CTC Review: 2009 Dodge Journey

[CD_Editor]

Day 1:

Click Image to Enlarge

When Dodge introduced the new Caravan and siblings they decided to no longer offer a short wheel base version.  Those little family haulers were being cleared out at the end of their life for peanuts and it was surprising Dodge decided to no longer offer the smaller van, especially with gas prices on the rise.  But now comes the Dodge Journey for 2009, an SUV with a small engine ripe to fill that gap.  More...

[conwelpic]

sounds like competition for my Rondo (same base price, same 2.4L engine and 4 speed auto) and also for the Mazda 5.  It will be interesting to follow this report.  James, have you tested the Rondo and Mazda 5?  If so, it will be interesting to have your comments on the comparisons to the Journey.

[Cortina]

I really like the looks. But it feels like deja vu, every time see one.

   


People always complain about the plastics in a  chrysler. I wonder if they have listen and improved the plastics?

[inco]

I want to like this vehicle. From a looks perspective I do. Inside though I'm not sure the different plastics and general guality of it will move it to the 'A' list. It certainly is priced right and if it did have a better tranny a lot more people might be knocking on the door.

[MikeyP]

Any chance with loading it with 5+ people and taking a spin to see how it works as a people mover? I have a feeling the 4 cylinder isn't up to the chore.

[conwelpic]

People always complain about the plastics in a  chrysler. I wonder if they have listen and improved the plastics?

the Journey wasn't available at the time I bought my Rondo, but I did check out the Caliber, Compass and Patriot and the fit and finish was not very good and did not impress me, they had some good ideas but the overall package was a big disappointment.

[MKII]

I was in Ontario the past 3 weeks and saw many Journeys on the roads. Dodge must be selling loads of them.
The rear end styling is quite nice.

[mrthompson]

There is a loaded Journey in black down the street from my house.  It's rather handsome.

[stodge]

How much does this thing weigh? Can the 4cyl push it along with more than one person in it?

[conwelpic]

I was in Ontario the past 3 weeks and saw many Journeys on the roads. Dodge must be selling loads of them.
The rear end styling is quite nice.

seems they are doing very well with it 5,172 units to the end of June and 1,978 sold in the month of June, February when it was first being introduced they sold 17 then in March - 651, April - 945, May - 1,581

[Blueprint]

Many of them are sold to fleets.  Look for "F" plates in Quebec, or those little rental-car outfit bar codes in the rear windows.

The interior is an amalgam of inferior plastics, and the instrument pod reminds me of the Dodge Shadow.

IMHO, the Journey's competition is the Rondo and swb Uplander / Montana SV6, the Chevy being advertised these days at 16,999 $.

[conwelpic]

How much does this thing weigh? Can the 4cyl push it along with more than one person in it?

the website for Dodge Canada is very poor on information specs, plus you have to fill out a form to download a brochure, where most others you don't have to do that - not very user friendly - don't they want you to know?

You have to go to the US site to get sizes and details, the unit weights in at 3796 lbs (my Rondo weighs 3333lbs with the same size engine) and is 192.4" long, 66.6" high, with a 113.8" wheelbase.  It does not state cargo capacity.
Unless its a typo the rear seat legroom of 33.6" is terrible (wonder how it feels in person), my Rondo is 38.2", the front legroom on the Journey is 40.8" with front headroom also at 40.8" and rear headroom is 39.8".

[mwqa]

My brother has a loaded AWD, 7 seater version, which he enjoys.

As far as interior space is concerned, one of the reasons he bought it was for the spaciousness of the driving position. He's both tall and heavy and found that he could fit in quite comfortably. I'm not sure what else he test drove, but he was really please with the cabin space vs. the competition.

He really likes the rear view camera for backing up - James, do you find it hard to park because of restricted rear visibility?

Personally, I think it looks too much like a truck. But then I'm driving around in the smallest car I could fit in, so what do I know?  

[carcrazy]

IMO, the exterior looks very decent, but the interior is atrocious from the design perspective. However, from my recollection of sitting in one at the Auto Show, the interior materials weren't as bad as I was expecting from Chrysler; I was thinking they were decent for the class.

Another letdown for me is the powertrains offered with this vehicle. This is a mid-size CUV (rather big and heavy) and it needs a decent V6 to perform well (the I4 is inappropriate in a 3,800 lbs. CUV and the AWD, V6 models are 4200+ lbs.), which the 3.5L unit from Chrysler it is not - thirsty and I would guess low tech (?) - same old 3.5L V6 from the 90's (?).

They sell well because they are not bad vehicles and many people like them, but I guess the low price is mostly what they are selling on.

[Cortina]

Because of this, you tend to be easy on the throttle, which makes the Journey that much more sluggish. Not my cup of tea, but it gets me from A to B. And it does so extremely quietly and smoothly; while the engine may not be up to the task, the sound deadening in the Journey is excellent, with virtually no road or wind noise intruding into the cabin.

I had high hopes for this mode of transport. But now it seams to be slipping away. I wonder if was design with a V6 in mind. They could remedy the Journey of course, by putting a diesel under the bonnet. 

[stickshift]

Because of this, you tend to be easy on the throttle, which makes the Journey that much more sluggish. Not my cup of tea, but it gets me from A to B. And it does so extremely quietly and smoothly; while the engine may not be up to the task, the sound deadening in the Journey is excellent, with virtually no road or wind noise intruding into the cabin.

I had high hopes for this mode of transport. But now it seams to be slipping away. I wonder if was design with a V6 in mind. They could remedy the Journey of course, by putting a diesel under the bonnet. 

There is a diesel available.

In Europe. 

[klossfam]

Let's sum up - Uncompetitive piece of crap (but the price is right!)

[DockMan]

Let's sum up - Uncompetitive piece of crap (but the price is right!)

Price and feature set is what the buying public want. As automobile enthusiast we are a minority in the market. My wife couldn't care less about most of our objections. She would want that car because of the feature set, body style and price point combination. And what the wife wants.....

[Cortina]

Price and feature set is what the buying public want. As automobile enthusiast we are a minority in the market. My wife couldn't care less about most of our objections. She would want that car because of the feature set, body style and price point combination. And what the wife wants.....

I've just help a lady friend to buy a car just like that about 2 weeks ago. She didn't even care the way the car drove. The important thing to her was cargo room and the choice of colours. 

After reading the 3rd day. I would almost swear that Wing likes the Journey. 

[C. Fletcher]

I am currently shopping for a vehicle and have given serious consideration to the Dodge Journey because I like the exterior styling and, of course, the price is right.  However, after taking a look at the interior, I have become very doubtful that this vehicle will ever find a spot in my driveway.  I found the interior to be quite sub-par compared to the competition.  As the reviewer rightly notes, the Journey is far from being the only car that suffers from hard plastic galore in its interior.  However, it's not necessarily the use of hard plastic that earned the Journey a sub-par interior verdict from me.  It's poor presentation.  The interior just has this cheap look and feel to it. What's with the square, choppy design anyway?  It's like Chrysler, after being in the car business for so long, still hasn't figured out how to design a dashboard and interior with lines that flow.

And I just can't get passed this issue of the radio (controls and display) being placed at the driver's knee level.  In this day and age, you should be allowed to sue a car manufacturer's for ignoring such a basic safety rule: the radio (at least the display part) needs to be close to eye level in order to facilitate its operation while keeping an eye on the road.

The Journey is competitively priced, indeed.  The reason for that, however, is not hard to see once you take a closer look at that vehicle.  It would have been difficult to sell it at a price similar to the competition.