or more and a subwoofer level added to it. That would require only software programming to do this and be a huge step up from what it is. The same type of thing exists with the "Beats Audio" setup on some of the vehicles. It's the exact same speakers, but with a different EQ programming on the head unit. IMO, it sounds pathetic, but the point still stands that these type of changes are easily possible. It's really sad that nobody invests the time to do it.

True enough, that's where it is. Thanks for the replies. Once the warm weather hits....mod season will open.

Hello, all. New to the forum. Can't find any info on this on the web, which is odd. What is the location of the factory amp (368 Watt Alpine) in the 2011-2014 models? I saw one post on Yahoo saying it was under the seat (seems odd). ? It's usually in the dash somewhere, like near one of the kick panels. On my Charger it was just above the driver's side kick panel, but I also saw reference to a Journey (2010?) that said it was behind the blower for the fan/heater. Does anyone know where this is located? I'm going to be doing a complete stereo overhaul (among other things) once the weather gets warmer, and I'm starting my planning now. Finding this amp is step 1.