2004 Jeep Liberty Renegade from North America - Comments

Windows Rattle.

Pull to right.

The Jeep Liberty is a solid SUV. The build quality seems very good, and it gives you the feeling that it can do anything, on and off the road.

The suspension on the Liberty (I had the Renegade model) was probably one of the best suspensions I've ever felt. It was extremely comfortable on all surfaces, not too tight & not too loose.

The front two windows rattled when I first took the car. It only happened when they were between fully up and halfway down. I had to take it in a couple times to get it fixed. The first time the dealer said they could not reproduce the issue. But in the notes on the service order the tech drove with the windows almost all the way down, which they didn't rattle because they were mostly inside the door at that point. I had to ride in the car with the tech for awhile to make him listen to what I would hear. They ended up replacing some guide rails or something and that fixed it. The only other rattle I had in the car was from the read passenger side door panel.

OK, we all know the Liberty doesn't get good gas mileage, but I would have been happy to get at least close to what the sticker claims it gets city and highway. For both city and highway I averaged between 13 and 14MPG. I couldn't make it from Chicago to St Louis on one tank, and it's not even 300 miles. The maximum miles I could get on one tank was about 250, and that was with the gas light on for quite awhile. For the mileage the Liberty gets, it should have a V8 in it. It gets the same mileage, maybe even worse the the Grand Cherokee's that have the V8. Just my thoughts.

The Jeep also handles like a champ in sloppy snow. In 4 wheel part time, it never had any problems. I was extremely impressed with its performance.

The interior was fine, nothing special, but still much better than most other cars in its class. However, the fact that the back seats don't fold flat is really irritating. I didn't think it would bother me when I got it, but after a couple times of hauling large loads, it got old real quick.

The biggest problem I had with my Liberty is the fact that it did pull to the right about 75% of the time. The dealer did an alignment, but that did nothing. This is going to be one of those issues that Jeep will never resolve, no matter how many times you take it in. And here's what they'll tell you: it is all to spec. That's all they look at, the specs that it's supposed to be built to. So you're on your own if your Liberty pulls to the right. I didn't notice any abnormal tire wear, but it's only been 13k miles. So only time will tell.

To wrap up, I ended up trading in my Liberty. At times I really do miss it, especially with the winters here in Chicago. I got rid of it because of the mileage and the pulling to the right, that might sound lame, but I didn't want to get stuck with something that got worse as time went (and honestly these things are actually in good demand, so you shouldn't have any trouble selling). It's definitely a good looking SUV. I wish it were a little bigger for more hauling ability, but it is what it is.

I'm sorry to hear you gave up on your Liberty.

They are wonderful SUVs.

My windows rattle as you describe, but so do almost every vehicle I've driven when the windows are partly down.

It isn't an issue I have brought up with the dealer.

If I were you I'd take it in to get it fixed. Like I said, the dealer was actually able to fix that problem relatively easily, so it's worth checking out. I'm glad you are happy with yours. From what I've read, it seems to be hit or miss if a specific liberty pulls to the right. Does yours pull to the right, or are you one of the lucky ones?

The 2002's and early 2003's had defective heat shields by the lower ball joint in the right front wheel. This was more than likely the cause for the pulling ot the right on those, but on the 2004 you had, the recall doesn't affect it.

Sorry to hear you had to get rid of your Liberty. 20,000 miles on my 2003 and no problems at all in a year and a half. Gas mileage was about like yours at the beginning, but after the break in period, it went up to around 17-18 city and 20-21 highway.

Wow. This guys review is about as long as the novel ("War and Peace") I just finished reading. I have an 03' Renegade and love it. It's not perfect, but what vehicle is. Especially in the Liberty's price range. The Liberty is a safe, solid, and so far, reliable truck. I wouldn't even feel right in its direct competition, such as the CR-V, RAV-4, or Escape. These are basically cars with a truck-like body. Not for me! However, with a truck, you will pay at the pump$$$$$$$$. You'll get to know the gas station attendants real well because you tend to see them a lot. I switched to synthetic motor oil and a K/N air filter which resulted in only nominal increases in MPG. Barely measurable. However the best gas saving advice I discovered for the Liberty is keeping you foot out of it as much as possible. For instance, on the highway, try to keep the RPM's as low as possible. It's been my experience that when the RPM's are consistently above 2500, it sucks the gas quick. Keep em low for increased range ie; better highway milelage.

Just some friendly advice if your on the highway much.

My 2004 Liberty Renegade has been absolutely amazing. I live in Canada and she's just a beast in the snow. It has great power for its size and the 4 x 4 is unmatched in its class. The Cute Utes (car-based SUVs) are a complete joke relative to the Liberty and I wouldn't even consider one after test driving them all.

The gas mileage is indeed brutal, but that's what you get with a 4500 pound SUV and the biggest engine in its class. All I can say is that when I'm filling up at the pump I'm thinking 'Sooooo worth it!'

My only problem is that the window controls are on the center console and it drives me mad! I know Jeep has it there just to remind us that we're driving a Jeep (I've actually seen an interview with a Jeep designer stating this) but I STILL reach for the area right below the window for the controls before remembering they're in the middle!

Glad you like the liberty, I don't know why you would get such bad gas mileage. Mine is brand new and I get 250mi and still have 1/4 of a tank of gas left. Best thing to do is keep off the gas so much.

The pulling you experienced is probably "Radial Tire Pull," a phenomenon which occasionally occurs with radial tires. I would wager that were you to switch the front tires, left to right, the vehicle would pull the other way. Try rotating the tires, front to rear.

My Liberty doesn't pull to the right. It may follow the crown of the road, but so do most modern vehicles.

As far as the window rattle, yep! mine rattle when opened half-way, but I don't think it's a big deal. Many vehicles I've driven do the same thing.

Almost every vehicle I have ever been in has the window rattle, I have gotten use to it, I am not goin to bother with such small things like that. I just got my renegade and I absolutely love it. This vehicle is just solid, if you want a solid suv that's not built like a car then of course it won't get great mileage, but its not that bad for what it is.

Hey, I'm thinking of getting a liberty renegade, never had a jeep before. I heard from one person they don't hold value and they are junk, I tend to disagree, but wouldn't know as I only test drove for 15 minutes, any advice?