Jeep Liberty (KJ/KK) Sales (updated thru 12/31/2010)

MtnLuvr · **Posted:** Sat Jul 17, 2010 8:06 pm

Took some digging around, but I have been able to dig up Jeep's annual sales info back to the beginning of the Liberty (the 2002 KJ that went on sale in 2001).

So, here's a chart I made of annual Jeep Liberty sales:

(For those not aware, this board allows an image larger than shown to be uploaded. If you click on the green square in the upper lefthand corner, it will show the larger image. Click on the enlarged image again to make it go away and back to the post.)

Couple things to keep in mind regarding the above chart:

not

Since I couldn't find any data on sales per model year, assuming/guessing 75% of the Libertys sold in 2007 were KJs and the remaining 25% sold were the new KKs, that would mean:

At first glance, that chart may seem demoralizing. But if you look at the underlying overall Jeep sales numbers, it isn't as bad, although it is reflective that the (2008) KK was being released just as the U.S. was entering the so-called "great recession" (or "late-2000's recession" if you prefer) period of economic downturn. Ok, so here's a table showing Jeep's sales distributed amongst their model line-up per year:

Any conclusions?

I find it interesting that the (KJ) Liberty was consistently 35-39% of Jeep's full-year annual sales until the JK was released, including its 4-door variant, as well as the Compass/Patriot duo. To me, this quantifies that many previously Liberty target market prospective owners split away in two directions: 1) to the 4-door JK Wrangler while 2) others wanting a more economical "entry level" Jeep went to the Patriot/Compass duo.

Since 2007, Liberty sales have remained around roughly 20% of Jeep's overall sales. Unfortunately, with "the great recession" officially classified as having begun in late 2007, that didn't bode well for auto sales in general, including Jeep's and including the release of the KK Liberty. :banghead:

It is noteworthy that nearly 30% (e.g. 28.7%) of all Jeeps sold from, and including, the 2001 calendar year to present are Libertys.

Here's the preceding table's data shown in graphical chart form:

As you can see, Jeep's annual sales significantly contracted, along with the rest of the auto industry, in 2008 and 2009 (and still in 2010 to date).

Anyway, just thought I'd share these summaries. What do ya'll think? :POPCORN:

JL Rockies · **Posted:** Sat Jul 17, 2010 11:43 pm

The KJ was developed by Jeep to compete in a new automotive segment created in the US by Toyota (a firm I worked for) in the 90's with the RAV4. The Rav4 was so successful for Toyota it actually doubled the firm's income. Like the Rav4, the Liberty was targeted to women and was hugely successful (most Liberty's are driven by women) to the point that Jeep actually took the lead in the market from Toyota. Over time with Toyota and Honda coming out with fresh versions of their Rav4 and whatever the eff Honda called theirs; add to the mix Ford and GM offerings and the market softened-up. Now you can add to the mix further consumer disillusionment with Chrysler and GM with TARP, credit tightening and rebates drying up and you got a tough road to hoe. Many of the "cheap Jeeps" were purchased with your tax dollars by peeps that were convinced by the Fed that turning an asset into a debt is a great idea with the "cash for clunkers" program.

MtnLuvr · **Posted:** Sun Jul 18, 2010 9:16 am

MtnLuvr wrote:

...
Since I couldn't find any data on sales per model year, assuming/guessing 75% of the Libertys sold in 2007 were KJs and the remaining 25% sold were the new KKs, that would mean:

...

Based upon a rough indication of the number of KK enthusiasts out there on the various forums and communities, I'd guess the percentage of KK owners that are enough of an enthusiast to register and at least post on an on-line forum is somewhere between 0.15% to 0.50% and I speculate right now closer to 0.20-0.25% (in the 300-400 range).

I wonder if its anywhere in the same range for KJs or would it be higher or lower for the KJs since there are so many of them out there, they've been out longer so more people could've found the knowledge base of the on-line communities and with them being older, they're more likely to be paid off or have been handed-down or resold and/or with being older are more owners more likely to be comfortable modifying them plus there's more aftermarket parts available for the KJs than KKs? Things that make you go hmmmmmm.....

InCommando · **Posted:** Sun Jul 18, 2010 12:25 pm

Although the Liberty competed initially with the tall station wagons that are the RAV4, CRV, Vue, Escape ...et al, it is clearly a different beast. The Patriot/Compass twins are much more inline with the other products liisted. I do think this hurt the Libby with its core audience of soccer moms ( hey, like it or not it was the target audience..). Much to our delight, it is head and shoulders above any of the competition ( the Xterra & 4runner are aimed higher) in the places we enthusiasts love. Fuel mileage by the tall wagons, mainly due to curb weight, is a major factor in the iberty suffering more in this economy, IMHO.

I'd love to see an XJ/KJ comparison in sales....

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Mon Jul 19, 2010 2:17 am

Very nice write-up MtnLuvr. I think the Patriot and Compass took a good number of sales away from the KK. Honestly, I’m a little worried about Jeep’s future lineup. I hated to see the Commander go. The Liberty might be on the chopping block. And in my opinion, the new 2011 Grand Cherokee is nothing that I would desire to have. As of right now, the only Jeep I would buy for 2011 would be the JK.

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Mon Jul 19, 2010 7:55 am

This is what the industry calls "brand suicide". Too many models competing against each other under the same brand = eventual destruction of the brand. I can't believe Jeep has done this to themselves. But don't worry....Toyota is doing it too. I can count 6 vehicles in the Toyota line-up that all do the exact same things and all qualify as "SUVs/crossovers".

It's stupid... Blows my mind what kind of people we have at the corporate top level in these companies. Then they wonder why they go under.

Remember the good old days when there was the Wrangler, Cherokee, and Grand Cherokee? And each of them sold faster than Jeep could make them? Hmm... whatever happened to "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"?

SurfGuitar141 · **Posted:** Mon Jul 19, 2010 10:05 am

LibertyCRD wrote:

This is what the industry calls "brand suicide". Too many models competing against each other under the same brand = eventual destruction of the brand. I can't believe Jeep has done this to themselves.

whatever happened to "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"?

Couldn't agree more.
1. The Compass and Patriot should have never happened, instead Jeep should have produced the JT pickup to fill that market niche.
2. The Liberty should have never been butchered into the KK making it look like a little Commander.
3. The Commander was obviously put out to compete with the Land Rover / Range Rover market, Jeep should stay the course as "Jeep" instead of trying to be something it's not. Besides I'm sure the Commander is cutting into the Grand Cherokee slice of the pie.
4. The Grand Cherokee should have never been developed (or evolved) into a 60K+ luxury car, especially with the economy in the state it's in, how may people are going to shell out 60K and take it on the trails or the beach. After all that is what the brand traditionally represents....camping, hunting, fishing, snow driving, and off roading.....

IMHO....the evolution from the TJ / LJ to the JK and the advent of the 4 door Unlimited was all good for the most part, the development and advent of the KJ Liberty in 2001 wasn't a bad move either. Jeep needs to get their collective heads out of their arses, stop over evolving their tried and proven vehicles, drop the "less than Jeep" vehicles, and get another well built, hard working pickup back in the line up.....

Just my.... :2cents:

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Mon Jul 19, 2010 11:54 am

SurfGuitar141 wrote:

Jeep should have produced the JT pickup to fill that market niche.

A JK Pickup with an updated inline 6 gasoline engine or the option of an inline 4 diesel would have outsold the Patriot and Compass combined. People, especially in today’s economy, are looking for something practical. The desire/need/want for a small compact pickup in America is there; however, big Auto Cooperation’s can’t see it. I hope Mahindra comes out with their little diesel pickup and wake the world up.

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Mon Jul 19, 2010 2:34 pm

Example:

For the 2005 model year, Jeep did a test in the U.S. market. They sold the KJ Liberty with the turbo-diesel engine option. It was a compact to midsize SUV that got 25 MPG, could tow any trailer you could hook to it, and still had a little offroad prowess. The result? Instant success. They literally sold them before they hit the dealer lots. Every unit built was sold and they sold more of them than they ever dreamed they would in the two years of production.

So what does Chrysler do? Their stupid a$$es can the Liberty diesel and take it out of production. And in it's place for 2007 comes the Patriot. A SUV of the same size, with no towing capability, less offroad capability, and a CVT tranny that makes the engine BUZZ at highway speed like a bees' nest. STUPID.

THEN...they move the diesel option to the Grand Cherokee, and to get one you are starting out at $41 GRAND!!! Add some options and you were quickly approaching the $50K mark! FAIL!!

Just dumb dumb dumb decision making at Chrysler headquarters. And to top it all off... Jeep loyalists and owners have been pleading with Jeep for YEARS to build a pickup for the U.S. market....and they won't do it! They know a market exists for this product and they won't build it! Are you kidding me? KNOWN cash coming in...and they won't take it. It kills me.

Don't even get me started on the KK Liberty. The Commander was an instant FAIL right out of the gate. They've NEVER been able to really sell those things. So what does Jeep do? They take the ONE SUV they have that IS selling...and make it look just like the Commander!! ARE you kidding me??

I've been a Chrysler guy hardcore for several years now...but I'm seriously considering going back to Ford in the future. And least they know their roots and it still shows in their product.

rickm · **Posted:** Mon Jul 26, 2010 3:04 am

Chrysler is going to stop producing the PT Cruiser. I understand they've only sold around 6,500 this year.

cowboytwang · **Joined:** Mon Aug 01, 2005 6:19 am **Posts:** 25

rickm wrote:

Chrysler is going to stop producing the PT Cruiser. I understand they've only sold around 6,500 this year.

The last one rolled off the assembly line earlier this month, and the factory is now tooling up to build the Fiat 500c.

InCommando · **Posted:** Wed Jul 28, 2010 8:54 am

It is hard to buy that the Patriot replaced any segment of Liberty production, especially as no mention was made of the Compass, the Patriot's twin. As most of the CRD's approached $30k at the sticker (an absurd price for something like the Liberty), the twins come in it at a seriously lower price point. The fact that the CRD was "designed to fail" due to its inability to pass newer emissions regs was also built into the expirement. Replacing the 2.8 with the much more advanced Bluetech did indeed place a diesel option at an even greater price point, but it is also clearly a superior product in a larger, more expensive platform that outsells the Liberty from the beginning. These are all sound marketing choices.

As the 12,000ish CRD's sold over two model years equals somewhere around 1 percent of total Liberty sales, and Patrtiot/Compass sales obliterate that figure: even if the Patriot DID replace the Liberty CRD ( a stretch at best) it was a wise move sales-wise. :wink:

Not nearly enough emphassis is being placed on the fact that the KK change over occured at same time as the fuel price/economy crisis that killed SUV sales all around. The dubious fuel claims of a bone stock 2.8 CRD would not have aided sales, IMHO, as it was the segment that died and the 2.8 could not be sold here in '08, anyway. I saw today that the Toyoder Sequioa sold almost 80,000 copies in 2007 and roughly 40,000 copies in 2008, a sales drop similar to the KJ/KK switch. The Sequioa has now been axed as it is on pace to sell less than 20,000 2010 models. It must be because Jeep killed the 2.8 CRD... :shock:

MtnLuvr · **Posted:** Sat Jul 31, 2010 11:59 am

InCommando wrote:

...Not nearly enough emphassis is being placed on the fact that the KK change over occured at same time as the fuel price/economy crisis that killed SUV sales all around. ...

Agreed.

bmrrwolfe · **Joined:** Fri Dec 11, 2009 4:24 pm **Posts:** 132

IMHO
I think the Commander did have its place. Soccer moms/dads that liked Jeep but needed a third row seat for there kids. Granted it will never have the sales that the Wranglers, Libertys or GCs have.
The Compass and Patriot kinda make sense, but compete with eachother, which is hurting Jeep. They need one, that is redesigned staying small keeping good fuel efficiency, removing the CVT trans, and maybe even putting a solid axle in the back. Give it a little more ground clearance a bit better chance to tow something and it could sell.
Wrangler, keep it with the 2 or 4 door options, remove some of the appearance packages and put in 4 Cyl. turbo? for the base have the 3.6 Pentastar and then have a turbo diesel option.
A Jeep truck with the 3.6 Pentastar, a front end kinda like a JK and a diesel option, with solid axles and ability to tow whatever you need, and have a Rubicon package.
Grand Cherokee, stray a bit away from luxury, keep it an options for those who want it, but most don't.
Liberty, keep it the same size and boxy, similar to the XJ put the Pentastar in, with maybe an optional small V8 and with a Diesel option, and a better Renegade package with lockers and bring back the roof light bar!

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Sun Aug 01, 2010 12:22 am

bmrrwolfe wrote:

IMHO
I think the Commander did have its place. Soccer moms/dads that liked Jeep but needed a third row seat for there kids.

I thought the Commander was a good idea for Jeep. It competed with the Chevy/GMC Tahoe/Yukon and Ford Explorer; however, it also competed against the Grand Cherokee, which didn’t make any sense. If I had the coin, I’d go by a 2010 Commander today. :JEEPIN:

InCommando · **Posted:** Sun Aug 01, 2010 10:16 am

The Commander was very similar to the classic Grand Wagoneer: with the woodgrain vinyl added, they were an obvious progression. But yes, the fact that they were so similar to the Grand hurt. If the Commander was 10% bigger to truly be in the Tahoe/Expedetion range, it might have helped.

If the KK survives as whatever and the pentastar gets added....

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Sun Aug 01, 2010 2:15 pm

InCommando wrote:

The Commander was very similar to the classic Grand Wagoneer: with the woodgrain vinyl added, they were an obvious progression. But yes, the fact that they were so similar to the Grand hurt. If the Commander was 10% bigger to truly be in the Tahoe/Expedetion range, it might have helped.

X2

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Mon Aug 02, 2010 7:42 am

dieselenthusiast wrote:

bmrrwolfe wrote:

IMHO
I think the Commander did have its place. Soccer moms/dads that liked Jeep but needed a third row seat for there kids.

I thought the Commander was a good idea for Jeep. It competed with the Chevy/GMC Tahoe/Yukon and Ford Explorer; however, it also competed against the Grand Cherokee, which didn’t make any sense. If I had the coin, I’d go by a 2010 Commander today. :JEEPIN:

Yeh, we had a Commander. It was built on the Grand Cherokee chassis. We didn't realize that until the salesman showed us. I crawled under and checked it out... yup...all Grand Cherokee. Why built two vehicles that are indentical except for the body design?? STUPID. Also...that 3rd row seat was 90% useless. The seat cushions literally sat on the floor. So the only way you could ride back there is if you were less than 3' tall. It was a total joke. My wife drove that thing for a few months and immediately said she missed her Liberty. I hated riding in it because the dash came up so high you couldn't see out the windshield hardly. The Commander is just wrong...all wrong. No wonder they never sold well.

InCommando · **Posted:** Wed Aug 04, 2010 4:18 am

XJ sales:

1984 - 93,326
1985 - 120,328
1986 - 107,225
1987 - 139,295
1988 - 187,136
1989 - 207,216
1990 - 151,230
1991 - 151,578
1992 - 137,826
1993 - 144,961
1994 - 123,391
1995 - 120,234
1996 - 286,463
1997 - 258,958
1998 - 182,845
1999 - 186,116
2000 - 165,590
2001 - 120,454

Total = 2,884,172

I am not sure about '97, but apparently the 1996's were heavily discounted

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Wed Aug 04, 2010 7:43 am

The XJ is quite possibly the greatest thing (next to the Wrangler lineage) that Jeep has ever done.

Jeep Liberty (KJ/KK) Sales (updated thru 12/31/2010)

Who is online