Enthusiast III
Off-Road Ranger I
0745
Years ago we owned a Jeep Liberty with the Motori Diesel engine. I really thought the thing would last 300,000 miles or more - WRONG. The 2.5 liter Motori was a miserable application in that vehicle. At 90,000 miles the high pressure fuel pump failed. At 10,000 miles I changed fuel filters. I could not get bubbles out of the line. I reported this to the dealership every 10,000 miles until the warranty was up at 70k. The vehicle went into the dealership 4 times. They could not get the bubbles to go away. Reported to me each time that it was normal. No, it’s not normal. The pump relies on diesel fuel for lubrication. With air bubbles present the life of the pump is reduced. Bubbles were forever present because Chrysler cheaped out and did not provide a suitable fuel delivery system to support the high pressure pump. No pusher pump and gasoline lines and fittings with tiny leaks caused the bubbles. A design problem from the start. At that time there was only one certified mechanic in our region, so we waited over 2 months. The repair bill was well over $4,000 dollars. Chrysler did nothing for me. They even had the balls to charge full retail price for the new pump. I no longer own, nor will ever purchase a jeep. None of my family will either. I don’t trust Chrysler with anything, let alone the diesel conversions that they offer today. And that’s what they are, conversions. I could of and probably would have done a proper conversion under a shade tree behind my barn.
Pathfinder I
You can import JDM vehicles up to 1997 now (25 years). Scary to think how old I am now haha.
The compact SUV route is a pretty good one. I've been impressed how well our stock CRV with ATs does on forest service roads and other light offroading. It gets us to the places we like to camp and carries the things we need. If I leave the roof rack in the garage and pack a little carefully we can get 25mpg real world on trips. The more gas prices rise, the less enviously I look at the big Toyotas.
Enthusiast III
Oh yeah, our patriot is not the best on gas but it's a hell of a lot better than any of the toyota v6 or v8 platforms. If a full size is needed, the F150 5.0 beats them all. We average 11-12L / 100 km on the highway with ours. I had a tacoma out for a day and a bit and that was going 13-15 on the highway. Also, people claim the ecoboost is better than the 5.0 on gas. It's on par while puttering around, spool up the turbos and the milage takes a crap where the 5.0 stays the same.
Influencer I
Off-Road Ranger I
0745
(Back in 1998 we drove our Jeep Wrangler up into Canada. As we drove through Montreal I couldn’t help but notice that we were in, besides service vehicles, about the largest vehicle on the highways. Hmmm) . To your topic, then.
Respectfully, for many, it's not about spending money here or spending money there. This is their "all in" hobby and, other than equipment, which can be scrimped on, the number one cost is fuel. I count myself fortunate that I live close enough to the Ozark Mountains that I can do a nice trip on 2 tanks of gas. Imagine those that have to use 2 tanks, minimum, to just get to the trails.
Not bad! Even my gas 5.3 liter '14 GMC Sierra can top out at 29.9 mpg on any given 25 mile stretch. Thats not the norm, though. Longer term, it does tend to dip a little lower, especially since I daily drive it to work and theres slow traffic half the way
I'd like to look into one of those for my GMC
I will say this, though. I can get 420 highway miles out of my 25 gallon tank easily. Often more than that if I'm gentle on the skinny pedal. I do have a Trac Rac on top of my camper shell, but I'm talking with nothing on the rack. I try to keep everything tucked in under the shell. As others have said, anything jutting out or up will tear that number down.
Enthusiast III
Enthusiast III
That's as fast as the patriot can go loaded....ha ha. I kid, but once past 60mph, the MPG drops drastically.
Expedition Master I
1537
I disagree. I consider TFL uninformed clickbait garbage but to each their own. Worst yet is the algorithm that, for some reason, constantly jams their content in front of me haha.
Advocate I
I am very seriously considering an older Subaru Forester for my DD. Some Geolandar AT's, small roof rack for the kayaks, and very minimalist gear inside. Keep the GMC Sierra, which is my current daily, at home except for the big hauls.
Advocate I
I Had Forester 2004 model, the 2l petrol engine. Had an average of 11l /100 km on trips, that is about 21 mpg I think, nothing on it, stock size tires and a 2 inch lift. Worse than my current LR4 diesel, that has like double the horse power, size and capability . Go diesel or go really small and light if fuel economy is a huge issue.
Explorer I
Why? I agree with @JeepWave and would love to learn more to better assess. Sure they have their videos that I don't choose to watch but I find the vehicle capability and comparisons well done.
