Starting & Running Very Rough

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My 2008 Liberty (3.7L) suddenly began to run rough, like a timing or ignition issue might present. Now it won’t start at all, and sounds strange while cranking - popping noises, starts and barely runs, then stalls.

Anyone had a similar experience with their KK Liberty? Thanks

 

[LibertyTC]

This does not sound good. How many miles on your jeep now?
When was the last time you did a tune up new plugs etc? Is the engine light on? Scanned for stored codes?

 

[[email protected]]

This does not sound good. How many miles on your jeep now?
When was the last time you did a tune up new plugs etc? Is the engine light on? Scanned for stored codes?

About 170K miles. No tune-up since I have owned it (18 months). Check engine light did come on. I have not been able to scan; I had to get it towed to service garage. The issue came on quite suddenly.

 

[LibertyTC]

Ok, off to the shop, please let us know how things go & post back the code (s) /findings.
Generally speaking, the Jeeps seem to like spark plus replaced every 40k miles.
Code readers are quite reasonably priced now a days it is handy to own one.
I use a scan gauge II, and it offers many extra sensor monitors from rpm, alt voltage, rad water temp etc & of course reads/clears codes. It stays in the Jeep, very handy.

 

[[email protected]]

Ok, off to the shop, please let us know how things go & post back the code (s) /findings.
Generally speaking, the Jeeps seem to like spark plus replaced every 40k miles.
Code readers are quite reasonably priced now a days it is handy to own one.
I use a scan gauge II, and it offers many extra sensor monitors from rpm, alt voltage, rad water temp etc & of course reads/clears codes. It stays in the Jeep, very handy.

Thanks. I didn't have my code reader in the Liberty when it died. It was detecting low coolant temperature (P128) in my 2010 Patriot. The Minneapolis polar vortex in February killed one or both thermostats on the 2.4 VVT engine.

 

[LibertyTC]

Ok..Have you heard from the shop about the KK-08 & what codes are causing it to run rough yet?

 

[[email protected]]

Ok..Have you heard from the shop about the KK-08 & what codes are causing it to run rough yet?

Shops says that spark plugs are shot. Including diagnostics, parts, and labor, they want $450. Assuming they spent an hour on diagnostics (they pulled two plugs), it sounds like about two additional hours. Is there anything particularly difficult about swapping out the plugs?

 

[tomknight]

Nothing at all hard about the plugs. I did mine (2011) and my daughter's (2008) at the same time. Very easy.

Your experience sounds more like an ignition coil gone bad than lugs. $450 is robbery for changing some lugs. They are cheap - like $4-$6 each, and you can do it in an hour.

 

[tomknight]

I guess the above autocorrected "plugs" to "lugs", sorry. I don't see where to the edit post button is.

Anyways, very easy. I wouldn't pay someone $100 to do it.

 

[LibertyTC]

At 170 K miles I would definitely recommend replacing the 6 spark plugs and 6 coil packs together ! (consider it a required tune up at that mileage)
From 2008 owners manual here is the required spark plugs: ZFR6F-11 (Gap.043 in [1.1 mm])
I used Standard coils works fine, but here is the list from Rock auto: https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/jeep,2008,liberty,3.7l+v6,1441543,ignition,ignition+coil,7060

Have you changed spark plugs with coil packs before? Do you have the right tools to do the job? Extensions, spark plug socket, gap measuring tool.. etc?
Here is a youtube video online showing how to do it...

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[[email protected]]

At 170 K miles I would definitely recommend replacing the 6 spark plugs and 6 coil packs together ! (consider it a required tune up at that mileage)
From 2008 owners manual here is the required spark plugs: ZFR6F-11 (Gap.043 in [1.1 mm])
I used Standard coils works fine, but here is the list from Rock auto: https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/jeep,2008,liberty,3.7l+v6,1441543,ignition,ignition+coil,7060

Have you changed spark plugs with coil packs before? Do you have the right tools to do the job? Extensions, spark plug socket, gap measuring tool.. etc?
Here is a youtube video online showing how to do it...

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

Thanks; I will give it a look. I have change many plugs, but plugs with coil packs are new to me.

 

[tomknight]

The ignition coils and the plugs are two separate items. You have to take the coil off to get to the plug anyways. That video above shows it.

 

[[email protected]]

The ignition coils and the plugs are two separate items. You have to take the coil off to get to the plug anyways. That video above shows it.

The shop where it is at swapped in a set of plugs, which did not fix it. They think the timing chain may have jumped or that the timing chain tensioner failed. Seems plausible. The problem came on suddenly and quickly worsened to the point that it does not start; sounds bad when cranking. It would be five hours labor for that job. The Liberty belongs to my son; he will have to decide what to do next. This might be the end of the line for it.

 

[Billwill]

The shop where it is at swapped in a set of plugs, which did not fix it. They think the timing chain may have jumped or that the timing chain tensioner failed. Seems plausible. The problem came on suddenly and quickly worsened to the point that it does not start; sounds bad when cranking. It would be five hours labor for that job. The Liberty belongs to my son; he will have to decide what to do next. This might be the end of the line for it.

Did this "Shop" pull out the code that was posted?
This would be the first thing to do before breaking down the motor...could be something simple like a failing Cam or Crank Sensor...the CEL Code should point to where the problem is!

These 3.7 Gassers are a lot more robust with their Timing Chains compared to our CRDs that have Rubber Belt cam drives!

 

[LibertyTC]

Yes what are the code/ s ? Start with that....

Re timing chain...It is not a 5 hour job just to inspect the the timing chain though.
It is a matter of draining the Hoat specific coolant, remove the water pump & timing chain cover.
If the chain adjuster is broken, it is more work & some parts for sure.
If it was my Jeep, I would want to get it fixed.

 

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The Liberty belongs to my son, and he has decided to part ways with it. Besides the engine issue, it has a semi-functional sky-slider roof, and is in need of a set of tires.

If anyone is interested in such a project, please contact me. Else, I will go the craigslist or eBay route. I am located in Minneapolis, MN.

 

[LibertyTC]

You could also post an ad in the for sale section here: https://www.jeepkj.com/forums/for-sale-forum.194/

 

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Thanks; I will get some photos and post an ad.

New parts in the last year: battery, alternator, water pump, fan clutch, thermostat, A/C compressor. 2 years ago: radiator and hoses.

 

[[email protected]]

My son posted an ad on Minneapolis craigslist. He had ten responses in a couple hours. He sold it to the first person to see it for $1000.

 

[LibertyTC]

After all the work done, sound like someone got a great deal !