"New to me" Jeep

due to some factors beyond my control I wound up playing musical vehicles among family members in the last few months and the result was that I lost my SUV daily driver which was a Ford Escape.

A couple of weeks ago I also discovered, horror of horrors!, that my old 1997 Jeep Cherokee had blown its head gasket.

Now we are talking a $1200-$1500 repair on a vehicle that books at $1500 value???

So my trailer puller, garbage dump run, hunting, fishing, pull the neighbors out of the mud vehicle is sick and ailing and my old Sentra might or might not make it to town and back a couple more times, so it is time to reassess the situation.

Today I went to town and bought a Jeep Liberty. V6, 4wd, auto with towing package.

I was reading the long term reviews in a couple of the yuppie vehicle publications last night. They say don't buy it! It rides rough, drives like a truck, seating position is way too high, the seats are hard, too much engine rumble, you have to use a lever to get into 4wd, and no one in their right mind actually needs 5,000 pound towing capacity!

Yep that's the one I need!

We will see if I get the same service from this one that I have had from the other Jeep products I have owned.

I just put a fuel pump in my '88 Cherokee daily winter driver. Cherokees are great vehicles.
Mine is straight six, five speed, 4x4, two door. Just the way I like them.
If it blew a head gasket, I would just fix it. It's a pretty easy job, and kind of fun.
I wonder how that new Liberty stacks up to the old Cherokee. Those are some big shoes to fill.

$1,200 to $1,500 for replacing a head gasket?? You need to find another mechanic.. Get a Chiltons book on your vehicle and it'll tell you everything about replacing the gaskets.

Sorry for replying to an old post but, that's about all I can find on this site. Besides, this is still an interesting thread..

As for vehicles to bug out in, I have a '95 Jeep YJ with a 4 cylinder 2.5 liter and a 5 speed. I don't know who at Jeep thought up that combination but, I can tell you, there are a LOT of hills on highways that have me downshifting to 3rd or 4th to make it up.. My wife has a 2005 Rubicon with a 6 banger in it. I also have a '95 Ford F-150 with a Gem Top (metal) canopy on the back, a 2'x4' rack that goes in my reciever hitch and a rack on to of the canopy that will haul my Jon Boat..

I've got 2 beds in the back, a cooler, 5gallon water jug, single burner propane stove, porta potty, and a voltage converter.. I also have a battery gizmo that will allow the truck battery to charge and then switchover to the marine battery I have under the bunk that's mainly for the cooler that's 12v/110v, and the battery also works on my job boat with my electric motor.

I'd probably bug out with my truck and pull my YJ behind it and it'll be loaded with supplies.. My 150 has a 20 and 15 gallon gas tank that'll get me a long way down the road..

My F150 is two wheel drive but, I spent 15 years in Alaska with a 2wc Chevy S-10. It's all in how you drive and the path you take..