* Click HERE to see a video on the Jeep Liberty CRD *
Got to love the dieselPeople have questions. Few have answers but many have suggestions. Fuel consumption has become a major issue in Canada and car and truck owners want ideas on how to reduce consumption without compromises. The magical (nightmarish really) $1 a litre is here and what that means is the $1.25 litre is just around the corner. Consumers have begun to seriously re-evaluate their needs as far as automotive transportation is concerned. Big old SUVs simply are not as appealing when one realizes that a fill-up is no longer $50 or $60, it is in fact $80 to $90.
To slow the haemorrhaging, manufacturers are thinking up ideas to keep potential buyers in showrooms. Remember that North American manufacturers depend heavily on their truck sales to stay afloat. Their suggestions include smaller engines and dimensions and more precisely, hybrid and diesel powered vehicles. General Motors has tried a hybrid Silverado, however, with no tangible results. DaimlerChrysler, on the other hand, are trying their hand at diesel powered alternatives.
For 2005, the
Jeep Liberty is now available with an optional Common Rail
Diesel engine that is supposed to reduce fuel numbers by roughly 20%. Europe has long since embraced this alternative and about 50% of vehicles sold there are diesel powered.
The 2005 Liberty price range begins at $27,460 and will easily surpass $40,000 with all options. Our tester was a Limited CRD with navigation and it retailed for $40,715.
Exterior stylingThe Jeep Liberty is without a doubt a Jeep. If one was to remove all the badges on the truck, no one looking at it would ever mistake it for a Toyota or a GMC. This is probably one of the Liberty's strongest selling points: It is a Jeep. The easiest way to recognize it is by looking straight towards the front and finding the very familiar large vertical slat grille and single-round headlights. Its boxy shape is also recognizable and is an evolution of a body design that was first introduced in 1984 with the Jeep Cherokee.
The Liberty in undoubtedly handsome and to some, maybe even cute. Its dimensions are diminutive. It is as wide as it is tall, more so than the Honda CR-V, yet it is much shorter than the CR-V. The only changes for 2005 are revised taillights and various mouldings. The rest has remained unchanged since 2002.
I like that fact that the rear door opens the "right" way; that is to say that it allows easy access to the cargo area from the curb. A concern I have has to do with the separate up-swinging portion of the door: when the handle is pulled, the glass swings up on its own to avoid any impact. My question is what will happen when the small struts fail in a few years. The antenna is oddly placed, sticking out of the side of the front passenger side fender: it looks as though it was an after thought.
