This one goes out to the family men. Gone are the days when you can drive around that two seater, or tear up the strip in that sports car. But just because you are a family man, doesn’t mean you have to go the station wagon or mini-van route. A very nice alternative would be the Dodge Journey SXT, which Dodge labels as the most affordable seven-passenger vehicle in America. With a base price of $24,495, the Journey won’t break the bank. We took the Dodge Journey for a spin and found some very cool things about it, check out what we thought and let us know your take on it as well.
Style
The Dodge Journey SXT doesn’t by any means looks like a “family” vehicle, and that is why I like it. I could totally see myself rocking this car and driving around the family, without looking like a total domestic man lol. The Journey we had came in a nice gray color that looks good in the day or night time. The grill on the front of the car looks aggressive so although it is a midsize crossover, it holds it own with the other SUVs out there. The look if clean and modern from front to back, and looks good parked outside your home or in you drive way.
On the inside the clean look continues. With a Black and gray interior the Journey just looks impressive. The dashboard, center console has all the features and gadgets front and center. The back seats look comfortable and functional as well.
Tech
Now this is what really sold me on this car, the tech inside the Dodge Journey SXT is awesome! Where to begin, we’ll start with just approaching and starting the car. The Journey SXT was equipped with Remote Keyless Entry. During the entire week with the Journey, I rare if ever had to take out my key. As long as the key was in my pocket, I could literally just walk up to the car and open the door. I mean I literally just put my hand on the handle in the motion of grabbing it and the door unlocked. This was cool. I configure the settings to allow for this unlocking to open all the doors, so when I grabbed my handled, all the doors unlock. From there I was just a push of the Start/Stop button to turn the car on. In fact the only time I did have to take the key out of my pocket was when I wanted to remote start the car, say from my living room before I headed out. Other than that, the pocket it stayed.
Once the car was on, there was a 4.3 inch LCD touchscreen that their Uconnect media center. This allowed me to access music, climate controls, and more. Though the 4.3 inch screen is functional, I would spring for the available 8.4 inch touchscreen because that would just be boss!
Going past that there is also the Bluetooth connection that not only allows for the make/receiving of calls, but also allowed me to play my music via smartphone. In this case I was using Spotify the most with a cameo or two of Google Play Music. Not only was I able to play the music, but control it from the steering wheel as well. What was also cool about the Dodge Journey SXT was the way I could control the music and volume. Normally you see the control buttons on the front of the steering wheel, with the Journey they were on the back. See the picture to the right. I thought this was very cool.
Experience
The week drive was definitely want to say the least. From the moment I first sat in the Journey, to having to give it up, it was a great ride. I loved being able to walk up to the car, open the door, start it, and then going without ever having to lay a finger on the car keys. No more fumbling around your pocket to get the keys when you are about to enter, just put it in the pocket and go.
Once inside the car was clean, and comfortable. Being out to use UConnect to sync up my phone allowed for me to listen to my music from any source on my phone via Bluetooth. Spotify, Google Play Music, Pandora…pick your pleasure and then control it all from the steering wheel. Interacting with the touchscreen was equally as easier and simple to use, which translated into less time looking at the screen and more eye time on the road.
Also nice was the driver/passenger side climate controls, which always comes in handy. I like it cool, while the misses likes it warmer. Now both of us can be comfortable without disturbing the other, if only they had that for the home! lol
When it came to the driving experience, it was a joy. The Journey had some great pick up, so the power was there when I needed it. When I needed a smooth ride, the Journey provided that as well. I even needed to haul some time during my review, as I took the time to drop off some stuff to the Salvation Army. I was able to fold the back seats down and increase the carrying space I needed. So all around the Dodge Journey SXT was able to handle any scenario I threw at it.
Wrap Up
The Dodge Journey SXT makes an excellent family man vehicle for the dad who needs to be able to transport his family and all that comes with that, but still look cool doing it. It has power, style, and a lot of cool tech inside. What more could you ask for? Skip the mini-vans and go on a journey!
