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Jeep Liberty Real World MPG
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I don't care personally; I don't own or plan to own a Jeep product. But have you taken your jeep off road into serious trail conditions? If you are using it for around town driving, you are not going to be impressed. They are really designed for off road; the in town trade off in less MPG & etc must be looked at as the price one pays for better off road performance. If that "trade off" isn't good for you, then you are not a "Jeep" person.
No disrespect intended, but you don't sound like a "Jeep person". A Jeep person wants his/her off road capabilities to be paramount.
It is possible to make compromises in off road abilities, but that is not what Jeep is known for. The only non "rated" Jeep is the Compass; I drove one and got about 23 MPH highway (rental). That vehicle was a crossover from the Caliber.
If you want a "part way" off road, there are plenty of candidates - they generally have part time AWD, though some of them lock the low gear. CR-V, RAV4, Grand Vitara, etc. come to mind. And of course there is the Subaru family, which has great 4WD.
In order to make the Jeep sturdy and thoroughly off road capable, they have to make parts a certain way, build stuff a certain way. That "way" is not for fuel efficiency.
I bought a used 2003 Liberty in August 2006 with about 40k miles on it. I now have 128k miles on it (I drive a lot) and overall, I have seen around 17 to 19 mpg. I just put a large Thule cargo box on the roof (to make up for what has long been my biggest gripe with the Liberty: insufficient cargo space) and was worried somewhat that it might adversely impact my fuel economy. After three tanks, I have calculated the average MPG with the box, loaded with gear at 18.47mpg. I was actually surprised it was that good. I guess this is a testament to the aerodynamics of the cargo box, more than anything to do with the Liberty, but I thought it might be good information to post...in case anyone else is as frustrated with the cargo area of their Liberty as I was.
Btw, I was also carrying two mtn bikes on a spare tire mounted rack, as well as a good load of gear inside the Jeep.This fuel economy is very comparable to what I have been getting the last two years or so.
Interestingly, before I bought the Liberty, I was given another liberty (a 2005) as a rental, and it must have had a larger tank, and gotten better mileage. I think when i tested it, I was getting over 20 mpg, and going over 400 miles on a tank of gas. With mine, I only occasionally manage to get much over 300 miles before my fuel light switches on. I have noticed that the 2005 felt lighter and not as solid as the 2003 I ended up getting, so maybe there is a weight factor there.
I have now filled up 6 times. here are my mpg's
20.80
19.57
20.88
20.22
20.22
21.57 (about 90% highway)
The engine is unmodified. I do plan to switch to synthetic oil and a new air filter when the next changes are due.
I would say most driving is about a 70%/30% split highway/city but I mostly drive 75-80 MPH on the highway.
I have a 2003 TJ (Wrangler) and a 1988 MJ (Comanche) I get around 20 MPG out of each around town. My friend has the liberty and he gets alot less milege. I haven't figured out why. I think it may be that the L6 engine has alot of low-end torque so I can shift it at low rpm and get good milage.
I bought my first Jeep because 4 wheelers were scarce in Florida but I bought the Wrangler because the truck really lasted well. It outlasted by many years my Dads S-10 (4x2) and brothers Ranger (4x4). which were both JUNK.
It is interesting but Hyundi has their suppport people here and recently bought a cherokee to plow their lot because the Hyundi is "too weak".
You get what you pay for don't compair a car to a truck. The Liberty I rented and drove in a snow storm from New Hampshire to Conneticut was alot better than the Trail Blazer I rented and drove over Donner Pass when they closed the road to all but 4x4's or chains. The knob came off in my hand and ended driving over in 2wd! It was kinda stupid because there was only AN INCH OR TWO on the road!
I remember driving my Comanche in a storm in Conneticut when I was in the Navy when the snow was up to the bumper. I was doing fine and then then I noticed the road markers on the wrong side! I wasn't even on the freeway (I95) Oh, on the Santa Fe, read your owners manual it will say not to allow the tires to spin in snow...this is because it will damage the cable that powers the back wheels! :P