2015 Dodge Journey SXT AWD - Proud New Owner

[QuarterSwede]

The idea for my 2000 Dodge Neon was to drive it into the ground before I took on a car note (I've never had one more than 3 months). While I didn't literally acheive that goal a faulty temp gauge and heater that stopped working and wasn't the valve was the last straw. It was a great commuter car and had seen its transmission replaced, 156K miles, and desperately needed a new paint job.

2 weeks ago my wife and I walked into a dealership looking to buy a 2015 Crossroad they had on the lot for 2 months. It had all the features we wanted, leather seats, heated steering and front seats, 8.4" UConnect system, Auto headlights, remote start, etc. However, someone had bought it the night before.

So we settled on a black SXT and had an aftermarket Pioneer NEX system installed by the dealer (3rd party but under warranty). I didn't get the heated package but it doesn't really need it anyway as it heats up quickly. In fact, I find it too hot most of the time even with the fan on 1. I swore I'd never buy another black vehicle after my black 99 Honda CRX Si without working A/C. Super fun car to drive ... I miss her. So I hope the A/C cools as fast as it heats.

What I love:

+ Push button start is underrated. It's easily one of my favorite nice touches. Grabbing the handle and having it unlock is magical, especially when you have 3 kids.

+ It's super quiet (great sound proofing) for a very affordable vehicle.

+ The exhaust sounds fantastic. Has that guttural quality of expensive muscle cars.

+ It's smoother over pot holes than expected.

+ It's fun to drive. That 3.6L, 6 speed transmission, AWD give more power and grip than expected. Not sure why critics say it's just okay to drive. It's no BMW or Audi but I think it's been unexpectedly fun. Maybe it's the AWD that makes the difference. This is my first AWD vehicle. Only other regular experience is a 3.7L 4x4 Jeep Liberty (it truly has to much power).

+ It's effortless to drive. It feels like Dodge nailed that. It really is a man van.

+ The interior fit and finish is fantastic for the price range. Especially the black & beige two tone.

+ Telescopic steering wheel

+ The storage is great.

+ The door panels are incredibly easy to pop off. Adding my aftermarket speakers was a breeze.

+ Oil changes 3K to 10K miles depending on driving conditions. I'm used to changing it every 3K so that being the lowest end is excellent.

+ Under door lights were unexpected and surprisingly useful

+ LED brake lights.

Things I don't like:

- No oh sh!t bars. How is this NOT standard!?

- No auto lights on my trim level. That's probably $25 in parts, if that. I'm tired of auto makers making cheap for them options only available on higher trim levels to upsell.

- No auto wiper option at all. I drove a Ford Focus in Germany that had that option and it was freaking fantastic. One of those, once you've experienced it you never want to do it manually again, things.

- No turn indicator on the mirrors like many CUVs and SUVs. Safety is a no brainier Dodge and that's a cheap option implement. Plus it looks cool.

- The 3 blinks lane switch indicator can't be lengthened. I'm sorry folks but 3 simply isn't long enough for proper lane changes. It's a good option, just not long enough for me. 5 seems about right for my driving habits.

- Stock speakers are absolutely horrendous as is the amp. Mopar hasn't gotten any better which is embarrassing considering I just drove a rental Hyundai Accent (super cheap) that delivered surprisingly good balanced audio. I'm changing out the speakers anyway but I didn't think stock would be that bad in the interim.

Overall, my 2 week review is that I love this vehicle. I can't believe we got it under $20K base with low mileage. Even though it's more basic than what I wanted it's still one of my favorite vehicles that I've owned. My kids and wife also love it. It's comfortable, quiet, and easy to drive. Just what a guy in his mid 30's with a wife and 3 kids needs.

Edited December 6, 2015 by QuarterSwede

[priell3]

Nice review. We are enjoying our Journey.

[QuarterSwede]

Glad you like your new journey. They do leave a lot of features off of the SXT, but thats the name of the to get you to upgrade.

Yeah. It's too bad because I believe they'd serve their customers better by making a lot of the cheap to implement features standard like Tesla does. Their customer satisfaction would certainly skyrocket which in turn would generate more customers.

There are no oh sh*t bars because of the side curtain airbags being mounted in the way.

It seems they're an option though. It's on the parts list for sure.

Nice review. We are enjoying our Journey.

Thanks. It seems it's a fairly underrated car which is unfortunate as its one of Dodge's better ones. Now if they could only drastically improve the city MPG ... Edited December 6, 2015 by QuarterSwede

[bramfrank]

The grab handles (at least in front) are another upscale feature (my Crossroad has them). You get them on Canadian SXTs I believe - there's a HUGE difference between the specifics of the trim levels of similarly named models in Canada vs. the US.

Automatic headlights are actually a fairly expensive thing to add - you need a new light switch assembly ad you need a replacement light sensor assembly - then the feature code needs to be enabled by the dealer.

If they gave all those little features in the base model no one would ever buy the upscale ones.

Edited December 6, 2015 by bramfrank

[jkeaton]

They didn't make Journeys in 2000.

[QuarterSwede]

The grab handles (at least in front) are another upscale feature (my Crossroad has them). You get them on Canadian SXTs I believe - there's a HIGE difference between the specifics of the trim levels of similarly named models in Canada vs. the US. Automatic headlights are actually a fairly expensive thing to add - you need a new light switch assembly ad you need a replacement light sensor assembly - then the feature code needs to be enabled by the dealer.

If they gave all those little features in the base model no one would ever buy the upscale ones.

I get that and I'm talking about at the factory, not at a dealership. I work in retail merchandising for a large corporation so I know all about that. Having a good educated guess as to how much some of these parts cost to make and the ease of coding is maybe why it irks me so much. I realize they offset the cost to cover R&D and such but I think it's shortsighted.

I believe they'd do much better in the long run if they narrowed the trim levels down to 3, 4 with off road capable.

- Basic (bare bones, mainly rental market and people on major budgets)

- Well equipped (this is what they're pushing most people to anyway)

- Loaded (literally everything)

Exception:

- Off Road (off road capable platforms could keep an off road trim. Not everyone wants it)

It would save them a ton in configuration costs because it would give them a more efficient building process and simplify the buying process which customers would reflect on their customer satisfaction surveys.

Edited December 6, 2015 by QuarterSwede

[QuarterSwede]

They didn't make Journeys in 2000.

Whoops. I meant Neon. Edited. Thanks.

[dhh3]

Welcome to the forum. Case in point: for 2016, there are 2 Crossroads: Crossroad, Crossroad Plus. But, to get the things that mine had standard, you have to buy the Crossroad Plus and add the 1,000 Leather Option. I honestly bought mine for the color! Didn't know much about the DJ. Love the car, hate the radio.

Edited December 7, 2015 by dhh3

[Lobitz68]

Love the cat, hate the radio.

Freudian slip?

[dhh3]

I was thinking HellCat