Camp Jeep, CA -- There were a host of new things to try and do at the first-ever Camp Jeep, in California, but for us, driving the new 2005 Jeep Liberty with its Common Rail Turbo Diesel engine was a must-do. The Camp Jeep event was all about Jeeps, after all, but this new offering from DaimlerChrysler is ground-breaking in the North American mid-size SUV market. With fuel economy a growing concern, Jeep engineers say the new powerplant will deliver four-cylinder fuel consumption while still providing V6 acceleration and eight-cylinder torque. Unlike diesels of the past that need to “warm up” with glow plugs, we simply turned the key of the Liberty to the on-position, and were underway. We expected quiet. It wasn’t -- certainly not as quiet as VW’s Tdi – but on the other hand, it wasn’t 18-wheeler, garbage-hauler noisy, either.
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