Journey Back To Dodge With The Journey R/T
There’s station wagons, there’s SUVs, there’s people movers. Then there’s the Dodge Journey/Fiat Freemont twins. A SUV look with people mover capability, station wagon style room and in R/T spec, rear seat DVD screen entertainment for (presumably) the kiddies. Punted along by a 206kW/342Nm 3.6L V6 engine alongside a six speed auto, there should be little to dislike. I “journeyed” to the Australian Alps and dragged the family along for the ride.
It’s a good sized veehickle, with a 4.9m length, 1.7m height and 1.8 metre overall width encasing over 1.4m of shoulder room for the front and 
mid row seats; yes, it’s a seven seater (an option) body however 
the test car came fitted with five, allowing some useful cargo space at the rear.It’s a user friendly and family oriented device, with washable storage lockers in the floor behind the front seats (ideal for canned drinks), one in the seat itself under the passenger seat cushion and where the rear seats in the seven seater would be. There’s enough here to suit some finely chopped firewood…At the front is the aforementioned 3.6L engine. Although 342 Nm sounds reasonable, it has to haul around a kerb weight of over 1900 kilos and with two adults, tow kids, luggage, it doesn’t mind a drink. The 78 litre tank was drained at a best of around 9.5L per 100 kilometres and at worst, you’d be better off towing a fuel station behind you. With such a relatively low torque figure, through just six speeds and inside a vehicle that’s not exactly a lightweight, unfortunately consumption will be in the negative. If Mitsubishi can offer a seemingly 
miniscule 2.2L diesel with 360 Nm that kicks off from around 1500 revs (peak torque from the 3.6L is high at over
4300 revs), then surely there’d be something suitable within the Chrysler/Fiat family? The transmission itself was mostly smooth, however sometimes felt, at certain rev points, that it was being strangled, holding gear and refusing to shift up or down and extra engine work was required, plus there were some clunks and shunts, almost as if something wasn’t meshing properly. There were some instances of thrashing from the engine, almost as if the revs needed to overtake weren’t being fed properly to the transmission when the loud pedal was prodded loudly.
To The Winter Wild…
As we head towards the end of the 2013/2014 financial year and you’re all looking at new cars and contacting the friendly, knowledgeable staff at Private Fleet, it’s also the end of the first month of June. The southern part of Australia is being swept by an almost Antarctic blast of cold, high speed winds and with the Australian Alps copping snow in levels that haven’t been seen in years, it’s apt that we take a look at driving in winter.
First up, tyres. These are, criminally, the most underrated part of any car on the road. Tread depth is the first thing to have a look at; check out the outside and inside part of the tread, is it worn, looking feathered? Across the tyre, does the tread look shallow, the rubber shiny? Just about any tyre retailer can assist in giving you some idea about this even if you don’t know the first thing. Then there’s the tread pattern itself. Cheaper tyres tend to have both lesser quality construction and average tread patterns, effectively offering up a less than ideal compromise when it comes to handling. Better brands will be designed to give better grip, with the tread (or block) pattern holding on better.
Just How Reliable Are Those Bells And Whistles?
Modern times bring new models, new versions and new results. Bigger, brighter better…well, better sometimes! One of the issues with applying new technology in new vehicles is that further down the track that we learn how reliable and robust the latest new technology is in practice.
The American consulting firm JD Power has reported that buyers of new cars are experiencing more problems in their cars compared with last year’s results. To keep up with other makers, car manufacturers are pressured into adding new technology as well as creating a new model quickly so as to stay ahead and keep exciting. Mostly, new car buyers are complaining of electronic components not functioning as they should. They appear to be frustrated with Bluetooth, voice recognition and navigation equipment not working properly. What’s the use of having satellite navigation if it’s not getting them to where they want to go (a bunch of bad sat-nav stuff-ups have been collected here)? Or Bluetooth communications that just cann
ot recognise your phones or and voice recognition systems that won’t understand them? What a nightmare. I remember using some of the new voice recognition software that just wouldn’t work as it should – there are few things more infuriating!
End Of Financial Year Sales
It’s that time of year again, where manufacturers and their dealerships do their best to lure you into the office and sign on the dotted line, with that signature an offer to buy a new car. There’s always savings to be had, especially on vehicles about to be superseded such as the Nissan Dualis but beware, not all vehicles are easily available and think about service costs as well.
Before you go shopping at a dealership then come back to Private Fleet, set yourself a list of what you want versus what you need. When, in a previous life, I was a car salesman, I was at one dealership that sold four brands. We would have people come in and ask for a diesel, automatic, people mover and immediately head to a petrol, manual five seater SUV….why? Because it was close to $16000 cheaper, BUT it wasn’t what they asked for. At another dealership I had some potential clients, a family, shopping for a car for mum and dad. The car they were looking at was a small five door hatchback. No problem with that, the problem was that they were morbidly obese and restricted quite severely in their movements. The car they were eyeing off was unsafe and unsuitable. Another thing to think about is the distance you drive and considering most people use their car to drive to and from work, the question will be either petrol or diesel. Diesel certainly has a couple of immediate advantages, being a flat cost (not subject to the price cycle petrol inexplicably has) and economy. However, if you drive short to medium distances constantly, the diesel engine’s particulate filter isn’t brought up to the correct operating temperature and will end up clogged, potentially causing engine damage.
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