Not long before the Journey was brought out,
Dodge dropped its short-wheelbase minivans, leaving many to compare
the Journey to the former Dodge Caravan.
Crossovers are becoming an increasingly popular segment of
the market, and the Journey gets Dodge into this game.
The Dodge Journey is available in five- and seven-seat
versions. Available with four-cylinder or V-6 power, the Journey can
have either front- or all-wheel drive. The Journey's competitors
include the Ford Edge, Hyundai Santa Fe, Subaru Tribeca and Toyota
Highlander. The 2009
Journey has a starting MSRP of $20,925 - $29,335.
Power for the Journey
The
Dodge Journey is offered with a choice of two powerplants: a
173-horse 2.4-liter four hitched to a four-speed automatic or a
235-horse 3.5-liter V6 connected to a six-speed. The Journey's V6
provides sufficient acceleration but few thrills- unless you're
turned on by mild torque steer.
2009 Design Features
The Journey is a relatively good-looking
vehicle with a solid stance, an elegant tapered greenhouse, and a
square-jawed mug. Large front and rear fender flares accent wheels
as large as 19 inches in diameter. The Journey measures 192.4 inches
long overall, 72.2 inches wide and 69.9 inches tall with the
available roof rack. The Journey is boxy but not boxy enough to make
a statement exterior is totally, completely, forgettable.
Journey
Drive
The Journey has excellent road manners. The
sound insulation is excellent, protecting occupants from blasting
stereos of other vehicles as well as wind noise.
From the driver's position, visibility is good going forward,
but the rear window is fairly small and does not allow much
visibility to the immediate rear of the tall crossover; and the rear
quarter panel has a hopeless blind spot when the middle row of seats
is up, compounded by the headrest of the rearmost seats.
Inside the Dodge Journey
The second-row seats slide and fold forward for
third-row access in a one-handed operation, and the third-row
seatbacks split, fold forward, or recline up to six degrees. Whereas
Dodge's Grand Caravan minivan can have Stow 'n Go or Swivel 'n Go
seating, the Journey offers a new Flip 'n Stow system, which is
essentially a storage bin under the front passenger seat cushion
that's revealed by tilting forward that cushion. The rear doors open
nearly 90 degrees for ease of entry and loading, and there's a
clever concealed storage area under the front-passenger seat
cushion. Like the occasional-use rearmost seats, the middle seats
can fold down to make more room for cargo; if all seats are up,
there is very little cargo room. Front seats are firm but moderately
comfortable; middle seats bring up the joke about scientists
discovering a material harder than diamonds, which is being put to
use in Chrysler seats. The rearmost seats are likewise made of
park-bench materials.
The rear seat video is good quality and has a nicely sized screen;
and the system provides a mounting point for the roof-mounted rear
climate controls, which may be too high up for younger passengers.
As one would expect from a vehicle designed to
replace minivans, there are plenty of storage places, including a
center armrest in the back seat that doubles as a cupholder; map
pockets with integrated large-drink holders on every door; a dual
glove compartment whose upper level is designed to keep a large
drink bottle cold; a small but deep covered center bin; a smaller
center bin and a large bin under the center stack; an upper storage
area above the center stack; a sunglass bin that doubles as a clever
mirror to let parents keep an eye on all five rear seats; and
underseat storage. The most unique aspect of the vehicle by far is
the standard, removable underfloor cooler/storage. The second-row
seats slide and fold forward for third-row access in a one-handed
operation, and the third-row seatbacks split, fold forward, or
recline up to six degrees. The rear doors open nearly 90 degrees for
ease of entry and loading, and there's a clever concealed storage
area under the front-passenger seat cushion.
The front head restraints angle a bit too forward.
Summary
The Journey offers every feature a family could
ever need, such as theater-style seating, a window line low enough
for children in back to see out, an optional emergency-size split
third-row seat for carpool day (on SXT and R/T models), available
rear-seat entertainment, and integrated booster-seat cushions in the
second-row bench, which slides fore-and-aft nearly five inches.
All-disc
antilock brakes, side-impact airbags for the front seats, three-row
side curtain airbags, a tire pressure monitoring system and an
electronic stability system are standard.