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06/08/2008 23:13. While I enjoyed driving the 2009 Dodge Journey from New York down to Burlington, N.C., the kids were a little more, er, compressed. Yes, the Journey has three rows, but it’s a relatively narrow seven-seater, and there’s not a lot of storage space behind the third row.

So when we picked up the CX-9, everyone breathed a little sigh of relief. Part of that was because the CX-9 is a little wider, and more than 6 inches longer. Getting into the back was a little more difficult without the Journey’s easy access lever, but once back there the kids were definitely more comfortable in the CX-9.

The CX-9 and Journey are competing to be the car that looks the least like a family-hauler. My vote goes to the Journey, but my buddy in Carolina thinks the CX-9 is something... // Cars.com