2009 Dodge Journey SE,SXT,SXT AWD,RT,RT AWD
Posted on Mar 25, 2008 under Dodge |
2009 Dodge Journey Summary
The 2009 Journey is a 4-door, up to 7-passenger sport-utility, available in 5 trims, ranging from the SE to the RT AWD.
Upon introduction, the SE is equipped with a standard 2.4-liter, I4, 173-horsepower engine that achieves 19-mpg in the city and 25-mpg on the highway. A 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard. The RT AWD is equipped with a standard 3.5-liter, V6, 235-horsepower engine that achieves 16-mpg in the city and 23-mpg on the highway. A 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard.
The 2009 Journey is all-new for 2009.
Q:When the Chrysler first introduce the Journey. There are three engine choices, a 2.4L four-cylinder , a 2.7L FFV V6, and a 3.5L V6 available in U.S. and Canada. Now I don’t see any newspaper or magazine articals mention anything about the 2.7 V6 engine available in N.A. Is it not available in N.A.?
A:According to the Dodge we site, the 2.4L & 3.5L are the only two. Now, the smaller 2.7L used in the Avenger is E85 compatible. I can only guess, but perhaps they want to improve the economy of that 2.7L before they put back into the engine line up. Or, only having the two engines is better for them while building it. It’s going to come down to what is cheaper & more convienient for them. I personnaly would like to see a diesel-hybrid. Considering the price of fuel now, that would be great. The Journey is a nice looking car, but the market is saturated by vehicles in that class. It’s not going to have very good resale.
Q:My Father in law (80 Years) likes car like the Dodge Journey 09, but it isn’t a 4WD. Any similar cars & prices that have a 4WD?
A:
First of all, I would advise you NOT to buy the Dodge Journey. Currently, Chrysler is revamping quite a few of their products and has had some quality problems, so I would be a little unsure about the purchase of a new Dodge Journey. It looks great, but I’d wait a while to see how reliability is.
With that said, you have a lot of new and growing options.
The Ford Edge is what I’d recommend, because of it’s good price, great reliability and really, really nice, quality interior and ride. You can get a Ford Edge SE trim, with All wheel drive for about 26k, and most options are fairly inexpensive. Resale value so far has been very high, which is another plus. It gets about 19-24 miles to the gallon, which is also very good.
The Ford Taurus-X is also a good option, but it’s more of a station wagon. It barely sells, so you can get a great price on it, but it rides excellent and has good fuel economy. Most people simply overlook it.
The Mazda CX-9 SPORT trim, with AWD is slightly more expensive at around 28k, but is a little bit more upscale, and has a little bit more power and performance oriented. It’s also a very nice vehicle inside and out. Once again, resale value is high. Miles to the gallon is about 17-21.
The new Nissan Murano may look a little strange, but is a great vehicle also. You can get a Murano S trim, with AWD for about 28k, and you can most likely get the outgoing model for even less. It gets 18-23 mpg, but I can’t tell you how reliable it is as it hasn’t been out for that long.
The last generation model did pretty well, and most reviews have been positive. However, I believe the new model still uses a CVT, which although is very quiet, more reliable and more fuel efficient, may not be all that good on rougher terrain, but most of these vehicles aren’t in the first place.
The Toyota Highlander is a more conventional SUV, but it’s still a unibody vehicle. It starts at about 19k, but I wouldn’t consider- the 2.4 liter four cylinder just doesn’t feel like enough to power the almost 4000 ib SUV. The 3.3 liter is also underpowered, but it’s fairly nice. I’m not totally sure about reliability- Toyota hasn’t been doing all that great for the past 2 years, although usually their vehicles are pretty reliable. For AWD you’ll end up cashing out about 22k for the 4 cylinder.
Honda Pilot is another good vehicle, once again a little bit more conventional SUV like the Highlander. It’s price tag is just a little higher than the Highlander, but comes standard with a V-6. Once again, I’ve heard a few people complain about low power output, but overall I’ve ridden in it and it seems to be more powerful than the Toyota. With AWD the Honda Pilot comes in at about 22k
You can get very good rebates on Saturn Outlook, as their not selling, but it’s a great vehicle. Lots of room, almost as good fuel economy as the fore mentioned vehicles despite being a full sized SUV, AWD is an option. With AWD it comes out at about 24k. The GMC Acadia costs a little more for a few premium features, but would also be good to take a look at.
Overall, I would recommend the Ford Edge, Mazda CX-9 and Saturn Outlook. They’re all great vehicles, and the domestics have really brought up their game. Good luck!
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MSRP |
Invoice |
Engine |
Fuel Econ. |
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2009 Dodge Journey SE |
$19,360 |
$18,218 |
2.4L I4 173HP |
19/25 mpg |
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2009 Dodge Journey SXT |
$22,360 |
$20,724 |
3.5L V6 235HP |
16/23 mpg |
|
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2009 Dodge Journey SXT AWD |
$24,905 |
$23,015 |
3.5L V6 235HP |
16/23 mpg |
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2009 Dodge Journey RT |
$25,920 |
$23,928 |
3.5L V6 235HP |
16/23 mpg |
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2009 Dodge Journey RT AWD |
$27,670 |
$25,503 |
3.5L V6 235HP |
16/23 mpg |
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