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Liberty's Offroad

15K views 39 replies 15 participants last post by  Dave Z 
#1 ·
OK, I probably know the answer at this forum, because there are very few Jeepers here, but out of curiosity and because I'm tired of reading about repair problems ONLY, how do you Liberty owners use your Liberty?
If you do not take it off pavement, WHY did you buy a Jeep?
No flaming, just an honest discussion of why you purchased a Liberty.
Thanks!



 
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#2 ·
My sister purchased her 2004 Liberty because it met her all-weather, road-going needs and the Liberty's price was right. It makes her feel confident.
The Grand Cherokee seemed too large for what she wanted and the dealer would not barter on the sticker price of a GC or a Wrangler.
A customer of mine has a couple of Libertys for use on the farm. They seem to do all that he asks in the way of traction, comfort and utility. They are work trucks.
 
#3 ·
My sister purchased her 2004 Liberty because it met her all-weather, road-going needs and the Liberty's price was right. It makes her feel confident.
The Grand Cherokee seemed too large for what she wanted and the dealer would not barter on the sticker price of a GC or a Wrangler.
A customer of mine has a couple of Libertys for use on the farm. They seem to do all that he asks in the way of traction, comfort and utility. They are work trucks.
So, would it be fair to say that your sister might also consider a Patriot for her use needs?
 
#4 ·
Yes, with current fuel prices a 4-cyl Jeep is looking mighty fine.
Actually my wife traded in her Caravan for a 2009 Patriot, but found it to be too small for her mom's scooter and shopping bags in the back. She went back to her minivans.
We looked at the new Compass and liked it, but the better value was in the Patriot. Used Compasses are very rare.
 
#5 ·
I got my 06 Liberty because a Wrangler was too small when I am carrying kids around with the school stuff in the week and hunting fishing stuff on the weekends.

My Liberty gets abused. And it goes offroad hen needed. Stuck only 2x's so far. Both times when I landed it on top of pine stumps. They were not the same one.

I looked at the Laredos and so forth but they were too big for the places I go in a jeep on a weekend. During the week, the Liberty handles in town traffic real well. Mine is the Renegade version.
 
G
#6 ·
we are on our second Liberty. my wife likes it because its "Nimble" it can get in and out of parking lots easy as compared to her mini van. she is not happy about the loss of extra space the van had but it makes up in spades for ride and handling on our crappy Michigan roads. we have been looking at Patriot as a replacement for our `09 Lib. she wants a little better fuel economy ( she gets about 18-20 now). we went to the dealer and checked out the leg room with both my sons who a 6'0" and still in high school. they fit very well in the back of the Patriot and had enough room for their legs without being scrunched. I was surprised the Durango and Grand had/have less rear leg room. it was rather disappointing as we had intended to get a new Durango up to that point.
Our first `02 liberty we took off roading in northern Michigan. it was the tricked out with all the skid plates and did very well in the trails. we drug the plates in a few places over rocks and stumps and were able to get past a few obsticals I didn't think we would.
 
#7 ·
I bought the Liberty because I lost my Intrepid to my 17 year old son. I needed a car to drive in the Winter as my Daytona no longer sees Winter and not even the rain if possible. I am also a Boy Scout leader with my younger son and over at the Summer getting to camp I thought I was going to bottom out in the Intrepid getting to camp. There was no way was going to get all the way to the camp site. Others in there 4wd trucks got in no problem. Now I will be able to get into camp with all the gear. So my Liberty will see off road driving. But now I have no excuse not to be able to get to work on a snowy day.
 
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#8 ·
we are on our second Liberty. my wife likes it because its "Nimble" it can get in and out of parking lots easy as compared to her mini van. she is not happy about the loss of extra space the van had but it makes up in spades for ride and handling on our crappy Michigan roads. we have been looking at Patriot as a replacement for our `09 Lib. she wants a little better fuel economy ( she gets about 18-20 now). we went to the dealer and checked out the leg room with both my sons who a 6'0" and still in high school. they fit very well in the back of the Patriot and had enough room for their legs without being scrunched. I was surprised the Durango and Grand had/have less rear leg room. it was rather disappointing as we had intended to get a new Durango up to that point.
Our first `02 liberty we took off roading in northern Michigan. it was the tricked out with all the skid plates and did very well in the trails. we drug the plates in a few places over rocks and stumps and were able to get past a few obsticals I didn't think we would.
Good report!
Interesting to learn of the back seat leg room difference with the WK's.
 
#9 ·
How I use my Lib?

1. commuting to work, family and friends.
a. through snow sometimes
b. flooded roads
c. The Cross Bronx

2. offroad driving on the beach mildly in the woods
a. fishing
b. paddleboarding, kyacking and/or boating
c. hiking/camping

3. Compact size
a. fits nicely in my small garage
b. For its size it can tow up to 5000lbs
c. Solid roof for addtional storage ie (kyacks, rods, skis, cargo)

Why Jeep Lib?

1. affordibility cost$$
2. mechanic's recommendation
3. Looked beautiful in the showroom
4. Rides like a truck and can carry a lot of weight with out feeling it. Not impressed with the tires, which is better for me makes me not drive as fast as I use too.

*Just didn't anticpate on having the stupid little issues I've been having with it. I am glad I purchased an addtional gold warranty.

(2010) Liberty Sport with Popular package
 
#11 ·
We have an '06 Libby; my wife wanted one for years, so we bought this one in the fall of '08. A few months after we bought it, we took it to the San Juan Mts in CO and hit some Jeep trails...it did very well for a stock vehicle! Mostly, my wife uses it for a daily driver. We can get quite a bit of snow here in SD, and the Libby handles it well.
 
#12 ·
I bought my first Jeep product as a 2003 used Liberty 2WD Sport in Texas. We used for driving back and forth to worth, and hauling stuff for the yard, towing the boat to Lake Sam Rayburn and other places along the coast. It was great for towing and handling but after 6 months, couldn't take hitting my head anymore getting in and out and my knees just didn't have enough room and the bumpy ride. We really like the Grand Cherokee as we are on the 3rd one now! We test drove the 201 Liberty before getting the 2011 GC and it still didn't compare in room, ride, space etc, but was a big improvement over the 2003.I am only 5'9'' so that is not really tall for most vehicles, or did they just downsize those too like everything else today?
 
#13 ·
zrxkawboy said:
We have an '06 Libby; my wife wanted one for years, so we bought this one in the fall of '08. A few months after we bought it, we took it to the San Juan Mts in CO and hit some Jeep trails...it did very well for a stock vehicle! Mostly, my wife uses it for a daily driver. We can get quite a bit of snow here in SD, and the Libby handles it well.
We've had our Liberty on many of the San Juan trails, Moab and the Sierra's Nevada and Utah. It's done fine, high centered a few places where the IFS gives away ground clearance, but that's what skid plates are for. ;)
 
#14 ·
MoparNorm said:
We've had our Liberty on many of the San Juan trails, Moab and the Sierra's Nevada and Utah. It's done fine, high centered a few places where the IFS gives away ground clearance, but that's what skid plates are for. ;)
Very cool! We were in the San Juans in June '09, and I've wanted to go back ever since! The beauty there is unreal.
 
#15 ·
There are some mild to wild trails, all fun!



Its the top of the world! (at least in the North America)




 
#16 ·
...And, in the desert...







 
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#17 ·
Hey all. Haven't been a member for a number of years. Came back because I saw a Jeep forum. Bought my wife an 06 Liberty Renegade a couple months ago. She had an 08 JKU with 3 inches of lift and 32's. Decided to downsize a bit due to her new job being in another city. We love the Liberty! We do off road it quite a bit. A friend has some property we wheel on. We followed the wranglers and cherokees every place they went except the mud hole. Very capable off road rig. Looking into a 2.5 inch lift and some more aggressive tires.
 
#18 ·
Hey all. Haven't been a member for a number of years. Came back because I saw a Jeep forum. Bought my wife an 06 Liberty Renegade a couple months ago. She had an 08 JKU with 3 inches of lift and 32's. Decided to downsize a bit due to her new job being in another city. We love the Liberty! We do off road it quite a bit. A friend has some property we wheel on. We followed the wranglers and cherokees every place they went except the mud hole. Very capable off road rig. Looking into a 2.5 inch lift and some more aggressive tires.
If you haven't purchased your lift yet, I recommend the FrankenLift by All J Products, it's the best KJ lift on the market.


 
#23 ·
If you haven't purchased your lift yet, I recommend the FrankenLift by All J Products, it's the best KJ lift on the market.
I was looking at the Frankenlift II Premium Kit. Reasonable price, and seems like it includes everything you need. I am curious though, I saw a different maker and they said their's wasn't compatible with the Renegade for some reason. Not sure why that would be...
 
#19 ·
Both of mine were '05 diesels and I bought them for offroad use and to tow trailers. With a solid rear axle, cast iron A-arms up front, the 545RFE trans, and a real t-case, I found the Liberty to be just as rugged as a Wrangler. I took it EVERYWHERE. It was a blast. And on the final fourwheeling adventure with it, I ended up pulling a Durango out of a flash flooded stream and then hauled a modified Tacoma 4x4 on a flatbed trailer 220 miles to drop it off at my friends' house after we hydrolocked the engine that same day.

The Liberty, in my opinion, was the most under-rated Jeep ever built. Mine, in particular, averaged 26 MPGs empty, 16 MPGs towing 3 tons, and would go any place I pointed it on it's 2.5" lift and 31" tires.
 
#21 ·
I bought my Liberty Renegade new back in 2002 (an 03 model) because I needed more room than my 98 wrangler could handle. I used the wrangler as a daily driver, but also for light off roading on dirt trails with some fallen tree obstacles possible, and of course the snow. I used my Liberty in a similar fashion for about 9 years, and now use it primarily for hauling the dogs/stuff, and for the snow...it's darn good in the snow. I live in the country, but work in Philly and find it useful climbing over curbs and other obstacles from the darn road crews. It's built like a tank. My wife's Encore went over a curb, and the all wheel drive turned off for Pete's sake!
I would love a modernized version of the Liberty, or something better, but I need three rows...we've got newborn twins with lots of stuff. Maybe the Wagoneer if/when it ever arrives??
 
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#30 · (Edited by Moderator)
I decided to trade my 2001 Chrysler T&C LX in on a 2005 Jeep Liberty Limited because of a photography addiction. I keep going further and further into the wild and every time I hear that awful clunking and scraping sound coming from the undercarriage, I think I need more ground clearance. My last foray almost left me stranded. I got the photo below and managed to get back down the hill and started shopping the next day. I take delivery tomorrow. Boy am I excited. :D



Jim
 
#31 ·
I decided to trade my 2001 Chrysler T&C LX in on a 2005 Jeep Liberty Limited because of a photography addiction. I keep going further and further into the wild and every time I hear that awful clunking and scraping sound coming from the undercarriage, I think I need more ground clearance. My last foray almost left me stranded. I got the photo below and managed to get back down the hill and started shopping the next day. I take delivery tomorrow. Boy am I excited. :D



Jim
Wow, nice pic! Yup, extra ground clearance is definitely a good thing. Useful for getting over debris, and small obstacles such as small trees or logs, and for water fording. Good off-road tires are helpful too. I have Goodyear Wrangler SR-A's on mine, and I've found them to be serviceable. They were the OEM tires for the Liberty Renegade I believe. But others on Allpar have suggested other makes and models as well. Skid plates would be helpful too, since you mentioned scraping the bottom of your vehicle. If you know all this already, forgive my blathering! Lol

My Liberty is almost 13 years old now, with 157k miles on it, most of it in the first 8 years. She's been a good vehicle, very reliable. Have fun!!
 
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#32 ·
The photo appears when you log in with http:// (nonsecure) but not when you log in with https:// (secure). I don't know why it is not being cached, as is supposed to happen; it might be too large for cacheing.
 
#33 ·
The photo appears when you log in with http:// (nonsecure) but not when you log in with https:// (secure).
Sorry, I haven't logged in for a while. I'm sure I posted that photo when I was logged into the allpar site via http because that's what the link in my bookmarks was to. I just now noticed you can visit this site via either http or https and you should not be able to do that. If this is a cPanel powered server, then it's a simple fix to redirect all traffic headed to any http page to the same page at https.
Skid plates would be helpful too, since you mentioned scraping the bottom of your vehicle. If you know all this already, forgive my blathering! Lol
Yeah, the scraping bottom was in my minivan, not the KJ. 'Course, I got over-confident in the Jeep a few times and scraped bottom in that too. But it wasn't long after I got the Jeep that I started adding skid plates one at a time. My engine, tranny and transfer case are all protected now.

I also have a 3" lift (Australian OME springs & shocks and some JBA parts, with a few Moog bushings thrown in for good measure). The wheels and tires have been upgraded too - 245/75R16 Cooper Discoverer STT Pro on Vision 398 Manx rims. There's plenty of room in the back for my Segway, which I use as a mobility aide, and I carry an 8-pack of oxygen C-tanks. Now I have a Rola roof basket, which can hold a couple of o2 E-tanks and other gear. I can be out for nearly 24 hours without worrying about running out of oxygen.

Now I wonder why I went so many years without a Jeep. My first was the Jeep I drove in Vietnam, then I got a 1965 Gladiator J2000 pickup in 1971. But after I traded that in for a Chevy Silverado in 1978, I was without a Jeep for 27 years. I love driving my Liberty.

 
#35 ·
I installed that code. It doesn't work. (It's in now.)

All images that are uploaded are resized and cached. All images that are referenced are just cached. There's no automatic resize (and adding one is beyond me.)
 
#36 ·
I installed that code. It doesn't work. (It's in now.)
Bummer. There are several different ways to do it using the .htaccess file though. I don't know what version of PHP you're using and that can have an effect. You can try this one instead:
Code:
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off [OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^www\.allpar\.com$ [NC]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://www.allpar.com/$1 [L,R=301]
Don't forget to remove any similar code and this code should be at the top of the file. The .hataccess file I am referring to is the one in your root folder, not the /forums/ folder.

An alternative would be to just open a support ticket with Liquid Web and ask them to fix your .hataccess file so that all inbound links land on the correct page for https and www.

There's no automatic resize (and adding one is beyond me.)
Actually, the xenForo forum software does it automatically. I converted my flooring forum to xenForo just last month, after 11 years on vBulletin. I'm really happy with it, but there's definitely a learning curve. I'm sure you noticed that after converting to XF from IPS. But I am clueless as to the problem with the images showing. My original sunset photo in this thread shows up fine for me, including when it was quoted, and it's a much larger file in KB and dimensions than the last photo I linked to. Here's a smaller photo of me with my first Jeep:



It's linked from the same domain. You can tell I was in the US Army by how they turned a relatively unassuming Jeep & driver into a rolling target with a big white banner with red letters that seemed to translate into Vietnamese as "SHOOT ME, SHOOT ME!" :rolleyes:
 
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