Dodge Journey Question - Which One?

[CStringer15]

Hey all, new to the forum here and I'll be honest; the only reason I created this account was to get some feedback on which Dodge Journey would be the better deal. There are two local dealerships that have pre-owned Dodge Journey's available.

 

The first one is a 2017 Dodge Journey GT with 57,000 miles on it, it has the 3.6L engine and a few bells and whistles my wife likes (moon roof, Bluetooth radio, driver and passenger power seats, and I think it may have the leather heated seats as well?). The dealership is wanting $19,000 for it.

 

The second one is a 2019 Dodge Journey SE with the 2.4L engine and of course comes with pretty standard features. It only has 10,000 miles on it though and they are also asking $19,000 for it.

 

Which one would you guys suggest? We will only be using it as a family car and it won't get many miles put on it each year as my wife works only a couple of miles from our house. I've read great things about both engines and really everyone on the forum says you can't go wrong with either one. I know of course the V6 will have more power you can feel but have read that the 2.4L is sufficient. I currently have a 2014 Dodge Avenger with the 2.4L engine that I bought brand new and I love that car! I've put 140,000 miles on it and have only had to do regular maintenance items (oil change every 5,000-6000 miles with full synthetic oil, brakes, and tires) so I know that the 2.4L engine is a good one.

 

Any feedback anyone can provide will be helpful!

[5rebel9]

IF you've had the 2.4 Avenger  (     ). then yes you'd be happy with a "bare bones" Journey. BUT for same price...all the other goodies of the 3.6 would sway me to it.

[CStringer15]

5 minutes ago, 5rebel9 said:

IF you've had the 2.4 Avenger  (     ). then yes you'd be happy with a "bare bones" Journey. BUT for same price...all the other goodies of the 3.6 would sway me to it.

 

I actually still have my 2.4L Avenger and plan on driving it until it dies. It's been a great car! I'm fine with the bare bones but this Journey will be for my wife and she has a little more taste than I do when it comes to vehicles lol.

[5rebel9]

Ya know... the women folk ALWAYS get what they want. You can live peaceably with her with the 3.6 one or be HAPPY residing in the 2.4 one while parked next to your Avenger!...ROFL     

   We have (but now "parked") a 98 Avenger that the wife drove  .... UNTIL she saw an 08 G6gt sedan in HER color and with sunroof.  

[CStringer15]

10 minutes ago, 5rebel9 said:

Ya know... the women folk ALWAYS get what they want. You can live peaceably with her with the 3.6 one or be HAPPY residing in the 2.4 one while parked next to your Avenger!...ROFL     

   We have (but now "parked") a 98 Avenger that the wife drove  .... UNTIL she saw an 08 G6gt sedan in HER color and with sunroof.  

 

Ha! The 3.6 is the same color as my Avenger so that one would look pretty good sitting next to it as well  It sounds like either one would be a great choice so I am glad to hear that!

[2late4u]

sun roof = possible leaks...3.6 more power but more expense on plugs and repairs if ever needed. 2.4  less power but enough for a daily driver easier plug changes as well, might want to see about a new journey if any left since they are being phased out, full warranty,lower interest rates on loans  also should be able to get a better price on the bare bones one as at 19k that was probally what it cost someone when they bought it brand new....good luck with ever which one you choose

[NavalLacrosse]

3.6 hands down. 
 

3.6:

• You're gaining nearly 100 horsepower and only losing 2 mpg combined.  3.6hp=280hp
• You're gaining a 6sp Automatic Transmission, This means smoother drive.
• Engine sounds quieter, and roars rather than whines. on the highway in top gear it runs at a calm 1500 rpm at 75 mph. 
• Passing on the highway? pedal to the floor and after an admittedly longggg time for the car to pick a gear- it will rocket.

2.4:

• abysmal acceleration on the highways. not enough efficiency gained to warrant the loss of power.
• 4sp automatic transmission: The embarrassment of all automobiles sold, that this is the only one holding onto a relic of technology from 2 decades ago. (this is probably the reason the engine isn't more efficient.)
• on the freeway, it's time to pass: you'll miss those extra 100hp when your engine screams in redline and accelerates at a normal rate.

[neverhme]

The vvt v6 is the great thing,the good thing,the only thing on  journey thats any good.72k on my 2015, does not burn a drop of oil, had it over 100mph quite a few times over the years. I change the oil and have put 1 air cleaner in her, thats it.The rest of the car is junk,poorly designed with more flaws the the US government.I would not recommend one to my worst enemy.They are popular in Canada they even run tv ads, guess the can tolerate junk better then I do.

[jkeaton]

17 hours ago, neverhme said:

The vvt v6 is the great thing,the good thing,the only thing on  journey thats any good.72k on my 2015, does not burn a drop of oil, had it over 100mph quite a few times over the years. I change the oil and have put 1 air cleaner in her, thats it.The rest of the car is junk,poorly designed with more flaws the the US government.I would not recommend one to my worst enemy.They are popular in Canada they even run tv ads, guess the can tolerate junk better then I do.

 

Are you making yourself feel better yet? Yes. We get it. You don't like your Journey. 

 

[John/Horace]

Sales[edit]

 

Calendar year	United States	Canada	Outside North America	Mexico	Europe		Brazil	Argentina	Colombia	Australia
					Journey	Freemont				Journey	Freemont
2007[31]	109				2[32]
2008[33]	47,097	11,817[34]	24,155[35]	12,831[36]	5,101
2009[37]	53,826	15,390[38]	15,908[39]	13,491[40]	8,316
2010[41]	48,577	23,785[38]		13,063	6,254			2,280[42]	1,980[43]
2011[44]	55,155	29,021[45]	38,869	12,321[46]	901	13,651[47]		4,077[48]	1,567[49]	1,016
2012[50]	79,563	28,888[51]	23,624	13,034[52]	51	25,830	11,330[53]	2,376[54]	1,275[55]	1,428
2013[56]	83,933	27,745[57]		12,615[58]	27	18,826	2,423[59]	1,919[60]		1,661	1,111
2014[61]	93,572	24,715[31]		11,688[62][63]	2	17,417	7,478[64]	428[65]	561[66]	1,547	1,560
2015[67]	108,085	25,646[31]		10,972[68]	33	13,790	10,723	66[69]		1,184	1,273
2016[70]	106,759	16,883[31]		7,698[71][72]	65	3,084[73]	7,302	15[74]		366[75]	464
2017[76]	89,470[77]	13,745[78][79]		4,167[80] [71][81][82]		3[83]	469[84]	584[85]
2018[86]	94,096[87]	5,777		2,828[88]		2	324[89]	379[90]	321[91]
2019	74,687	2,631[92]		2,360[93][94]		1[95]	442[96]	66[97]	549[98]
2020	40,341[99]	420		615[100]				21[101]

[John/Horace]

Re they are popular in Canada....ahh no they are not look at wiki numbers. FCA employee discount goose the meagre numbers they have.  Most Japanese brands sell five six times that amount per model.

[NavalLacrosse]

Re: Canada Sales- They sell at a greater per-capita rate as the Americans every year from 2008-2017. Probably has a little do due with them being build in Canada for a while. In the first few years, the Canadians out-paced the Americans 2:1 on per-capita purchases. long-story-short, the Dodge Journey is VERY popular in Canada, much more so than the US- you'd see about 50% more of them on the road, when driving through any Canadian city.

Re: global Markets: In Brazil, Fiat Freemont is considered a great car, but it's only offered in the 4cyl and rarely turbo-diesel. They sell them with the 3.6L v6 under the Dodge brand, it's marketed as a higher-end SUV, considering you'd need to have a pretty good job to afford an imported car, and feed is the equivalent of $6usd/gallon of regular gasoline in an environment where there is two types of driving: City and Mountain freeways.

 

 

 

[John/Horace]

Cheapest awd vehicle sold north of border, I think that helped them up here for a little bit.  The comment was they are popular and they sell well in Canada. The Voyager/Caravan and Charger/Challenger made up here I think sell pretty well in their segments. In the suv market up here the Journey in its best year  never got to half the current sales of the RAV4 (made here as well) or other suvs.  Per capita versus US it looks like it did sell better here, true. More price sensitive market. There are no records I can find of the Journey being made in Windsor or Brampton plants, the two FCA/Stellantis facilities here. 

 

[John/Horace]

In the 2015-16 peak sales years in US they were number 12 in Canada. Couldn’t find peak sales Canada break down.  Semi-popular or popular, mmm.

Personally I don’t buy a vehicle because it’s popular, it’s function and value end of things.

 

Rank	Best-Selling SUV/Crossover	2016	2015	%  Change
#1	Toyota RAV4	49,103	42,246	16.2%
#2	Ford Escape	46,661	47,726	-2.2%
#3	Honda CR-V	44,789	38,961	15.0%
#4	Nissan Rogue	40,055	35,841	11.8%
#5	Jeep Cherokee	32,465	31,833	2.0%
#6	Mazda CX-5	25,123	22,281	12.8%
#7	Hyundai Santa Fe Sport	24,282	26,685	-9.0%
#8	Hyundai Tucson	23,789	16,362	45.4%
#9	Ford Edge	20,517	16,580	23.7%
#10	Chevrolet Equinox	19,197	19,766	-2.9%
#11	Jeep Wrangler	18,277	20,880	-12.5%
#12	Dodge Journey	16,741	25,646	-34.7%
#13	Kia Sorento	15,466	14,372	7.6%
#14	Ford Explorer	15,275	15,615	-2.2%