Jeep Liberty: Problems & Solutions

joponne

Just an FYI..
Well I put the Liberty in the shop on thursday 8/15/02..(see post #438) Picked it up this morning 8/20/02... While driving this afternoon,the brake lights came back on the speedometer is gone again etc.. This will make the 5th time it's been in the shop for the same electrical problem...Called the dealer and they want me to bring it in next tuesday!! Then proceeded to tell me that I did have another dealer work on it not them ,Hello, I broke down while traveling just what was I supposed to do!! It was a Chrysler 5* dealer. Called Chrysler, customer service hung up on me!!(and yes I was polite) Ok, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt maybe we got disconnected..(right). I have heard of the same thing happening to other liberty's on other sites ... The post b4 this had the air bag problem and it sounds like he had the recall done b4 the accident...Do you think it could be an electrical problem that caused the air bags not to deploy?
You think maybe the libertys have some problems?????????????????????????????????????

Well I'm mad as &%!!...
If you have these problems scream loudly don't want to see anyone else hurt!!!!!

cdkelly23

Your problems sound like the exception rather than the norm for a Liberty, but I believe you should be checking into your state's Lemon Laws.

You paid hard-earned money for your vehicle. I suggest you look into Lemon Laws, and approach Jeep to provide you a new vehicle.

Enough is enough!!!

clever1

joponne: Very sorry to hear you've been having so much distress. Your problem sounds like other earlier complaints from owners who needed body control module fixes. Just curious, though... has anything been modified on your Liberty, especially with regard to electronic components like the stereo, etc? If so, there may be a problem with how wires were re-routed or grounded that could be manifesting as control module problems. Make sure your dealership does a thorough wire integrity and grounding check. It never ceases to amaze me how often auto mechanics miss clues from electronic/computer related componentry. Regardless, best of luck with that getting resolved.

ldfree3: Sorry to hear of your accident, and very glad to hear that you're okay (yet another testament to the importance of wearing seatbelts). Did you even have time to hit the brakes? Sounds like one of those nightmare scenarios all of us worry about -- unfortunately, the most conscientious drivers are still vulnerable to the boneheads out there.

rpl4

Have 11,000 miles & the %^&* thing starts shooting transmission fluid out the back. The engine light comes on and the gears start slipping. We're now at a Jeep dealer 500 miles from home. Buy American!

tbunder1

i have owned my '02 liberty for ten days and i start it up tuesday to go pick up my newborn baby and wife up at the hospital and it won't start. to make a long story short, the fuel pump crapped out. it has 252 miles on the thing. i hope this is an isolated incident. otherwise, i love this vehicle.

also, my lib was built in january of '02. does it have any recalls? thx

mad0865

There were only two recalls that I know of. Airbag wire sensor and knee blocker. There are about a dozen of TSB's that customers have complained about. I think edmunds has a list of them somewhere on the site. Good luck.

stever

The Edmunds Maintenance Guide keeps track of recalls and TSB summaries.



Steve

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starreone

Rpl4,
Check out my message #425 regarding my transmission trouble. Sorry to hear about yours.

tbunder1

just picked my lib up today. i had the first faulty fuel pump on any liberty. 252 miles and it went. pump had to come out of the liberty plant in ohio. i still love my liberty!

ldfree3

Get this, Chrysler states that the air bags are only to deploy in a full frontal collision. My accident was a full frontal collision. A salesman (yes a car salesman) suggested I check out the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration... They have 3 (three) other complaints almost exactly like my accident where the air bags did not deploy. (Actually, one was exactly like my accident!) Apparently Chrysler knows about this problem but they aren't doing anything about it yet. According to a complaint, Chrysler knows about the airbags but the technicians (mechanics) don't have anything in their computers, therefore they can't do anything to fix the problems.

Everyone be careful!

tbunder1

there's a recall on liberty airbags. someone already told you this. obviously you didn't get your recall done, and this is why yours didn't deflate. simple as that. stop dissing chrysler and jeep. they recalled the airbags, seems something was blocking the sensor or something. visit nhtsa.org and see the recall yourself. check the build date on the inside or your driver door on the build tag. and then see if the date of the recalled vehicles falls within when yours was built.

draco88

Sorry it this has been posted before. I have a Sport 4x4 with posi-trac rear and have noticed that when I transition from N to R or D, I can hear a faint clicking sound almost like a winding clock for about 1.5 to 2 seconds before it stops. It will do it every time and I can put it back in neutral, then to R or D and hear it again. Didn't notice it at the dealer because it's just too faint. The transmission engages immediately and I haven't seen any of the other problems described here like jerking, etc. I'm hoping that this is normal for the liberty. After going thru the nightmare with my RAM 1500 4x4, I didn't think I would buy another chrysler product. . but the liberty is awesome. Anyone here have rear anti-slip?

div2

And airbags aren't designed to inflate every time there's an accident. I smell a smear campaign coming on; now simply stir in a hungry plaintiff attorney and the quest for a big money settlement will begin.

soulfinger

I thought ldfree3 had the recall done. So says post 450, anyway. I don't think it's unreasonable to wonder why your airbags didn't deploy when you T-bone another vehicle at 50 mph.

oldntired1950

This is my 4th Chrysler product, and that sound of the transmission going into gear was present on all of them to one degree or another. I never had any transmission problems with any of them. I just write it off to "that's the way they sound". I have just over 7K miles on my Liberty Sport and it's still a love affair here.

kj09

the airbag recall stated that the airbag was to delay onehundreth of a millisecond of deployment, not that it wouldn't deploy . So that's not why their airbag didn't inflate dude!

shellyoga

While driving to Tampa airport in rain, we almost killed ourselves getting off the exit while the brakes locked. Good thing we had experience driving on ice. Brought to dealership. Two Service Mgr. drove the vehicle on wet roads and said "this vehicle is not safe, it must be taken off the road immediatly" They installed a new proportioning valve on it. Tested it the best they could (it was dry roads then) We thought it was taken care of. We drove 756 miles home on dry roads. The next day was raining, I brought it out to test and the same thing is happening. It is at another dealership now. It does not have ABS. We have top of the line tires on it. It is a problem with the brakes. Chrysler is putting on a new master cylinder now. Hopefully this works. The Liberty as it is right now is not safe to be on the roads. We all need to alert the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSA) This is our 3rd Jeep. We have had a Jeep Cherokee, and Grand Cherokee and now the Liberty........I have always felt safe in my previous vehicles. I have lost all confidence in this vehicle

kj09

I totally agree with you. i've had similar experiences in my Liberty. It doesn't have ABS either, and I've had some pretty close calls in the rain. I thought that maybe it was the tires and because it is a heavy vehicle it wouldn't stop as great as say a lighter vehicle. But I've heard some pretty bad complaints so I think that this fall when it starts to rain I'm taking it in to get checked.

clever1

shellyoga: That sounds like a frightening situation. Could you describe what you mean by "the brakes locked"? Do you mean that they stopped responding to the pedal, or that the braking induced a skid? There hasn't been enough rain here for me to know how my Limited will perform in slippery conditions.

soulfinger

I have ABS on mine and haven't had any skidding problems. But the Liberty is a heavy beast and it does take a long time to stop, even on dry pavement. It's a good idea to leave a lot of room in front of you.

I'm not an expert on brakes, but I do know that drum brakes (the rear brakes on all the 2002s) can sometimes be really grabby, especially when they get wet.

kj09

would say disc brakes in the rear help improve the braking distance as well as skidding compared to the drum brakes or maybe a different rotor or pad?

paisan

I'm a firm believer in discs. Drums don't shed water as well as disc brakes and therefore cause longer stopping distances in the wet. Also when rear discs are on SUVs (at least on Isuzus) the proportioning valve is setup to be closer to 50/50 split rather than the 80/20 or 90/10 that is typical of rear drums.

-mike

clever1

Is there anything favorable about drum brakes over discs? Aside from manufacturing cost (cheaper), why are they even used anymore?

paisan

Maybe manufacturing costs. I know replacement is a PITA for the shade-tree mechanic on Drums due to the springs and stuff inside.

-mike

suvshopper4

I had a guy tell me once that drums are better if there is weight in the rear. I don't know if that is true. (The guy was a Puegeot dealer.)

I do know from experience that the 4-wheel discs on a GTI were much better for stopping the car than the f/r discs/drums on a VW GT.

cec33

I know there is a simple answer to this question but it's beyond us so far.

After driving the Liberty the doors automatically lock. When you stop and put the vehicle in park you can get out of the front doors but the rear doors stay locked???? To open the rear doors you have to unlock them with the key fob or one of the interior door lock switches (front or back seat).

This doesn't appear to be from the child safety switch because you can unlock the rear door from inside. It's sure a pain when you try to get something out of the back seat and the door is locked. Let me know if anyone has run into this and knows the solution.

No other problems solid vehicle.

Thanks!

Liberty Limited 4x4

clever1

cec33: Just above the autmatic mirror adjustment button on the driver's door, there should be a switch that allows you to lock or unlock all doors before exiting the vehicle -- can't remember if there's another on the passenger side or not. At first, it's easy to forget; but after awhile it becomes second nature to do this. Glad to hear you're another happy owner!

tidester

I had a guy tell me once that drums are better if there is weight in the rear.

If the force pushing down on the tires is greater then the frictional force between the tire and the pavement is greater. This means that harder braking will be required to cause the tires to skid when there's more weight on them.

tidester
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oldntired1950

Just returned from Labor Day round trip from Long Island to Harrisburg PA - 5 passengers including myself, my wife, daughter, son and granddaughter with all the luggage snacks and other assorted junk needed for such a trip. We had dry, wet and very, very wet weather during the trip, and our 02 Liberty Sport handled beautifully throughout. Coming back on the Belt Parkway through Brooklyn with pouring rain and huge puddles we never felt insecure. When first looking at the Liberty I was amazed that they would build such a heavy vehicle with rear drum brakes, but we've never had a problem stopping. I must add that I insisted that my Liberty be equipped with ABS - having been in many near accidents over the past several years in vehicles equipped with ABS, it now the one accessory that I will never do without. With almost 9K miles, I am as happy with the Liberty as the day I drove off the lot.

mad0865

Have to agree with Oldntired; I too have ABS and braking is awesome in this vehicle. It's always important to leave sufficient room between you and the vehicle in front of you, especially in foul weather.

clever1

Does the ABS on 2002s work with drum brakes, or are they converted to disc with that option? A salesperson told me the latter (no surprise re: skepticism).

tbunder1

nah, all '02 have drums all around on every grade of liberty. like i said, buy a 2002. mark my word, 2002 will be the best year of liberty as the vehicle matures. they will just keep decontenting as the years go by.

couldbhappier

Does any one have any complaints regarding the liberties automatic transmission?

I notice several problems. When accelerating up a small grade it shift to a high gear way before it should. When it down shifts it "clunks" into gear. When you step on it to force it to down shift their is a huge hesitation then it jumps down, wined up to 4K + rpms for a second or two... When slowing down and then stepping back into it there seems to be "slack" in it...

2 weeks after I drove it off the lot the check engine light came on ... the dealer said it had something to do with the transmission. They basically "re booted" the computer and it made the problem worse... They then read the code and didn't know what to do... the engineers were stumped, from what I understand.... The replace the "solenoid pack" which made it the way it is today but I don't know if the way it is today is normal or if it's me or if it's just the nature of the beast. I have always had standards and this is my first suv with an automatic.

ck

couldbhappier

I don't care what any of you say... wet road, oily road, abs, no abs... something is wrong when you are going very slow in wet conditions, touch the breaks and they lock up... I found myself in the middle of a busy intersections when the light turned red... just a little pressure on the brake peddle an the think locks up every time!

something is not right with that...

div2

Perhaps you should try using the BRAKE PEDAL... Isn't the "break peddle" something you sell at snack time???

clever1

Could someone with brake problems please, please, please define what they mean by "the brakes locked up"? I've asked this before with no response. Is the peddle stuck, are the brakes not responding to the peddle, or is braking inducing a skid? And, is this happening with ABS, or only without? These complaints are so vague in that regard that it's hard to know what's possibly wrong or what others might learn from these experiences.

tbunder1

honestly think he just has cheap crappy tires. and if his brakes are locking up with just a tap of the pedal, he needs to take it in on a rainy day and have it checked. maybe something is wrong in his hydraulics somewhere. i have an '02 sport with no abs, and my brakes work flawlessly in dry or wet conditins. but i have BFG all-terrain tires all around too. cheap tires will get you nowhere except in trouble. for a vehicle that weighs as much as the liberty, imo, an LT rated tire is the only way to go.

jeeplurch

I just bought an 02 Liberty Limited and have noticed a lurch or a jump when I shift from Drive to Park or Nuetral. I took it to the dealer, and they claim it's fine. Drove an 03 Liberty Limited and it did not have the same problem. Has anyone else experienced this? It's very rough and it only happens when in I'm already in Drive and shift to another gear. I guess I'm used to a smooth shifting car and want to know if it's normal.........

andy81

Are better auxillary brakes than discs as they are simpler to mechanically operate via the handbrake lever and apparently offer better braking via the handbrake. Apart from that no real advantage

They are cheaper than discs to make for sure.

suvshopper4

Good point about the simpler e-braking. At least, it makes sense to me.

-ss4

rexmasters

After only three months of ownership my "body control" on my car has failed, according to my dealer. This is apparently something that controls virtually every function in the car that needs power, including A/C, electric locks, headlamps, speedometer, odometer, among various and sundry others.

Has anyone had this happen, or heard of this happening? I'm waiting for the part to arrive from the states, and I've been with no Liberty now for almost two weeks.

On a positive note, I must comment that I have several friends who also have other competing "mini SUVs". Every time I ride in one of these, I marvel at how the reviews put others ahead of the Liberty. My car is solid, heavy, without vibration, rattle, or other extraneous noise, reponsive, and overall excellent.

Ever since I got ride of the horrible Goodyear tires that came with the car, I've been completely satisfied until the problem I describe above.

If anyone has Goodyear Eagle tires on the Jeep and doesn't live where it ices or snows, THROW THEM AWAY and buy some Yokohama Geolandars. You'll thank me later!

Regards,

Rex
San Juan

clever1

rexmasters: I've already responded to part of this message on the "Jeep Liberty" board, so pardon the redundance. Since you're not in the States, it may be worth trying a simple "battery disconnect" for fifteen or so minutes (long enough for trace power to drain) and see if that helps -- that might work if the unit is confused but not fried. Also, it seems that people who have done electronic accessory modifications (e.g., stereo, alarms, etc.) are more prone to the failure you've experienced (not exclusive to Jeep). It can't hurt to check wiring and grounding on anything that might have been installed aftermarket. Sorry to hear it's taking so long, but a complete module replacement should make you very happy. Glad to hear you're otherwise having a good experience with your Liberty.

lcwos

I was seriously looking at investing in a Jeep Liberty Limited......but after reading the reviews, I am in need of some serious input as to why I should purchase or lease this vehicle.
Transmission problems, brake problems, air conditioned leaks, electrical problems, fuel pump failure and air bag recalls/failures etc. I know this board is for problems, but what I read makes me wonder if I should consider buying American. I have a lease on an Infiniti QX4 which is due to expire in December. This vehicle has never been back to the dealer since I drove out of the showroom 3 years ago. It has gotten too expensive to consider leasing an Infiniti again so I have been looking at Outbacks, Toyota's, Hondas in addition to the Jeep Liberty. What do you folks say..... Would you really buy or lease a Jeep Liberty again or look elsewhere?
Thank you for your HONESTY.
PS I live in Northern Michigan and we do get heavy snow & ice here.

tbunder1

the problems you noted are on early build date liberty's. the braking problems are because of bad tires. i have a 2002 sport with BFG all-terrains, and they are like glue to the road. and handle well in corners. my fuel pump did go, but let me inform you it was THE FIRST one on any liberty. they had to get the part from milwaukee.
all those other brands are nice, but only one is durable enough for deep snow driving or even off-road travel. the toyota. and with their sludge issues on engines, id stay away (not to mention they're overpriced). seems they blame their customers for any problems with their vehicles. and if price is your concern, the lib can't be beat. my '02 sport 4x4 barely hit $22K. and it has a/c, power everything. the liberty is solid as a rock with it's new chassis. it is more rigid than any body on frame. it's frame is new and is stamped sheets of steel welded together which the body is mounted on. it's like driving one solid piece of metal. astonishingly solid and rattle free. plus, the suspension system on libertys are all new and very good off-road. hope this helps. the lib can get 21 mpg with its 210 horse V6. hard to beat. remember, you get that 7/70K mile powertrain warranty with the jeep. no one matches that one.
remember pearl harbor?

lcwos

Do you know if they changed the location of the window controls on the 2003 model? I tried to see an interior of the 2003 Liberty online, but was unable to get it. I understand the 2002 model has it was on the console? Do the rear seats fold flat?
Since 1984, I have driven American SUV's (even before they were referred to as SUV's ) like the Chevy S-10 Blazers, GMC Jimmys, Ford Explorers. I dont want to pay an arm and a leg for my next lease and thought of the Liberty. RELIABILITY is my main concern since I live in a rural area. That's why I'm looking for SERIOUS INPUT from owners of the Jeep Liberty, as yourself. I look forward to more posts in response to mine of (#494)
Thanks

paisan

RELIABILITY is my main concern

I'd look to Toyota, Mitsubishi or Isuzu if you want that. If you can find a 2002 Trooper it might suit your needs and is rated highly for reliability by CR and #2 behind Toyota 4runner in JD Powers.

-mike

paddler23

I have researched them all. Test drove them. Read the message boards, etc. The bottom line is you and only you can decide what you want to do with the vehicle. By the way the window controls for the 2003 Liberty are still at the center console (local dealer had a 2003 at end of August). The Liberty has a great engine in the 3.7 L V6. Only time will prove it but I would bet this engine will become the workhorse V6 of the Dodge trucks in the future. I think the problems that people have discussed here are minor compared to some of the issues of other manufacturers. But the bottom line is if you plan to take the vehicle off road. Buy the Jeep. I did! (have a 2003 on order)

ozone1

Icwos:
To answer one of your questions in your post...the rear seats do not fold down flat in the Liberty....almost, but not quite.

clever1

Icwos: Center console window controls (not uncommon in German sedans) have some advantages, and are as easy an adjustment for people who aren't used to that position as anything else that's different in a new car. Otherwise, I fully agree with paddler23. The Liberty is a terrific, highly capable, reliable vehicle. I would buy another (if needed) or recommend one to a friend without hesitation. You might want to evaluate how accessible and user-friendly the various dealerships are in your area for any of the brands you're considering. Have fun shopping and taking those test drives!!!

mad0865

Best vehicle ever owned. Has been back to the dealer once, and that was a faulty stereo unit. 23k miles, and going strong. Isuzu? Couldn't pay me to drive one of those things. Friend had a Rodeo, was in the shop weekly with all kinds of problems. He was grateful it was a lease because he couldn't wait to unload it. Test drive them all, get what fits in your budget and makes you happy.