2002 Jeep Liberty Limited 4WD review from North America
"Not a bad car, but the Japanese competition is better"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Purchase Jeep second hand from a dealer with 18,000 miles and one year old.
18,000 - 20,000 Speedo would not work after going through a puddle of water. Went to a 5 Star Jeep dealer 3 times before it was fixed properly.
21,000 engine light remained on another return visit to the dealer.
30,000 Central locking left passenger door failed to open.
35,000 Passenger air vent came off in my hand, fit and finish is flimsy.
No further problems to date.
General comments?
The Jeep started off with some issues which were resolved 3-4 visits to the Jeep dealer under warranty From 25,000 to 45,000 no problems do date. Mechanically it has been very reliable and has always started first time in all types of weather conditions. It handles well in the snow and we like the high up ride and clearance. Generally we are happy with the car, but there are some flaws which Chrysler/Jeep need to sort out which are.
1. The fit and finish build quality isn't as good as previous cars I have owned which includes: Audi, VW, BMW and Saab all are better built (exterior and interior)
2. A car which costs around 30K new should have ABS as standard. This car didn't have this which is dangerous in the snow.
3. Why does this car still have drum brakes? Other SUV's in this class ie: Toyota, Honda etc... all have disk brakes all round. This doesn't have sense why Jeep doesn't have disk brakes all round like the competition.
4. Fuel consumption is poor from the 3.7 V6 engine when compared against the Toyota Highlander or Lexus RX 330.
5. The leather seats lack support.
Generally we have been happy with the Jeep Liberty, but will probably not buy another one. This car will be replaced by either a Toyota Highlander or Lexus RX 330 or Merc ML 350.
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| Rugged, reliable with highly variable fuel mileage depending on driving habits |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Don't Know |
| Model year | 2002 |
| Year of manufacture | 2002 |
| First year of ownership | 2003 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.7 V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 7 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 9 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 7 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 8 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 18000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 46000 miles |
| Date of Entry | 26th December, 2005 |