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Chris La Mantia

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Hello!  So my beloved Dodge Intrepid just went to the junkyard after 240,000 miles.  It was a good car.

 

My plan had always been to replace it with a Challenger (gotta stay MOPAR) in a couple of years, but the Trep decided it's time was up on its own schedule.  I'm in the process of starting a photography business, and after thinking about how much of a pain it was getting all my lighting gear in and out of the Intrepid, practicality won out over midlife crisis and I find myself in possession of a 2009 Dodge Journey SXT in Silver Steel with 75K on the odometer.  My wife already has a 2015 Dodge Journey Crossroad and she loves it.

 

Chris

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31 minutes ago, 2late4u said:

well with a 2009 you know what problems lie ahead, but good luck and welcome to the group.....

Actually I don't, are there a bunch of known issues with the 2009's?  So far it seems to be a good vehicle and the Carfax seems to indicate that it was well taken care of, and it has the 3.5 engine. But I'll start looking for threads on 2009's, thank you!

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If you really want another DJ, I would stay 2013 or later models.  I have a 2011 that has been great but I did have the pentastar cylinder head issue that was corrected without any further problems.  I think 2013 and later have better uconnect software as well.  While I don't know exactly what they are, 2009 and 2010 have some issues.  The 3.5 isn't nearly the engine that the 3.6 is, fyi.

 

I feel you, my beloved dodge dakota 4x4 has 257,000 on it.  Looking at a wrangler when my dak retires.

 

Peace.

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Chrysler 3.5L = Chrysler 4.0L, just under-bored.  Belt driven timing (instead of chain, like in the 2.4L and the 3.6L Pentastar) - that's your big potential issue.  And also the fact that 2009 was the first production year for the Journey, so it had a higher instance of recalls than later years.

 

This advice holds true in electronics and vehicles (which are basically gasoline-powered computers at this point) - NEVER* buy the first production run!  Be wary of the second.  3rd and later will usually have substantially fewer problems.  2013 was the third year with the Pentastar engine - I haven't heard of any issues from Journey or Grand Caravan/Town & Counntry owners with that engine after the cylinder head problem of 2011.  Production run counts start over again when the engine changes; cosmetic adjustments don't count for much.

 

*Unless you're buying a performance car, like the Demon.  Then buy it if you can afford it and the potential headaches.

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Welcome aboard! Check for open recalls (there are a few) and be prepared to replace brake components (pads/rotors) quote frequently, unless you replace with quality aftermarket parts. Our 09, 4 cylinder served us well for 3.5 years and @85,000 miles before we traded it on the 2013 with the 3.6. Only major repairs were replacing a bad alternator and had an intake runner valve failed. All covered by our extended warranty (minus $100). You did purchase an 8 year old used vehicle. Hopefully it was maintained well over its life. First thing I would do (which I always do when I buy a used vehicle), is catch up on all the maintenance items listed in the manual (unless you have documented evidence that recommended services were done) 

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Fortunately it was maintained regularly by the dealer I bought it from, all recalls have already been addressed and they gave me a 4 year Chrysler factory warranty with it. As far as Uconnect, first thing I did was pull the factory CD changer out and put in my Android navigation/stereo unit. :D

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On 7/14/2017 at 0:10 PM, Chris La Mantia said:


As far as Uconnect, first thing I did was pull the factory CD changer out and put in my Android navigation/stereo unit. :D

This is the unit I added. Unfortunately the size wasn't an exact fit so I had to Dremel the opening a bit wider and didn't do a super clean job of it, but at least I have Waze and a backup camera again.

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