One year check in.....

[jkeaton]

Been about a year since we purchased our beloved 2013 DJ SXT. Bought it used at Carmax, had just shy of 9,000 miles and we got it for less than $18,000. Balance of factory warranty (of course) and also purchased an extended 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty (bumper to bumper). She now has 24,500 miles on her. I've done 2 oil changes, full synthetic, Wix extended mileage filter (due for another, I dont wait for the indicator, every 5000 miles is all I'm comfortable with, getting ready to do another this weekend). I just rotated the tires again. Brakes still have tons of life (over 3/8" on all, cudos to Chrysler or Fiat for addressing the brake issue).

We have taken her on a trip to Chicago last spring (1500 miles round trip) and to Florida this past summer (1200 mile round trip) and I must say, she took it all i stride. Averaging 25-26 mpg. Not great, but she was fully loaded with 4-5 passengers each time. Never missed a beat. Comfortable, smooth, etc.

The DJ is my wifes daily driver. If there was something wrong, she would tell me, you know how that goes...... : )

Have made one dealer visit, just before the Chicago trip, to make sure everything was A-OK. They did a couple of software updates and that has been the extent of dealer interaction (we have a great dealer here, always take care of us).

Pros:

• Comfortable both to drive and to ride. Love the reclining second row seats and the ability to control my own HVAC when in the front. (separate driver/passenger settings)
• Style. Everywhere we go, people we interact with comment on how pretty she is, how much room is inside, etc.
• Power. Enough for me in stock form. Gets up and goes when I want her to. No problem merging, overtaking grandma on that one stretch of two lane road when we get stuck behind her, or powering past a semi on the interstate when doing 70 and you just want to get past.
• Brakes!!! After replacing the rotors and pads on our 09 twice before 20,000 miles, it is so nice to have them work like they are supposed to and last longer.
• Tires. Stock Kuhmos still have plenty of life. I keep the pressures checked and rotate every 5000 miles. No problems at all, even in the snow we had last winter (not much by Canadian standards, but plenty for around here). I just know what the limitations are and I drive according to the conditions, never had a problem.
• HVAC: Works good. No problems with front or rear systems.
• Audio: No problems to report. Love the bass from the stock system. Have no plans to upgrade anything. It sounds great as is.
• No problems with starting, running or turning off. FOB's work fine. Love being able to just pull on the door handle without having to push any buttons to gain entry.
• DRL's: Turned them on using the touch screen. No problems.
• Lighting: Upgraded all interior to LED's. No problem using normal LED (CANBUS not required). Headlights and fogs plenty bright enough for me. Am not considering upgrading to HID's like I did with the 09 (which had horrid headlights)

Cons:

• Transmission is still clunky. Upshifts too soon for my style. Shudders on downshifts sometimes. Clanks now and then. I've done some research on these issues and I'm not too concerned. I just accept it and drive on. If something does go wrong, we have a warranty, and a free rental (made sure of that upon purchase and have it in writing).
• Drivers seat back right side will sometimes move if I shift my position. Kinda like one side "clicks" back and the other side stays put. Keeping an eye on this as it might turn out to be a mechanical issue with the ratcheting system for the seat back. (warranty issue if it gets too bad).
• Oil filters: Too dang expensive. Don't know why they figure doing away with an actual metal filter and only have a paper one will end up costing more money...lol.
• Washing: So many crevices and nooks/crannies. Makes washing her almost twice as long as washing my Eclipse.
• Brake dust!! Can't wait till the OEM pad wear out so I can replace with ceramic. The car will remain in pristine clean condition but the wheels get dirty so fast!!! Bugs the crap out of me.
• No roof rack cross bars. Why in the world they would do that is beyond me. I should have snagged them off the 09 when we traded it in.

As you can see, I dont have many complaints at all. I can live with each and every one because the pros far outweigh the cons. And the cons are more cosmetic (aside from the transmission or drivers seat). In heartbeat, I would buy another. I am currently looking for another DD for myself, and am solely looking at Chrysler products. I had a 1999 Sebring convertible last year that leaked oil something awful (common problem on the 2.7L V6), so I sold it and bought a 2005 Eclipse spyder convertible (still Chrysler made for the most part). I'm now looking at a newer Sebring, 200 or PT Cruiser convertible (love convertibles).

Anyhoo,,,,happy motoring my DJ friends. Though I'd bring you up to date. Cheers!

Edited October 5, 2014 by jkeaton

[rolly]

Good report!

[af3ll]

Very informative and makes me feel no regrets for ordering mine. Seems like there are some pretty good people on this site.

[dhh3]

Glad to hear this. I bought mine in June. Just crossed 2500 miles! My transmission does clunk occasionally, and my driver's seat headrest keeps moving up by itself. No rattles. Very good, solid car. Now I have something to look forward to.

I snagged a set of new cross bars off of ebay, as soon as I got it. Haven't had to use them yet, but at least I know that they are there. Most of my driving is around town. Initially I averaged around 15 - 16. Now I am constantly at 17 - 18. Last I looked: 17.5. Huge improvement over my Nitro.

Just received our first snow - about 4"+. I'll see how my FWD takes it. This is the first non 4wd drive truck that I have owned in ovver 20 years.

[hockey_puck]

Nice report JK! I'm at the 6 month mark. Have not had to go in for any warranty work whatsoever. Now that snow arrived (late for us) I finally get to see the traction control work. Very pleased. It works well. Happy to report that they upgraded brake pads for 2014 to ceramic so I get no visible dust on the wheels at all. I do love the heated seats and steering wheel. I'm turning into a heat suck. Since the Journey came with remote start, I now open the garage door from inside and hit the button to start it. Simply decadent! I would not have thought of ordering that feature if it was optional. But now I love it. The only thing I wonder about is there always seems to be condensation dripping out of the mufflers after shutoff. A bit of water on the garage floor below the driver side muffler. Just a little from the passenger side muffler. Any one else get this?

Did pickup some Weathertech floor liners. They are terrific. Like to keep the carpet mats pristine for non winter seasons.

HP

[bigtsr]

The condensation drip is normal,without you would replacing

them a lot sooner.