Powdered Toast Man

There is a "rapid response" fix for several Dodge vehicles with the sound system with the amp. The dealers are supposed to fix this before customers take delivery and it applies to models before May 2011. I had mine in for an oil change and the dealer ended up replacing the amp due to the TSB and I hadn't even had any problems. The Rapid Response code is RRT 11-066.

So mine was looking like this: I took it back to the dealer and complained twice. On the second go, they pulled the bumper off and checked the clips. They told me they could not get the clips any tighter or install more clips because there's nowhere to mount them, HOWEVER, what the body shop did do was use urethane and basically glue the bumper in place along that top edge. You can't see anything on the exterior, but they told me they used basically the same thing they use to put windshields in place. They said they would be surprised if it moved again.

A trade in? On a 2011? Did the owner have the car for 6 months? Wonder why they dumped it.

Doubtful. The LUX is known as the R/T in Canada. How did the badge go missing? Fall off?

I just had mine in for an oil change 2 weeks ago and I asked the dealer to flash the EVIC. At first the service advisor started to say, "well, I'm not sure if there's an update out yet..." and I responded by telling them the message boards online had several people getting the update from their dealers so yes, it is out. They mumbled something about checking into it, but when I got the car back they had done it and the problem is finally fixed!

Keep in mind that if you use the iPod's internal EQ that it does affect the line out signal when it is docked as well. So if you have the iPod on an EQ setting where the bass is boosted, then that will mean you're getting a ridiculous amount of bass signal going to the head. Set your iPod's EQ as "flat" and then see how your system handles it.

It should... The early 2011 model year had the same front fascia as the 2010, just with the new grill and honeycomb instead of the "fins".

2009 model? Should still be under warranty. Take it in.

The answer is, whenever you feel like it. If you're at a stop, it will be in 1st gear when you pop over to autostick. If you're say, driving at highway speed, it will be in 6th when you pop into autostick. There are safeguards in place to keep you from doing anything that would harm the engine - for example, it won't let you keep slapping it down to 1st gear at highway speed. I've found it useful on the highway when I want to pass. It's easier to manually kick the transmission down to 4th than standing on the gas pedal and waiting for the tranny to figure out what I'm trying to do. I also found it useful when climbing steeper hills. It's just like an older style automatic where you had "D, 3, 2, 1" - you could drop it down whenever you needed it. Autostick is just more fancy.

Can't you turn them off using the dimmer switch on the dash?

Got and oil change (as usual). They reflashed the EVIC and it now stays in km/h!!! I have to bring it back next week for a part that's on order. The complaint (or maybe TSB) code is "RRT 11-066". The only description is "Amp". Not sure what that's all about. Also asked them to look at the rear fascia and the way the corners below the tail lights are popping out. They said they fixed it but when I went outside the passenger side was out about 1/4 inch again. I went back inside and complained. They had a body shop guy come look and this is apparently something very common on the Journey as there's only one clip further down on the corner. He told the service guy to order a few more clips and they'd install them next time I've got it in. I have to bring it back in for the above mentioned "Amp" anyway.

Do you have your cell phone in the same pocket as your key fob? I discovered that my iPhone was interfering with the signal from my key fob when entering the vehicle. The doors won't unlock when I touch the handle if my phone is in the same pocket as the key.

I've just performed the update as well. Can confirm playlists now work with iPhone 4! I punched shuffle a few times and each time a completely different song order came up, so looks like that's fixed too! Albums still have their tracks sorted alphabetically though.

I too was surprised at how good that was! It's crept up to over 9.0 after driving a bit in the city, but still excellent mileage especially considering I was carrying myself and 4 adult passengers the entire way. The power was excellent on the hills around Kenora. Some of them pretty steep too! Absolutely didn't have to strain the engine at all.

Just did a highway drive from Kenora to Winnipeg. I reset the fuel economy tracker just after I got outside of Kenora. I was averaging 8.5L/100 KM by the time I got back to Winnipeg. I kept my speed at just over 100 km/h the whole way.

I'm running the latest iPhone version and I've experienced occasional dropouts as well.

Interesting post. Have you taken that problem with the screen going out up with the dealer? Could be a warranty issue. I agree with you about the A-pillars (the vertical bar you mentioned). I too came from a Caravan (2006 model) and I found the visibility impacted by the A-pillars in the Journey. It took some getting used to. I've found it mainly to be a problem when turning left as I can't actually see where I'm going. The 8.4 system has it's own quirks that we're all hoping will be fixed when the software update comes (Chrysler says it's coming). I think we all have the issue with the EVIC defaulting to MPH. Apparently there is a fix for it at the dealer and there is a thread on here about it.

Why do people not sign up for www.carcostcanada.com? I knew exactly what the dealer invoice was and I got exactly the price I wanted because I had a dealer who was very welcoming to the Car Cost Canada program.

Is the Pentastar engine ok for flex fuel? I haven't seen any badges on the car or fuel filler door to indicate that it is. I think the whole flex fuel thing has lost momentum though because the mileage sucks.

Keep in mind that's the fleet buying guide - ie. rentals, government, company cars. Some options may not be available to the public. That is interesting about the paint colours though since the three discontinues were the three that had problems due to the Japan supplier. Any Journey that is factory ordered right now will be a 2012 model as production has ended on the 2011's. I think there are next to no real changes between the 11/12 model years.

Yeah, a couple weeks in and I found one of the "SRS Airbag" logos lying in the rear cargo area. It had popped off the C pillar. Recently noticed the rear fascia is not very securely mounted as the corner keeps popping out where it meets the quarter panels by the tail lights. Overall, I'm very satisfied with the Journey, but some of these early quality issues have me... concerned for the long term with this vehicle.

I use the Mother's California Gold 3 step system. Basically, bottle 1 is a cleaner wax, bottle 2 is a sealer and polish, and bottle 3 is pure carnuba wax. It's a fair bit of work since you basically have to wax the car 3 times, but worth it. Just did it today and this is the result: