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Is it worth getting a diesel?

13K views 90 replies 37 participants last post by  GIRLSELLSCARS 
#1 ·
I'm looking to get a WK and I'm curious about going the diesel route. My goal for the vehicle is to make it a daily driver that I can still take on the trails. Nothing too crazy, but adding a winch, lift, and tires is definitely in the plans.

I like the idea of getting better mileage and torque from a diesel, but I'm wondering how expensive these are to repair. I'm looking at '07 or '08 vehicle. A friend of mine had the diesel Liberty and ultimately got rid of it because how expensive it was to repair. He said that there were so few made that the parts were crazy expensive when they could even find them.

So maybe it's better to go for the v6 or v8 and just deal with the mileage penalty.

I'd appreciate any advice and excuse me if this question has been asked a million times before, I just joined this forum.
 
#40 ·
OP - did you make up your mind yet? Anyone with a diesel will be adamant about it. The reason is most have already experienced a HEMI and said wow........ then they drive a CRD and say holy buckets..... I happened to have both..... and the CRD is the bomb all around if you can find a solidly maintained vehicle. Have 105k on mine and planning on 250k more. Wife's Hemi is going away as soon as I pay it off. It is simply a pig on fuel and given we have the WK CRD I frankly should have put her in a new Libby. We are 40ish and have kids, had a Liberty CRD previousy (wrecked) and then went in the larger Jeeps. Good luck and let everyone what the status is in you search.
 
#43 ·
I have a crd and I am no fan boy, I would drop it like a hot brick if it was unreliable, or I had to fiddle with it all of the time. Quite simply it isn't and I don't. I havnt lifted the bonnet since a year ago and that was just for the oil change. The OP wants an off road rig. In that case does he want a maximum attack revvy Hemi, or more of a low speed masses of torque diesel?
 
#50 ·
The discussion is silly now overall (the WK diesel is less than 2% of all people owning a WK in US) so any opinions of the CRD should only be valid if said person owns one. I have ZERO mods other than deleting swirl motor with a $.13 cent resistor and 105k miles later started today at 15 F after 4 days at airport - no block heater attached and 4 year old battery. Then got 24.3 MPG highway home with a 4" thick ice sheet on the lid. At the end of the day...... buy what you want and enjoy it- they are all Jeeps.
 
#60 ·
I was gonna say, a WK V6 is definitely not faster. Mine is faster than my buddy's 4.7 by a good margin. Never raced a hemi though. The Pentastar with the 8 speed tranny in the WK2 is probably faster however.
 
#64 ·
#66 ·
Drama! In stock form the MB CRD is slow! The Hemi is a full second faster, and that's the 330hp not the VVT 359hp/389tq. A 4.7l in a Commander (the heavy box) is 1/10th faster than a GC with a CRD. Look it up on car and driver.

As for dependability, the hemi and 4.7l have been around for years and proven their worth. Still trying the idea of a CRD in a jeep, maybe they will get it right one day.
 
#71 ·
Drama! In stock form the MB CRD is slow! The Hemi is a full second faster, and that's the 330hp not the VVT 359hp/389tq. A 4.7l in a Commander (the heavy box) is 1/10th faster than a GC with a CRD. Look it up on car and driver.

As for dependability, the hemi and 4.7l have been around for years and proven their worth. Still trying the idea of a CRD in a jeep, maybe they will get it right one day.
Apparently the Dodge Sprinter, WK, XK, 300 all came with a 3.0 v6 CRD ROW for 5+ years (as well as many mercedes benz platforms - ML class, R Class, S Class, E Class) so you are definitely wrong that it doesn't work and Jeep or Daimler gave up on it.

As you continue to be ignorant of why in the US they stopped selling the WK CRD and base your opinion on an inference that they stopped the WK CRD in 2009 as your proof (that came to light in another thread). So I'll summarize it again to those who care about facts and not biased opinions: the CRD was no longer in the WK was because of the breakup of daimler and chrysler and the changing Fed and State emissions for diesels.
 
#68 ·
james_2k said:
'get it right some day' stop trolling dude. in tuned form the crd is (at least) just as fast as the hemi, and much more efficient. so what.
Key word "Tuned form". Its tough playing catch up! Especially when it's being compared to a stock motor which costs less!

Let's do some simple math...

$3700 CRD upgrade
+
.13 cents workaround to keep it running instead of spending thousands to properly fix swirl motor (if you got if fixed properly like it was ment to operate add $2-3k. WOW!!!!)
+
$685 for a tuner
=
Realizing you just achieved Hemi performance= PRICELESS (especially when they where giving Hemi upgrades for FREE at certain times)!

So now that it's on par with a 5.7l how long will it take to recouped that $4385.13 initial cost in fuel saving????
 
#76 ·
ROFL.

Is that the mantra you say to yourself every day before going to bed?

Sounds to me the only person you're really trying to pursuade here is yourself.

Here's a little info.

I would not be driving a Jeep if it wasnt a diesel.

The fact that Jeep is a Chrysler product is something i try to suppress every time i remember it.:cheers:
 
#72 ·
jaje said:
Apparently the Dodge Sprinter, WK, XK, 300 all came with a 3.0 v6 CRD ROW for 5+ years (as well as many mercedes benz platforms - ML class, R Class, S Class, E Class) so you are definitely wrong that it doesn't work and Jeep or Daimler gave up on it. As you continue to be ignorant of why in the US they stopped selling the WK CRD and base your opinion on an inference that they stopped the WK CRD in 2009 as your proof (that came to light in another thread). So I'll summarize it again to those who care about facts and not biased opinions: the CRD was no longer in the WK was because of the breakup of daimler and chrysler and the changing Fed and State emissions for diesels.
Some what true. In 2007 "Daimler pays to dump Chrysler" (CNN money article) but the CRD is still used in Chrysler vehicles until 2010 outside the US. So saying that it was due to the breakup is entirely not true.

In 2006 a GC Bluetech CRD was introduced as a concept. "The DaimlerChrysler BLUETEC technology will be capable of producing the cleanest diesel vehicles in the world. These next-generation innovations have the potential to meet the most stringent emissions regulations worldwide, including emissions standards in all 50 U.S. states."

(http://www.jeep.com/jeep_life/news/autoshow_news_07/initial_press_release.html)

So the research was done and they knew what they needed to do. But for some reason the juice wasn't worth the squeeze and they Chrysler didn't pursue. Instead they developed another CRD (VM) when the R&D was already done on the MB CRD to meet the standard.

So with that being said it appears that it wasn't suitable for use in this application or any other Chrysler application. Was it due to the cost that MB required for use or performance, we shall never know. But one thing stands true! One engine has stood the test of time in a GC, and it isn't a CRD.

There's the fact. CRD was DOA.
 
#74 ·
They likely changed mills because of the Fiat buyout. Fiat owns all of VM now; they purchased the remaining 50% stake from GM late last year. Why pay MB for the OM642 when they can now make one more or less in-house? I'm partial because I really like MB diesel powerplants (see my handle). The OM642 is a very proven engine in many other applications. MB Sprinters are being beat to hell around here on a daily basis in ambulance service and with UPS and FedEx. The numbers just continue to grow. Not to mention all the MB vehicles using it; I see more ML CDI/Bluetecs around here than I do gassers.

I'm going to wait a few years on the new VM engine to make sure it's good...the last venture Jeep had with VM wasn't exactly stellar. If they work out I'll likely eventually be in a diesel WK2.

It's all about what you prefer and how you plan to use it. Hemi's have their issues as well.
 
#77 ·
I have been looking at the Grand Cherokee with a CRD myself as I am a very happy owner of a 2004 Golf TDI that except for scheduled maintenance has been one of the most reliable vehicles I have owned. I love the added torque and economy of the diesel motor and ability for my small hatchback to pull ATV trailers with little loss of economy and power. That being said there are disadvantages to the diesel powerplant I have experienced as my driving chores have changed since 2004. I used to drive over 40 miles each way to work which made the 48 mpg Golf a perfect car for my requirements but since then I now have a short, 12-mile drive to work and since it takes about half of that trip to warm up my mileage is now more like 30 mpg in the winter. (It's not very efficient until it gets to operating temperature). Another thing as mentioned previously is the price difference in fuel in Winter time. Currently here in Ohio Diesel is almost $1 more per gallon than gasoline making the gas version of my car a better choice as far as economy. Motor repairs are more expensive but thanks to VW forums like this one for Jeep it's not too bad and most projects I can do myself. Without a helpful forum like this I would not recommend a diesel to anyone who likes to fix their own vehicles as it can be intimidating at first. While my opinion is VW based I believe some of the same issues relate due to the diesel motor itself and the pros and cons of the powerplant.

I guess it really boils down to where you live and how you will use it? If you pull trailers, log in a lot of long-distance trips a diesel is a great choice and you will love it but if you use it for many short trips and don't really need towing capability then I think a gas version would be a better choice? Myself, I want a vacation vehicle to tow my quads to the dunes, drive the same vehicle into the dunes, or something for long drives with family. IN this case the diesel is definitely something I am interested in and many of the nagging "problems" are all models not just the diesels.

BTW, one thing I cannot compare is the warm-up time for the CRD compared to my Golf TDI. My VW will actually cool off when idling during below freezing weather. (Yes my thermostat is fine) All of them are that way as their motors produce less internal heat and the only way to warm up the motor is to drive it. Are the CRD's the same way?
 
#78 ·
takes ages to heat up compared to my old 4.0. a good few miles depending on how fast you are going.

but by that token, it takes ages to cool down too. some days i go to work and its still got some heat in the engine when i finish.

it would be a very bad car if you have a daily commute of less than 5 miles.
 
#81 ·
BTW, one thing I cannot compare is the warm-up time for the CRD compared to my Golf TDI. My VW will actually cool off when idling during below freezing weather. (Yes my thermostat is fine) All of them are that way as their motors produce less internal heat and the only way to warm up the motor is to drive it. Are the CRD's the same way?[/QUOTE]

No the CRD warms up much faster than a TDI and remains warm. Try blocking your radiator for winter. I used to fully block mine on my TDI's and I block 50% or so on the Jeep.
 
#85 ·
I own a Diesel, I live in 21093 and work in 21204

I purchased one in the teeth of the recession 1/09. Ordered it from the dealer in Dundalk, told it would take three months, it was ready in 4 weeks. I have posted on this forum the only gremlin the thing has manifested, a mystery wire routing issue that caused the injection system to stop at high speed. The dealer and manufacturer had no clue and I wasted $$$$, but a poster on this forum did. The Jeep has been oil changes belts, brakes and tires for 130k miles other than that. It tows my 6ooolb worldcat better forward than my 2011 hemi grand cherokee, but not as stable due to the lack of load leveling. Good luck finding one around us, as I have never seen one in central MD. There was one for sale in Easton, MD last fall and i almost bought it just to keep for this one wears out. You will get 22-25 mpg on the Balt beltway commute and slightly better on highway travel.
 
#86 ·
Anyone care to do the math?

Diesel is currently $.8-1.10 MORE per gallon of 89oct gas here and has been for several months. What's the payback on diesel now? Teehee...

Seriously though, no offense intended. I like the idea of a diesel Grand, just can't find them around here.
 
#87 ·
Dang, its all high. I remember when gas was .25c per gallon and the lowest I ever paid was .14c per gallon. Chalk one up to politics, taxes, and the FED.
 
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