NHTSA Complaint #10328668 — 2003 JEEP LIBERTY

GOING 60MPH, MY ENGINE LIGHT FLASHED THEN VEHICLE DIED. I WAS STUCK ON THE FREEWAY, AFTER A MINUTE WAS ABLE TO RESTART (THOUGH CAR SHAKING BADLY) AND GET TO THE SIDE. IT WAS IMMEDIATELY TOWED TO THE MECHANIC, AND THEY DIAGNOSED A BROKEN VALVE SPRING, AND SAID IT'S AN EXTREMELY RARE OCCURRENCE FOR A VEHICLE THIS AGE. IT?S A 2003 JEEP LIBERTY WITH 91000 MILES. OTHER THAN THE VALVE SPRING, THE ENGINE IS IN GREAT CONDITION. THERE'S CONCERN ABOUT REPLACING IT BECAUSE HE FEELS IT COULD BE A FACTORY DEFECT, AND THERE?S ANOTHER SPRING VALVE, SO WE'RE DECIDING WHETHER TO REPLACE BOTH, OR THE WHOLE ENGINE. IN RESEARCHING WE'VE FOUND THIS SEEMS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH LIBERTY'S 2002-2005, AND I ASSUME ONLY A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY WRITING ABOUT IT. THE MECHANICS TALKED TO SAY THEY'VE SEEN IT BEFORE IN THE LIBERTY'S TOO. A GOOD SITE FOR COMMENTS ABOUT THE LIBERTY'S IS HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/REVIEWS/JEEP/LIBERTY/R95082/COMMENTS/. ALSO FOUND; 1)REPLACEMENT PARTS LISTED ARE REFURBISHED, OR NEW. THERE'S NO REFURBISHED AVAILABLE, ONLY NEW. COULD MEAN THERE'S A FLAW SO THEY WOULDN'T WANT TO REFURBISH THE OLD ONES, BECAUSE YOU WOULD HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM, SO A NEW ONE, WITH BETTER COMPONENTS ARE THE ONLY ONES AVAILABLE. 2)I STATED THE FLAW SEEMS TO APPEAR 2002-2005, AND WHEN LOOKING AT THE VALVE SPRING 2003 PART# VS 2006 PART#, 2006 THE NUMBER CHANGED, WHICH MIGHT MEAN THEY FIGURED IT OUT, AND PUT THE UPDATED PART IN THE 2006 MODEL. IT SEEMS TO BE THE INTAKE VALVE, NOT EXHAUST VALVE WITH DEFECT, AND IN THE 2003/2006 PART NUMBERS THE INTAKE# IS DIFFERENT, BUT EXHAUST# IS THE SAME. I CALLED JEEPS NAT'L CUSTOMER COMPLAINT CENTER, FILED COMPLAINT, WAS GIVEN THE RUNAROUND, AND WAS TOLD BECAUSE MY MECHANIC WAS NOT CHRYSLER, THEY COULDN'T TRUST HIS FINDINGS. I WAS REPEATEDLY TOLD MY CAR WAS OLD, YET ALOT OF PEOPLE REPORTED THE SAME THING; THEIR MECHANICS SAY IT?S A VERY RARE OCCURRENCE THAT A VALVE SPRING BREAKS, ESPECIALLY WITH THE MILEAGES BEING REPORTED. *TR