seem high in this room. In the NW they are selling Limited Jeep Libertys for 23,999, Sports for 19,999 and one just above the sport for 21,999. NW Jeep in Hillsboro, Oregon has these advertised all the time, and not just one, I am talking up to 11 to 13 for each price range, range of colors too. No way would I pay 26K for Liberty when there are so many other larger SUV's for this price..
My order is a Limited too. (4x4, 27G, Tow, Off-road, and sunroof) Ordered it on 8/27 and it was at BX until I called today.... now it's at BG!! DC said they may be waiting for parts for the Lmtd 4x4.
I heard that Ford may be having problems with parts being flown in, so I don't know if DC is having the same problems.
I visited a dealer two weekends ago, and they only had one limited on the lot with ABS. They gave me a song and a dance about the fact that ABS wasn't safe and wasn't for everyone. I pointed out that all the Grand Cherokees on the lot came standard with ABS... What about side airbags? They are an option on the 2002 Grand Cherokee and on the Liberty. Has anyone ordered a liberty or a 2002 Grand with side airbags? Still am trying to decide between a 2002 Grand Cherokee and a new Liberty. Also looking at the Toyota Highlander, and waiting for the 2002 CRV to arrive on the lot. I thought the RAV4 was still a bit underpowered, as was the Highlander 4.
I'd take the Liberty over the Grand even if the prices were the same! Drive the Grand, then drive the Liberty, then you'll understand. Even though the Grand has more equipment, the Liberty is tighter, quieter, steering is so much better and I can go on and on. The CRV is merely an AWD taller Civic and can only handle a dirt road. I agree the RAV is WAY underpowered. As for the Highlander, well I also own an RX300 for which the Highlander is based. Nice car but essentially it's a tall Camry with AWD. Also the turning radius is over 40 feet on the Highlander. BTW... the Liberty can use a boost of 20-25 hp... then it would be perfect.
I've owned three Grand Cherokee's (93, 96, 99) & now my Liberty for 5 days & 500 miles. Unless you NEED the size of the Grand, by all means go with the Liberty. In initial quality, my Liberty is hands down better than any of the previous JGC's, maybe better than all three put together. Hopefully I'm not speaking too soon, but I have not had one quality issue so far, neither the alignment problems or A/C wet carpet issues mentioned here, nor the standard "this is loose, this needs adjusted, there's air noise, etc. etc. etc." issues that are usually par for the course. And, even during break in, my mileage appears to be a solid 16 city, 20 highway, so I'm hoping for even a little better down the road. Are there compromises? Sure. But if you start asking for bigger, longer, wider seats, more rear cargo space, etc., guess what. You're asking for a JGC or something else in that price range. As far as I'm concerned, this has been the best money I've spent on a vehicle in a LONG time. Finally, maybe I'm just lucky or have a good dealer, but when I ordered mine (Ltd., G pkg, ABS, Off road, Tow) I was told 4 weeks. Actual order date to delivery - 4 weeks 1 day! No hard sell on extras, & extended warranty discounted about 35%, making it competitive with all the third party warranties around. (Haven't decided on that yet.)
Thanks for your comments. I have owned a 1990 Cherokee and currently have a 93 Grand Cherokee. I have issues with repairs though after reading the forum on the Grand Cherokee, I seem to be one of the lucky ones. It sure hasn't been like the hondas that we have owned. The Cherokee seems to have a better ride, but I only drove the 6 cylinder one.
What about air bags, does anyone have a liberty with side airbags?
I normally do most of my driving in the metro NY area so I have not noticed how effective the headlights are. I have a place up in the country and those roads are PITCH BLACK at night. Perhaps I am used to the great lights on my MB C320 but the Liberty's headlights need improvement. The beam just doesn't penetrate down the road well and I checked and there is no adjustment to speak of. I purchased aftermarket lights which LOOK like Xenons but aside from looking cool, the new bulbs increased my visibility perhaps 10-15%. Any suggestions on how I can improve the headlights? Thanks!
We just came back this weekend from the Great North Woods in NH on the Canadian border, talk about dark roads! Well, the lights were great, and even though there was no fog, only out on the lake in the am, I used the fog lights and it was great. Since we were on "Moose Ally" I wanted to see far and wide..moose, fox and more were plentiful.
You bought a C230K coupe and a Jeep Liberty? Wow, I'm impressed you lucky guy :-) BTW, haven't seen you in the MB Tuesday chats recently.
The best thing you can probably do is to have (HID Xenon, if you wish to spend a bit more money) auxilary driving lamps installed so that you can turn them on whenever you wish. It should look fitting on a Jeep afterall :-)
Drew Host Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
First time, long time. I'm eagerly anticipating joining the Liberty fold and by all the buzz on this board, it looks like there are many happy Liberty owners out there. I'm still deciding whether to get the Command-Trac or the Select-Trac. I own a bare-bones 1990 Cherokee with 185k. It has shift on the fly, naturally, and found while livng in New England that it had a propensity to fish tail in sloppy snow unless 4x4 was engaged. Anyone thoughts on pros/cons of two systems would be helpful. Also ABS would be a new luxury to me. Some feedback on its virtues and drawbacks would be appreciated, as well. Cheers.
I have seen some of you mention codes like BX and BG...what do they mean. Cause when I ask about ABS and Sunroofs at different dealers they tell me "ABS is on hold, thats what these BX's means, ABS is on hold" and the same with Sunroofs or whatever else they dont have. I just test drove a Liberty Limited and it handled nicely, had good, not great pickup (My last two vehicles had 5.0 engines) and turned and generally was a nice vehicle. I live in NYC and so I had more than a few pot holes to try it out on, and the Liberty handled them all quite nicely, dulling the worst of them well and erasing the smaller ones totally. Dealer was laughing at me swerving into them. Any help on the codes issues would be great.
Hey Drew....I have been busy (especially lately) and have been unable to attend the MB chats. I just got the C230 coupe for my wife. I mainly drive the Liberty from now until spring. My C320 (leased) is up in the garage in Pennsylvania. I hope to split the mileage between those two as my trip to PA eats up quite a bit of miles.
Regarding the lights... thanks for the information. I will certainly investigate a HID conversion. If anyone has done this on their Liberty, please share your experience.
Ah, I see. Hope you keep the transfer case lever in Full-time 4WD mode at all times :-). DCX must be happy with you being a triple repeat customer!
Regarding the lights, I wasn't referring to a conversion, but rather HID Xenon auxilary driving lamps. HID conversions for the headlamps are not legal and not particularly good since the headlamp assemblies were not designed for those special HID bulbs in mind.
You can have a look at Hella's light tunnel to see the (drastic) difference between HID Xenon driving lamps and halogen driving lamps:
I hope this helps! Drew Host Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
P.S. What sort of bulbs does the Liberty use for its headlamps? You could also consider changing to E-code (European spec) headlamps which will give you a better cutoff, but not necessarily better brightness.
I would opt for the Selec Trac. it can do everything Command Trac can and more. The full-time 4WD mode is especially nice to have in the rain and on transitional surfaces such as partly-snowy/partly-clear roads.
It will probably help with the resale value when your ready for a new vehicle down the road. In fact, you could probably get most of your money back.
Again... thanks for the information. I bookmarked that site and will do further investigation. The OEM bulbs are 9007 and I did purchase their Xenon replacement. Not REAL Xenons, but the light they emit looks just like HIDs. A definite improvement over the stock lights. I will certainly entertain the idea of getting HID auxilliary lighting. And yes, DC must be very happy to have me as a customer. Long live the Liberty.... !!!
Selec Trac is the same thing as Command Trac, with the addition of a full-time 4WD mode.
Command Trac has: 4WD Low (part-time), 4wd High (part-time), 2WD and Neutral.
Selec Trac has: 4WD Low (part-time), 4wd High (part-time), 4WD High (full-time), 2WD and Neutral.
Part-time 4WD can only be used on slippery surfaces, and is used in difficult traction conditions. Low-range 4WD is used only in the most severe traction conditions. Full-time 4WD can be used on any surface, anytime.
A while back someone posted a link to a checklist of things to look for before taking delivery of the new car. If anyone knows that link could you either post it or email it to me at: cfred3@yahoo.com, I pick up my Liberty on next Tuesday!
Besides the normal items to check for, see if the dealer will let you test drive the one you ordered and see if the alignment is off. Many owners are stating that it's pulling to the right or left. While I have not experienced that with our Liberty, just something to check out before leaving the lot. If it does pull, have them fix it first. No need to make matters worse by driving it home and you not being happy with it.
-mad
PS: You'll love it. Awesome vehicle, no problems at all. Liberty Sport, Selectrac, Patriot Blue 4x4.
Thanks for all the replies RE Selec-Trac vs. Command Trac. It seems that Selec is the way to go. Until test driving the Liberty yesterday, I thought that the Selec-Trac full-time 4x4 was a permanent AWD, like the Outback et al. But it's good to see that it's not and that Selec has a "low" option for those tough spots. That's a selling point. In another matter, I'm disappointed to see that ABS is not a standard feature on the Liberty. (It should be.) Was wondering if most Liberty owners have found the anti-lock brakes to be a "must-have" option. I'm looking to streamline options to keep costs down but don't want to cut corners on safety. Are the ABS worth the extra $600.
SelectTrac is a full-time 4WD system. A permanent 4WD system will not have a 2WD mode. The difference between AWD and 4WD is that the latter does not have a low range mode.
Yes, here in North America, AWD means no low range. However, if you go to some of Subaru's international sites, the term AWD is not used, and it's referred to as 4WD.
I don't think it's a matter of which country you go to. It's the marketing folks that have messed it all up with all of the interchanging of terms. I stick to the definitions of what Land Rover, MB, CR, and 4WD experts use. Considering that Subarus outside of N.America can have low range gearing, 4WD would be appropriate actually. :-)
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Has anyone who purchased a Liberty seriously considered an Xterra? I had for some time eyed buying an Xterra but since the Liberty came out it caught my eye, and I'm now going through the paces of looking to buy one. But I still wanted to kick the tires of new 2002 Xterra and was hoping to get some feedback from those who weighed the benefits/drawbacks of both vehicles. I am new to this message board, so pardon me if this topic has been covered before. Thanks.
I briefly considered the Xterra. Once I got into the Xterra the cheap interior turned me off so much I refused the test drive. No comparison in my opinion.
I looked at the Xterra as I like Nissan quality. I was very turned off by the cheap looking interior (especially the HVAC controls) and tinny feel to the thing. The sunroof is made useless by the that roof rack basket...that seems like very poor designing to me. Most of all, however, was the significant lack of power in the '01 models. Reviews I've read of the new supercharged motor in the '02 indicate the Xterra still lacks adequate power. That's too bad as it is a fine looking SUV.
You hit it right on the nose. We too looked at the Xterra, but all that plastic! And the seats just were not comfortable at all. Subpar pickup, lousy fuel mileage had us at the Jeep dealership in no time. Xterra is a nice looking vehicle, but our Liberty is nicer.
I just drove a test drove a Liberty, which I really liked. My wife is making fun of me because she thinks the styling is too young and cute for a 42 year old father (I really was after a Cherokee, but the Liberty is so superior in ride, handling, comfort and seems much more solid than the Cherokee...) I think it is an impressive piece of work and I'm in the position to support the American economy right now by buying a new car.
So, tell me, have any of you gotten this response? Is the Liberty destined to be a 20-something woman's SUV? Am I going to be the only out-of-touch middle age guy driving one?
> "So, tell me, have any of you gotten this response? Is the Liberty destined to be a 20-something woman's SUV? Am I going to be the only out-of-touch middle age guy driving one?"
hmmm...I understand your concern but most of the posters here and on JeepsUnlimited are male and from the sounds of it, at least in their 30's. I'm a 45 female and sure don't want to look like an old lady trying to 'look' younger!! tho I do look young....er I say get the thing if you like it....visit the boards and do polls if it helps but from what I heard the median age buying the Liberty is 40 so you're right there. I think that's because a 20something prob can't shell out 27k for a ride?! Meant to say that 'some' 20somethings can't afford...I know there are some amazingly successful genx'ers so that wasn't meant to be a slam.
Nothing's wrong with young and cute. Except I'm not either of them (anymore, I like to think)...
Oh, hell. All the little SUVs are cute. At least this one's unique. Anyone know if there is a package that includes selec-trak and ABS? Hoping to order with those features and would love to get a package deal...
FYI, the dealer in my area is selling just under invoice (must be a dealer incentive). Is that pretty good?
I have the other way. I am a kid-like-30-year old lady and so Liberty suits me well. I almost buy one but changed my mind all of sudden to get a Pathfinder, because it costs me less (1500 rebate and 0.9% APR) for a better vehicle (only in general public's opinion). I've worried about if I look too old to drive that truck, Pathfinder is for mature people. My opinion is - give yourself more time to think about it so you won't regret. Now I am happy with my choice. BTW.... Have you ever considered a Pathfinder? A basic model with sunroof and auto transmission only costs me 27500, 0.9% APR, it already has everything, extremely nice interior, bose stereo system, 4wd, abs...... Maybe you can test drive one? FYI. I am OK with a 42-year-old father to get a Liberty.
The Selec-trac is optional on the Sport (in the 'B' pkg, it doesn't come with it but is available as an option) and is also optional with the base Limited (the base limited is the'F' pkg so you can option it with that) OR it is standard in the Limited 'G' pkg (one I got and worth the extra cash IMO)
As for the ABS, that doesn't come with any of the pkgs (unless they've changed that) but is available for all levels (Sport/Limited) Good luck!
Come on now guys (and gals) My wife and I are 50 and with our only kid getting married next week. We bought our Liberty Limited about 6 weeks ago because we liked the vehicle construction and features. It IS solid. We really do not care what others think as we are beyond that and thankful to still be here. Hell, I bought my 2000 Wranger at age 48. Just wanted to have a little fun before I was too old to be 4 wheeling. The Wrangler is mine and the Liberty is hers. I guess we are just a couple old farts enjoying some of the fruits of our labor. Couldn't afford some of these toys during the kid's school and college years.
Yeah.. I think it's cute but who cares? It's a phenomenal truck for the money. My wish list is pretty short and I can almost assure everyone that the Liberty will have rear disc brakes and an optional higher output engine (20-30 more ponies PLEEEEZ). I'd NEVER consider a Pathfinder... BOOOORRRING!!
The one I was looking at that listed for 28,540 - the customer discount of 625 came to 27,915...had 27g package, sunroof, ABS, tow group, CD changer, Heated seats. The dealer just let me take it for spin alone for 40 minutes. GREAT VECHICLE. Now what should this cost me? Thank You.
I'm 24 yrs old and the very proud owner of a flame red Jeep Liberty. Don't let your age stop you.....I do agree with the statement earlier that most 20somethings can't afford the Liberty. The only reason I was able to get mine is cause of the employee discount. Otherwise there's noway I could afford this SUV.
I was almost 49 when I bought my first Jeep Wrangler(2000). I bought a new one in Forest green but was awful tempted to buy a Solar yellow one that the dealer had. I thought about it for a few moments, came to my senses and realized that I shouldn't park a Chiquita banana in my driveway and most folks would have deemed me as an old fart going through a mid-life crisis. Took the green one.
Gotta admit, the Flame red Liberty looks sharp but my wife out voted me and we got the Woodland brown instead. Glad we did. Still love my Wrangler too.
Comments
I heard that Ford may be having problems with parts being flown in, so I don't know if DC is having the same problems.
I thought that was a really good price. I'd just have to get abs and pay a little over $22,000.
Matt
Anyone thinking about putting on Xenon lights on the Liberty? Also, any neat tricks u can do with the liberty? Please post!
-Dave
What about air bags, does anyone have a liberty with side airbags?
I've noticed a strange metallic grinding sound coming from somewhere. It's not constant, or really loud, but it is noticeable.
Also, there's a wind whistle when driving on the interstate with all the windows closed.
Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks!
The best thing you can probably do is to have (HID Xenon, if you wish to spend a bit more money) auxilary driving lamps installed so that you can turn them on whenever you wish. It should look fitting on a Jeep afterall :-)
Drew
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I'm eagerly anticipating joining the Liberty fold and by all the buzz on this board, it looks like there are many happy Liberty owners out there.
I'm still deciding whether to get the Command-Trac or the Select-Trac. I own a bare-bones 1990 Cherokee with 185k. It has shift on the fly, naturally, and found while livng in New England that it had a propensity to fish tail in sloppy snow unless 4x4 was engaged.
Anyone thoughts on pros/cons of two systems would be helpful.
Also ABS would be a new luxury to me. Some feedback on its virtues and drawbacks would be appreciated, as well.
Cheers.
I just test drove a Liberty Limited and it handled nicely, had good, not great pickup (My last two vehicles had 5.0 engines) and turned and generally was a nice vehicle. I live in NYC and so I had more than a few pot holes to try it out on, and the Liberty handled them all quite nicely, dulling the worst of them well and erasing the smaller ones totally. Dealer was laughing at me swerving into them.
Any help on the codes issues would be great.
Regarding the lights... thanks for the information. I will certainly investigate a HID conversion. If anyone has done this on their Liberty, please share your experience.
Regarding the lights, I wasn't referring to a conversion, but rather HID Xenon auxilary driving lamps. HID conversions for the headlamps are not legal and not particularly good since the headlamp assemblies were not designed for those special HID bulbs in mind.
You can have a look at Hella's light tunnel to see the (drastic) difference between HID Xenon driving lamps and halogen driving lamps:
http://www.hella.com/maineng/lev1b/lev2ba/lev3bab/lev4baba/index.htm
I hope this helps!
Drew
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P.S. What sort of bulbs does the Liberty use for its headlamps? You could also consider changing to E-code (European spec) headlamps which will give you a better cutoff, but not necessarily better brightness.
It will probably help with the resale value when your ready for a new vehicle down the road. In fact, you could probably get most of your money back.
Bob
drew_ "4WD & AWD systems explained" Feb 5, 2001 8:24pm
CommandTrac = Part-time 4WD
SelectTrac = Full-time 4WD
Drew
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Command Trac has:
4WD Low (part-time), 4wd High (part-time), 2WD and Neutral.
Selec Trac has:
4WD Low (part-time), 4wd High (part-time), 4WD High (full-time), 2WD and Neutral.
Part-time 4WD can only be used on slippery surfaces, and is used in difficult traction conditions. Low-range 4WD is used only in the most severe traction conditions. Full-time 4WD can be used on any surface, anytime.
Bob
Anyone have any specifics to add for a Liberty?
Steve
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-mad
PS: You'll love it. Awesome vehicle, no problems at all. Liberty Sport, Selectrac, Patriot Blue 4x4.
In another matter, I'm disappointed to see that ABS is not a standard feature on the Liberty. (It should be.) Was wondering if most Liberty owners have found the anti-lock brakes to be a "must-have" option. I'm looking to streamline options to keep costs down but don't want to cut corners on safety. Are the ABS worth the extra $600.
Bob
This explanation will help you out:
drew_ "4WD & AWD systems explained" Feb 5, 2001 8:24pm
Hope this helps!
Drew
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Bob
Drew
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I do agree, it's a marketing issue, not a mechanical issue.
Bob
-mad
I just drove a test drove a Liberty, which I really liked. My wife is making fun of me because she thinks the styling is too young and cute for a 42 year old father (I really was after a Cherokee, but the Liberty is so superior in ride, handling, comfort and seems much more solid than the Cherokee...) I think it is an impressive piece of work and I'm in the position to support the American economy right now by buying a new car.
So, tell me, have any of you gotten this response? Is the Liberty destined to be a 20-something woman's SUV? Am I going to be the only out-of-touch middle age guy driving one?
Probably. ;-)
What's wrong with 'young and cute', anyway?
ejp
Oh, hell. All the little SUVs are cute. At least this one's unique. Anyone know if there is a package that includes selec-trak and ABS? Hoping to order with those features and would love to get a package deal...
FYI, the dealer in my area is selling just under invoice (must be a dealer incentive). Is that pretty good?
FYI. I am OK with a 42-year-old father to get a Liberty.
As for the ABS, that doesn't come with any of the pkgs (unless they've changed that) but is available for all levels (Sport/Limited) Good luck!
It may look cute but I'm impressed with it.
Gotta admit, the Flame red Liberty looks sharp but my wife out voted me and we got the Woodland brown instead. Glad we did. Still love my Wrangler too.