Ford Edge vs Dodge Journey: which is more reliable?

The Dodge Journey is ahead of the Ford Edge on the federal record, 74/100 against 69/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.

The record, side by side

Ford Edge
Ford Edge · Wikimedia Commons

Ford Edge

69/100 mean
  • 13 model years scored
  • 9,716 owner complaints on record
  • about 72 complaints per year on the road
  • 62 recall campaigns, 21 safety-critical
  • best year 2023 (90/100) · worst 2017 (35/100)

Dodge Journey

74/100 mean
  • 10 model years scored
  • 2,843 owner complaints on record
  • about 28 complaints per year on the road
  • 41 recall campaigns, 20 safety-critical
  • best year 2020 (92/100) · worst 2015 (49/100)

Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.

Year by year: Edge against Journey

The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.

YearEdgeJourney Gap
202489 BUY——
202390 BUY——
202285 BUY——
202182 BUY——
202083 BUY92 BUY-9
201960 CAUTION91 BUY-31
201855 CAUTION70 BUY-15
201735 AVOID85 BUY-50
201655 CAUTION65 CAUTION-10
201565 CAUTION49 AVOID+16
201485 BUY64 CAUTION+21
201342 AVOID76 BUY-34
2012—72 BUY—
201154 CAUTION83 BUY-29

What owners actually complain about

Ford Edge

  • Engine — 2,201 complaints
  • Electrical System — 1,787 complaints
  • Service Brakes — 1,606 complaints

Dodge Journey

  • Electrical System — 711 complaints
  • Engine — 633 complaints
  • Service Brakes — 511 complaints

They do not fail the same way: the Edge's complaints concentrate in Engine, the Journey's in Electrical System. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.

Years to avoid on each

Ford Edge — avoid: 2013, 2017.

Dodge Journey — avoid: 2015.

A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.

What each costs today

A recent used Ford Edge prices at about $37,400 and a Dodge Journey at about $26,600 — the Dodge Journey is roughly $10,800 less, and they return 21.0 against 21.0 MPG combined.

Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.

FAQ

Is the Ford Edge or the Dodge Journey more reliable?

On the NHTSA record the Dodge Journey scores 74/100 against the Ford Edge's 69/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.

Which Ford Edge and Dodge Journey years should I avoid?

Ford Edge: 2013, 2017. Dodge Journey: 2015. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.

What goes wrong on the Ford Edge and the Dodge Journey?

The largest complaint group on the Ford Edge is Engine (2,201 complaints); on the Dodge Journey it is Electrical System (711).

Is the Ford Edge or the Dodge Journey cheaper to own?

A recent used Ford Edge prices at about $37,400 and a Dodge Journey at about $26,600, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.

More head-to-heads