ramkum
New Member
I have a '03 Jeep Liberty Freedom Edition that I bought in late '07. It has full-time 4WD (Selec-Trac) and renegade-style ground clearance, with 235/65R17 wheels. Its all stock - no mods. The previous owner (who bought it new) was a vet who only put 25k miles into it in the 4 years he had it (I've added 27k mi to that in the last 1.25 yrs, i.e. its now showing 52k mi). Its been running pretty good - hasn't given me too much trouble other than shot bearings on the front driver-side wheel.
I have a couple of questions, regarding mileage, fuel type and wind noise and thought I'd put them out there in case more experienced owners had any idea.
1. MILEAGE:
I drive from NH to NJ to visit someone every other weekend, and I've been doing so for the last 13 months. I fill up the tank in NH (always at the same place), and have the guy fill it up again as soon as I reach NJ (everytime at the same gas station there too). My route is fairly constant and I tend to drive after dark so I don't hit too much traffic - Mapquest says the distance is ~250 mi though I've never clocked my odometer; My guess is the actual distance is 10-20 mi more. While not majorly into mileage-watching, this is what I found to be pretty weird:
Last summer, 2WD all the time: 13.5-14 gallons to fill her back up in NJ
Winter, 4WD all the time: 12.5-13.5 gallons
Now, back to 2WD all the time: 13.5-14.5 gallons
Just to clear all doubts, I *do* know the lever positions for 2WD and 4WD (and part-time, which I engage only to pull out of 6-inch-plus snow in my lot after a storm).
I don't know what to make of these numbers though; is something wrong with my 2WD mode? I also noticed that the car wobbles and bounces on road bumps much more in 2WD than 4WD (Jersey city roads are horrid). Its a lot more controlled when in 4WD mode though, and the bounces dampen more quickly. Is my suspension bust? Do 2WD and 4WD use different suspension systems? Does poor suspension screw up your gas mileage?
2. FUEL TYPE:
My jeep is usually very brisk from a stop, but pretty lethargic when accelerating up further from already high speeds (70+ mph). I'm also pretty lead-footed, and tend to accelerate pretty hard when getting onto highways, starting from toll-booths or during passing, and the RPM usually shoots up to 4K+ during such instances. My NH-NJ trips usually average 80mph.
Once, when I was heading out from NH, the gas station was out of regular (87) which is what I always use, and so I filled up with Premium instead (93). Within the first 15-20 mi, I noticed that my acceleration was way better - the jeep was much more responsive when pushing up from 70mph to 85mph for passing, with very little resistance. But then came the real shocker; my gas tank needed only 12.4 gallons to fill back up at NJ - my lowest thus far (and consequently the best mileage I've ever had for that trip)! This could be because my style of driving is aggressive, but it was surprising nevertheless.
I've never used premium grade after that though I was very tempted, since the jeep is rated for regular-grade fuel. I was worried that the higher octane levels may cause more wear on the engine - or am I wrong? Is regular grade the 'recommended' grade for the jeep's engine, or is it the 'minimum requirement', meaning there would be no harm with using higher grades? I would prefer switching permanently to premium if I can; I enjoy the driving experience much more and the mileage benefits appear to near-negate the higher per-unit costs.
3. WIND NOISE:
I was rear-ended early last winter (just 2 months after I bought the car
) by a guy who lost control on a slippery highway. A lot of the body panels were replaced with factory originals. The car was in the shop for nearly 2 months, and it seemed as good as new when I got it back.
However, I recently noticed that there's some black foam stuck to the insides of the rims of my front passenger door, but there is no foam on any of the other doors. What's the purpose of the foam? Is it needed for improving heat/cooling efficiency? Does it reduce wind noise (I do get a lot of wind noise on the highway)? In short, is it worth investing in getting it fitted to the remaining doors as well? If so, any idea where I can get the parts? I hate going to my neighbohood Jeep dealer for anything - its a rip-off place, so I was wondering if there was any other source of information.
Also, some miscellaneous quickies if anyone has the time -
4. Is there anyway I can increase the thigh support of my front seats by 2 inches? Does anyone know of any seats being sold online that are a bit longer than the factory sport seats and are known to fit the Jeep's seat brackets? Or does anyone sell seat extenders?
5. Both the glove-box and the center bin between the front seats have very little room. Does anyone know of any after-market replacement parts that are roomier?
6. How does one fill air in the spare tire, as in, what pressure? I do 36 for the 4 wheels, but I wasn't sure if there's any pressure adjustment that needs to be done for the spare given its not holding any weight while being filled.
I have a couple of questions, regarding mileage, fuel type and wind noise and thought I'd put them out there in case more experienced owners had any idea.
1. MILEAGE:
I drive from NH to NJ to visit someone every other weekend, and I've been doing so for the last 13 months. I fill up the tank in NH (always at the same place), and have the guy fill it up again as soon as I reach NJ (everytime at the same gas station there too). My route is fairly constant and I tend to drive after dark so I don't hit too much traffic - Mapquest says the distance is ~250 mi though I've never clocked my odometer; My guess is the actual distance is 10-20 mi more. While not majorly into mileage-watching, this is what I found to be pretty weird:
Last summer, 2WD all the time: 13.5-14 gallons to fill her back up in NJ
Winter, 4WD all the time: 12.5-13.5 gallons
Now, back to 2WD all the time: 13.5-14.5 gallons
Just to clear all doubts, I *do* know the lever positions for 2WD and 4WD (and part-time, which I engage only to pull out of 6-inch-plus snow in my lot after a storm).
I don't know what to make of these numbers though; is something wrong with my 2WD mode? I also noticed that the car wobbles and bounces on road bumps much more in 2WD than 4WD (Jersey city roads are horrid). Its a lot more controlled when in 4WD mode though, and the bounces dampen more quickly. Is my suspension bust? Do 2WD and 4WD use different suspension systems? Does poor suspension screw up your gas mileage?
2. FUEL TYPE:
My jeep is usually very brisk from a stop, but pretty lethargic when accelerating up further from already high speeds (70+ mph). I'm also pretty lead-footed, and tend to accelerate pretty hard when getting onto highways, starting from toll-booths or during passing, and the RPM usually shoots up to 4K+ during such instances. My NH-NJ trips usually average 80mph.
Once, when I was heading out from NH, the gas station was out of regular (87) which is what I always use, and so I filled up with Premium instead (93). Within the first 15-20 mi, I noticed that my acceleration was way better - the jeep was much more responsive when pushing up from 70mph to 85mph for passing, with very little resistance. But then came the real shocker; my gas tank needed only 12.4 gallons to fill back up at NJ - my lowest thus far (and consequently the best mileage I've ever had for that trip)! This could be because my style of driving is aggressive, but it was surprising nevertheless.
I've never used premium grade after that though I was very tempted, since the jeep is rated for regular-grade fuel. I was worried that the higher octane levels may cause more wear on the engine - or am I wrong? Is regular grade the 'recommended' grade for the jeep's engine, or is it the 'minimum requirement', meaning there would be no harm with using higher grades? I would prefer switching permanently to premium if I can; I enjoy the driving experience much more and the mileage benefits appear to near-negate the higher per-unit costs.
3. WIND NOISE:
I was rear-ended early last winter (just 2 months after I bought the car
) by a guy who lost control on a slippery highway. A lot of the body panels were replaced with factory originals. The car was in the shop for nearly 2 months, and it seemed as good as new when I got it back. However, I recently noticed that there's some black foam stuck to the insides of the rims of my front passenger door, but there is no foam on any of the other doors. What's the purpose of the foam? Is it needed for improving heat/cooling efficiency? Does it reduce wind noise (I do get a lot of wind noise on the highway)? In short, is it worth investing in getting it fitted to the remaining doors as well? If so, any idea where I can get the parts? I hate going to my neighbohood Jeep dealer for anything - its a rip-off place, so I was wondering if there was any other source of information.
Also, some miscellaneous quickies if anyone has the time -
4. Is there anyway I can increase the thigh support of my front seats by 2 inches? Does anyone know of any seats being sold online that are a bit longer than the factory sport seats and are known to fit the Jeep's seat brackets? Or does anyone sell seat extenders?
5. Both the glove-box and the center bin between the front seats have very little room. Does anyone know of any after-market replacement parts that are roomier?
6. How does one fill air in the spare tire, as in, what pressure? I do 36 for the 4 wheels, but I wasn't sure if there's any pressure adjustment that needs to be done for the spare given its not holding any weight while being filled.
