I have to agree. I bet it is a "Command View" skylight set up like on the Commander.
I don't think a cloth roof would make much sense on this vehicle.

I agree, wind noise would be too much of a concern as they are trying to move the Liberty upscale. But like it has already been said, they must be hiding something under there.

Yeah, that's what I used to say. However, as one ages and gets arthritis in the ol' hip, the automatic still lets us enjoy the Jeep Life.

BTW, I don't play golf

If you bought a liberty in the first place, your not a Jeep person! Your a wimp! Now that the liberty is redesigned to be a REAL Jeep, You run away and show your true colors!

You should go buy a Toyota Highlander, it has better seats for skirts and nylons!

Wow TKL, where do I begin...

First I get the feeling that your ideas on exterior improvements would make it look just like the Wrangler. I'm no expert, but I think having two vehicles looking exactly the same would be pointless if you’re looking to reach out to as many different people as possible. While the Wrangler is an awesome 4x4, and the icon of all that is Jeep, I don’t think styling everything to look exactly like a Wrangler would help bring people to the brand. There’s only one jeep (because they all look the same). I think it’s better that each model has it own unique qualities.

Second, the Patriot is a Compass with different skin. I like the Patriot's much more than the Compass, but if you don't like the way the Liberty performs, then I don't think you're going to like what you get from a Patriot off-road.

Third, wipe Liberty from Jeep history??? Yeah, great idea. Let’s take one of Jeeps best sellers right out of the line-up. You’re Freekin' Smart TKL. I find it interesting that you think Liberty waters down Jeep, but would like to have the Patriot. I think the Patriot will do well, but its role is to be the Mini-Van SUV of the Jeep line. Something similar to what the Vue or Equinox is to GM. Are you trying to say you want a Mini-Van over a true SUV???

Finally, I'll let you know what does upset me about the new Liberty. I don't like the rumor that it will get the 3.8 V6, I don’t like the lack of a stick option, I don't like the new placement of the spare tire, and if I'm going to nit-pick, I don't like the headlights. I do like the taillights and I think the appearance is an overall improvement.

Oh, and I’m damn impressed and damn proud of the so called “abomination” parked in my driveway.

I knew some Liberty owner would reply and you have every right to disagree. This isn't a factual debate that can be proven. It's subjective and I threw my two cents in. Do you hate America too? JUST KIDDING

My styling comments never directly suggested Jeep make the refreshed Liberty look, in your words, "exactly like a Wrangler." I pointed out that if everything is going to get this angular look, they seemed to have missed the windshielf angle. I also think the rear tail lights are incredibly odd. In fact, your comment about "helping bring people to the brand" is my point exactly. I don't want everyone* coming to the brand because that's not what it's about. If everyone wanted to be a part of something, it wouldn't be special anymore. It wouldn't be different anymore. And it wouldn't be a Jeep anymore. That's the underlying point I was trying to make but you helped make it for me. Thanks!

Maybe I got carried away with the history comment but I won't take it back. Even internal Jeep people and those on the line were really unhappy about the vehicle when it came out. Not that I'm either of those two people but that says alot about where the direction of the brand is headed.

As for the Patriot, my reference was purely a styling comment. I never talked about the engine choices customers will have and honestly don't know what they are and frankly, right now, don't care because it's not out yet.

Your comment about my wanting "a Mini-Van over a true SUV" is just hilarious. You should see the reception people give Libertys at Jamborees. It's like they're rooting for the little scrawny kid to do one push-up. I'm just describing what I've seen at Jamborees. Yours may be all beefed up and put other Jeeps away but I wouldn't know that. Don't get me started on the new mini-van engine that's being used in the new Wranglers. I've driven them and they're not nearly as lively and ballsy as the former inline 6.

Enjoy your Liberty.

--TKL

Greg, buddy, I dont comment too often on this forum because I'm here mostly to read jeep news and such but you should read what you just typed (Ill reiterate it for you):
"First I get the feeling that your ideas on exterior improvements would make it look just like the Wrangler. I'm no expert, but I think having two vehicles looking exactly the same would be pointless if you’re looking to reach out to as many different people as possible..."
Im hoping that you typed this in a fit of frustrastion without any real logical thinking; because (if this is indeed the new Liberty) it looks nearly IDENTICAL to the Commander- in fact my brother walking by me this morning thought it WAS a 2008 Commander." Exactly the same" in your words (go to Allpar and look at 2008 (or 2007, I forget) Commander changes , particuarly when he talks about the taillights, then look at these taillights...."exactly") . Therefore your comment on "having two vehicles looking exactly the same would be pointless etc....." makes really no sense at all.
I personally think that this redesign is a lack of effort on Jeep's part- lately it seem's our friends over at Jeep are sitting around and either a.) producing some cheap bean counter "car" [compass....in deserved lowercase] b.) matching there "bold" exterior decisions with "bold" enigine options for all the wrong vehicles [ minivan engine in the 2007 Wrangler] or c.) using a complete lack of imagination in creating new automoblies and "jumping on the bandwagon" and rebadging everything [ Caliber/compass, Nitro/Liberty]
I do love the new 4 door Wrangler and the redesign, new diesel options on the jeep lineup and some of the SRT options ( on the GC), but unless this vehicle above us is called a "Commander Sport" or something associated with the commander - the direct "copying" of named vehicle thats a tad smaller (with the Liberty badge) is silly, uncreative and furthermore proves alot of people's point on the new direction jeep is going....
But, hey, this are just Spy shots and who could really know for sure?

You’re both right in thinking I got a little carried away, but I think you would too if someone called your Jeep an abomination and wanted it wiped from history.

As far as styling, what I was trying to say is that there would be no point to styling the Liberty too much like the Wrangler. Partly because the Unlimited and Liberty both have 4 doors and are both similar in size. I know a rock-crawler wouldn’t compare the two, but if they were too similar, they’d compete against each other in the eyes of more consumers than if they had the styling differences that they obviously have. You and I know there’s a difference between IFS and having a solid front axle, but there are a lot of buyers who only pay attention to looks, mpg, and an on road test drive.

I also agree that making Liberty a mini-commander is DCX taking another shortcut on style, but I also think that having these 2 vehicles look similar is not as big of a deal because you can visually see a difference in size and seating between them. They’re not going to directly compete with each other even thought they have the same styling. On the other hand, a Liberty dressed up to look like a Wrangler would have the two competing for more of the same buyers because of their similar size. I’m not in anyway saying that it was a great idea for DCX to make the Liberty into a mini-Commander, but I can see why they went that route instead of others.

Either way, anger did make me a little retarded, sorry.

To TKL, you said, “Maybe I got carried away with the history comment but I won't take it back.” If you truly felt you got carried away with your history comment, then you’d have no trouble taking it back. That’s okay though. I can’t convince everybody the KJ is a true Jeep, but I have impressed many people who have seen what I can do with it.

UTTERLY!

Correct.

There has always been a 4x2 version of the Liberty.

The biggest reason for the change is to differentiate the Liberty style-wise from the new Wrangler Unlimited. If you want the more round hood front end you get the Wrangler Unlimited and if you want the boxy style you get the Liberty.

The Commander design is disliked by some but the appeal is definitely higher than the current generation Liberty. As a Commander (and a Cherokee) owner, most everyone who has seen my vehicle is extremely jealous.

The frog-eye design of the current (non-Renegade) Liberty was it's biggest weakness. Had it debuted with the flat hood of the recent Renegade, it would have received a much better reception.

The Patriot will be a good no-frills, commuter car that can probably handle some light off-roading, while the Liberty will become a more well-appointed vehicle like the Commander.

"The frog-eye design of the current (non-Renegade) Liberty was it's biggest weakness. Had it debuted with the flat hood of the recent Renegade, it would have received a much better reception."

Abso-freakin-lutely! I really hated the liberty when it was released. The frog-eye design was what I hated most about it. It almost seemed like a joke. But I love my '06 kj renegade. It looks mean, especially from the front. And I'm glad I bought it when I did, since it's now out of production.

Here's a strange point ... They discountinued the flat-hood "renegade" trim of the liberty for 2007, which I anticipated was because the Patriot will be out & the front ends would look quite similar b/w the Patriot & renegade ... So for 2007, they went full-on frog-eyes on the liberty, but now for 2008, they're going to completely ditch the frog-eye headlamps & go for flat hood ... That seems odd. You'd think they'd go to all flat hoods for 2007 as a transition into the 2008, but instead, no flat hoods for 2007.

The Renegade was most likely discontinued because it's hood design would be too close to the Wrangler Unlimited and DCX wants to maximize JK and JKL sales.

"The Commander design is disliked by some but the appeal is definitely higher than the current generation Liberty."

It's appeal is so high that the Liberty outsells it despite only being a couple thousand cheaper. Look, I love my Commander and I loved my Cherokee before it. I was one of those folks who felt utterly alienated in 2000 when that monstrosity the Liberty took the place of the Cherokee for the 01 model. However, the Liberty is a decent seller and it still outsells the Commander last I checked.

The Liberty does outsell the Commander, but to say they're comparable in price simply isn't true.

Liberty Sport Base MSRP - $22050
Commander Sport Base MSRP - $28610

That's more than a couple thousand cheaper. The Commander is $109.33 per month more at 0% for 60 months.

Liberty Limited 4x4 MSRP "as configured" (default limited 4x4 config on jeep.com) - $27170
Commander Overland 4x4 MSRP "as configured" (default overland 4x4 config on jeep.com) - $44670

Go with the top trim packages and you're looking at a difference of $291.55 per month at 0% for 60 months.

They're not really comparable in price.

When I compare prices I tend to compare what they actually sell for instead of some fantasyland MSRP price that nobody but the earliest adopters really pays. "A couple thousand" was an understatement but real figures when I was shopping around was $18K for a V6 Liberty vs. $22K for a V6 Commander. That's $4000 not counting out tax, tag & title which isn't terrible for a $20Kish auto. I see they've incentivised the Liberty more now so there may be a bigger gap than there used to be but I doubt the differnce is the $6000 that the MSRP reflects.

I do once again admit that I understated the difference but the prices are still close enough that a highly equipped Liberty will run you more than a base Commander so their prices are at least in range of each other. I cannot imagine someone being able to afford a brand new Liberty who cannot afford a brand new base Commander if they were so inclined to buy one.