2009 Jeep Liberty Sport

Second-generation sport-utility vehicle appeals to off-road enthusiasts.
By Nina Russin

Last year, Chrysler rolled out the second-generation Jeep Liberty: a mid-sized sport-utility vehicle with standard four-wheel drive and two grades:

2009 Jeep Liberty Sport

the base Sport (tested) and upscale Limited.

Both are powered by a 3.7-liter V6 engine rated at 210 horsepower and four-speed automatic transmission. A diesel version is available in Europe, but so far, Chrysler has no plans to bring that model to the States.

The current model is larger, with more aggressive exterior styling than the former version.

An optional sky slider roof on the test car ($1075) opens up the top of the Liberty, offering buyers a similar driving experience to the soft-top Wrangler. A control on the overhead console opens the roof from the front or rear.

The waterproof canvas top slides back like an accordion. It’s a very cool feature on off-road trails, since it gives both rows of passengers fresh air and  clear view of the sky.

Unfortunately, it’s noisier than heck on the highway. Driving from Phoenix to Los Angeles, the roof became extremely noisy above eighty miles-per-hour, even though it was completely closed.

Two available four-wheel drive systems.

Of the two available four-wheel drive systems, the part-time Command-Trac comes standard on the Sport, with a shift lever on the floor console that engages rear-wheel drive, high or low-range four-wheel drive on the go.

High-range four-wheel drive locks the front and rear axles together to improve traction on wet or snow-covered roads, while the low-range is best suited for true off-roading, when one or more wheels may be off the ground.

Both the full or part-time four-wheel drive systems carry the Jeep trail rating: they meet internal engineering standards for deep water fording, wheel articulation and directional control. Having taken a Jeep Liberty on a gnarly trail through a southern Indiana woodland, I believe it will handle whatever its owner wants to throw at it.

Standard hill descent control maintains a speed of five miles-per-hour on steep downhills, giving the driver better control of the vehicle than applying the brakes. Hill start assist is also standard: it prevents the truck from sliding backwards when accelerating from a stop on a steep grade.

Attractive package for active lifestyles

Aside from the optional canvas roof, the Liberty is a good choice for buyers who need a mid-sized sport-utility vehicle with reasonable towing capability. Available stain-resistant fabric is a plus for people like myself who get dirty when then play, and sometimes forget to bring a towel to cover up the seats. The fabric is anti-microbial, so it not only stays clean; it doesn’t start to smell after years of rides to and from the local trailhead.

After logging a thousand miles on the test car, I can vouch for the comfort of the front seats. They have plenty of lower lumbar control. Designers also extended the seat cushions this year for better leg support.

While no four-wheel drive car gets great gas mileage, I was able to equal or exceed the Liberty’s twenty-one mile-per-gallon EPA rating on the highway. Keeping the car in two-wheel drive on paved roads adds about a mile-per-gallon to its highway fuel economy.

The gas tank is big enough to give the truck decent range. I was able to drive from Phoenix to Palm Springs, about 250 miles, on about three-quarters of a tank of gas.

Peppy engine

The six-cylinder engine has plenty of pep for average city and highway driving. It does well in the critical twenty-to-fifty mile-per-hour range, merging into high-speed traffic, and has plenty of top-end power to pass other cars on the highway.

A five-speed automatic transmission would have given the Liberty better fuel economy, but the four-speed box performs well on hills. I didn’t notice excessive hunting between gears.

Engineers figured out how to make a rack-and-pinion steering system robust enough for off-road driving. It gives the Liberty better cornering capability and a smaller turning radius on paved roads.

Standard four-wheel disc brakes with four-channel antilock braking stop the truck in a linear fashion without being grabby. Engineers retuned the rear suspension for 2009, giving the vehicle a more linear feel.

Though the solid rear axle doesn’t offer the compliant ride of a fully-independent suspension, it keeps the vehicle more stable when towing a trailer. In the front seat at least, I didn’t find the ride uncomfortably rough.

Spacious interior

The new Liberty has a slightly bigger footprint than the model it replaces, translating to more interior room and cargo space. The front row feels quite open and spacious. Chrysler designers excel at interior packaging. The center console bin has a small shelf up top for electronic devices and a change holder: the bottom is big enough to hold a stack of compact discs.

The standard audio system includes MP3 compatibility and pre-wiring for Sirius satellite radio. Audiophiles can opt to upgrade to a downloadable hard drive that holds tunes and pictures, with an enhanced speaker system.

The second row has adequate legroom for two adults. Cupholders on the floor behind the center console leave almost no legroom for the middle passenger. The same equipment option that adds the stain-repellent fabric also includes a 115-volt inverter in back of the center console, so rear passengers can use their computers en-route.

Second-row seats fold flat using straps on the back of the seat cushion, creating an uninterrupted cargo floor. Folding the seats flat does require removing the headrests, but it’s a fairly simple operation. Buyers who want to carry extra-long cargo inside can opt for a fold-flat front passenger seat.

Despite its high ground clearance, the Liberty’s lift-over height is low enough to make tossing  a bike in back fairly easy. The test car also has optional roof rails.

A small waterproof storage area under the cargo floor is ideal for stashing valuables that won’t fit in the glovebox or center console bin. The under-sized spare is mounted under the truck. Buyers who plan to do a lot of off-road driving should opt for the towing prep package ($580) that adds a full-sized spare.

Off-road enthusiasts will also want to add the skid plate package, that protects chassis components from rocks and roots on the trail, and also adds winch hooks.

Standard safety

All models come with standard electronic stability control, traction control, four-channel antilock braking, front, side and side curtain airbags, hill start assist, hill descent control, and a tire pressure monitoring system.

Made in America

Drivers who want to buy a car made in this country will take heart in the fact that the Liberty is produced in Chrysler’s Toledo, Ohio assembly plant. Both the engine and transmission are also produced in the United States.

Base price for the Liberty Sport is $23,825, not including a $695 destination charge. As with all Chrysler products, the Liberty comes with a lifetime powertrain warranty.

Likes: Affordable mid-sized sport-utility vehicle with true off-road capability and towing up to 5000 pounds. The stain-repellent fabric is a great option for people who like to play hard and get dirty.

Dislike: Optional canvas roof is extremely noisy, especially on the highway.

Quick facts:

Make: Jeep
Model: Liberty Sport 4X4
Year: 2009
Base price: $23,825
As tested: $27,720
Horsepower: 210 Hp @ 5200 rpm
Torque: 235 lbs.-ft. @ 4000 rpm
Zero-to-sixty: N/A
Antilock brakes: Standard
Side curtain airbags: Standard
First aid kit: N/A
Bicycle friendly: Yes
Towing: Yes
Off-road: Yes
Fuel economy: 15/21 mpg city/highway

2009 Toyota Venza

New five-door car shares the Camry platform
By Nina Russin

2009 Toyota Venza

It’s two box design gives the Venza more cargo space than a sedan. It sits lower than the  Highlander, making the car more aerodynamic. Lower door sills ease access and egress.

There are two available engines for the front-wheel or all-wheel drive platform: a V6 that rolls into dealerships in November, and an all-new 2.7-liter four-cylinder that comes out in January. Both come with a six-speed automatic transmission.

Having driven both versions, I’d opt for the four-cylinder, which costs less and gets and better fuel economy than the V6, with surprisingly good performance. The only exception would be buyers who plan to tow trailers. The V6 meets our minimum ALV towing requirement of 3500 pounds, while the four-cylinder does not.

Touring Pennsylvania Dutch country

At a recent media event, I drove both the four and six-cylinder Venzas on a forty-mile route in southern Pennsylvania. The route, which included two-lane roads and highways over hilly terrain, gave me ample opportunity to compare engine performance.

Although the four-cylinder engine is a better value, there’s nothing wrong with the performance of the V6. It’s a tried-and-true product that Toyota also uses in the current RAV4, Camry and Highlander.

Average fuel economy for the front-wheel drive model is twenty-two miles per gallon, versus about twenty-five for the new four cylinder. All-wheel drive versions get slightly less gas mileage, though the four-banger still averages twenty-eight miles-per-gallon on the highway.

What makes the four-cylinder car such a good value is its proximity to the six-cylinder in terms of performance. Thanks to a lot of low-end torque and the six-speed automatic transmission, it doesn’t do any of the annoying things four-cylinder cars are known for.

The car is surprisingly quick off the line, with excellent acceleration in the twenty-to-fifty mile-per-hour range. It doesn’t feel anemic going up a steep hill. The transmission doesn’t hunt excessively, and there’s less shift shock than one might expect.

Another thing to love about the four-cylinder Venza is that it meets California’s stringent partial zero-emissions vehicle requirements, and federal SULEV vehicles standards. The six cylinder is slightly less green: it complies with federal ULEV II requirements.

Steering response is positive without being dicey, and the brakes perform in a firm, linear fashion. The big wheels and tires provide a nice wide footprint for stable cornering without too much road noise.

Designed for American roads

Toyota’s Calty design studio in Newport Beach, California played a major role in the Venza’s design, beginning with the FTSX concept car at the 2005 Detroit auto show. Both the concept and the production model incorporate styling cues that push the buttons of enthusiasts stateside: big wheels, a wedge-shaped profile, and a rear spoiler.

The V6 model comes with standard twenty-inch wheels: the largest standard rims of any vehicle in its competitive segment. The four-cylinder model gets nineteen-inch wheels: big enough to have the same visual effect, and more flexible for buyers who want to get a more aggressive set of winter tires.

Like most new two-box cars, the Venza has a thick D pillar to enhance its profile. Unfortunately, the thick pillar also makes for bigger rear blind spots. It’s more noticeable when backing into a parking spot without the optional backup camera, than when the car is moving forward.

A clearer view of the sky

An optional panoramic sunroof has separate glass panels for first and second-row passengers, giving the back of the car a more spacious feel. The center stack is the focal point for the wing-shaped instrument panel, topped with the screen for the optional navigation system.

Controls above the navigation screen allow drivers to access comfort and convenience software previously limited to dealership technicians. Using a button, the driver can scroll through settings for door locks, keyless entry, interior and exterior lighting and display brightness. A second button allows the driver to change settings, adjusting the relock timer, the number of doors that unlocks with the keyless entry, and lighting configurations.

A cleverly conceived floor console has a sliding armrest and two large bins: under the front cupholders, and under the armrest. I was especially intrigued by the bin under the cupholders, since it would make a great hiding spot for valuables at the trailhead.

A cell phone or iPod holder at the base of the center stack has a feed hole for wires, which plug into power outlets underneath. All four doors have bottle and map holders. The middle seatback in the second row down to create an armrest, with two more cupholders.

A standard tilt and telescoping steering wheel keeps the wheel from obstructing the forward vision of smaller drivers. Redundant steering wheel controls allow the driver to use Bluetooth wireless phone technology, program the audio, and engage the cruise control with a minimum of distraction.

Configurable cargo area

There are two sets of levers to fold the second-row seats flat: on the sides of the seat cushions, and on either side of the liftgate. Both sets of controls fold the seats flat in a single step. The tonneau cover is easy to remove, creating plenty of space to load a bicycle inside.

A twelve-volt plug in and cargo area lamp are handy for buyers who plan to take their vehicles camping, or need unload gear before dawn for an early-morning race.

Four tie-down loops secure large cargo. A full-sized spare under the cargo floor is easy to reach, and can take the driver further than undersized spare tires in some competitive products.

Standard safety

All cars come with seven airbags, active front headrests, four-channel antilock brakes, traction and vehicle stability control.

A new automatic high beam automatically dims the lamps for oncoming traffic, allowing the driver to use the brighter lamps more often on dark roads, while remaining courteous to other drivers.

Pricing for the Venza begins at $25,975 for the four-cylinder car and $27,800 for the V6, not including a $720 destination charge. All-wheel drive adds $1450 to either model, while the panoramix sunroof costs $1050.

Likes: An attractive, versatile car with good fuel economy and available all-wheel drive. Second-row seats are easy to fold flat to extend the cargo floor. A standard power liftgate makes it easier to load up the cargp area.

Dislike: Thick D pillars create larger blind spots to the rear of the car.

Quick facts:

Make: Toyota
Model: Venza
Year: 2009
Base price: $25,975
As tested: N/A
Horsepower* 182Hp @ 5800 rpm
Torque: 182 lbs.-ft. @ 4200 rpm
Zero-to-sixty: N/A
Antilock brakes: Standard
Side curtain airbags: Standard
First aid kit: N/A
Bicycle friendly: Yes
Towing: Yes (V6 only)
Off-road: No
Fuel economy:21/29 mpg city/highway*
Comments: Horsepower, torque and fuel economy ratings listed are for the four-cylinder model.