Jeep Patriot: What Tree Huggers Drive to Get to the Trees
Duemotori.com reports Jeep is racking up the awards in Europe. Earlier this year, the entire Jeep lineup won the 2007 Green 4×4 Award from 4×4 & MPV Driver Magazine. Now the same magazine has named the Patriot 2.0 CRD Sport as their 4×4 of the Year. In announcing the win, the magazine's editor, Bob Murry, states "The Patriot is a cracking car to drive… It adds a welcome dash of adventure and US style to a sometimes bland SUV market. At last you can have your American pie, and eat it, too!" That's not too bad for a vehicle that started life as a Dodge Caliber and has only sold 800 units this year. Interestingly, even though it's available with a 2.4L petrol engine it's only the highly-equipped CRD (diesel) Sport version that received the 4×4 of the year award.
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My wife just bought one. We both love it. In Canada, a Patriot goes for at least $5000 less than a similar CRV or RAV4... Or even the unloved Equinox or Escape. They are even in more demand than the 4-door Wrangler! Us Canucks like our compact SUVs. The Patriot isn't the best, but it is competitive and the price is very nice. The vehicle itself is surprisingly roomy, even with a sunroof. The interior is basic plastic, but the seats are very good. The 5-speed is light-years ahead of the CVT. I dare say the Patriot looks more like a Jeep than the new Liberty. Patriots with the "trail rated" badge are much worse for fuel economy than the standard models thanks to extra-low gearing and a higher ride height.
Part of the appeal and the reason no doubt the CRD diesel version won the award, is the far superior fuel economy. They also accelerate faster, in my subjective opinion. They do put out more soot exhaust into the air, which I would imagine is one of the fundamental reasons they're not offered here.
I thought the Compass was based on the Dodge Caliber? Are they both? What is the "raison d'existence" for both "Trucks" if they're on the same craptastic platform?
The Compass and Patriot are both based on the Caliber platform. The Compass is supposed to appeal to women and urban buyers while the Patriot is supposed to appeal to those who want something that's a bit more macho-looking but don't want a hard-core SUV.