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SUVs Jeep Liberty and Jeep Liberty Diesel Jeep Liberty: Steering Stability and Suspension
71 messages, Last post on Mar 25, 2009 at 7:52 AM
You are in the Jeep Liberty and Jeep Liberty Diesel Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & tidester
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Replying to: lhsmom (Sep 16, 2006 1:34 am) I like the CRD as much as any vehicle I have owned and it has exceeded my expectations in doing everything that I bought it for. But, the following has led me to the conclusion that my CRD is the last new DC product I will ever buy: An engineer wrote, “The [ball joint] specifications were changed, the durability cycles were changed, as well as the loading factors, all downwards from standard JTE specs. This was to follow a directive to reduce cost of SUV parts, because, as so many people have noted here, SUV's aren't used offroad generally. The point is, the joints have a full lifetime as designed and predicted. The issue is not with the parts being poorly made, the issue is the wrong spec was used.” This seems to have originated by an argument between the Executive Engineer (just below VP of Engineering) of Vehicle Development (who was an old Jeep guy) and Financial (which had the backing of Bob Eaton). The parts meet the specification, but the specification was changed to save money - as with Neon head gaskets, AC, and exhaust donuts. From: http://www.allpar.com/model/jeep/liberty-2005.html |
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I've scanned this section, but did not see this problem mentioned. We have an 02 Liberty Sport, bought it new, it has 38K miles. We've had the first lower ball joint recall done, and it is now in for the 2nd lower BJ recall. They called me today to say that the both upper control arms have "torn" bushings. The repair consists of REPLACING both upper control arms - for a mere $700. Keep in mind I said this car has under 40,000 miles! We purchased the extended warranty, which will cover this repair except the $100 deductible, but I am shocked to have upper control arm bushing problems. Anybody else out there heard of this ? Thanks, Steve |
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Replying to: market525 (Nov 06, 2006 4:09 pm) |
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Replying to: market525 (Nov 06, 2006 4:09 pm) It's quite a cost savings for DC if they can nail you for $700 of unnecessary repairs while changing the lower ball joints. DC should not be able to profit from the lower ball joint design mistake. |
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Replying to: market525 (Nov 06, 2006 4:09 pm) Thanks Jim
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Replying to: market525 (Nov 06, 2006 4:09 pm) |
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Replying to: martinj71 (Nov 08, 2006 7:48 am) The car was making zero noises. Drove & steered fine. Reading some of these breaking ball joint stories really surprises me; I just did not realize the severity of the problem. Sounds like you'd better get to the dealer ASAP.
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Replying to: market525 (Nov 08, 2006 9:47 am) Jim
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Replying to: martinj71 (Nov 08, 2006 7:48 am) Bad upper control arm bushings can make exactly the sound that you describe and if they are bad this condition is not immediately dangerous as it can take quite a while to wear to destruction. Upper ball joints and control arm bushings generally last a long time in this suspension configuration because the don't carry near as much load as the lower ball joints. You need to inspect your lower ball joints ASAP because if they the cause of this noise you might not have much time before one or both if them pop and your Jeep drops to the ground. This is easy to do yourself but I don't have time to write the instructions. Maximum allowable axial play is 1.5mm or about 1/16 inch. And one other thing, if your upper bushing are gone and you have metal to metal contact the top of your tires should be leaning very noticeable inward. Stand far enough behind or in front of the vehicle to observe front and rear tires and compare vertical alignment. The top of the front tires should appear slightly out compared to the rear not in. Stay safe. |
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Replying to: martinj71 (Nov 08, 2006 11:53 am) Your dealer can tell you exactly what's been done to your car. They will run the VIN (vehicle identification number) through their (Chrysler's) computer system. Would take them a matter of minutes to do. Steve
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