10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
19,311 miles

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problem #94

Jun 162021

Liberty 6-cyl

  • 102,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact stated that while reversing and making a left turn, the front driver-??s side ball joint fractured and the lower control arm detached. The steering wheel also shook and jerked while driving approximately 50 mph. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The dealer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was a recall repaired in 2006, for the ball joints. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 102,000.

- Hot Springs, AR, USA

problem #93

Sep 032013

Liberty

  • 127,899 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. While driving approximately 2 mph, the lower ball joint fractured causing the front passenger side of the vehicle to collapse to the ground. The failure recurred on a separate occasion. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic twice and the vehicle was repaired for each failure. In 2007, the vehicle was serviced under NHTSA campaign number: 06V288000 (suspension). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 127,899.

- Albany, OH, USA

problem #92

Jul 282014

Liberty

  • 136,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. While driving 55 mph, the vehicle shook and the check engine and maintenance indicators illuminated. The failure occurred four times. An independent mechanic stated that the lower control arms and lower ball joint needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 136,000.

- Kentwood, MI, USA

problem #91

Apr 272012

Liberty 6-cyl

  • 130,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact was traveling 25 mph when the left front ball joint failed and caused the engine to fall. The contact had the vehicle towed to a mechanic and was told that the ball joint failed and as a result, the upper control arm also failed. In addition, the mechanic advised the contact that there was a recall for the ball joints. The mechanic replaced the left front ball joins and the vehicle was taken to the dealer for repairs under the manufacturer's recall. The dealer advised that the driver side ball joints would be replaced under the recall, but not the upper control arms. The failure and the current mileage was 130,000. Chrysler denied the consumer's request for reimbursement, by stating the work was not performed by an authorized Jeep dealer. Updated 05/17/12 updated 05/21/12 updated 05/31/12

- Hialeah, FL, USA

problem #90

Aug 032010

Liberty

  • 52,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact was driving at an unknown speed when the lower ball joints began rubbing together and making an unusual clanking noise. The contact was able to locate a recall relative to the failure (NHTSA campaign id number: 06V288000 (suspension: Front: Control arm: Lower ball joint) but was informed by the dealer that repair was performed by the previous owner in 2006. The manufacturer would not provide any assistance and advised the contact to have the vehicle repaired at his expense. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 52,000 and the current mileage was approximately 53,000.

- Argyle, TX, USA

problem #89

Jul 052010

Liberty

  • 66,032 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. While driving approximately 10 mph out of the driveway, the front passenger wheel and axle broke. The contact stated that it also punctured the radiator. The vehicle was towed to local repair facility. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that she was not the first owner of the vehicle and that the recall repairs had never been performed. She referenced NHTSA recall campaign id number: 06V288000, suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint. The manufacturer stated that they were not sure if they assist her with the repair cost. The failure and current mileages were 66,032.

- Manchester, MD, USA

problem #88

Nov 152008

Liberty 6-cyl

  • miles
2005 Jeep Liberty recall for lower ball joints. Consumer states that she could never get an appointment with any Jeep dealer to fix the vehicle for this recall and the wait was three to six months. The consumer stated as she was making a left hand turn, the ball joints broke and the vehicle became difficult to drive. Due to the way the ball joints broke, it landed on the rim of the tire and damaged the rim in the process.

- Crestline, CA, USA

problem #87

Dec 152008

Liberty

  • 47,000 miles
On Monday night, at around 8:30pm, I was driving back home at approximately 15 mph, taking a left, and from the inside of the car, my friend and I heard a loud pop noise, then some loud grinding noise after. I quickly shifted the car to park, jumped out of the car thinking that I had a flat tire. The tires were intact. My car refused to budge, even after the police came and we had put the car in neutral, and tried to push it out of the middle of an intersection of two roads. The car refused to budge. Right after the getting out of the car, I noticed that there the car had begun to leak from under the hood onto the ground. I had to call triple a to get the car towed to the nearest dealership - grava Jeep dealership - and the next day, the service department at the dealership called and said that it was the lower ball joints - which was a safety recall for the Jeep Liberty '05, and because the lower ball joints had separated, it had caused rim damage to the car, making it unsafe to drive with - as it would damage and deflate my tire. The power steering line was also found to be leaking, of which I had never had issues with until the ball joint had separated, and the car was attempted to be moved to safety (that was when we saw the large puddle of liquid dripping out of the car). Grava dealership has agreed to replace the lower ball joints under warranty, but they would not cover the damage to the rim or the power steering, although the lower ball joint caused the damage to the rim when it broke apart, and said because it was only a possibility that the lower ball joint could have caused stress to the power steering, and isn't definite, I would have to cover the entire costs. I called the reimbursement department of Chrysler explaining the situation and they kept transferring me to supervisors, senior staff, other customer representatives, until finally today - 12/16 - I called 2 more times, and was told that they would only cover 25% of the rim damage.

- Brookline, MA, USA

problem #86

Oct 252008

Liberty 4WD Diesel

  • Automatic transmission
  • 77,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for repair. The technician inspected the vehicle and noticed corrosion in the front upper ball joints. The vehicle was not repaired at that time; however, the lower front ball joints were replaced eight months ago according to NHTSA campaign id number 06V288000 (suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint). The contact was concerned of the safety risk involved. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 77,000 and current mileage was 78,000. Updated 01/07/09. Updated 01/08/09.

- Marcellus, MI, USA

problem #85

Jun 282008

Liberty

  • 30,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact heard a noise in the front end of her vehicle, which sounded like a helicopter on the passenger side. She took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that the lower ball joints were defective. The dealer replaced the ball joints according to NHTSA campaign id number 06V288000 (suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint), of which the contact had no knowledge. As a result, the two front tires were damaged due to the defective ball joints; however, the dealer refused to make the replacement. The manufacturer also stated that they would not replace the tires. The VIN was unknown. The current mileage was approximately 31,000 and failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

- Reisterstown, MD, USA

problem #84

Mar 102006

Liberty 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 21,413 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. In 2005, the contact heard a loud noise underneath the vehicle when driving at low speeds. The dealer replaced both front lower passenger and driver side ball joints. Two years later, while driving 10 mph, the ball joints failed and felt like a tire had blown. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and they stated that the ball joints needed to be replaced. The contact stated that this was a major manufacturer defect that could place others in danger. The failure mileage was 21,413 and current mileage was 56,000. 3-27-08 per phone converstaion, lower ball joints failed second event, smch

- Menchester, MD, USA

problem #83

Aug 072007

Liberty 4WD 4-cyl Diesel

  • Automatic transmission
  • 34,700 miles
Our 2005 Jeep Liberty limited crd has had the lower front suspension ball joints replaced as part of the vehicle's recall notice. At approximately 30,000 miles, we went to an independent tire shop for an alignment due to poor tire wear and "wandering" characteristics when driving at highway speeds. The tire shop indicated that the vehicle had a defective upper ball joint and could replace the failed unit with permission from the dealer. The dealer, medved Jeep, denied the claim. We took the vehicle to medved who then claimed that the upper ball joints were not defective. At approximately 37,000 miles the vehicle had a higher frequency of front end clunking, so I took it back to medved who then claimed the noise was only an extraneous battery loose under the seat. At approximately 43,000 miles, the clunking had become disturbingly frequent and more severe. I took it back to medved and they now confirm that it's a faulty upper ball joint. However, they claim no responsibility for not correcting the problem at 30,000 miles or 37,000 miles. They refused to replace the defective part, and furthermore, called in a Chrysler inspector who reported that our 1-1/2" lift kit caused the problems with the ball joint. However, the boots on the ball joints are still intact and there is no visible evidence that indicates the cause of the ball joint failure (poor manufacturing versus lift kit). There has been no forensic evaluation of the failure. The upper ball joints on this vehicle have a "record" of failure per online forums. Many failures are on vehicles without lift kits- pointing to likely underengineered component's on the part of Jeep versus purely speculative conclusions that our 1-1/2" lift kit may have caused the failure. The lower ball joint engineering was faulty, and NHTSA should explore the related failures to the upper suspension ball joints. This is as potentially serious under catastrophic failure as the lower suspension ball joints.

- Littleton, CO, USA

problem #82

Jan 242007

Liberty 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 32,362 miles
We own a 2005 Jeep Liberty. In Jan. 2007 we received a recall letter w/ notification code F23. We had the recall work done at bill luke in phx., AZ in Jan. 2007. Now while here in evansville, in. We had our Jeep serviced ( 11/07 ) and the mechanic showed us that the 2 front tires were worn out badly on the inside of each tire. He told us that the front end components are all good and sound so he suggested we have a front end alignment done. He also rotated the bad tires to the back and back to front. After investigating the receipts from the past recall work there was no front end alignment done after the lower ball joints were installed at bill luke in phx, AZ.. we just took it as if that work was done and never questioned the dealership about a front end alignment and they never said anything to us about it. We have contacted bill luke with no resolve to this serious problem they created on our Jeep. We need to now replace 4 tires and get a computerized front end alignment ( approx. $ 850 ) at the cost of their negligence. We need help to resolve this matter promptly. Any time any front end parts are replaced a front end alignment should be done. And trying to explain that to the dealership in phx is very hard. Please help us get reimbursement for this problem that daimler Chrysler created. Thank you.

- Phx, AZ, USA

problem #81

Nov 132007

Liberty 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact received a recall notice for NHTSA campaign id number 06V288000 (suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint). The dealer was called numerous times since April of 2007 regarding this recall. The dealer stated that the part was unavailable and did not provide a time frame for when it would become available. There had been no failure to date. The current mileage was 30,450.

- Bear Creek Township, PA, USA

problem #80

Sep 212007

Liberty 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
A letter was sent to me from Chrysler concerning "safety recall F23 lower ball joints". I have contacted Chrysler several times and nothing has been done to assist me in resolving this "potential "life threatening" defect on my vehicle.

- Apo, Aa, FL, USA

problem #79

Oct 032007

(reported on)

Liberty

  • miles
2005 Jeep Liberty with a recall for the lower ball joints. Customer states that she noticed the metal on the tires coming out. Mechanic told her the ball joints were on too tight and threw the Jeep out of alignment. The consumer is seeking reimbursement for new tires, alignment, waste tire fee and labor. The consumer stated after the recall was performed someone should have noticed how badly the alignment was.

- Hartford, AR, USA

problem #78

Sep 282007

Liberty 4WD 6-cyl

  • 16,703 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Jeep Liberty. The contact received a recall notice regarding the lower ball joints. At 16,703 miles, the vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair. After the ball joints were replaced, he was not informed that the alignment was not performed. Four months after the replacement, he noticed that the tires were worn due to the alignment not being performed. The vehicle had 19,500 miles at that time. The contact called the dealer to demand a free alignment, but was informed that he would be responsible for the charges. The transmission type and recall number were unknown. The current mileage was 19,500 and failure mileage was 16,703.

- Gaithersburg, MD, USA

problem #77

Oct 102006

Liberty 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 35,529 miles
My 2005 Jeep Liberty has been pulling to the right since I had the dealership replace the lower ball joints due to the recall. I've complained to the dealership since it was done and they've taken it in and looked at it several times. It has been aligned and the tires have been rotated more than is specified just trying to get it to drive straight down the road again. It has torn up to inner right front fender wells and has worn the tire down on the right front side. I don't believe my vehicle is safe to drive. It's difficult to keep it on the road because if I let go of the steering wheel even for a moment it veers off to the right immediately.

- Caldwell, ID, USA

problem #76

May 022007

Liberty 6-cyl

  • miles
Ref- safety recall F23 - lower ball joints. I received this first notice May 1 and contacted york Jeep here in prescott. 4 months later they have not yet repaired my vehicle. I keep getting told no parts are available - the parts are on order. I have contacted them monthly and get the same response. I think this is very strange. Can you help me get this resolved?

- Prescott, AZ, USA

problem #75

Aug 212007

Liberty 4WD 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 22,900 miles
Received safety recall F-23 lower ball joints the week of 08-13-07, made appt for repairs on 08-23-07; while driving home on 08-21 in rainy conditions I was unable to steer my 2005 Jeep Liberty & struck a guardrail, damaging my front bumper, fortunately I was driving under 20 mph. I called Chrysler when I arrived home on the 21st & I still have not had a call back from the to advise me if they will pay the $600 repair bill that I have for the damage to my front bumper. Chrysler associates advised me they are waiting to talk to the local dealer that replace the ball joints. I was also told that all of the information between the dealer & Chrysler are proprietary and therefore would not be disclosed to me.

- Plainville, CT, USA

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