Planning on getting an R/T in UK

[Zoidy]

Hi all,

Was looking at 7 seaters and thought I had settled on a Volvo XC90, but then found the Dodge Journey a couple of days ago. Will be test driving one on Saturday (as well as the Volvo) but I can't help worrying about the state of the Chrysler company.

Anyone got any thoughts on this? Is Chrysler a good company to rely on if something goes wrong? How well built are the Dodge Journeys? Have seen a few people on here with issues, but what are your general overall impressions, especially in the UK?

Oh and can anyone in the UK confirm there are AWD versions? Or is that just in the US?

Cheers,

Pete.

[BAC]

I got a R/T last March. It's a nice car, comfy, economical (for such a big car) and does all I want it to do.

The only problemswas the alarm kept going off. This was a known problem and was soon fixed.

The only irritating thing is for 2010 you now get a space saver spare wheel -mine's a can of sealant- and integrated booster seats. The R/T 225/55/19 Kumho tyres are hard to get hold of, most UK sites don't even show the size, even Kumho's UK website!

How safe is Chrysler? Nothing is ever certain but it's in a lot better state than a year ago. Quality? You get good and bad cars in all brands but I had a Chrysler Neon for 8 years and all that ever needed was a new pair of wishbone bushes and a replacement battery.

Where abouts do you live? Dealer backup is important and the UK dealers vary from excellent to total rubish!

Finally, the AWD isn't available in the UK.

[Zoidy]

I got a R/T last March. It's a nice car, comfy, economical (for such a big car) and does all I want it to do.

The only problemswas the alarm kept going off. This was a known problem and was soon fixed.

The only irritating thing is for 2010 you now get a space saver spare wheel -mine's a can of sealant- and integrated booster seats. The R/T 225/55/19 Kumho tyres are hard to get hold of, most UK sites don't even show the size, even Kumho's UK website!

How safe is Chrysler? Nothing is ever certain but it's in a lot better state than a year ago. Quality? You get good and bad cars in all brands but I had a Chrysler Neon for 8 years and all that ever needed was a new pair of wishbone bushes and a replacement battery.

Where abouts do you live? Dealer backup is important and the UK dealers vary from excellent to total rubish!

Finally, the AWD isn't available in the UK

Cheers for the response.

I live near Croydon so I have two dealers within 20 minutes of me thankfully. And the salesman I spoke to yesteday was very nice, as opposed to the volvo sales people!

Bad news to hear about the lack of an AWD. Nice colour you have chosen though, I think I'd go with the darker silver if it's the car for us. You are right about good and bad cars, you just have to hope you get a good one from the production line and not a lemon. Looking even more forward to my test drive on Saturday now :-)

[BAC]

Are you thinking of manual or auto? I wanted to drive both. Our then local dealer only had the auto which I drove. I asked if they could get a manual one in to try but Lookers in Hatfield didn't seem too interested in helping out. I walked away -their loss. The same for the dealer in Milton Keynes. I tracked a manual one down in Peterborough and the salesman there couldn't have been more helpful.

Personally I didn't like the manual, maybe it was beacuse the car was new but it didn't seem to be a very slick change. Also selecting reverse seemed a bit awkward. Twice I put it in 1st by mistake!

Anyway, the bottom line was I bought the then last available R/T in Deep Water Blue and love it to bits! If you get one be prepared for people looking at you! Lol. I've only ever seen three other Journey's on the road.

I quite like the dark silver but I saw one at the Hatfield dealer last year and it was unwashed and it looked really horrible and just filthy grey. I've had a black car -never again! Too hard to keep clean. Silver? Yawn, boring boring boring. So many silver cars about. Red was okay but a second choice. DW Blue really made the car stand out.

Cheers!

Good luck with the drive!

[dp360]

Unfortunately, I can't offer a UK perspective on this. I CAN say that so far, my '10 SXT has been flawless. For the money, it's hard to beat.

It's sad to see that the dealer hit-or-miss experience is universal. At least I have very many options and can visit a different dealer if mine starts giving me trouble.

As for the state of Chrysler, it is certainly much better than it was a year ago. Now that Cerebus is out of the picture, it is being run by passionate car people who have actual car experience. They have a pretty well defined and ambitious plan to get back on their feet. If you're interested:

http://www.allpar.com/corporate/chrysler-g...-year-plan.html

[Zoidy]

Unfortunately, I can't offer a UK perspective on this. I CAN say that so far, my '10 SXT has been flawless. For the money, it's hard to beat.

It's sad to see that the dealer hit-or-miss experience is universal. At least I have very many options and can visit a different dealer if mine starts giving me trouble.

As for the state of Chrysler, it is certainly much better than it was a year ago. Now that Cerebus is out of the picture, it is being run by passionate car people who have actual car experience. They have a pretty well defined and ambitious plan to get back on their feet. If you're interested:

http://www.allpar.com/corporate/chrysler-g...-year-plan.html

Hmmm, some good info there dp360, thanks - and it looks like new models coming in 2014 so just around the time I'll have paid off a new Journey :-) to trade in. Hope they bring some decent hybrids to market.

BAC - yeah, love the blue - and saw a gold version on the US website, doubt that one will be available here. I'll be looking for a manual rather than auto - prefer the extra control plus better emissions and MPG. But if the gear movement is any worse than my Qashqai I might not bother.

Whats the situation with the 2 rear seats - have people had adults in them OK? Not really found many reviews about this.

[WOLF]

a nice Dark grey one... UK SPEC....

superb all round vehicle... and who the heck needs 4WD when you have a gizmo'd Journey...

[WOLF]

nearly forgot, have had 6 adults and a very WRIGGLY grandchild in mine once... no real probs at all... as all the seats (1st and 2nd rows) can slide forward to accomodate adults in the rear seats..

[Black Pearl]

I too am a Yank. I can only give you a US perspective.

I drove a 2004 Pacifica with the same 3.5L engine for 163,000 mi. (with 4 speed trans) and did not have any engine problems. I live near the Kenosha Engine plant that builds these engines. My friend works there as a manager. He tells me they have very few problems with the 3.5L engine.

The third row is tight for a 6'0" 200 lb guy. I wouldn't want to sit back there for a long trip.

I have 2500 mi. on my 2010 SXT. Everything works as advertised - no problems.

It appears that Fiat has a five year plan to build up this product line and add their own touches. There are two main reasons Fiat bought Chrysler. The first is they feel the Jeep line will sell well in Europe if marketed correctly. The second is that Chrysler does not have any econo-cars in their line up in the states. Fiat specializes in small cars and small technically advanced, fuel efficient engines.

Best of luck to you.

Good Day Governor (As Capt'n Jack Sparrow would say in "Pirates of the Caribbean"...sorry bad attempt at humor. I will leave humor to the professionals from now on)