Did the Journey change your opinion of Dodge?

[rolly]

I hear people making negative comments about Dodge and mostly it's from people who have never owned one. I might be a little biased as a retiree from Chrysler, but I've never had a problem with any of the Chrysler products I've bought. The Journey is the best of all the vehicles I've owned. How many of you were hesitant about buying a Dodge and did the Journey change your opinion? How many of you bought a Dodge for the first time and are pleasantly surprised? If you've had issues, how many were dealer related and will that experience influence your opinion in the future?

[redtomatoman]

It seems to me that Dodge and Chrysler have been the convenient whipping boy for auto manufacturers. For whatever reason Chrysler's reliability record is seen as below the rest of the American auto makers and Japanese seen as the best. Maybe that's true, but I personally don't believe it. Its all marketing. Subaru vehicles are beloved in the US, but the fact is they lack fit and finish, IMO. Subaru vehicles in Canada, OTOH, are much less popular with Dodge clearly outselling them. Even in a wintery climate where awd is important. Marketing is powerful. I have a Dakota with nearly 250k miles on it as my daily driver. Runs great. All manufacturers have their strengths. I absolutely love my Pentastar and I think Dodge/Chrysler vehicles have pushed their styling as to be the coolest for decades. My opinion. I'm not at all surprised by my Dodge. Great car.

[bigtsr]

I have driven Chysler products exclusively

since 1984 both in a daily driver and for

for business and despite a few quirks that

I found minimal or were quickly resolved

I have never had an engine or transmission

failure.

Mopar or no car!

[jkeaton]

I've owned numerous Chrysler/Dodge products over the years as well as other manufacturers both foreign and domestic. From my experience, Chrysler products have been no better/no worse from a maintenance or problem/issue/reliability standpoint. I fully understand no vehicle is perfect and accept that every vehicle will have some flaw or component failure somewhere, sometime. The Journey did change my opinion about that particular segment as there is NOTHING else out there that compares to the features, style, engine, performance, etc in a similar price range. There is more bang for the buck in the DJ than any other similar 7 person CUV/SUV out there. This is our second Journey, and I've said this before, it won't be the last. The first vehicle I ever owned was a Dodge (1969 Charger), and I plan on making a Dodge the last vehicle I ever own as well. Agree with bigstr: MOPAR or NO CAR!

[Lobitz68]

This is my 4th Dodge in a row and none of them have had any major issues... I currently own 2. I have owned other vehicles from American and Japanese manufacturers and I prefer my Dodges to all of them. I agree with jkeaton that there is nothing that even comes close to touching the DJ as far as bang for the buck.

[Journey_SeXT]

Great thread Rolly as this one applies to me! The Journey is my first Dodge or Chrysler product ever. I've always driven Asian vehicles except for the '79 Camaro and I would say the Chevy Aveo but that was made by Daewoo. Anyhow, it's always been like taboo to own anything by Chrysler between family and friends so imagine the jitters I had when I went to finally purchase the Journey. It's one of the most comfortable rides I've had and I love the power of the 3.6L. It seems well built and I love to baby it with lots of TLC. All in all it has been a very nice vehicle and yes I have changed my opinion about their product BUT I am still a little disappointed with their dealerships....no offence Journeyman425. I just can't find one that I honestly like and trust like I did with Honda and GM (Leggat Chev Toronto). It's probably something that Chrysler should work on with dealerships like they do with the Asian cars. I think once I'm ready to switch vehicles I will definitely take Dodge into consideration but my options are also open to brands like Hyundai/Kia which also produce a fine vehicle with a standard 5 year bumper to bumper warranty.

[rolly]

Great answer. I put in the comment about the dealerships, because I too had problems with a great dealership that went bad after a change of ownership. I've seen so many forum members complain about treatment after the purchase. I'm fortunate that there were many other dealers in our area, so I went to a different dealer and so far the dealer I chose has been A1. Having a long history of Chrysler products with solid and reliable service ( also being a Chrysler retiree helps) it was easy for me to continue buying Mopar. I can understand someone who bought a Chrysler product for the first time and having a terrible dealer experience, having second thoughts. That's why I love this forum and the great members who share their knowledge, experience and support. We have two great reps from Dodge who are here to smooth out the wrinkles and help make ownership a worthwhile experience. We also have Journeyman425, who sets a great example of the kind of dealer everyone appreciates. It's a tough competitive market, with great products from all manufacturers and a great ownership experience is not only the goal but vital for success.

Edited September 26, 2014 by rolly

[Lawdog1911]

I came from a 3rd generation GM family and the Journey was what converted me to Chrysler products. My Journey made me start selling cars at my local Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram dealership. From there, I fell in love with the line up offered and haven't gone back to GM. I wont get rid of my Hondas ( 2008 Fit, 2009 Accord, 2008 CRV ) because they are paid off ( they were bought after getting married as a joint agreement, lol ), but from now on its Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram, and Fiat (Wife wants to replace Honda Fit with 500 L ).

Edited September 26, 2014 by Lawdog1911

[PapaG]

Sort of... I loved my 69 340 Dart Swinger that I bought in 1970. Did modes and stuff. The first gas crunch killed my driving it. I God forgive me I traded it on a Vega and got nothing for it. Bought a New Jeep Liberty, almost the worst car I have ever owned. Wife loved it, I hated it. Owned a few things after that. Bought my 01 Jeep Cherokee, which I like 2 wd much later which we still have. A Saturn Vue with the rubber transmission which sucked big time. I liked it but it I still have it, but with a bad transmission. Then a Chevy Equinox, we had gotten the SUV bug by then. It was ok for a while, some problems, but we had a few problems that were fixed but came back. Then a big one that the shop I used could not fix. He had access to everything but dealer tech support. Time to go. My son bought a one year old DJ. They liked it, we liked it. So we got a new one form the same place he bought his... Phone sales by my wife, she got what she wanted, but we did not check out the options, our Bad, Got a right price with extend warranty that covers everything for 100k. My son had a Grand Caravan that gave him quite a bit of problems, so he traded it for the DJ. He had a 98 Dodge diesel that he traded on the Van. It was a good truck but he could not get all the kids and wife in it. Double cab.

Sorry for the long history,,, My son also has a Jeep Jeep. too. He is outside phone sales for a Big Dodge Dealer in Houston... HE went through a lot of bad times with bad dealers, dealers that sold out and all kinds of stuff for several years. He is back with Dodge and is happy.

So I am happy with Chrysler products. Would I recommend them to other people?? Yes and said so on Facebook (no bad comments on that please )

Edited September 26, 2014 by PapaG

[rolly]

Great story. Don't apologize for the history lesson, that's why I posed the questions. Good or bad the forum is for sharing. Thanks!