Potential CRD Owner Question

Caddis · **Posted:** Mon Mar 05, 2012 10:58 am

Greetings everyone. I'm seriously considering purchasing my brother's '05 CRD with 105K miles, and I've been reading this site for a few months, getting a pretty good idea of the modifications I will likely need to do. My brother hasn't done most of the mods that are discussed here but takes very good care of his vehicles and is a conservative driver, and his CRD seems to be in good overall condition.
Anyway, one of the reasons I'm interested in it is to hopefully have a capable little 4X4 for negotiating two-tracks, logging roads, etc., but yet have decent mileage pulling a small dog-trailer. Fully loaded with dogs, gear, and water, the trailer weighs about 1000lbs. Any estimates as to what a CRD should be getting for mileage pulling that amount?

papaindigo · **Posted:** Mon Mar 05, 2012 11:33 am

Welcome, check out Sam's NOOB guide, important do ASAP step if not already done is to replace the timing belt. Assuming the trailer doesn't produce much wind resistance, reasonably level roads, minimal stop and go, and driving in 5th gear with the TC locked at 1800rpm (ca. 62) I'd think you should see mid-20s or maybe a bit more. Normal hwy mpg under those conditions for a CRD without a GDE tune and no trailer is on the order of 28mpg and I would not think a trailer of this weight would cut that much, in town you would be looking at 18-19mpg and likely no impact from trailer.

Caddis · **Posted:** Mon Mar 05, 2012 11:58 am

Thanks. That sounds good, and even with the increased price of fuel that will still probably be much better mileage than my '02 F150 for our long drives out to the central and western Dakotas. The trailer is pretty low-profile and pulls nicely on good trailer tires. My brother was visiting last summer and I hooked up the trailer and took it for a spin down the highway, you hardly knew it was there behind you.
You're right, the timing belt has not been done but that will be done immediately, in fact my brother may get it done before I get my hands on it. A GDE tune will probably be somewhere in the future as well.

kissfan79 · **Posted:** Mon Mar 05, 2012 1:21 pm

Hello....
I just finished a trip to Tampa Florida and back from Raleigh NC and I was pulling a 6x10 enclosed cargo trailer weighing 2508 pounds (had it weighed at a weigh station for my own curiosity). With the trailer and four adults in the Jeep I averaged about 21 MPG. This is a bone stock CRD and I was keeping it a bit higher at around 69-71 actual MPH (Speedo was reading about 73-75. The actual speed was calculated by 2 different GPS units) . I was keeping it about 2,000-2,100 rpms. A trailer of that weight I would think you would do better. I usually get about 28-29 on the highway with no trailer....sometimes 30 if I ease up on the speed a bit.

Good luck on your future purchase!

Jim

mikey1273 · **Posted:** Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:45 pm

I had mine for a good two and a half years. you should see 17-19 in town driving and about 27-29 on highway with out a trailer. Once i got the GDE Eco tune I seen town mileage go up to about 20-21 and highway has been as good as 33 mpg, not towing. pulling the utility trailer once to IKEA in Baltimore and back I got 27. I have not pulled a lot with mine. some stuff in a utility trailer around town is about all and with more weight that you are planning. That weight will not trouble the CRD much at all.

I did get a pop-up camper in the fall at the end of camping season. I have not got to use it yet or pull it more than home. My camper weighs around 1000-1100 pounds empty but is a bit wider than the jeep so I am curious what that is going to do to fuel economy.

Caddis · **Posted:** Thu Mar 08, 2012 11:50 pm

Thank you, all, for your comments so far. I really think this little jeep is going to be an ideal vehicle for my needs.
Okay, so my next question is regarding the timing belt replacement. Yesterday I stopped by the one local service shop in our small town that has a diesel mechanic to make sure he was at least somewhat familiar with smaller CRD engines. He assured me he is and would be happy to work on a liberty CRD. Anyway, I asked for an estimate on the timing belt job, and was told about $580. From his comments I assume this was to just change the belt itself. Is it really necessary to replace the water pump, thermostat, and other parts at this time? Or am I crazy not to have the other work done at the same time? Thanks again.

maxwellp · **Posted:** Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:28 am

If you are going to pay someone to do the Timing belt I think in the long run you will be money ahead to do it all at the same time. One could just put a belt in and hope for the best, but lets say 10k later the water pump starts to leak, it all has to come apart again. Or in a realy bad case water pump locks up, now you are replacing lifters and rockers. Also there are tools for this job that he will need to do it right. Just FYI. Can be done without them but at a risk (read $$$). It is not like some gas engines that the belt is easy to put on.

droptop · **Posted:** Sat Mar 10, 2012 10:53 am

Before you take the CRD plunge, one thing to remember is that the CRD is quite unique and ultimately the rarity was the driving force for me to get rid of it. I liked it, but due to the low sales of them during their brief availability in the US, dealers don't have parts for them and in most cases neither do the regional warehouses. A friend of mine was on a trip pulling his camper with his old Dodge pickup when his water pump died on the interstate. Luckily he was traveling with another camper on a Friday and was able to get to a store. He left the truck on the side of the road, went to a local auto parts store and purchased a new water pump, tools needed, antifreeze and replaced the water pump on the side of the road, and was on his way for under $150. If this was a CRD, you would be lucky to get back on the road by the following Tuesday if you were willing to pay for the Overnight charges plus the towing etc. This rarity was a big concern of mine while traveling with the CRD.

I also didn't save enough to justify the downside of the CRD. See details of my ownership experience athttp://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=53742.

The CRD is a nice vehicle, but it has its problems, I am happier with the more mainstream.

naturist · **Posted:** Sun Mar 11, 2012 10:02 am

@droptop's comments are worth noting. Last fall I was towing my full-height/width travel trailer across Kansas on my way to Las Vegas when the high pressure oil line to the turbo broke. To make a long story short, the regional warehouse had ONE replacement, and the Jeep dealer (I got lucky, there was a good one in Hays, Kansas, about 20 miles away) snagged it and got me back on the road only 2 working days later and $700 poorer. I dunno if anybody else blew that line later that week, but if so, they may still be waiting for parts.

That said, it is a marvelous little tractor. I have a GDE ecotune, and have seen as high as 34 mpg under best conditions. MY trailer is the biggest Jeep says you can tow in all respects, and it cuts my mileage to about 15. Your little trailer will make no noticeable difference in mileage.

The ability to run in 2 WD, AWD, and 4 Hi/Low makes this thing able to climb trees. Ground clearance is good unless you get into really rough terrain. You'll like it as long as you are willing to live with it's quirks.

And yes, absolutely do the water pump, thermostat, all rollers and tensioner, as well as the fan clutch (get the Hayden 170 degree one) at the same time. The labor costs will pay for those parts when you don't have to take it all apart again 20,000 miles later.

Caddis · **Posted:** Sun Mar 11, 2012 12:59 pm

Droptop and Naturist,
Thanks for your honesty and insight. I hadn't totally considered the "rarity" issue, and I can absolutely see your point. I needed to get a whole new rear axle put in my F150 a few years ago in Pierre, South Dakota. It ended up being only an 8 hr job as we lucked out and a local junk-yard had everything we needed. Obviously the chances of that happening with the CRD are basically zero.
In spite of the risk, I think I'm going to take the CRD plunge. My brother's giving me a very fair deal on his and this little 4X4 just meets too many of my criteria to not take a chance on it. There's another family in my little town that has one, we'll have to team up on a lot of this stuff and keep our local diesel mechanic well-informed on these vehicles.

droptop · **Posted:** Sat Mar 17, 2012 10:00 pm

Caddis,

I wish you the best of luck if you do decide to take the CRD plunge, I just hope the Rare beast doesn't bite you when you least expect it.

CRD ownership is much like that of owning a boat. The two happiest days in a CRD's owners life are the day they buy it and the day they sell it. :lol:

Potential CRD Owner Question

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