Automotive News - February 11, 2008 - (Page 25) FEBRUARY 11, 2008 • 25 Chrysler rejoins crossover segment Dodge stresses storage to set Journey apart Bradford Wernle bwernle@crain.com 2008 Dodge Journey LAS VEGAS — Chrysler LLC has been short on product lately in the hot crossover market. With the Chrysler Pacifica deleted in November, Chrysler hasn’t had the ammo to fight competitors such as the Ford Edge, Toyota RAV4 and Chevrolet Equinox. Enter the Journey, Dodge’s answer to the question: What would the vehicular equivalent of the Swiss Army Knife look like? The answer is a vehicle that looks meaner than a minivan and offers all-wheel drive but has some of the comforts of a passenger car. The basics: The Journey, made at Chrysler’s plant in Toluca, Mexico, is based on the same front-wheel-drive platform as the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Avenger sedans. But the wheelbase is four inches longer, and the driver’s seat is six inches higher. Notable features: With the Journey, Dodge engineers have tried to answer some criticisms of the Sebring and Avenger. They have added softer interior surfaces on the armrests and dashboard and redesigned the instrument cluster with upgraded knobs and switches. Designers worked in the wind tunnel to reduce road noise. What sets the Journey apart is the sheer quantity of storage cubbyholes — five open bins and eight closed ones, to be exact. Like Chrysler minivans, the Journey has covered bins in the floor in front of the second row of seats. The Journey comes with optional storage beneath the seat cushions. There’s also a new builtin child seat. Johnson Controls supplied the seats. Intier is the interior supplier. In Chrysler’s view, storage capability is an important decider for crossover customers. Says Jim Issner, Journey chief engineer: “Storage and innovative features in the interior are the heart of opportunity in that segment, along with good ride and handling and excellent” noise, vibration and harshness. Designers avoided the minivan stigma of sliding rear doors, although they expect plenty of kids to be riding in the Journey. Instead, rear doors open out perpendicular to the side of the vehicle, to give parents room to buckle children into rear seats. After an executive ride-and-drive program at Chrysler’s Chelsea Proving Grounds late last fall that included new CEO Bob Nardelli, co-President Jim Press and product development Executive Vice President Frank Klegon, Chrysler dropped The Dodge Journey, above, is a 4-door crossover designed to battle competitors including the Ford Edge. Five or seven seats are offered. 2008 DODGE JOURNEY 2008 FORD EDGE Wheelbase Length Width Height Curb weight Base engine Horsepower Torque, in lbs.-ft. Base price *Includes shipping 113.8 in. 192.4 in. 72.2 in. 66.6 in. 3,801 lbs. (4 cyl. FWD SE) 2.4-liter 4-cylinder 173 @ 6,000 rpm 166 @ 4,000 rpm $19,985* 111.2 in. 185.7 in. 75.8 in. 67 in. 4,078 lbs. 3.5-liter V-6 265 @ 6,250 rpm 250 @ 4,500 $25,565* The Journey has a storage bin in the floor in front of the second row of seats. the 2.7-liter V-6 engine planned for the Journey. That leaves only the 2.4-liter four-cylinder and the 3.5-liter V-6. Issner says the 2.7-liter engine didn’t improve performance enough over the four-cylinder engine to make it worth including. What Dodge says: “Journey is the perfect right-sized vehicle for people who want the prestige of an SUV but need the functionality and utility of a minivan,” says Trevor Creed, senior vice president of design. Compromises and shortcomings: Dodge will offer a more extensive powertrain lineup in Europe, including a diesel engine, manual gearbox and six-speed dual-clutch transmission. The market: The Journey, arriving in dealer- ships now, is aimed primarily at buyers younger than the ones targeted by Chrysler’s two minivans. The Journey will come with available awd to cater to active, youthful 30-somethings. Unlike the Edge and Equinox, the Journey offers a third row of seats. Dodge hopes the Journey also will lure customers who would have bought the previousgeneration Dodge Caravan short-wheelbase minivan. Dodge deleted the short-wheelbase model when it introduced the 2008 Grand Caravan last fall. The skinny: The Journey will test Chrysler’s strategy of designing cars in America for global markets. Because it is Chrysler’s only new crossover, the Journey needs to do well.c Chrysler exec: Journey started on the inside Jim Issner guided the Dodge Journey to production, then was promoted to become Chrysler LLC’s vice president of advance vehicle engineering. He’s a veteran of nearly three decades at Chrysler. Issner spoke with Staff Reporter Bradford Wernle at the launch of the Journey in Las Vegas. What was your overall target in designing the Journey? We wanted a crossover for the Dodge brand, a vehicle that would fit in customers’ lifestyles between the Caliber and the minivan, especially with the short-wheelbase minivan not being part of the new minivan program. When we looked at the position between the Caliber and the minivans, we saw a lot of crossovers in the market. Jim Issner, who guided the Dodge Journey to production, says the new crossover was designed to “fit in customers’ lifestyles between the Caliber and the minivan.” What features are you proud of on the Journey? There are a lot of things I’m happy we did. I think we’ve got an efficient three-row package for seating seven people. We increased the wheelbase 4.9 inches, but the vehicle is only 1.7 inches longer overall than the Dodge Avenger. Some of the thoughtful features like the storage bins give us an opportunity to have some things our competition doesn’t have. At what point did you decide to delete the 2.7liter V-6 engine? It was late in the program. We had a management ride-and-drive at Chelsea (Chrysler’s proving ground in Chelsea, Mich.). The 2.7 didn’t provide enough benefit over the four-cylinder. Having that extra powertrain seemed to be a confusion point for our customers. The right thing seemed to be to go with the 3.5-liter V-6. The decision to take out the 2.7 was the right thing to do for the product and the customer. Why did you make the changes so late? We went after the Journey with the idea we’re going to come out of the box right. You plan to sell the Journey here and overseas. That means you’ll be competing with different vehicles, such as the Ford S-Max over there and the Ford Edge here. What kind of challenge is that? If you create a unique product for the European market like the S-Max and the Edge over here, that requires significant capital investment. Our strategy would suggest we can compete with one vehicle in both markets. I guess the marketplace will tell us whether we’ve been successful. But from a technical standpoint, there’s nothing that would preclude me from doing that with a single vehicle. It’s not so much a technical challenge as a marketing challenge.c Q&A What do you need to compete in that segment? Storage and innovative features in the interior are the heart of opportunity in that market, which goes along with good ride and handling, excellent NVH (noise, vibration and harshness). http://wilsontechnologies.us http://wilsontechnologies.us http://redflagrulescompliance.com
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