Goodbye Commander hello diesel Liberty??

[DieselDoghouse]

The wife (aka bursar, boss, etc) is becoming insistent on dumping her 14-16 mpg 2006 Jeep commander (4. 7L V8) for a 2006 Liberty Diesel. Here in NE diesel passenger cars are still lepers so no friends to trade reports with. So I place my query before my peers… anyone have one, what are the general reports, flaws, etc. I am just as happy to have the entire garage go compression ignition—but please share your thoughts and experiences. This may be a decision I applaude or regret (and hear about) for a loonnnngg time!

 

[monkeyman]

My wife has one, note she drives it like its a go kart so she gets about 22 mpg. If she drove "right" she would get 28+ I bet. Be aware that there was a lot of TSB's on the 2005
Rick

 

[VicR]

My wife has an 05 - about 55k miles. Consistantly gets 22-24 MPG around town and not hard to break 30 on the highway. Its 100% stock. The 05's have the 7/70 warranty and the 06's have the 3/36, so there is a chance you could find an 05 still under warranty. That said ours was in for warranty work at about 10k. Hasn't been back since. So maybe not a big deal. My wife swears she will keep the thing forever so it turned out to be a good investment for me. First car she has been happy with for 5 years running. Its a blast to drive with a very strong low end torque curve. -Vic

 

[Dieselnut59]

I have one and LOVE it! First step when you get one is to route the crankcase vent hose out and down, like our Cummins has. It is factory routed into the inlet hose to the turbocharger. it makes a gooey oily mess. If you do not have emission inspection, unplug the MAF sensor at the air cleaner hose. All this sensor does is tell EGR when to open. Without it in place, EGR will not open. This will add fuel economy. I get 30 mpg out of my Liberty on the interstate. These little engines are impressively strong and peppy. I bought mine as a lease return in 2007. It had 32,000 miles and now has 87,000. Only things I would change is a little more cabin room and a manual transmission. There is a forum for them at LOST JEEPS • View forum - Liberty CRD... Love that Torque!!!

 

[BILLUA]

Libby

We got wifey a brand new one in 2006. There were some recalls out for the transmission, torque converter and pump. It never left us stranded, but was in the shop 3 or 4 times for this work.

Most all this was sorted out by 10K. It now has 50K on it.

I have done some things to improve drivability, ride and reliability.

Installed a transgo shift kit, installed a "OME" shock/strut kit that replaced the springs and put Ranchos in all corners. That greatly improved the ride and also lifted the Jeep almost 2 inches allowing me to install 245/70/16 Revos for excellent traction and ride.

I also ran around with the MAF disconnected for about 35K, but now a better option is available through Green Diesel Engineering, GDE. They are the Marco of Jeep diesels and have a tune that improves economy and deactivates the MAF without producing a CEL.

I have also converted the fuel filtration to the cat 2 micron filter, run synthetic oil with a Amsoil EO26 filter and get analysis every 10K when I change the oil.

In the braking department, I have put slotted rotors and performance friction pads in all corners.

All in all, this thing is a little torque monster and a blast to drive. We average about 25 mpg mixed driving.

 

[Dieselnut59]

@BILLUA, how do I go about getting this tune? I would like to get rid of the EGR without CEL. I read that there is some kind of a "tune" for the transmission shift/torque converter lockup that helps prevent the "hunting" at the 55-60 mph range and helps efficiency. Other than what I mentioned, my Liberty is totally stock and runs on 50% filtered waste cooking oil, just like all my vehicles/equipment. I wish this engine would become available in the Wrangler for the USA!!!

 

[BILLUA]

Here you go!

Green Diesel Engineering - Jeep Performance ECU Chip Tuner

 

[Dieselnut59]

Green Diesel Engineering - Jeep Performance ECU Chip Tuner

Awesome! I will check them out more later. Thanks!

 

[BILLUA]

Any time!

Enjoy the Libby!