Jeep Liberty

clk2001

"How Dangerous is Your Jeep" is the headline in the latest issue of Germany's Auto Bild magazine. The article is based on eighty (80) different extensive driving tests of the German version of the Liberty questions the "uncertain" cornering behavior of the suv.

The story includes a photo of the vehicle with two wheels off the ground.

The story is covered in the December 10 edition of AutoWeek and seems to independently confirm the results from AutoWeeks tests that resulted in a rollover.

gypsy116

It's been almost two since anyone posted anything in this forum. Does that means everyone is out taking care of their Libby's??

Mine just hit 600 miles and still loving her. Got a question... when would be the ideal time to get the oil change. I have heard that the first one should be earlier (milage wise)... is this true??

mad0865

Just read on USA today that the Liberty was issued a "Good"/"Acceptable" in the crash test after the wiring was corrected. Cool.

Oil Change: I checked my oil every 500 miles or so, and ended up getting it changed around 2600 miles (was taking it on a long road trip, figured it was a good time as any to get it completed).

As for the recall, I'm waiting for the 2nd one regarding the "wire rubber fix" to come in, and get that and the panel looked at the same time.

richardcoulson

What was the date of your USA Today? The Date Line show did show the test of the liberty after it had the wiring fixed. However, they still rated it marginal.

I wonder why Jeep doesn't share its own crash test results? I would hope that they did similar test and had a video to show it. This would be good damage control. I am sure they can sell more liberty's with a good rating instead of a marginal rating.

mad0865

On the web, money section, autos.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2001/12/11/crash-tests.htm

Direct quote:

"Except for the head-injury score, Liberty's results were "good" or "acceptable."

scottw4

The Liberty did not get a "Good" or "Acceptable Rating", the rating for the Liberty even after the changes with the wiring was still MARGINAL.

  Per the organization who actually performed the test, the evaluation is: OVERALL EVALUATION: MARGINAL

http://www.highwaysafety.org/vehicle_ratings/ce/html/0127.htm

scottw4

Perhaps USA Today should be recalled for being inaccurate in their reporting!

mad0865

I guess you didn't read the whole article, because it states :
"Except for the head-injury score, Liberty's results were "good" or "acceptable." EXCEPT.

Now, on the link that you provided:
Liberty:
Structure/Safey cafe: G (Good)
Injury Measures:
Head/Neck: M
Chest: G
Leg/Foot, left: A
Leg/Foot, right: G
Restraints: A
Total Score: M
-------------
Here's the others: (sample taken)
Ford Escape: Total Score: M
Mazda Tribute: Total Score: M
Honda CRV: Total Score: M
Hyundai SantaFe: G
GMC Envoy/Jimmy: M (2001 model = P)
Isuzu Amigo: P
--------------
The Santa Fe is the only vehicle here that has a "Good" rating, but to tell you the truth, I wanted something that can go off road.

So, out of all of these vehicles, which one would you drive? According to highwaysafety.org, we should all be walking.

scottw4

wow, I didn't want to start an argument, just correct your statement on post #2312

your post said "Just read on USA today that the Liberty was issued a "Good"/"Acceptable" in the crash test after the wiring was corrected. Cool."

That is not a correct statement. I understand you later tried to back off from that statement in later posts.

mad0865

No argument, and yes I did back off from a blast . The point I was trying to make was that none of the "true" off roaders scored very well. Remember when the Ford F150 story came out a few months ago? The news came out with "The most unsafe vehicle on the road today" stuff. They're trucks, should be driven with 10 times more care than a 4 door passenger vehicle.

gypsy116

Well.. the holiday hustle and bustle is here along with the maniacs inside the mall and the manic outside the mall that hit my Liberty with his car. A 20 yr. old kid hit me yesterday, while I was stopped in traffic. Natuarlly I got angery and flew out of my Jeep to give him a piece of my mind..... what do you expect? I waited 12 weeks for this and had it on the road for 2 weeks. Any ways... the rear bumper looks as if it is going have to be replaced. There are holes in my bumper and it was shifted a bit. I don't know what the total damage is. I have spoken with my insurance company and they are setting up and appointment for me to take it to a body shop. Only two weeks on the road and this happens....
Happy Holidays!!! (bah hum-bug)

gypsy116

I am not sure if one thing has to do with the other.... but This morning driving to work I noticed that a couple of my idicators lights were flickering. They would not stay on at all just flicker. I thought I was seeing things at first. Now I was driving in four wheel drive and was going about 55mph. When I was on the side roads going 25-30mph the flickering stopped. Anybody else have this happen before?? I should also mention that I was rear-ended the other day. But I am not if it is possible for the hit to the driver-side corner of the rear bumper could be related to the flickering. Any thoughts out there???
---Gypsy---

basepro09

Sorry to hear about your rear end. You weren't hurt at all right? How fast was he going or what was he trying to do, go around you? Oh yeah what was the kid driving? Let us know how much the repair costs end up being? Hope you're okay.

Matt

gypsy116

I was not physically hurt nor was my mother (passenger seat), or the driver of the 1998 Toyota Camry. I spoke with the father of the kid this morning and the car was his mother's. She only drove it once. I guess she is really ticked off at him. From looks... his car looks worse than my Liberty. He got the rear end driverside of the bumper. I have two hole the size of half-dollars and part of it is pushed in. I don't think he nailed the spare tire. There are slight scratchs on the taillight casing. However on his car.... starting from the passenger side front corner to the backseat door is all scraped, and just a long stretched dent and White( my jeep color). Did I mention his side mirror was on the road smashed into pieces? Looking at mine and looking a his... he is worse off. Then again his daddy works are a dealership that has a body shop on the premises.
I will keep you all posted... right now I am waiting for the phone call from his insurance claims office.
---gypsy---

soulfinger

Wife and I took our Liberty Limited (what an oxymoron!) to Death Valley this past week and covered 250-plus miles of off-pavement driving, ranging from graded dirt to 4WD-only. The Liberty handled it all with no problems and wanted more. Very solid and smooth ride off-pavement. I can't for the life of me understand where the complaints about the Liberty's ride and seating that have appeared in some auto magazines have come from. My bones weren't rattled, and my head wasn't jerked. I have a bad back, so if the seats were lousy, I'd sure know that. In reality, they're great. Only disappointment was leaving the wide-open spaces for the land of traffic lights and stop signs that is home in SoCal.

soulfinger

Sorry to hear you got rear-ended. That's my worst nightmare because you have no control over it. But your story is a perfect example of why the insurance institute's so-called "bumper basher" test is a joke. With a rear-mounted spare, the test bashes everything but the bumper, and the institute tries to portray the bumpers as worthless. But as your experience indicates, reality is different. A car will hit your bumper, not the spare tire, because the tire is mounted high up. Your bumper worked. It did exactly what it was supposed to do, and proved the insurance institute is full of you-know-what. Still, that's not much consolation when your baby is bashed. I feel your pain.

ladyliberty

Hi, I am so sorry to hear about your accident. I know that feeling all to well when you jump out and want to scream! I was hit 4yrs ago head on mostly drivers side by some guy who decided to turn at the last minute. I was then driving a leased Corolla. I was pretty mad. I really hate to think what I might do or say if it were my new Liberty . I am so glad you are okay. I would make sure that your Liberty is gone over with a fine tooth comb and find every little problem this may have caused. Good Luck and keep us posted. I am still waiting to hear if mine has been built. I am calling tomorrow.

hvan3

Ok, so the NHTSA rated the Liberty as "marginal". Keep in mind that the Liberty is a small entry level SUV, while the Explorer and MDX (which are mid to full size SUV) have a better rating. Is it fair to measure the "success" of a mid-full size SUVs versus a small size SUV? The law of physics applies here.

A better comparison would have been Liberty/CRV/RAV4/Escape/Sportage/. Which vehicle would rank above the others in this crash test in the same segment.

gypsy116

I wrote yesterday indicating that two of my indicator lights were flickering. These lights were the Oil Pressure Warning Light and the Malfunction Indicator Light. I have not seen these light flicker since yesterday morning (that could be good ...right?). Does anyone have any idea about this and whether or not there is a connection between the flicker and the accident?
---gypsy---

basepro09

put out crash test results on the Liberty. Or do you mean the Insurance safety tests. I think that's what they're called.

Gypsy116: The only thing I could think of is that te other car hit some kind of electical connection in the back of your Liberty or pinched a wire somewhere. It sounds like something was knocked loose.

Matt

canadatwo

in the offset crash tests than most of the "small" SUV's.

Then of course, some people don't even consider it an SUV.

But as long as we are cross shopping . . .

scottw4

Actually both the Liberty and EXPLORER are in the same class for the purposes of the crash testing, that is the "Mid-Size" class. The Liberty is in the mid-size class because of its famously bloated weight. The Escape is in the 'Small' class even though the Escape and the Liberty are about the same physical size. The Explorer earned a 'Best Pick' and 'Good' rating and the Liberty earned the marginal rating. Unfortunately, the Liberty's extra weight did not translate into better crash protection.

In comparison to other SUVs that also weigh more than 4000 pounds the Liberty scored near the bottom.

scottw4

According to the Governent's official crash tests, the Escape performed better than the Forester did. I agree with the person who earlier stated that Subaru's commercial is misleading.

djasonw

A vehicles weight has no bearing on whether a it will PASS the crash test. A Honda Civic which weighs 2600 or so pounds received a GOOD rating in all categories by the institute. Does that mean I'm trading my Liberty for a Civic? HECK NO! Overall, the Liberty would have done better if the air bag did not deploy with such excess force and the seatbelt was shorter.

canadatwo

You are generally correct about the results of the frontal tests.

However, we were discussing the OFFSET crash tests that the Liberty only got a marginal rating as did the Escape, while the Forester scored good.

Many people view the offset tests as more representative of real world crashes.

Thus, the Subaru commercial is NOT misleading.

The Liberty has not yet been tested for frontal or side impact, so the discussion was not obviously not about those tests.

scottw4

I would not agree that the Insurance company's crash test is any more representative than is the Government's test.

In fact I think the governments test is actually more comprehensive. The insurance company's test only tests the driver, whereas the Government's test covers the Driver and Front seat passenger, as well as Front and Rear side impact protection.

Any advertisement that asserts a fact (our vehicle does better than yours in a crash) should not conveniently ignore information that does not agree with the assertion they are trying to make. The fact that independent government data exist that is opposite to what Subaru asserts on their commercial does, in my humble opinion, make their ad misleading.

With any of these tests, it is best to gather data from multiple sources, multiple tests before making any kind of claim or determination of relative safety. Same holds for the Liberty, not all the tests have been done on it yet, though it certainly has not done well on those that it has had (bumper test, offset test #1, offset test#2, Auto Week handling test, etc.)

stevek18

Well, finally took delivery on my Liberty last night!! It took about 8 weeks but seemed like 8 months.

It's Awesome!

No pulling to the right, no dealer hassles, no skidding in the rain, no safety worries (the thing's solid like a rock!), no recalls, no (undesired) noises,... just... pure... fun. It had been so long since my test drive, I'd forgotten what a blast it is to drive, not to mention the interior quality & feel.

Only the day before, a pothole ruined a $500 rim on my wifes car. I took the Liberty right over it and I swear I heard the Liberty scoff at it.

gypsy116

Congrats on your new delivery....
Hope you enjoy your Liberty as much as I have been enjoying mine.

--gypsy--

luvstrucks

I have a Liberty Sport on order with fog lights, cruise, trailer tow pkg., and the upgrade to P235/16R70 OWL all-terrain tires. I'm beginning to second guess myself on the choice of those instead of the BSW all weather (same size). I'll probably never really off-road with it, but since I live in upstate NY, where we have plenty of snow and ice, I wanted a more agressive tire. I have Goodyear Wrangler APs on the Ford Explorer Sport I'm turning in on the Liberty, but they haven't been through a winter yet, since they were replacements for the recalled Firestone Wilderness the truck came with. Anybody have any recommendations or advice on what works well on the Liberty? I don't think the dealer will give me too much of a hassle over changing the tires, since both upgrades are the same price.

ladyliberty

Hi, Congrats on your new Liberty. I was wondering if you could tell me when you ordered it? I ordered mine 7wks ago this coming Mon the 24th and it has not even been built!
I ordered a white Limited with tow pkg,tint glass,heated mirrors & the security grp nothing fancy and I am wondering what the hold up is?
It was suppose to be built first wk of DEC. There are no restrictions either. The dealer called and said they put a "Hot" on it ( whatever that is) and he will call me tomorrow with an update.
We'll see!
Thanks
Thanks!

richardcoulson

LadyLiberty, you better call Chrysler and see what the problem is with your order. I ordered my limited with everything but the engine block heater on November 19th. I received it last Friday, which is roughly four weeks. I think your dealer my be pulling your strings.

gypsy116

Take richardsoulson's advice and call DC yourself. They are very helpful in trying to find out what the hold up is. When I was waiting my long 12 weeks... I was in contact with DC once a week. They probably know my voice there. The main reason why I called DC was because me dealership was "taking a guess" as to what the hold up was (they were wrong). That was not good enough for me. As for it being built ... that takes but only a day. Good luck and keep us posted.
--gypsy--

PS... have your vin # or your von # handy when calling DC.

stevek18

Daimler Chryslers customer service number is 800-992-1997. I talked to Tony Orlando (no joke) at extension 7176, I highly recommemed him, he was *very* helpful & curteous. He will need your VIN or your VON which you can get from your dealer.

fyi - I ordered a pretty well loaded Limited on 10/25, It was built 12/5 and left the factory a few days later... and the dealer received it 12/17 (I live in Massachusetts).

Best of luck & Happy Holidays.

p.s. it's worth the wait!!

ladyliberty

Hello everyone, Thanks for all the advice. I actually have been calling DC and Wed. They told me it was still in D schedule and did not know why as it was supposed to be built already. They told me to call my dealer as sometimes they know more. (Ha Ha) Well, I told you what the dealer said and he did leave me a message today. GET THIS He said he had a ship date of January 17th! and I should get it about a week after that! WHAT THE!
Now I really want to know what's up. I even asked him the day I ordered how they're allocation was and he said fine. I wonder if that is the problem. This ship date is not a problem only that if it is off much longer I have to turn my Camry in bye Feb 12th. I ordered early to avoid any problems and was hoping to take delivery early. I am over on my lease mileage also and was hoping to avoid any more expense with that.
It really makes me mad when you have that gut feeling about something and someone tells you not to worry. Well, we have all read about once the truck is shipped and sometimes takes a couple of weeks right? I guess now I will have to wait until next Wednesday to call DC again.
Thanks for listening!

Stevek18: what dealer or where in MA did you order from if you don't mind my asking? I ordered from a dealer in Worcester.
Thank you

teslamania

is fairly positive on the new Liberty. Here is a link to the automobile page. You may need to register to view the article. Enjoy!

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/23/automobiles/23AUTO.html

jeffkiel

Thanks to everyone for their advice on this forum. I have lurked for almost a month, read through all of the past articles, etc. Today, I picked up my Steel Blue Liberty Ltd, 27G, Sunroof, Side Airbags, ABS, and heated seats for $250 over invoice. Oh, for the end of the break in period!

I also looked very seriously at the Land Rover Freelander, but just could not be convinced to pay an extra $4k for a 5 speed shiftable tranny, less HP & torque, etc. I also felt the quality of the inside materials was much better in the Liberty, not to mention the extra space, 4WD Lo, etc.

Anyway, thanks again for all of the advice!

tidester

Congratulations and welcome aboard!

tidester
Host
SUVs

mad0865

Welcome aboard, and good luck with your new Liberty. Hopefully you'll have as much fun as the rest of us driving it.

-mad

psu93

Hi! I just got my new Patriot Blue Liberty Sport and I've got to admit that I'm surprised it was built and delivered so quickly. Based upon the messages posted on this site, I expected to wait about 8 weeks for the vehicle. When I ordered it at the dealership he told me 4 weeks; I laughed and told him of the experiences other people were having, especially those who wanted a sunroof. He swore that they've never waited longer than 4 weeks for a new truck from D.C. and what do you know - I ordered my Liberty the Saturday after Thanksgiving and I picked it up the Saturday before Christmas! I've only driven about 150 miles so far but I've loved every second of it!

cheryl15

Hi! Just wanted to thank all the posters for the information on the Liberty. I was trying to decide what cute-ute to buy (VUE, Liberty, Escape), and have been reading for awhile.

Went to the Jeep dealer on Monday, ordered my new Steel Blue Sport and am trading in my 1999 CR-V. The dealer said it would take about 8 weeks to get it in. I am going to have a hard time waiting for it.

ericbway

Congratulations on your new purchases.Welcome to the board! I have had mine for 1300 miles so far, and not a complaint so far!! May the time pass by quickly!

jondavid

I called DC today and asked if you order a Jeep, put a deposit down and it arrives after December 31,2001, would you still qualify for the extended warranty. Their reply was yes. I called 2 different times and spoke with a different rep and received the same answer. When asking that same question from a local Jeep dealer, they stated that you had to take delivery by December 31, 2001.

Who's right :-)

cheryl15

I ordered my Liberty on Monday, Dec 24. I got the 7 year/100,000 mile powertrain warrenty. The finance guy said that as long as it was ordered before the end of the year, I was fine.

gypsy116

Email DC with the same question and print off their reply. Take that down to your dealer and tell them to call DC with you standing right there. Hopefully that will work.

luvstrucks

I heard from the dealer this morning that DC has invoiced them for my Liberty, so it won't be long now (I hope)! I actually called them about something else -- Jondavid, make sure your dealer marked your invoice "sold protected order", and then you'll get the good warranty. I read the recent postings regarding the warranty confusion as I was having the same problem. I called DC and they told me to call the sales manager of my dealership and make sure he wrote up the order as protected. He had, so I'm OK. I can't wait for it to arrive! Thanks to everyone here for the postings -- they've been a tremendous help in this whole process!

gypsy116

As a few of you know I was in a bit of a fender bender a couple of weeks ago. This past Wednesday I was finally able to get my Liberty into the body shop. The verdit...There is more damage underneath than expected. :-( The shop cannot do anything yet until the Insurance adjuster come to look at the damage. The adjuster who orginally looked at it is away on vacation, so who knows when someone will come down to the shop to look at it. Then from there they shop is going to have to wait for the parts from the factory. It has only been a few days but I miss my Libby. Especially since I am driving a Ford Focus (rental). I will keep you posted on what the damage was and the cost of repairs. ----gypsy----

annabelle2

Hi everybody,
I purchased my Liberty Limeted back in August and have about 8300 miles on it. My wife drives the SUV every day to work and we have taken a few long trips to the beach. We noticed a thompping sound at speeds over 50 mph back in early December and finally found the time to take it in to have it checked out. After 2 days of run around, between the dealership and a tire center, they finally checked out the alignment and determined that the problem was that I was not rotating my tires enough and needed to rotate them every 4000 miles. The tire center informed me that the front end was out of alignment but the dealership informed that the tests proved that the alignment was fine. Couldn't get any satifaction over what to do about the wobbling sound and the dealership even recommended switching to Michelins when those tires wore out. So I guess that I am stuck with a noisy wobble for the next 20000 miles. This is outragious for an SUV costing as much as the Liberty. Either they picked a cheap tire for these SUV's or I am being fed a lot of bull. Anyone else have such problems?

eludwig

Blaming the sound on not rotating tires sounds like garbage to me. I never rotate my tires- why would I want 4 worn tires instead of just 2? And to think that the front end is out of alignment? Did you run directly into a high sidewalk at 30mph? I also never have the alignment touched. I'd march into the dealer and tell them to find the problem and fix it under the warranty. A trusty, local mechanic might be able to give you the truth too.

This reminds me of the "air conditioning charging" myth too. Why would you need to "recharge" a cyclic system unless there was a leak in it?

Good luck.

jondavid

Just wondering if anyone has been able to try their Liberty 4WD in snow yet? Care to share your experiences ? Are there any Buffalo Liberty owners on the board? My dealer called me tonight to let me know my Liberty 4wd LTD is in. I ordered it the last week of November. I'll pick it up tommorow. Really looking forward to driving it.

ladyliberty

Hi, I had not heard any opinions since my last post. I mentioned that the ship date on my Lib Lmt. is Jan 17th. I ordered Nov 5th! Why am I seeing people post here with a 4wk wait? I am so happy for them, but do not understand what the hold up is for me. I did not order any major options and my color is white.
I live in MA. Maybe that is it!
Thanks for any input.