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1.) Trailer wiring harness shorted out fuse-lost all dash lights and tail lights (check your fuse bank, if the trailer wires get crossed, you won't know how fast you're going
2.) Hitch worked for one trailer but hit the spare tire like yours did for another. The heighth of the hitch compared to that of trucks causes a problem for some trailers. In one case I had to go get a truck.
3.) Lastly, the noise caused by the tongue banging on the hitch is TOO D*MN LOUD! If ANYONE has a tried-and-true method of reducing this noise I would deeply appreciate it. I'm used to pulling with pick-ups. All of this noise transferred into the cabin and then echoed around the cavernous back end of the vehicle is just awful and unnacceptable. :mad:
Sorry for the rant, I just can't believe how much noise a little 6x10 garden trailer can make and punishment it can deliver enven when empty. :confuse:
Boiler
Amen on the hitch issue!!! I can't belive what engineering moron must have designed that set up. The tire is too close to the hitch to work properly plus the hitch itself is too low. If you raise the ball then you can't get the hitch coupler over the ball because it hits the tire. I towed my boat back to the dealer for service for the first time only to find that the toungue was so low that I couldn't get the wheel to deploy under the tongue so I could crank it up and off the ball!! I was screwed!!! I ended up making a ramp out of wood blocks and driving the back wheels of the Libby up on the ramp to give me enough clearance to deploy the trailer tongue wheel!!! You think I wasn't ready to strangle a DC engineer at that point? I found a 12" long ball mount from JC whitney that might work. I haven't measured yet to see if it would clear the spare tire. How long is your ball mount? Is it 12" or more? I too am concerned about increaseing th tongue weight by extending the ball distance from the receiver.
This makes no sense - all this from a company that touts you can tow 5000 lbs with this truck! This rig definitely isn't built for towing !!! :sick:
I tolerate the minor brake noise too. If that's the worst defect I ever find.....
Good name by the way.
A little honest discussion only benefits everyone. I will point out the shortcoming of this vehicle as I see fit. You act as if you personally designed the truck yourself. No one should have to alter their trailer in order to accomodate a poor vehicle design. So don't tell me to buck up. DC doesn't need a smear society - they just need honest feedback about design flaws such as this. I still like my Liberty even though it has issues. Lighten up Bud. :shades:
I just traded in the 2002 for a 2006 Liberty CRD and so far I have not towed much but what I have done there also seems to be no problem yet accept one. The spare tire gets in the way so it takes me an extra minute or so to hook the trailer up. I was thinking about looking for a better solution but for a minute or two why spend the money.
The first time I towed with my Liberty the hitch was banging around so loud that I turned around and went home. I put the boat away and started measuring hitches. The receiver on the Liberty was (memory?) about 3/32 inch bigger inside measurement than the hitch on my old truck and other vehicles on the dealer’s lot (measured later).
I asked the dealer why the hitch receiver was over-sized. The dealer didn’t know but agreed that it was unacceptable and promptly replaced the hitch with one that had the correct sized receiver. No more clunking.
Diesel Daydreams
The CRD related paragraph is:
The diesel version of the Jeep Liberty has also proved popular with buyers. Jeep is projecting sales of 10,000 Liberty CRD models for the 2005 calendar year — double what it originally projected. It's not a surprise when you consider that fuel economy is 22-percent better than in a comparably equipped gasoline Liberty, in addition to improvements in towing capacity and driving range. Jeep has added another 2,500 vehicles to its production schedule to meet the demand and the company is still unsure if that will suffice. Jeep is so encouraged by Liberty sales that it is assessing whether to adapt the powertrain to other vehicles.
Farout
I solved the trailer hitch clearance problem by going to a welding shop in town and had them make a a one piece stinger. It's 11" long measured from the center of the hitch pin hole to the center of the ball.(It's total length is longer than 11 inches but 11" will clear the rear tire with room to spare).
To solve the rattle I had them weld 8 weld spots (4 in ea flat spot at the end of the stinger and 4 just at the inside edge of where the stinger come out of the receiver. Brought it all home and used a grinder to grind down the weld spots so the stinger fits like a glove in the receiver. Then I re-painted the stinger. I tow a 2800Lb trailer with a tongue weight of 300lbs with no problems.
(PS: I did install Firestone air bags in the rear coil springs to get the Jeep back to level when towing).
Farout
Farout
I have a tongue weight of 550 lbs and a trailed weight of 5k+ so an extension is not an option. When I tow, I remove the spare tire and throw it in the boat. With a short draw bar the rear barely drops under the load so no air bags or air shocks are necessary.
The spare tire placement is clearly an example of form over function and I am okay with it. Most of the time I am not towing and the spare tire looks great on its mount.
By the way, the CRD handles this load quite well.
Well... yes. I made honest comments on design flaws, too. But, I'm supposed to lighten up. Okay. Anyway, I don't like Bud Light.
Short of moving the spare to the left or dropping the hitch, I'd like your solution. Since the weight of the driver is already on the left, I wouldn't want the weight of the spare shifted there. The back door hinge shouldn't have to bear the weight on the right.
I can't imagine anyone who'd have to go to the trouble of driving onto blocks to raise the tounge of a trailer, either. It does kinda connect the dots, though.
enzodc
Not only am I confident the Liberty CRD will tow 5,000#: After pulling a 25 year old Scotch pine clean out of the ground using a heavy chain wrapped around the trailer ball, I know the hitch assembly is tougher than it looks.
I shimmed my stinger with some spare brass sheet I had lying around. The oversized 2-3/32" hitch is a flaw. Keep it context, though! I'm so damn tickled to buy an American-made rig with the number of virtues this one has, including sound (German-like) workmanship, I'm not going to call anyone involved in it's design a "Moron". I consider my "glass is very full" in this purchase.
I hope DC does nothing rash in response to a few off-handed criticisms that may increase problems, rather than lessen them. This a quality, UTILITY vehicle with style and attitude!
To be honest, in the long run, you may be more happy if you have the tounge on the trailer extended. I know- easy for me to say since I do my own fabricating. However, that results in solving the door clearance problem and reduces weight on the hitch (apportions more to the trailer axles). You'll have better performance all the way around. Go with a 2 to 7-foot long, 3" steel tube (1/8 or 5/16"). I'm inclined to do same with my travel trailer as I have a 7' extension on my utility trailer and love it!
I only tow a jetski that weighs about 1,000 lbs. with the trailer, but it has been a perfect fix for me.
Here is a link:
Ball Mounts
This ball mount bs was driving me crazy. I also bought the 13 1/2 inch CR Brophy with the crudely lathed 7500 lbs rated 2 inch ball and mentioned it my post months ago.
I got that info at edmunds or at our other all jeep liberty sites.
I haven't towed in thirty years and learned by reading (lurking) at the good jeep sites. Please do the same. Hitch extenders reduce load ratings.
Since my purchase I learned by searches that there are other long ball mounts for less than I paid.
Speaking of payments, how do all the early buyers feel about making payments and having a balance due for more than some can buy a new leftover for now. A true "marketing misfire" like I've posted before.
Please tell Toyota to make a real American one-half ton truck with a comfortable seat and driving position and built with real tough engineered parts and build it in Japan or build it here with workers who care and are allowed to do the right thing.
Please tell Cummins to build me a B diesel 5.9 divided by two (a 2.95B?) and put it in my truck.
I don't care about 0-60 times or sunroofs or 20 inch tires. Give me hi-way mileage, and with the diesel, I'll have some towing torque.
Price, who cares, quality can cost (I'll pay for quality), but you can pay too much for less.
If you can expand on how you showed the dealer the hitch was oversized, I would appreciate it.
BTW, I have a March '05 build date. Is your's close? This might have been a short-lived supplier issue that only affected a few units before it was caught. :surprise:
Cheers,
Boiler
He offered that farmers sometimes leave their receivers in until they rust solid and it takes a sledge to drive them out. Maybe this is a solution to that problem, he wasn’t sure.
My build date is Feb 05.
Thanks, I'll look into that.
Frank
Rocky-Road outfitters sells a hitch extension, or get a cargo basket on the roof and secure the spare on top. Anyway, those items should not put you into buyers remorse.
As of the EGR concern, I bought my CRD in Sept with a build date of May. I have over 5K miles and have no issues with EGR valves nor brakes.
I use PS additive to boost the cetane up by a half dozen points so it's in the 50's
Farout
There are several filters available for the CRD Liberty, the only brand I recommend avoiding is FRAM.
Cummins already builds a 2.8 marine turbo diesel with up to 200 HP. Is that close enough?
link title
Other interesting stuff: I asked about the tranny not shifting in OD until I was a few miles down the road and he said the tranny is programmed to stay out of overdrive until the fluid has reached a certain temp to prevent damage to the OD unit. The tranny is provided by Mercedes, and the service techs have a pretty high opinion of the unit. They also expect the service life of the diesel engine to be a solid 350,000 miles before major service, other than replacing timing belts.
The service at my dealer is great. I'll let you know how it goes with the brake replacement.
There are easier ways to get Christmas trees.
I got one of those hitch extenders too to clear the spare tire (about 7"). Supposedly, you take a hit on the allowable tongue weight, but it seems to work just fine. Easy to put on and to remove.
No argument in how much easier it is. But, if you're like me, a utility trailer gets used lots to replace need for a pickup truck. The more you're going to use the trailer, the poorer the choice the hitch extender is.
Of course, did we mention a hitch extender makes backing up more difficult too, and a tounge extension makes it less difficult?
I'm guessing a 7" hitch extender could reduce capacity by 30%. That's easy enough to compute. The 'searchlight' effect on the headlights when towing is already bad enough without unduly swamping the hind end. Ultimately depends on the duty expected as a tow vehicle, though.
You guessed it, I like my Christmas trees about 25 y.o., barefoot and prostrate, too. Libby's up to the task!
This site shows the area where ULSD fuel is currently available. ULSD burns cleaner and should not cause problems with EGR valves like the current higher sulfur content fuel does. Hope this helps.
My concern is,I will be going from Fl. to Annapolis in Jan. to pick up a telstar sailboat and trailer down. This comes in at 4800# with trailer. I will be putting on tranny cooler and air lifts next week in anticipation. I suppose the struggle of getting up those hills got me thinking about going through mountains on the way back to mi. My ears are open for those with experience. Happy sailing.BR
Mine growled similarly pulling a 3,000# load up a 6% grade. Yes, everything wears faster under those conditions. Change your fluids more often and keep your eye on temperatures in the high demand situations. My philosophy on this would be to examine the alternatives. I'm betting the best is to tow that 4,800# trailer with the Liberty CRD.
We traveled around 64 on the flats in od, and when climbing I simply shifted out the od put on the cruise and climbed the hills at 55MPG at around 2500rpm. We got between 17 and 19MPG depending on how many hills.
Just because the crd is rated to pull 5k lbs, I would not make that a regular pull. Going to the max will wear out your jeep that much sooner. Remember the jeep weight on also around 5klbs.