Help-- Hoping to save my '04 Liberty!

[ndhoo2]

I have an '04 Liberty with 115,000 miles on it. A couple of weeks ago the check engine light went on, though nothing else has been wrong. After a dealer and 2 mechanics, someone has finally confirmed for me that the transmission is the issue and needs to be pulled out and either rebuilt or replaced. Looking at a minimum of $2,000. I love this Jeep and hate the idea of having to give up on it and get another car, but at the same time, I don't want to spend $2,000+ on it only to have it die on me (or cost me thousands more) shortly thereafter. I've taken good care of my vehicle, always getting all oil changes and having all maintenance done, etc. I know it varies for each vehicle, but does anyone have any experience with the general lifespan of a Liberty, especially once something major like this goes wrong?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

 

[tommudd]

So is that a rebuilt ******? One of the guys here in Toledo just installed a used trans with low miles he got for 250 and 200 install. Check around. Plus buying another vehicle will not say it will not break down. Over 130,000 on mine and haven'r replced 500 dollars worth of parts yet. I say fix it and run it, you should be good for another 50/75,000 at the very least

 

[loves_off_roading]

don't give it up it's still got plenty of miles left. Look for a used ******. Don't get a new one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[kskj]

Just checked on car-part.com they show some used trans with 15 to 20 thousand miles for 850.00. My 04 has 156,000 miles and still runs like new so yours should have alot of miles left in it.

 

[LibertyTC]

******

Is the transmission working and functioning correctly?
Is this all related to a Check engine light only?
Hopefully others will chime in here.....
What are the codes?

 

[Powerslave]

It is not shifting properly?
Is it in Limp mode?
Does the Speedometer Still Work?
Do you have the OBDII codes?

 

[04Liberty]

Wait, we're not getting something in this story. You went from getting a CEL to your trans is shot? Where did THAT deductive leap come from? We need the rest of the story here.

 

[jnaut]

If it were me, I'd replace the xmission. Even if it cost me a couple grand, a couple grand is less than $23,000 for a new vehicle with a $400 a month car payment.

Unless you plan to go way, way used, and then you're just buying someone else's problem.

 

[kb0nly]

I think a little more diagnostic and detective work is due here first. With all the brains on here together we want to know why they said its your trans thats shot.

There is so many other things that could be wrong, CHEAPER things that could be wrong causing a transmission problem that the shop then gave up on troubleshooting thinking the transmission swap might fix it.

Details, details!!

 

[ndhoo2]

Wow-- thanks so much for all of the responses! The CEL has been on for a few weeks, but that has been it. Otherwise the vehicle has been riding absolutely fine, no slipping, etc. The dealer simply ran the codes (and unfortunately didn't give them to me but charged me $100!) and said it was the transmission. They wanted $400 to take it out and look at it, and then said it would cost $2500-$4000 to rebuild/replace. That didn't work for me, so I took my Jeep to a mechanic who also ran the codes and didn't give them to me, and essentially said the same thing. I was getting really frustrated, since there are no performance issues, and I couldn't understand why no one could actually do something more than run the codes in order to diagnose the actual problem. So, I finally took my Jeep to a local transmission shop. They told me they also got codes that showed a transmission problem, but they went a step further and checked the transmission pan and apparently found a ton of metal shavings, which they showed me, and told me this confirms a transmission problem. They said they would need to take it out and then, rather than replace the transmission, would just replace whatever parts needed to be replaced, but they still estimated that this would cost at least $1700. As you can tell, I'm far from a car expert, so unfortunately I'm a bit at the mercy of the mechanics. I love my Jeep, though, and am not anxious to buy another car at this point and certainly don’t mind investing some money in order to get more life out of my vehicle. Other than routine maintenance, I’ve really never needed any major repairs before this. I really appreciate everyone taking the time to help me figure this out! If there are other details you need from me, please let me know. Thanks again!

 

[ridenby]

There is a thread in how to section about reading codes yourself.my notes say within 5 sec of turning off turn key to on-off-on-off-on leave on code on dash where mileage is.
took me few tries but it does work

 

[ridenby]

Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 12-10-2004, 07:10 PM #1
Bennett
Administrator

Bennett's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Green Bay, WI
Posts: 5,297
Send a message via AIM to Bennett

Default HOW TO: Determine what errors a check engine light represent
Here's an easy way to determine why the check engine light is coming on.

Turn the key to the accessory position then off
then accessory then off
then accessory...

(Basically, three cycles of accessory/off, ending up in the accessory position.)

At this point, in the odomoder area, you will see a code that corresponds to the error code.


Alternate Method
ADDED BY GROGIEFROG: There is another way that only works on my 2004:
Start with the ignition off. Within five seconds, switch the key on, off, on, off, on. ("On" is NOT "Start" and "Off" is NOT "Lock").

Bit off topic - Test for Gauges
-----
1. Hold in the trip reset button.
2. Turn key to ON position.
3. Release trip reset button.
4. Gauge and Lamp test begins
5. When odometer is finished counting codes display
6. Test is done when you see a Software Version number (e.g. 6.4) and Odometer returns to normal.

This might be clearer.

 

[04Liberty]

If you know anyone with a Mopar Superchips (programmer for Dodge, Chrysler or Jeep), they also double as DTC checker/resetters. Just plug it in and read the codes. If you can get the Pxxx code one of us can tell you what it is.

 

[kb0nly]

Yeah i agree, shavings in the pan is scary but it would still be interesting if you could tell us what the actual error codes are.

When was the last time the trans was serviced? Was it 60k? If its been a while a small amount of shavings is normal from the clutches wearing. But if your getting like a pile of crap in the pan thats a whole other story.

 

[Boiler]

Still, if he's having no symptoms, the last thing in the world that I'd do is drop 2k on a transmission replacement.

Can you risk a breakdown? If you'll survive it suddenly crapping out on you on the side of the road, I'd wait on any fixes while you investigate the codes, have these guys help you find the real answer, and shop around for a MUCH better deal.

 

[OHIO04KJ]

Still, if he's having no symptoms, the last thing in the world that I'd do is drop 2k on a transmission replacement.

Can you risk a breakdown? If you'll survive it suddenly crapping out on you on the side of the road, I'd wait on any fixes while you investigate the codes, have these guys help you find the real answer, and shop around for a MUCH better deal.

+1

Go to your local Autozone or Advanced Auto Parts store and they will tell you the codes for FREE.....

 

[ndhoo2]

Thanks to all-- I'm going to try to run the codes today (and if I don't have luck, I'm going to try to contact one of the 3 places that ran the codes for me and try to get one of them to provide the codes) and I'll let you know what I find. To answer the one question about the metal shavings, the mechanic told me there were a large amount of metal shavings, which didn't sound too good. Hopefully I'll be able to figure out the codes and they will help tell the story!

 

[kb0nly]

Ok, let us know on the codes. You can get them yourself as others have posted with the ignition switch method, it just displays the codes where the odometer is.

The only thing on the shavings, what one might consider excessive another might consider normal...

I remember doing a service on a car i used to own and it had a fair amount of shavings but then i didn't know the last time it was done. Another 30k later i decided to service it again and there was hardly anything in there, and if it lasted that long then there couldn't have been a serious problem.

If it wasn't serviced regularly there could just be a buildup of crud in there, and the codes and problems could be a bad sensor or something simple. Won't know until we see that info.

 

[ndhoo2]

Well, I tried the ignition method a few times and unfortunately haven't had any luck. It turns out, though, that one of my co-workers has a code reader and is going to bring it in today to see if that will work. Does anyone know where in the car it gets connected? Sorry, as I said, I admittedly don't know much about these things. I looked all through the manual and couldn't find anything to help.

 

[Jeepin05]

I guess I haven't hooked a code reader up to a KJ before, but I believe it's below your steering wheel closer to the center console. It kind of hangs underneath the dash out of sight but should be easy to see once you look under there.

Here is a pic of what the plug looks like - http://www.troublecodes.net/articles/obdII_connector_423x317.jpg

I assume the KJ uses the OBDII...others will chime in if not