B4ZINGA

I'd love to do exhaust on my Journey... but I already know I'm not keeping it longer than 5 years... if that. Depends on when I can buy a house. Took it in for the second oil change at 15,249 miles yesterday and there was a 2015 GC Laredo 4x4 Altitude in metallic red on the showroom floor... Other than the red color, I was wishing I had the $40k to plunk down... just have to keep reminding myself that the Journey does everything I need just as well as the GC and in a smaller package that I can toss around a parking lot in a zero f***s given manner.

Can't do it in Windsor. They complain when the neighbors across the river play loud music and party into the night. :P

Yes, there is paint on the pinch welds to keep them from pre-maturely rusting. It isn't bare metal, and when the pinch weld flex and bends the paint flakes/chips/cracks. It can also damage the welds, which damages the body.

Price is right. The look is... egregiously awkward. I'm not sure what all the white/silverish business is about. I'd have to open them up and spray them black to match my car. RE: HID, keep in mind you won't find aftermarket projector headlight assemblies with genuine HID projectors, as they would not be legal to use in the 50 US states. Many states have laws stating only vehicles equipped with HID by the manufacturer may have them, and many state inspection facilities will give you a ticket to the fail-boat if you install HIDs anyway. It's hit or miss, NJ is among those states and I managed to pass inspection with my Grand Prix using HID. Got away with it in my Charger since it was optional (minor detail that mine was a 2007 and HID wasn't offered until 2008, and I used OEM-replica housings).

I actually just purchased a product called In-A-Pinch-Weld, which accomplished the same thing in a specifically-molded rubber product that mimics the pinch-weld receptacle in most vehicle scissor-jacks used for roadside wheel changing. The pinch-weld fits into the slot in the rubber, and adapter holds the pinch-weld straight as opposed to allowing it to collapse one way or the other and cause damage to the body and paint. They offer two versions, one that replaces the jacks metal cup and another that just sits on top of the cup. I bought the version that sits on top of the cup to give extra clearance on my low-ground-clearance vehicle (as it is, my "low-profile" jack crushes the rocker panels under the front doors right where I need to raise the vehicle for tire rotations in one lift). $31 shipped to my door, even with MI sales tax applied to MI residents.

I've switched mine on once... to figure out which button controlled when I bought the car since I've only owned sedans and rented vehicles with rear wipers (and not long enough to need it). I don't bother using it since it isn't needed.

That's interesting. I wouldn't think Dodge or Fiat would have a reason to change the rear springs for 2014. Is it a 3-row or 2-row model? Just trying to figure out what might cause the difference. The ride height you have is perfect. My fear when my factory tires wear out and I seriously look at new wheels and tires is the wheel gap being too much, and lowering the front will just make it look weird.

Light direction is a function of the reflector behind the bulb, and possibly bulb orientation. Your housings would not be legal outside of Australia, New Zealand, Japan, certain African countries, and the UK. Is your Journey AWD or FWD? H&R makes springs for FWD Journeys, though they never state that AWD won't fit. If you have AWD, then now we know the rear springs won't work. How is the ride quality after cutting the rear springs?

I use Zaino Z-9 leather cleaner for seats that have a lot of soil, and Z-10 Leather-in-a-bottle conditioner for that like-new look, feel, smell. I used that combo on a set of light taupe leather seats I got from a junk yard that were heavily soiled. Now they look and feel great and in the back of my show car, which recently won a best custom interior award. My driver's seat looks exactly like Rolys. It looked like that when I bought the car at 2,086 miles and hasn't changed at all right up to the currently 14,800 miles. Leather does that, especially the cheap leather/vinyl Dodge uses. If you don't want to see cracks, get Katzkin installed and condition it daily. The seats in the Journey were clearly designed to crack in that spot, what with the plastic seat trim being positioned in such a way that you need to jump in and out to avoid stretching and creasing the cushion over it.

Agreed, more information needed on the wheels... they fit the look I want to achieve.

Avoid the 407 on the way to Detroit... expensive tollway. I take the 401 (or 403 depending on where you are) to 402 and across the Blue Water Bridge between Port Huron and Sarnia to get back into Michigan, then I-94 down to my house in Metro Detroit. Nice view on the 402 with large wind farms. Then on I-94 there is a sign stating a prison is nearby and you should not pick up hitchhikers, always a hoot. I've visited the area twice (Oakville, Vaughan) for work and the "eh's" and "oot's" were endless... while Journey's were suspiciously rare. And their Sunfires and Jettas look weird in the back. And apparently Candian's like getting hosed by buying Civics branded as Acuras.

I haven't entered mine, since I always enter my Special, however I have yet to see a Journey compete in a car show. Not even at Carlisle, where I only saw a few Journeys on the showfield as support vehicles.

Aftermarket doesn't care how popular a vehicle is to buy. It only cares how popular a vehicle is to modify. Hence the huge presence for old hum-drum Hondas (cheap for a teenage to buy and go nuts with), sports- and muscle-cars (low volume, but we all want more power), LXs (unique aggressive design and easy-to-mod V8s). Maybe three people want to modify a people-carrier.

FYI, the Journey is definitely not a gas guzzler. Not when the V6 can easily achieve over 30 mpg. I don't understand the point of the Prius. It's expensive to buy, ugly as mortal sin (all generations), has no get-up'n'go to speak of, is damaging to the environment (how do you think that battery came into existance?), and the fuel economy figures are not very impressive compared to diesel VW Group vehicles and small-displacement Hondas. A hybrid does not yet exist that is worth buying. If you want good fuel economy and want to have a lower environmental impact, buy a modern diesel or a Tesla.

My R/T is a 5-passenger since I have no need for the third row (I have more use for the large load floor storage space). I rented a 3-row SXT on a recent trip to Toronto, and when I got back to the US, I sat in the 3rd row for gits'n'shiggles. I'm 6'4" with a 36" inseam... and even with the second row seat still collapse forward for 3rd row access, I said "HAAAAIIIIL NO!" My knees were well into the second row space. Definitely designed with small children in mind and not full-size-plus adults. Day-to-day it's just me in the car, with the occasional S/O or friend riding shotgun.

Good to know. We'll take the cover off of our Blacktop until we know how it is affected.

I'm relying on the oil light, or 10,000 miles, whichever comes first (as recommended in the owners manual). The oil light came on for my R/T for the first oil change at 8,200 miles. A local mopar group member said his Ram did the same. I anticipate my next change will be between 16,000-18,000 miles. Sitting at 13,600 miles currently, while I tool around Canada in a rented 2015 SXT with 16,500 on it... it's only options are the Pentastar, AWD, 3rd row... I miss my R/T!

I'm curious, what shroud did you use? I'm avoiding modding my Journey, but with the next major redesign to pushed back to 2019 to stroke the Italians'... egos... I might just have to do a few things here and there to better enjoy my time with my R/T. I miss having a DD with projector HID.

What underseat subwoofer? I'll be honest, between our two Journeys, mine has the Alpine upgrade and the other has the "base" audio. Both have the 8.4A radio. The base system is either marginally worse, or on par with the Alpine. The only reason I bought the Alpine is because the car already had it, and I got a good deal on a used R/T that was basically still new. If it's possible, I would like to swap out the Alpine amp with something else that can easily connect to the OEM wire harness (been through re-wiring the audio on my 300M Special, no interest in doing it again), and replace the door speakers with something better, such as Infinity Reference series 2-way speakers. It sounds like simply replacing the speakers would be a waste of time if the factory amplifier isn't sending the full range to the door speakers to begin with.

Are all of you just replacing your speakers or are you also replacing the amplifier and running fresh speaker wires into the doors? I'm pondering installing Infinity Reference speakers since they aren't as power hungry as the Infinity Kappas I installed in my 300M, which necessitated a new amp and new speaker wires.

It sounds even better at 130+.

Currently I'm not aware of aftermarket solutions for the Journey. I imagine anything available would just add the aftermarket radio to the existing OEM radio and screen to maintain OEM uConnect functions. Actually, cell phone navigation is superior to Garmin and TomTom in almost every way. The only area dedicated devices excel in is being available when a data connection is not. I use google maps for everything, and always used it in spite of the factory nav in my old Charger, and the Garmin nav offered by my Kenwood in my 300M (since has been replaced with a Nexus 7 tablet). When you know you're going to be off the data connection, you can download maps to your phone. I downloaded Nokia HERE maps for Ontario when I was in Toronto last week, and Google is offering a better way of downloaded metro areas for offline navigation this fall. One of these days I will get a windshield mount that will hold my phone up in my Journey so I can use it more effectively. Being able to simply say, "OK Google Now, navigate to [insert address, business, or crossroads here]" is far better than anything I've seen lately from Garmin or TomTom, and I don't have to drop a few hundred dollars on a standalone when Google Maps is free of charge, and updates frequently with zero cost.

It's not a terrible system, but the Infinity-II that came with my 300M is certainly better. Honestly the only good audio system in a current FCA vehicle is the Harmon/Kardon offered on 300 and Charger. The Alpine is "okay", and the Beats is garbage.

Belt interval is 7 years OR 104,000 miles. Time is also a factor. We have seen 300Ms snap belts at 40,000 miles because they were well past the 7 year mark. FYI 3.5 runs on regular gas. The only 3.5L car that requires 89 is the 300M Special and Intrepid R/T, and both of those generally run well on regular. The engine in the Journey is not fundamentally different from the one designed in 1992 other than the switch to being an interference engine in 1998, and the switch to iron heads in 1998. AC compressor and alternator changed locations as well in late 2004, and plenum designed changed. That said, the 3.5L is a dog in the LX and JC platform, due to the added weight. Works well for the LH and JS, however those are around 3600-3800lb curb weight. I would look for a 2012+ 3.6L instead (2011 is a transition year).

In the driveway sit two 2014 Journeys, my Pitch Black R/T Rallye AWD, as well as my other half's red 2-coat pearl SXT Blacktop. In the garage is my 2002 Deep Sapphire Blue Chrysler 300M Special, formerly my daily driver and now my fair-weather and show car. Next to it sits my other half's 2002 Black 300M Special that rarely comes out to play ($2000 paint repair last year).