Base price: $26,125
As Tested: $26,935
210-horsepower 3.7L V6
15 city / 21 hwy
More info:
www.jeep.com
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Did someone at Jeep dope up the totally redesigned Liberty with liberal doses of the cream and the clear? Sure looks that way. This SUV has bulged into a brute that barely resembles its former self. The '08 Liberty looks boxier and as rugged as a big-timber logger. The front end is bulked up with a jutting body-color front bumper, imposing grille and headlights and beefy fenders that look like shoulder pads on a Pro Bowl linebacker. Jeep offers Sport and Limited models, and our metallic green Limited tester had a slick chrome grille, chrome accents and the standard 17-inch aluminum wheel, adding flash to this off-road warrior.
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Jeep's big innovation on the '08 Liberty is the optional, brand-new Sky Slider, an aluminum and reinforced acrylic sunroof that slides back roughly 2 1/2 times as far as the competition, intended to give a convertible feel while maintaining structural integrity. Our vehicle didn't come with this option -- no big deal in the middle of a freezing Chicago winter. Sleek, carbon-fiber texture accents on the center stack add a very cool touch, but the two-tone slate grey finish on the seats and dash had an unsexy, plastic look -- the pebble beige option would be more elegant against the green exterior. And what's with the pointless handle above the glove box? All it did was bruise our co-pilots's knees.
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Mountain roads being hard to come by in the Midwest, we didn't put the Liberty through true off-road paces, but it made short work of Chicago's legendary axle-busting potholes. Our tester had a 4-speed auto transmission and a 3.7-liter V6 that churns out 210 ponies, with the optional Command-Trac II part-time 4WD. With three shift-on-the-fly modes depending on road conditions, the SUV acquitted itself admirably in slick, snowy driving. Sophisticated traction control (standard), a completely new front and rear suspension and updated steering system beg the driver to break free for some off-road adventure. And all these performance enhancements for a sticker under $27K? That's something to be juiced about.
-- by Sam Jemielity |
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