Jeeps midsize Liberty sport-utility is decidedly old school. Consider it as a sort of modern replacement for the much-loved Jeep Cherokee, a vehicle that had its origins way back in 1984 when the late American Motors owned the Jeep brand. Back then, the Cherokee broke new ground by employing a unibody structure in place of the traditional body-on-frame construction common to off-road vehicles. The Liberty also goes the unibody route, as do nearly all the current compact crossover vehicles, but for Jeep duty its a very heavy-duty unibody structure. The Libertys suspension is biased toward off-road application, which means that although its tough enough to handle rough stuff in the boonies, its also fairly softly sprung. Toss in long suspension travel and a high center of gravity, and the on-road result is a fair bit of body roll through corners, but a relatively comfortable highway ride. Thus designed, the Liberty 44 traverses rocks and ruts other CUVs wouldnt or shouldnt dare attempt. The tall, boxy styling permits upright seating and plenty of head room, along with excellent visibility. The well-padded front seats in our Sport-model tester were quite comfortable; the rear bench seat not so much. The cabin feels narrow, exacerbated by the huge transmission hump that eats into footwell space and the intrusion of front-door armrests. The dash and doors are clad with uninviting, industrial-looking, hard black plastics. Big, round gauges are easy to read, and the secondary controls are simple, sturdy and generally self-explanatory. The overall effect is a design thats at least a generation behind the Libertys fresher competitors, but still functional.

But where the Liberty really falls behind the times is its propulsion.

Power comes from a 3.7-liter V-6 producing a modest 210 horsepower and 235 pound-feet of torque. Shackled to an archaic four-speed automatic transmission, acceleration is at best sluggish, and fuel economy is mediocre.

Chrysler will discontinue production this month of the 3.7 V-6 and possibly replace it with a smaller, 3.2-liter version of its much-acclaimed 3.6-liter, DOHC Pentastar V-6 when a modern, redesigned Liberty is introduced early next year as a 2014 model. No doubt a new transmission will accompany the engine upgrade. Assuredly the redesign will address all the issues that keep the current Liberty from being very competitive in an ever-expanding market niche.

But count on this: The new Jeep will dominate the segment in off-road ability. It will still be a Jeep, after all.

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