Used 2020 Dodge Journey for sale 

For the latest update, Dodge has axed one trim from the line up of Journey, which was one above the SE trim. This resulted in some of the features to trickle down to the base variant to increase its value for money quotient. There’s an option of a bigger and more powerful V6 engine, although not very efficient. The range-topping GT comes standard with the bigger engine but its an option for the mid-spec crossroad variant. 

What do we recommend?

The crossroad trim with the Driver convenience package seems to hit the right balance between value for money and enough usable kit. The crossroad trim gets an option of the bigger engine and it’s highly recommended for occasional towing duties and full load highway runs. This package makes way for the Uconnect infotainment system which uplifts the appeal of the cabin. It also gets updated 19” rims with touring suspension tuning.

The base Journey SE is offered with a 2.4 L gasoline engine which can be defined as sluggish at best. This engine is good for just 173 HP and is paired with an ancient 4-speed automatic gearbox. This coupled with the fact that it weighs 3500lbs, out on the highway it runs out of steam fairly quickly. Overtaking maneuvers have to be preplanned. The gearbox doesn’t help either. It takes forever to downshift and when it does, the engine has to be pushed really hard to get a move on and as a result, it gets all loud and boomy inside the cabin.

The pick of the pair is the 3.6L V6 engine which churns out 283 HP and 260 lb-ft of maximum torque. On paper, it sits inline with the competition in terms of power and torque figures but in the real world, it's not as punchy as one might expect it to be. With that said, it’s still a good enough engine to have. Dodge offers a much more superior 6-speed automatic transmission with this engine which further enhances drivability. The throttle on the Journey is sensitive so it lunges ahead in a spirited way at low speeds. But out on the highway, the engine has to be on the boil to make a move on.

On paper, VW Tiguan doesn’t stand a chance. It gets a small 2.0 L 4 cylinder motor with the least amount of power but its the cheapest of the lot too. Among the V6 powered beasts, the Dodge Journey is the least powerful SUV whereas the GMC Acadia exceeds the pack with the most amount of grunt.

How fast is it off the line?

The Journey is no drag machine and neither is it trying to be. That being said, it’s painfully slow off the line despite having a V6 producing just shy of 300 HP. The weight penalty is massive which eventually makes this mid-size SUV the slowest of the bunch. It’s still a huge improvement over the dud of an engine that the 4 cylinder motor is. The V6 engine being an NA motor is free from the initial lag but the mid-range is quite lacking. It is only when the engine sings to the redline when it comes alive. So the top end of the rev band is where the major action happens.

GMC Acadia and Kia Sorento are at the top of the game with the fastest 0-60 run but it’s at the quarter-mile when the GMC outruns the Korean by quite a big margin. The Journey claws back its way with the second-fastest quarter-mile time thanks to a meaty top end of the rev band. In the German corner, the Tiguan, being the least powerful, was the slowest of the bunch but not by a huge gap considering the power deficit, thanks to the light-weight nature of the chassis. 

What about the Braking performance?

For optimal braking performance, there are discs on all four corners. The brake pedal feel is sufficient and it’s easy to get used to the pedal pressure. Under heavy braking, the ABS seems to be a bit too intrusive and as a result, under panic conditions, judders can be felt inside the cabin which can be quite unnerving for the driver as well as the occupants. Due to softly sprung suspension, there’s heavy nose-dive under braking and the SUV doesn’t always hold on to its line. 

Dodge Journey reaches a halt from 60 mph is 132 ft. Not far from Tiguan in terms of braking performance but totally obliterated by Kia Sorento and the GMC Acadia. 

What about the Ride and Handling?

2020 Dodge Journey is a decade old mid-size SUV and it rides like one too. The suspension is softly sprung which results in a jiggly ride over roads with undulations. When pottering around the city, the Journey pampers its occupants with a cushiony ride but as the speed increases, this spongy suspension setup gives rise to a whole lot of vertical movements. One might think that having this soft suspension would be a boon for offroading trails but this is not the case. The Journey is a below-average performer when the trails get down and dirty. 

On-road manners are lousy. The handling is atrocious and the steering doesn’t help either. It’s lifeless and vague and when cruising on the highway, one has to work the steering all the time as it has a bit of play at the center position. Show it a set of corners and the Journey rolls around and loses its line. So, its best to sit back and relax and don’t drive the Journey in a hurry.

Fuel economy is not the strongest suit of the Journey. The four-pot motor from Dodge gets the worst EPA rating among all the competitors. With just 19 MPG in the city and 25 MPG on the motorway. The V6 is no better either. The figures drop even further to just 17 MPG in the city. 

Where the Journey struggles to give acceptable fuel economy figures, the Tiguan truly shines with the most efficient package among all the contenders with 22 MPG in the city and 27 MPG on the highway. Having the smallest engine does help though. The Kia and GMC have similar figures but their V6 power plants are a bit more efficient.

The cabin of the 2020 Dodge Journey exudes 2010 vibes. Dodge tried to keep the interiors feel fresh and keep them align with the expectations of the customers and also to compete with the competition but in reality, the cabin has a very old school feel to it and not in a good way. The plastics used are hard and feel tacky. To uplift the cabin’s feel, some leather treatment has been given to the dashboard and the door panels.

The seats in the front are accommodating and roomy enough. The comfort levels are high in the driver and passenger seats. That being said, the second and the third row of seating are disappointing. The headroom and legroom are decent in the second row but it lacks under-thigh support. The seats themselves are ingeniously designed and packs a host of nifty features like booster seats and LATCH mounts. The third row of seats is strictly recommended for children and that too for short journeys. Dodge claims that the Journey is packing a comfortable three-row setup but in reality, its barely a 5+2 configuration at best.

The seating position in the front is upright and gives a commanding view outside. The dashboard is low which even accentuates that “SUV’ feel. Visibility outside is excellent with a big glass area surrounding the cabin coupled with big rearview mirrors and no serious blind spots. 

The GMC Acadia is packing the most amount of passenger volume on paper of 143.8 Cu. ft. The Sorento is not far from the leader in terms of outright space available to stretch inside the cabin. The Volkswagen and the Dodge on the other end of the spectrum, are low on available and usable space.

What to expect on the Infotainment front?

The Journey gets an 8.4-inch touchscreen with Dodge’s Uconnect system. The system is fluid enough and very easy to use. Its the same system which can be found on other cars from the Dodge stable. The only let down of this particular system would be the absence of Apple Carplay and Android Auto from the whole package and the fact that only one USB port is available in the whole cabin, further drops the usability. That being said, there are plenty of 12-volt sockets available throughout which would definitely keep the gadget freaks happy.

There are some premium touches and some exclusive features available in the Dodge Journey, such as

• A six-speaker Alpine audio system
• DVD Player
• A 115-volt power outlet
• Bluetooth Music Streaming 
• Voice Command

What about the Cargo carrying capacity?

The cargo capacity in the Dodge Journey is decent but definitely not the best in the segment. The room behind the third row is not much but can take up a set of soft bags or some groceries. The third row has a 50:50 split function and can fold totally flat. With the third row down, a satisfactory amount of space opens up. The booth itself is square in shape and the loading lip is not high which makes it easy to load and unload heavy items. The second row folds flat too with a touch of a lever to open up 67.6 Cu. ft. of unadulterated cargo space. It’s as easy as it gets. 

Dodge has very cleverly designed a host of cubby spaces all around the cabin which only boosts practicality of the Journey.

The boot space behind the third row is actually the least among the competition but with the third row folded, Journey claws back its way into the game with a much more practical boot and totally smashes the Tiguan in this comparison. The GMC Acadia is the biggest SUV in terms of space inside the cabin and its way ahead of its competition. 

The Journey is totally destroyed by the competition when it comes to towing capacity. Where the journey can pull up to just 2500 lbs, its competitors can haul close to 3500 lbs. 

Notable interior features on offer?

The Journey is particularly lacking in terms of kit on offer and creature comforts but here’s a list of some of the highlights of the cabin of the Dodge Journey:

• Cloth or leather upholstery
• Six-way Power-adjustable driver seat
• Heated front seats
• Heated steering wheel
• Sunroof

The styling of the Dodge Journey is quite contemporary, to say the least. The journey was launched in 2009 and since Dodge has been tinkering a bit with the looks of the SUV in order to stack up against the ever-changing trends of the automotive market. But their attempts seem to be not working as the Journey ends up looking boring and quite bland in front of anything out on the road. The body doesn’t look sharp or striking from any angle and it kind of fades away in the ever-crowded crossover SUV segment.

Dodge Journey comes with 19-inch alloy wheels and some sporty blacked-out design elements on the bumpers to make it look interesting, but that doesn’t help either. There are wide wheel arches on the side to break the monotony in the design and to give it more “SUV” feel and stance but it ends up looking like a station wagon on stilts. 

GMC Acadia is the longest and also scores high on the on-road presence. But what’s impressive of the Journey is that it has the longest wheelbase in the segment and its the highest too. But at the same time, it's the heaviest of the lot.

What are the highlights on the outside?

The exterior upgrades for the 2020 model are very subtle and only keen-eyed enthusiasts can make out the changes. Some of these upgrades are:

• Body-colored door handles
• Automatic headlamps with DRLs
• Power foldable heated exterior mirrors
• Intermittent front and rear windshield wipers
• Chrome roof rails

The Dodge Journey on paper seems to be quite lacking in terms of safety equipment on offer. It doesn’t get basics like adaptive cruise control, forward collision mitigation, rear traffic cross alert, blind-spot monitoring system, etc. In addition, it’s crash test results are not great either. That being said, the 2020 model has yet to be tested by the agencies. 

Safety features on offer?

• Post-Collision Safety System
• Child Seat Anchors
• Dual Front Side-Mounted Airbags
• Stability Control
• Emergency Braking Assist
• Passenger Airbag Occupant Sensing Deactivation
• Rear Height Adjustable Headrests
• Remote Anti-Theft Alarm System
• 2 Front Headrests
• 3 Rear Headrests
• Dusk Sensing Headlamps
• Auto Delay-Off Headlamps
• Tire Pressure Monitoring
• Traction Control
• Ventilated Front Disc / Solid Rear Disc Brakes
• Front, Rear, And Third Row Head Airbags

Dodge Journey vs GMC Acadia

Both of these boasts 7 seating capacity with an immense cargo space but the overall package of GMC comes forward as a more polished and better-kitted product. The Acadia comes standard with more features so even the base variant is not a bad buy at all. That being said, the Journey still seems to be an attractive option for families on a tight budget with an SUV requirement.

Dodge Journey vs Kia Sorento

As its a Kia, it's way more refined and feels better put together. It almost has that German engineering feel to it. In terms of size, its comparable to the Dodge but it gets more features and is safer too. In terms of pricing, it does demand a premium of almost $3000 but at the same time, it’s more bang for the buck. Dodge seems to stand no chance in front of the Kia and can only win the battle with its cheap and affordable trump card. 

Dodge Journey vs Volkswagen Tiguan

Even though the Volkswagen Tiguan is smaller in size compared to the Dodge, but it is packing a serious amount of kit to fight its way through. It gets a superior infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, leaps and bounds ahead in terms of build quality and fit and finish. Its lighter and more fuel-efficient too. The engine department is where it lags behind as VW is offering a 2.0L 4 cylinder engine that feels laggy and underpowered. Dodge Journey, on the other hand, comes with the option of a V6 engine which is more powerful and feels more at home while towing heavy stuff. The competition is strong with this one. 

The Dodge Journey is lacking the flair which one might expect from a modern SUV. The feature list is scarce, the engines on offer feel underpowered coupled with an ancient feeling 4-speed automatic gearbox. The ride is unimpressive at high speeds and the third-row seating comfort is lacking. That being said, for someone on a very tight budget looking for a 7-seater SUV, Dodge Journey might just be a good value for money buy.