I recently bought a garage kept 2012 Liberty Latitude with 66k about 3 years ago. I previously owned a 1991 Cherokee Laredo with the straight 6 which started my love affair with Jeeps. This Liberty is my daily driver and it is an understated gem. The 4WD system in the snow is terrific. As to the gas mileage, it is about as aerodynamic as a brick on wheels. That being said, depending on road and traffic conditions, with the cruise on, i get decent mileage - best being 350 miles to the tank. The acceleration isn't bad and the engine delivers when I push it. As to stuff breaking, I so far replaced a coil pack tower and a fuel injector. All in all, its a solid Jeep for the value.
I bought a 2003 Jeep Liberty when it was at 145,000 miles. There was the normal wear and tear, I put about $750 into it for minor parts, I drove it for the next 3 1/2 years with no major issues. I had that 18.5 gallon gas tank which meant greater gas mileage too. Great car imo
Mine is a 2wd and has 150,000 miles. Ithas been hit 5 times, rear-ended twice, t boned twice and has the rear end clip taken off by a semi truck. Not the best looking but I is a solid car.
Recently picked up a 2007 Liberty for basically nothing ($1000). It’s got around 220K miles on it. Got the normal creaks and rattles from a vehicle of this age but it still runs strong and no major issues.
My girlfriend has an 05 Liberty. Pros: small overall size, great turning circle, good clearance, great 4WD system (has the AWD setting as well as 4H, and 4L), decent enough on gas, surprisingly large cargo space with even just one rear seat down. Cons: it's basically a truck compressed down into the size of a regular car which means usually rudimentary repair jobs involve removing components that you usually don't have to in order to squeeze past. This is very annoying. However after maybe 4 years now dealing with it I do finally see the point, particularly if you live in the mountains. You're bang on tho that there isn't really an alternative vehicle. I'm trying to convince her to get a toyota FJ as that ticks most the boxes imo. Nissan xterra is the only other option really and let's not get started on that.
@@Kierdziol I understand that the radiators were bad in the 05-08 models. The transmission cooler is integrated into the radiator and a seal between the two parts failed, contaminating both the coolant and transmission.
@@everready19373 This is what I had in mind when I wrote about transmission. I should've elaborated about radiator and model years, because it sounds like Nissan might have actual transmission issue, but that would be false. Thanks for bringing it up.
Love this video just finanace 2012 Jeep Liberty Jet edition all black . I love it . Very tall vehicle , I love the engine sound , I had to get use to driving it lol but now I’m 2 months in and I LOVE IT I cannot wait until winter to use the 4WD
I have a 2012 Liberty Latitude, bought it 2yrs ago, I've had to do nothing with it except oil changes and brakes, I live in Northwest Indiana where the winters can get pretty brutal and it handles the wintery weather conditions like a champ!...I love my Liberty and can't, at this point, see any reason to get rid of it, I mostly drive it in the winter months because I have an 06 Mazda MX5 that I drive as an everyday car in the nicer months....I can't praise my Jeep Liberty Latitude edition enough...Hope You enjoy yours as much as I do mine....
Just picked up my own 2012 Liberty with less than 70k miles on it. My Vibe finally got to the point it was going to cost several times its worth to fix it so decided to finally get a Jeep like I had been wanting for years. I chose the Liberty over the Wrangler myself because it has more storage and I was able to find one in the current market at a very good price. Out the door with a 2 year warranty was just over $15k.
I traded my Liberty for a Wrangler. I loved the Liberty but the Wrangler is a whole different experience. It’s a lot more expensive too! But There is no substitution…
My 2012 Liberty was also just over $15K. No warranty, but it is the Jet edition, with all the bells and whistles. It was taken care of really well! I just got it a week ago, and I'm having a blast. But it's mostly a daily driver, so I am hoping for reliability.
@@LackOfAttention So I've had the liberty for almost a year. I've spent almost 1500$ on suspension stuff and breaks. Im lucky i found a guy who knows jeeps and isn't out for blood. Got an estimate from master muffler for 2200$ and they said maybe that will fix your problem if we will keep looking. This guy changed 900$ and got the job done. Hopefully im good for awhile.
@@rlowle1228 just purchased my 2008 Liberty today and I haven’t seen any problems just yet thank goodness. But hopefully everything works out for you bro bro.
@@eligreg99 if it all is in working condition, that’s a good price. I’ve had mine for over a year now and only have had minor issues but still drive great with 144k miles I paid $4500. I’ve had to change my evap pump detector, tail light circuit board, hub assemblies in the front wheels, and had to get a new shifter. But the engine and transmission work like a beast. I’ve done 2 cross country road trips in the jeep and never broke down.
I've got an 2008 liberty with nearly 158k miles that sat outside it's whole life. Tons of warning lights on (mostly faulty sensors) and some clunky transmission stuff but other than that it is a tank I doubt many other vehicles can take that kind of abuse and keep going.
Bought my 2012 liberty sport in 2013 used with 30k miles. Bought in Virginia 2 weeks before moving to Detroit. Sold my 2006 grand Cherokee. Had a 2005 wrangler rubicon. Had a 2002 grand Cherokee Limited. Had a 1999 Jeep Cherokee. Had a 2015 jeep Cherokee trail hawk. Been a Jeep person forever and honestly broke or destroyed all the others driving off-road and on road. I have driven all of them to Outer Banks to the Blue Ridge Mountains out in the hills and mud holes on jeep trails. You name it done it all in all of them. Stock lifted you name it done it all. Bought this in 2013 and it's the only Jeep to survive me with no major failures. At first I was skeptical about it but then realized this is the most perfectly engineered Jeep. When I say perfect I mean the one with a real transfer case and the 42RLE transmission. Easy to maintain. Can change spark plugs in less then 30 mins. I have always ran synthetic fluids in every part of it. I drained all the fluids when I bought it and replaced them with Amsoil synthetics but have have done mixed oil changes with all different brands obviously. I like to try to keep the Amsoil in it but regardless if it needed to change, it was getting a synthetic fluid. As others have mentioned, this is one of the best vehicles I have ever driven in the snow this is due I think in part because it has a true transfer case with a 50-50 split in high range. I have driven the latest and greatest and I've had the oldest. In my opinion, the KK jeep liberty sport is one of the best jeeps ever created. It might be the most underrated and honestly I don't really care I can buy whatever vehicle I want with total disregard to income, and I cannot buy a better vehicles in this right now from Jeep for My purposes. I have recently bought a camper and I have to drive to Texas and pick it up and I will be driving towing the camper from Texas to Las Vegas. I have had a little bit of concerns about that just because of the age of the vehicle, but given the silly shit that I've done with it, I mean I've pulled out so many vehicles out of the mud with it. I have pulled a Xterra 17 miles on one of the most aggressive jeep trails in the Blue Ridge Mountains with a tow strap without its engine running. You know that's a 6000 pound vehicle. I'm not talking about towing it on the road. I'm talking about pulling it through a jeep trail. This vehicle never fails to continuously impress me.
I also forgot to mention that it has the most comprehensive skid plate package offered by jeep. It has a better skid plate package than what is offered on the jeep Rubicon, which is pretty incredible. The only difference is you obviously can't get rock rails for it from Mopar, I don't think but other companies sell them but as far as skid plates go it has gas tank, transfer case, transmission, and front differential. I will literally drag this thing over anything without giving a damn and it works fantastic.
I just bought a 05 liberty with 125,000 miles. Gas isn’t good on it but I got it to pull a small camper have no car payment & already my ac went out. Just needs some new tires.
I have a 2010 Liberty Sport and I got a great deal on it. 3 days after buying it I came to an unusual realization... I'll never 'not' own a Jeep. Since that realization, I have had to have my motor rebuilt at a cost of about 3K... I'm still in my Jeep. I will probably always own one of some kind but to be frank, I'm not impressed with the newer Jeep models. I wouldn't mind a Gladiator but currently the cost of them is prohibitive to me, where I live I could buy a house for that. Maybe I'll find a used one someday that will fit my budget. Until then, I'll do whatever work needs done on the Liberty I have. Thanks for the video!
Love my 08 liberty, 177k miles with no major issues. Capable off road, and decent on the road. I would not recommend it to anyone though. Chrysler engineers made a lot of head scratching choices (4 different types of drivers to change the brake light bulb) and it gets horrible gas mileage. Changing the oil cooler/ac condenser was a real pain (but that's not your average home repair).
Could you tell me more about your 2008? I'm looking at a possible purchase of one that is in almost mint condition with only 92k miles 4x4 and 4spd auto. Everything sounds and looks great. I turned it on at the dealer today and turned on the max ac and it worked great but I could smell coolant or free-on like it might have a leak or did. Without looking into it hard to speculate. Engine sounded really clean and smooth and quiet. Are there any leaking, misfiring, starting failure, over heating, etc issues for your 08?
@@aaronautry1981 engine wise it’s been great. Oil cooler/ac condenser will eventually start leaking and is a pain in the ass to replace. The engine thermostat is also a pain in the but to replace because Chrysler engineers are idiots. If you maintain it, it will run a long time. Chrysler has really crappy vehicle engineers, but they have solid engines. So you can keep it running, but you’ll be cursing them and throwing wrenches a lot.
@callalilycollective right on man thank you. I've really wanted the liberty 1st green but I saw a really nice condition 2008 liberty sport. And I was worried about the ac leaking and I'm so over having ac failures it's like a curse with every car and suv and truck I've ever owned lol. I've replaced an ac evaporator on a 2011 Ford f250(gas) and torx 5 bolts later the whole dash frame assembly came off and I had easy access and I changed the $30 part that would've costed me at least 1000 from belle tire service to change. I'll definitely consider that. I want to make it an overlander after it's paid off if I got it. And with that, there would certainly be some tune ups and aftermarket mods to beef up the engine and other mechanical parts.
@@aaronautry1981 the 1st gen liberty is a better vehicle IMO. It's the exact same drive train, slightly smaller overall, but some how has way more room to work on the engine. As far as AC goes, I havent had AC in probably 5 years... The compressor went out, then I had the system purged when i did the oil cooler. I replaced the compressor at the same time, and then just never got the system refilled. It is a very capable over road vehicle. I have a 2" lift on mine, and have gone up a size in tires. I still would not recommend it though just because of how annoying it is to work on. Takes 4 driver types to change the tail light bulbs. Has been super reliable and keeps going. I couldve gotten an FJ back when i got this in 2011. Still kicking myself on that one.
You mentioned that it can tow 5,000 LBS, but that is only with the optional towing package (just a note). Normally just 2,000 LBS. Also, The Liberty is technically a crossover / unibody. Not body-on-frame, even though it is boxy like other true SUVs. I just got mine a week ago, and you made me realize that it was definitely an emotional decision. I knew it was an impulse buy, but I hoped that I had made a practical decision as well. Crossing my fingers this car will be good to me.
I think you will find the KJ and KK are body on frame and share many parts with wranglers of their period . The replacement Cherokee is a unibody crossover .
And I also forgot to mention it is narrower and will fit on all these very narrow national Forest trails where a wrangler can't go and where a truck can't go at all whatsoever it's the perfect size
I have a jeep liberty and I was looking to do some things to it and I came across your video although I find it hard to watch. I’m not sure if there’s a reason why. Maybe it’s because you keep repeating the same thing over and over again and your comedian like mannerisms. honestly I appreciate your trying. Have a great day.
And I will also mention that people say oh well doesn't have lockers or a good four wheel drive system. This is simply not true the BLD system which stands for brake lock differential system works so well that you don't really need that stuff, and it increases the longevity of the differentials Because all of that load gets transferred to the weakest point which is a brake pad versus transferring it to the most expensive part, which is your differential gears or your driveshaft. Hence the reason why I have broken like five driveshafts in a brand new Rubicon over the short course of a year never had an issue with my jeep liberty at all whatsoever and the four wheel Drive system performs 100% the exact same as a Rubicon.
Hi Paul, excellent video! I know you changed to a Wrangler, but these questions are about the Liberty. I just bought 2011 Jeep Liberty w/ 11K miles (crazy right). I actually am still waiting to pick it up from the dealer, as they are replacing all the injectors (1 was stuck open). I have never owned a Jeep, nor have I done any off roading. Are there any customization websites that you would recommend? Are there any customization you would recommend for the Liberty? I am in Florida, so there are as many big trails as in other states. I watch your video that you talked about why you wanted to change to a Wrangler and I had a feeling ground clearance would be one. How much did it cost for you to put the 2" lift kit on the Liberty? And are there any modification for better economy? I will be driving the on my commute, which is 50 miles, round trip. I look forward to watching your other videos on the Liberty!!
He Lee, thanks for watching! I’m in Florida now too! Tampa area. The Liberty is pretty capable stock. Get rid of the front wind deflector. The lift parts aren’t expensive if you do it yourself. Everything you do to improve your off-road capability will hurt your gas mileage…
Had one since new Kk 2010 limited. 100K Heavy on gas . Frame on body will tow 5000lbs plus . One of the best winter drivers . Best off roader. Narrow with great departure and will not high side . Drive a Wrangler at 70 on the highway and then a Liberty and the decision would be easy . They definitely grow on you and the style is just coming into its own . Mines going to my daughter and I already miss it .
Going to purchase a 2008 with 130,xxx miles and I’m a bit nervous reading all the comments about it not being good on gas. In December I’m going a long road trip with it and now it’s making me consider taking my other car due to saving a few bucks on gas. 😅
@@jamesbeauchamps9835 man it took that road trip like a champ. I’m having a couple issues now, but minor things. Ac went out, and window fell off track, and for some reason when I start the car the windshield wipers turn on for 10 seconds. Other than all that shit, very decent vehicle and affordable.
Have one myself, if you can, get a 2.5 inch lift and some off-road tyres are a game changer. I did that, some dark tint and tow brakes and love it. Stay up to date with oil changes and you should be sweet.
Mine has 155K on it and guaranteed to hit 300 K if you got one with a bad engine or some kind of manufacturing issue that exist in every manufacturing on earth I'm sorry about your luck but I got a good one and I trust it more than any vehicle made. Been to hell and back more than once for me.
I think Liberties would make a great first car! The only thing I would consider is the price of gas right now. Liberties are not great, not horrible if you leave it stock, but not great on gas. Expect to pay about $70 to fill it up! The Jet is cool if you DON’T plan on taking it off roading…
@@paulstake cool! yeah im way to much of a nervous wreck to even go off roading so i think im okay lol! and yeah $70 was kinda what I was expecting anyways!
It scores better than Jeep Wrangler in safety. The four wheel drive works great in the snow. It definitely not great on gas especially if it has larger all terrain tires. Gas prices going up too.... 😬
See I have a 2011 Liberty Renegade. Love the 4x4 in winter. And don't get me wrong, I love driving it. But it lacks gas mileage. And they should have put in the V6 pentastars and an automatic 6-speed, or atleast a 5 speed. I bought it with 144,000 and at 148,00 put one engine in. At 148,450 put a second one in. Other than that it's cherry.
This dude is hilarious! Talk about identity crisis. He fully believes that a persons vehicle is their personality. This is why I can’t stand “Jeep People”. They base their lifestyle around being Jeep People. It’s so silly!!
