Opinions on Jeep Liberty stroller

I need to find a new all terrain stroller and sort of settled on the Jeep Liberty. I don't need a new "jogging" stroller, since I already have a single and a double (and um, I can't remember the last time I jogged...lol) but my regular Graco stroller just ain't cuttin it on the crazy uneven sidewalks around here. I like my single jogger, but it doesn't have a storage basket or a cup holder, which I really miss when running errands around town. I also need it to be able to fit in the cargo area of my '01 Durango with the 3rd row up (only about 18-20").

I like the looks of the Jeep Liberty, and I tried it out in my car and it does fit. Cody likes the steering wheel, and seems pretty comfy in it. My only concern is that it seems a little flimsy. When I was playing with it at TRU, I noticed the back wheels have a lot of movement when I gently shook it, but I couldn't tell if it was just the way the shocks worked, if it was truely just a piece of junk, or if the floor model had been roughed up.

Does anyone have any expirience with it and could tell me how it holds up? Is there any difference in the different models other than colors and the music thing and a nicer steering wheel on the more expencive one?

Also, can anyone tell me how it compares to something like the Schwinn single jogger with the swiveling front wheel? My double jogger is a Schwinn, and I am impressed with the quality, so I was looking at the single with the swiveling front wheel. Like this
http://www.joggingstroller.com/Schwinn-Safari-TT-Single-Swivel-Stroller.pro
or maybe the InStep Safari (more or less the same thing)
http://www.joggingstroller.com/InStep-Safari-TT-Single.pro

Thanks!!

I have a 2004 Jeep Liberty Limited model with the music on the go feature and steering wheel with all the frills, lol. I didn’t care about the music or toy features at first but it was the only version available at the time locally. The bells and whistles come in handy more than I originally anticipated because I can plug in a small radio or music player if we want to listen to news/music, but I usually leave that off as well as the toy’s sound effects switch. The baby loves honking the toy horn and revving the motor, but the loud sound effects get on my nerves after a while and also seem to antagonize some of the dogs in the neighborhood, lol.

In spring/summer/fall, the Jeep is used almost daily for walks of approx. 2 miles. The canopy is kind of small and the stroller is not very stable laterally on uneven/hilly ground. It turns on a dime when the front wheel is in swivel mode, and it's very easy to push over uneven sidewalks/curbs/unpaved nature paths. It’s definitely not stable enough for jogging and there's no wrist leash or hand brake (hence the warning about not using it for jogging in the instructions) but I think it’s quite good for neighborhood or park walking.

I’m not at all familiar with other models or even the current Jeep versions, so I really can’t say how they compare. Mine has held up pretty well all things considered. The front tire doesn’t hold air more than a day or two now but I just check the tire and pump it up if needed before each walk using the air pump that came with the stroller. The tire leaking may be a common issue based on some of the reviews I saw a while ago on Amazon. A friend of mine with the same stroller fixed a leaky front tire with Fix a Flat spray stuff, but I prefer to just pump mine back up. Also when you fold it up you need to fully recline the seat or else you run the risk of tearing the fabric underneath the seating area. I also wish it folded up more compactly, but I usually use it around the neighborhood and keep it in the garage.

Good luck with your stroller shopping.

Thanks for the review Jean. It sounds like it will work great for me. I walk 2 miles a day, just taking Morgan to and from school, and then we usually walk a couple miles on the weekends, doing stuff in town, or going to the market or whatever. The plan was to get the Jeep stroller, and get rid of my old single jogger, and both my Graco strollers, but I'm thinking about keeping the single jogger, just in case I decide to take up jogging again. lol

At first I thought the Music on the go thing was a dumb frill, but the more I thought about, I think it would be nice to have. I could hook up my i-Pod to it and Cody and I could listen to music or "books on tape" while we're waiting for Morgan after school. How loud is it? Is it just for the kid, or can others around you hear it? If it is a little louder, it might encourage Morgan to keep up with us instead of lolly gagging 10 ft behind...

music/audio volume level is entirely up to you...

You control the volume using your music player's volume controls so you're able to adjust the volume level entirely to your liking. Unless the newer models have changed, the Jeep just has an off/on switch for the stroller's speakers and a short cord with a small headphone plug to hook up to your radio/music player. It takes a couple/several batteries (AA size if I'm remembering correctly) to power the stroller speakers. I don't think I've ever had to replace the batteries which is why I'm kind of fuzzy about the battery details.

Good idea about the books on tape. I'll have to try that to keep my older DD from trying to run way ahead of me or lagging way behind.

Happy strolling.

Personally, I'd avoid the Jeep liberty like the plague. I knew a lot of moms in Kaiserslautern who bought them because the BX was loaded with them all of the time. 50% of the time they worked great, but the other times, ohh, they were cursed like everything. Besides, I'm tired of the brainswashing of our kids with logos and advertisement on what's cool from such an early age, so I boycott on principle.

The schwinn & instep swivel 3 wheelers look really good online.
http://instep.net/products/category.php?id=31 I don't know how well they fold though. Hopefully better than the jogger style I used to have.

If you have a chance to locate one, I'd really recomend the stroller I have now for serious outings. I got it for exactly the same reasons you are looking for. Rough terrain, limited space in car, great understorage, plus comfortable to push and ride in. The real seller was the extendable handle that provided my 6'3 hubby legroom to walk without killing his back. Oh, I also loved the handlebar control of rear disc brakes. It's the Quinny Speedi (the ignored sibling of the Buzz & Zapp). It's about 20lbs, folds really flat if you pop off the 3 wheels (takes a second for each one). It's good up to 50lbs for the child and it's not a jogging stroller. The airfilled tires makes it easy to push on gravel roads. Occasionally, the rear width would cause problems in stores, but it wasn't that bad. The only negative I found was that the silky nylon seats made my daughter slip down until I used the optional pad for the Instep Jogging stroller she hated.
Here's a photo of my daughter & mil last Sept if you want to see what it looks like.
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/gozer87/detail?.dir=afd8&.dnm=7ae8.jpg&.src=ph
I've seen a couple of people using them in the States, but I'm not sure where they got them. The Freestyle was sold through Walmart online for dirt cheap, but it was huge! I don't know if the Speedi is on the market in Canada or not. It's a really versatile stroller and it's a pity they're not easier to find here. Would help get people out and walking

I'm not sure if you've already bought the Jeep, but I've had the Instep Safari for about 3 yrs and have been exceptionally pleased with it. I looked at the Jeep at the time, but didn't really want all the "stuff" on it and the small rear wheels seemed like they could be problematic.

The Safari folds in half very easily with a one-hand release and fits fine in the back of my Sienna even with a bunch of other stuff back there. You can pop the wheels off, but I think I've only bothered with it once. It pushes over anything even with a heavy kid in it. My only small complaint is that the snack tray is useless for a young child as it sits quite high.

HTH!

I did go ahead and get the Jeep, and I LOVE it. It's exactly what I was looking for. My only complaint, and it doesn't matter b/c I'm really careful about it, is it seems to be a little tippy. I think it's b/c it is a little narrower than a typical "jogging" stroller (although you do have to keep in mind that it's *not* a jogging stroller). It's not nearly as all terrain as my jogger, but it goes over our crazy side walks just fine.
The only time I notice the tippy-ness is when I am going from the street up onto the driveway next door to get on the sidewalk. The neighbors had the sidewalk all tore up, so I would have to hop the curb in front of my house, walk past their house, and then go up the little driveway dip in the sidewalk. The driveway is pretty old and rough, and since I am coming at it at an angle, it catches the front wheel and makes the stroller tip a little to the right. If any of that made sense....lol Since I am aware of it, I am just careful going up the driveway.

The cup holders on the parent tray are pretty small, but hold a Venti Frappaccino just fine (and that's all that really matters, right???LOL) and are perfect for holding my cell phone. The storage basket is nice and roomy. We walked around the farmers market on Saturday and it got warm, so we stuffed my sweatshirt and both the boy's sweatshirts, and dh's big coat in there, and still had room for some veggies.
As stupid as I thought the Music on the Go would be, I use it every day. I haven't found a book on tape, but Cody and I listen to Bob Marley while we are going to pick Morgan up from school. LOL
The seat is nice and padded, and Cody is quite comfy. The seat belt is nice and long, which is a big complaint I have about my jogger. Even lengthened as far as it will go, it's so tight it cuts into Cody's tummy, but I don't feel like it's safe to leave him unbuckled. The seatbelt in the Jeep is comfortable and has plenty of room left for Cody to grow. Another thing I like is that it has 2 different height slots. Cody fits better in the taller slots, but if I want to use it with a younger kid, I can adjust it to fit them better, so it won't be rubbing on their ears. And, it is really easy to change the height.

I am quite happy I went with the Jeep, instead of the Schwinn or Instep. I like the Jeep much better than my double Schwinn (although I will be getting a lot of use out of the double this spring and summer when the baby I babysit gets too big for the sling). It definatly doesn't replace a regular jogger if you like to do more than walk, but it fits all of my needs, and I think it's pretty stylish to boot!
This is the one I got from Target.


I paid $119+$18 shipping, and then I had a 10% off coupon code For a total of around $134. Now I see that it's $139, but has free shipping, so it all evens out I suppose. LOL

Glad you like your new stroller. From the photo, it looks like yours has a slightly different child's footrest area. On mine it's a flat triangular shape parallel to the ground. On your newer model, it looks like the footrest has kind of an angled or more step-like design.

It looks like today is going to be sunny and warm up into the 70s, perfect weather to go out for a nice fall color walk here. Happy strolling.