Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,
so I thought I'd ask a few questions. Keep in mind these are only for
discussion: A KJ would not suit my needs so I'll never buy one. I'm
keeping my XJ for a long time, then I might look at a newer one or else
a grand.

1. Why is a Liberty considered "less a Jeep" than a Grand Cherokee? At
least a Liberty has distinctive styling, and last time I checked the
Jeep Jamboree people thought a KJ was capable on the trail.

2. How many KJs were sold in their first year compared to XJs in their
last year? I seem to notice more KJs than late model XJs on the road.

3. Isn't the market for basic mid-sized SUVs slowly declining in favor
of "blown up cars" like the KJ, Ford Escape, Honda CRV, and full sized
soccer mom vehicles like the Suburban and Expedition?

4. If you took an XJ and outfitted it with the types of ride
qualtiy and creature comfort things most buyers expect now, wouldn't you
pretty much have a Grand that was just a bit shorter?
--
-
Monte Castleman, <<Spamfilter in Use>>
Bloomington, MN to email, remove the "q" from my address

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame29.html
God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
mailto:-------------------- http://www.----------.com/

Monte Castleman wrote:
><snip>

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame29.html
God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
mailto:-------------------- http://www.----------.com/

Monte Castleman wrote:
><snip>

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

Monte Castleman did pass the time by typing:
> I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,
> so I thought I'd ask a few questions. Keep in mind these are only for
> discussion:

A discussion that has been ran over so many times it's almost as thin
as my hair.

try google.

--
DougW

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

Monte Castleman did pass the time by typing:
> I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,
> so I thought I'd ask a few questions. Keep in mind these are only for
> discussion:

A discussion that has been ran over so many times it's almost as thin
as my hair.

try google.

--
DougW

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

L.W.(ßill) ------ III wrote:
> http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame29.html
> God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
> mailto:-------------------- http://www.----------.com/

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame63.html

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

L.W.(ßill) ------ III wrote:
> http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame29.html
> God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
> mailto:-------------------- http://www.----------.com/

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame63.html

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

In article <vnbduj1oscng49@corp.supernews.com>, Monte Castleman
<qmdcastle@skypoint.com> writes:

>I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,

>1. Why is a Liberty considered "less a Jeep" than a Grand Cherokee?

IFS. And to a certain extent, the V6.
At
>least a Liberty has distinctive styling, and last time I checked the
>Jeep Jamboree people thought a KJ was capable on the trail.
>
Generally Jeep Jambos will have anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 newbies, and they will
pick the easier trails. The KJ is quite capabale for what it is.

>2. How many KJs were sold in their first year compared to XJs in their
>last year? I seem to notice more KJs than late model XJs on the road.
>
Don't know but the KJ is one of D-C's best selling vehicles.

>3. Isn't the market for basic mid-sized SUVs slowly declining in favor
>of "blown up cars" like the KJ, Ford Escape, Honda CRV, and full sized
>soccer mom vehicles like the Suburban and Expedition?

Bingo.
>
>4. If you took an XJ and outfitted it with the types of ride
>qualtiy and creature comfort things most buyers expect now, wouldn't you
>pretty much have a Grand that was just a bit shorter?
>--
Yep.

The problem many people have with the KJ is they believe it signals a new path
that Jeep will take in design for *all* its models. Some concern is warranted,
yes, but D-C knows better than most people here believe what Jeep means to its
"hard-core" customers, not just soccer moms...that said I'm still not going to
remove my "It's A Jeep Thing, Daimler Doesn't Understand" decals just yet...

* * *
Matt Macchiarolo
www.townpeddler.com
www.wolverine4wd.org
http://wolverine4wd.org/rigs/macchiarolo_ml.html

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

In article <vnbduj1oscng49@corp.supernews.com>, Monte Castleman
<qmdcastle@skypoint.com> writes:

>I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,

>1. Why is a Liberty considered "less a Jeep" than a Grand Cherokee?

IFS. And to a certain extent, the V6.
At
>least a Liberty has distinctive styling, and last time I checked the
>Jeep Jamboree people thought a KJ was capable on the trail.
>
Generally Jeep Jambos will have anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 newbies, and they will
pick the easier trails. The KJ is quite capabale for what it is.

>2. How many KJs were sold in their first year compared to XJs in their
>last year? I seem to notice more KJs than late model XJs on the road.
>
Don't know but the KJ is one of D-C's best selling vehicles.

>3. Isn't the market for basic mid-sized SUVs slowly declining in favor
>of "blown up cars" like the KJ, Ford Escape, Honda CRV, and full sized
>soccer mom vehicles like the Suburban and Expedition?

Bingo.
>
>4. If you took an XJ and outfitted it with the types of ride
>qualtiy and creature comfort things most buyers expect now, wouldn't you
>pretty much have a Grand that was just a bit shorter?
>--
Yep.

The problem many people have with the KJ is they believe it signals a new path
that Jeep will take in design for *all* its models. Some concern is warranted,
yes, but D-C knows better than most people here believe what Jeep means to its
"hard-core" customers, not just soccer moms...that said I'm still not going to
remove my "It's A Jeep Thing, Daimler Doesn't Understand" decals just yet...

* * *
Matt Macchiarolo
www.townpeddler.com
www.wolverine4wd.org
http://wolverine4wd.org/rigs/macchiarolo_ml.html

Re: Devil's advocate with the KJ
 

Let me preface this by saying a purchased a KJ "Sport" last May. Using a
scale of 1 to 10, with "1" being a washboarded/potholed dirt road, and a
"10" going up a trackless rock climb (like out in Moab), I wouldn't take it
on more than a "5". This was a "road" going up at 40 degrees, lots of
rocks, etc. It did very nice in 4wheel low. I would have liked to have a
tad more clearance, oh well. I did not experience any problems with the
IFS, if anything, it seemed to give a slightly smoother ride.

It comes down to what the vehicle's purpose is. I can't afford to keep
something for weekends only, I have to use the same vehicle for my everyday
life. The KJ provides a nice compromise. If I want to do something beyond
its bounds, I'll go out with my friend in his CJ.

Incidentally, according to my dealer, the 2005 Grand Cherokees are also
being redesigned along the same lines as the KJ. He also said that they're
going to go to IFS. Gonna be "interesting" (grin).

Regards,

Bruce


"Monte Castleman" <qmdcastle@skypoint.com> wrote in message
news:vnbduj1oscng49@corp.supernews.com...
> I know a lot of traditional jeep owners are undewhelmed by the Liberty,
> so I thought I'd ask a few questions. Keep in mind these are only for
> discussion: A KJ would not suit my needs so I'll never buy one. I'm
> keeping my XJ for a long time, then I might look at a newer one or else
> a grand.
>
> 1. Why is a Liberty considered "less a Jeep" than a Grand Cherokee? At
> least a Liberty has distinctive styling, and last time I checked the
> Jeep Jamboree people thought a KJ was capable on the trail.
>
> 2. How many KJs were sold in their first year compared to XJs in their
> last year? I seem to notice more KJs than late model XJs on the road.
>
> 3. Isn't the market for basic mid-sized SUVs slowly declining in favor
> of "blown up cars" like the KJ, Ford Escape, Honda CRV, and full sized
> soccer mom vehicles like the Suburban and Expedition?
>
> 4. If you took an XJ and outfitted it with the types of ride
> qualtiy and creature comfort things most buyers expect now, wouldn't you
> pretty much have a Grand that was just a bit shorter?
> --
> -
> Monte Castleman, <<Spamfilter in Use>>
> Bloomington, MN to email, remove the "q" from my address
>
>