I have owned my 2006 Liberty CRD for 5 weeks. It had 109K miles and now has 112K. In that time, it has had the following done, all done at the dealer.
- new balancer (dealer paid, part of my negotiation, cost unknown)
- new PS pump (dealer paid, part of my negotiation, cost unknown)
- new alternator (warranty paid 70% of the cost, I paid the rest; total was $907 for an alternator + R&R!!! I paid $241 + $250 for a car rental + $50 for towing)
- 100K mile service, including TB (I paid for this, total was $1450, which included $250 for an extra key! I knew about the service, so I no complaints there.)
- CEL light has come on 5 times, the most recent was today (all of these have been under warranty). This is by far the most annoying gripe I have. Each time, we bring it in and they swear they fixed it. See viewtopic.php?f=5&t=52418. I am at a complete loss on this as to why they cannot get this right. They fix it, we drive a 100-150 miles and it comes back on. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. It does smoke when the pedal is 70% down, more than what I expected it to. Is this normal? The dealer claims it is a faulty set of GPs, which I find highly suspect.

As you can see, the service manager has had a lot of calls, to the point I now have his direct line memorized. I did buy an extended warranty (WHEW), but even with that, I cannot afford to take time off, rent cars, etc.

I researched this vehicle quite a bit. There were some issues, but nothing that aftermarket support could not fix. However, I am not having those issues (yet). Is this the normal quality of these vehicles? Does basic maintenance cost so much (see the $907 alternator)? I realize I am going to a stealership, but with the warranty and the fact that the CEL was an existing condition, I have not had much choice. I am almost done with this vehicle. This is my first American car. I am about to go Cummins if this continues any further. Comments are welcome.

This is not normal for a CRD. Your service dept is grasping at straws. I don't get how they measured "high amps" on some glow plugs, lol. Do they mean high ohms? Either way, they won't make the jeep smoke as you drive. Next time the CEL comes on, take it to AutoZone to get the codes read and tell us what they are before you go to the dealer.

If your jeep smokes an unusual amount you have a boost problem.
Is the air filter old and dirty?
Have they taken out both intercooler hoses and checked them carefully for leaks?
Have they pressure tested the intercooler?
Do the turbo vanes actuate all the way?

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05CRD: GDE Hot ECU & TCM tunes, Provent, Cat filter, Facet lift pump, TransGo kit, Florida TC, Samcos, stainless brake lines, HDS thermostat, Renegade light bar,
RL super sliders, Bilstein adjustables, Al's Gen 4.5 Arms, 235/85-16 Duratracs, DTT rear, Elocker front, EVIC+TPMS, Turbo timer, McNally pillar gauges, Weeks Stage II kit.

arcteryx,

$900.00 for an alternator is not right, get an itemized bill just for the alternator wok alone and see what exactly they did that required so much money. If the reason they rplaced it was was due to noise/rattle and not because it wasn't generating enough juice, then I believe ithe problem was with the alternator decoupler and not the alternator. The decoupler costs about $90.00 plus installation.

An engine code scanner is an indispensible tool that should go hand in hand with our vehicles, it eliminates trips to the dealer and repairs that you can do yourself. Invest in a simple engine code scanner. A tool that is able to convert the trouble light to codes so that you know what is going on with your vehicle before the mechanic does so that you are prepared to deal with the problem and gives you an edge when speaking with knowledgable people like our mechanics. Saves time, diagnostic fees and sometimes, being takened for a ride.

Get a simple engine OBDII code scanner tool that will tell you what codes your engine is throwing before you go to the mechanic so that you can search this board for answers and ask the members of this board for assistance in diagnosing the problem. This board has on more than one occasion saved me hundreds of dollars in repairs.

We need to know what codes your vehicle is throwing so that we can help.

Another simple way to read the engine codes is to go to Autozone or Pepboys auto parts store, they will read your codes for free.

Good luck.

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2006 Liberty Limited CRD, Deep Beryl Green, Yeti tune, Arp studs, new cams, rockers, lifters, TB. "Green Monster"
2005 Liberty Sport CRD, Deep Beryl Green, GDE Hot Tune, ARP studs. "Rocket"
1982 Fiat 124 Spider Convertible. "Fiona"

The biggest problem from day one has been a lack of trained mechanics - odds are overwhelming they've seen one or two for oil changes and never developed any expertise so now they grasp at straws.

What evidence did they have the alternator was bad? - a squeaking pulley? - yeah the parts list has it as one piece with the alternator - but you can buy the pulley separately

100K service - probably the reason the original owner traded it in.

Glow plugs - the wiring's weird so they have to double check - but even if they get it right - it can be a symptom of another problem - I think mine was unique - but it took them 12 plugs and a lot of wiring changes before they found the crack in the intake that was blowing antifreeze on the plug.....which leads back to point one above..

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2005 CRD
stuff
Skeptic quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur

Thanks for the replies. Looking on Amazon, this has really good reviews. Will this do? http://www.amazon.com/Autel-MaxiScan-MS300-OBD-II-Scan/dp/B001LHVOVK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=1273933979&sr=8-1

To my knowledge, they have not checked the turbo. I will go up to Autozone today and have them read the codes and reply back. I think that is a good place to start.

While driving home last week, the ETC and battery lights came on. We drove the 2 miles. The next morning, my wife had to go to the grocery. She got about a mile away and the same two lights came on. She called and I told her to come back. On her way, a lot of dash lights randomly started turning on. She took a photo of it. She pulled in the driveway and the Brake light came on. It would not move any more. I stopped the car. I tried to restart it, but it would not start, not even turnover. That's when the tow came into play and they diagnosed it as a bad alternator.

For the code reader - you need to specifically ask the company about the Jeep CRD.
if they don't know - make sure they have a good return policy.

the problem is that in the ISO protocol - there's only one master allowed and since Jeep had 1 master written for the Liberty software and VM Motori had theirs with the engine control software - the correct fix would be to rewrite one of them. However Jeep's fix was to install a bug that shuts one down after it starts & runs for a while. Most code readers don't handle that well.

I have a Scangauge II - it works very well for about 10-15 minutes - and then randomly stops also you must unplug it or it'll kick you out of overdrive even if it's not reading........
so good for reading/clearing codes - but don't leave it plugged in.

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2005 CRD
stuff
Skeptic quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur

Thanks for the info on the scanguage. I have thought of getting one, but to be honest, my vehicles have either been pre 1996 (1992 300D MB diesel) or I had access to a vagcom for my VW TDIs.

I went to Autozone. It read P1263. he looked it up in the computer and only Ford and Mazda were listed. They both basically said the same thing- fuel injector #3 is bad. Not quite applicable to my glow plugs.

Doing a search it seems it's related to GP#2, which they had been saying. I see ATXKJ that you went through 12 plugs in a year. Did Jaime end up fixing it @ Southpoint? Perhaps I should take it to him.

1263 IS a glow plug code. They should be able to ohm them all and see if one has higher than .6 ohms of resistance to ground. If they are just assuming that means #2, they may be wrong because some jeeps' harnesses were installed backwards at the factory. 4-3-2-1 instead of 1-2-3-4.

I you have a harbor freight store near you they carry a $35 code scanner about the size of a pager that reads and clears codes just fine on the CRDs.

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05CRD: GDE Hot ECU & TCM tunes, Provent, Cat filter, Facet lift pump, TransGo kit, Florida TC, Samcos, stainless brake lines, HDS thermostat, Renegade light bar,
RL super sliders, Bilstein adjustables, Al's Gen 4.5 Arms, 235/85-16 Duratracs, DTT rear, Elocker front, EVIC+TPMS, Turbo timer, McNally pillar gauges, Weeks Stage II kit.

P1263 was the #2 cylinder glow plug.
Jaime is very familiar with it (he had a good idea of what was wrong - but came in - in the middle of the problems and had to jump through extra hoops for Chrysler warranty)
He normally does Sprinters and Cummins.

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2005 CRD
stuff
Skeptic quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur

CATCRD,

Is there any way you can post a link to this part? Thanks!

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Josh

2012 Jeep Liberty Latitude Edition 4x4 - Brilliant Black, RRO Rockfather II OME lift, 245/70/17 Duratracs

*sold*
2005 CRD Limited 4x4 -Inferno Red- Selec-Trac
SEGR, Grabber AT2's, 2.5" Daystar

It looks like that item may be NLA.

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=23940

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05CRD: GDE Hot ECU & TCM tunes, Provent, Cat filter, Facet lift pump, TransGo kit, Florida TC, Samcos, stainless brake lines, HDS thermostat, Renegade light bar,
RL super sliders, Bilstein adjustables, Al's Gen 4.5 Arms, 235/85-16 Duratracs, DTT rear, Elocker front, EVIC+TPMS, Turbo timer, McNally pillar gauges, Weeks Stage II kit.

Yup, Im pretty sure its NLA from harbor frieght, and has been for awhile

the same maker sells some newer ones:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Launch-Creader-IV-P ... 737wt_1139

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http://www.Colorado4Wheel.com
"Its not about what you can DO with your Jeep, its about where you can GO with your Jeep."
Knowledgeable - But Caustic

Try the VAG-COM My VAG-COM HEX+CAN works perfectly in the "generic" mode on the CRD

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Atlantic Blue 06 CRD Limited (his)
Joined by a 2000 XJ Classic (hers)

I have a need for a VAG-COM for a VW project but cant find one locally. Since you posted this then maybe I will buy one. What should I look for.

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No longer a CRD or Jeep owner. Selling everything I have, needs to go as I need the room for a project.

Update. Put it into a different dealer with a mechanic that ATXKJ recommended. He is awesome, definitely the one to use in Central Texas.

BUT, my head is cracked in 3 places. The mechanic could not see them, but he knew they were there. Machine shop magnafluxed it and found the three. In process of getting the warranty to cover the costs; Price - $4194!

WOW! Any idea what would cause the head to crack? I have not heard of anyone other than ATXKJ. Is there anything to watch out for?

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2005 Black KJ Sport CRD,
GDE Full Torque ECO TUNE, GDE Transmission ECO Tune,
Samco British Racing Green Hoses
Build Date 1/05
200k miles.
Original Owner

Depending on what vag-com interface you have it may work in the OBDii mode on your CRD.
I have HEX+CAN and it works on my crd and my 2000 XJ

"I have a need for a VAG-COM for a VW project but cant find one locally. Since you posted this then maybe I will buy one. What should I look for."
Jinstal.
You'll want one of the more advanced ones that does CAN along with the older standard, Rosstech stays away from recommending their products from non vw products but they do work for some applications with the correct interface. My HEX+CAN is a serial interface and requires a non supported USB to serial to work with my new laptop. Here's a link and I would suggest the USB version of the HEX+CAN.
http://download.ross-tech.com/VCDS/down ... erface.pdf
Not cheap but upgrades are free and it works with the latest cars and with a 2+2 cable I can monitor the ecm and tcm on my 1993 Eurovan too.

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Atlantic Blue 06 CRD Limited (his)
Joined by a 2000 XJ Classic (hers)