I'm back again!

[KnightRoller]

Hello all from Southeastern VA,

 

It's been a while since I was here last and once again I'm shopping for another vehicle. A couple other cars have been in the driveway since I was here before. I've always loved wagons and while my grand experience with a Journey SXT rental was certainly a strong influence, in the end I wound up with a Dodge Magnum instead. Unfortunately that proved to be a woeful choice. While Maggie was a lot of fun and was fantastic in her utility, the constant trips to the gas pump became tiresome. That kind of trade-off is fine if the car is a toy or second vehicle, but as a daily driver it got old in a hurry. Combine that with a never ending clunking of front end parts and I sent Maggie up the road.

I then wound up with a 2.0 EcoBoost Escape, which has also been a great vehicle but a little less than stellar in the mpg dept. However, not to the point that I want to send it away. My wife's car on the other hand is reaching its cliff, so I'll be passing the Escape over to her. This left me on the hunt for another wagon, and these days those choices are extremely slim. The Buick TourX has some nice attributes but is already out of production and I'm not so sure I want another turbo four cylinder. They have decent go-power but they lack the kind of sound that tickles my fancy. I also considered a Subaru Outback but found myself running down a long list of mods to make it less off-road basher and more on-road highway runner.

Then for few days my wife's car was in the shop, she had the Escape and I was driving my playtoy, a 2013 Chrysler 200S convertible. The thought slowly began to sink in, that the auto press called the 200 a cheap, unreliable, slow excuse for a car. Conclusions that I take sharp opposition against. Yes it weighs almost 4k lbs, but with 300hp it makes tracks. The K&N intake sounds amazing along with the Magnaflow exhaust. Slow it is not. They said mpg wasnt great, yet on three different road trips the car easily returns 27-29mpg...20-23 if I'm flogging it hard. It occurred to me that for all the bad press, the Dodge Journey is much the same. Why would I not want another car with this spirited drivetrain? While marketed as a CUV, the Journey seems to be more road machine than off-road adventurer, which is fine by me. I've read others that compare it to a quasi-minivan. To me and my rose glasses, I see a capable wagon with the bones for a great road machine...with virtually zero exterior mods needed (a more pronounced rear spoiler would be cool) So once again I'm browsing Autotrader and I'm happy to see so many with attractive prices...probably a result of FCA announcing 2020 as the swan song of the model to be replaced by a Stelvio sister ship. They ended my 200S vert too, but that doesnt make it any less special to me.

[Armando G]

You sound like me a few years ago when I had 5 vehicles in the driveway with only two drivers. We're down to 4 vehicles, with 4 drivers, and after a slew of different cars the DJ has been very good to me and most of the drivers in my home also enjoy my DJ over their cars. Although I do keep looking at the Durango now that the Explorer changed its body style. Only because I'm looking for more towing power. 

 

Good luck on your hunt. 

[JhamB]

Sounds like it’s time to commit and buy one! I just picked up a 2020 SE with the Blacktop package for nearly $11 grand off the sticker. All that aside I think the Journey is pretty competent and can still stay toe to toe with its rivals. I prefer its styling to the more Pontiac Aztec styling of most modern crossovers. Anyways best of luck on your next purchase! 

[NavalLacrosse]

The DJ was the spiritual successor to the Short-bed Dodge Caravan (It's why the rear doors open 89 degree outward, allowing comparable utility)
Most CUV's will never go Off Road, and the DJ probably shouldn't either. I've taken it over a few low curbs and let's just say it's not set up at all of off-road (low ground clearance, llllloonggg wheelbase, poor turn radius).

 

The 2011+ Dodge Journey Interior is perfection. FCA killed it (good) with the design which holds up very well today nearly 10 years later. Uconnect is a great UI and one of the best and easiest to use on the market even today.

 

The best thing about the DJ is the 3.6 Pentastar. just shy of 300hp (yeah yeah 280hp) will get that thing rolling pretty fast for a minivan. DO NOT GET THE 4cyl. The drawback is the DJ isn't efficient. Don't get your hopes up that this thing will save you money on fuel. 18 average. 27 hwy. 16 cty. Best i did was at 70 mph across Canada dead flat on cruise control for 4 hours non- stop and got her up to 29mpg on regular (A/C Off, Windows UP). (while resetting the clock after reaching speed)

 

There is truth in the bad press, but also benofit. The DJ is cheap. CHEAPO !!! . Try buying a 2013 RAV-4 will 60k miles for under 10K. Impossible. DJ? Here is one with 40k and it's only $8k. Why? People think the DJ is worst, that the driving experience is sluggish and it feels like a minivan- And that's the point. IT is supposed to be like that. I like the soft smooth ride more than my parent's bouncy hyper-reliable-Highlander (which has been in the shop 4x since new) which costs 2x more. This cheapness is why I got the Journey. Dollar per car, it's really hard to beat the DJ. 

The parts for the DJ are comparable inexpensive, as in true FCA fashion, they like to use old parts and old architecture on their cars as long as possible.

I put from 30k miles to 100k miles on my Journey. Major repairs have been replacing the alternator at 90k miles, and changing the rotors at 65k miles. I change the oil when the computer tells me and I use 100% Synth, but the cheapest name-brand stuff i can get.

Edited November 24, 2020 by NavalLacrosse

[KnightRoller]

I test drove a 2018 GT AWD yesterday and I do wish I was in the position to buy because I would've jumped on that baby. I would prefer another color to white, preferably black, red or the Granite metallic. I'm leaning into paying off my convertible, making payments and adding extra payments against my balance. Not sure exactly how fast I'll get it killed off but hopefully this coming year.

@NavalLacrosse Your comments are dead-on sir, and the mpg you describe will be just peachy with me. I get only slightly better with my 200S but its just a hoot to drive with the intake and Magnaflows...which I plan on adding to the DJ in short order....along with slotted rotors, painted calipers and some fat rubber...maybe 20s but haven't decided on that yet.

 

I was surprised the one I drove didn't have the flip-up passenger seat cushion with storage under? Did that get dropped? The rest of the nifty cubbies make up for it but I'd still like that.

I think I will also have to try fabricating a hatch spoiler....we shall see!

[NavalLacrosse]

41 minutes ago, KnightRoller said:

I was surprised the one I drove didn't have the flip-up passenger seat cushion with storage under? Did that get dropped?

My 2011 has the flip up passenger seat storage. It's a nice hiding place. The little pull strap is in the crease between the upper and lower back cushion.

I think (and don't quote me on this) it's only on models WITHOUT heated seats. I don't think FCA would put the money forward to engineer a feature out of the Journey (if it was in the 2011, it's probably still the same in an equally equipped 2020 version)

A neat feature I wish mine had (which I think the LUX had in 2011, and I think the previous models have) was the built in kid's booster seats in the mid-row.

[yyz]

Nope the passenger storage seat was on heated seats as well.

[2late4u]

the little loop was probally stuck under the seat and not visible is all i can think of

[JeremyJ]

My 2018 Crossroad did not come with the under seat storage. It was an option of some sort that wasn't included in some of them. No heated seats, either.