I don't have my patriot yet, but am curious if Hill-descent Control can be disabled.

I read a post somewhere that it can. If so, where is this button located?

There is an esp off button in the middle of the center console. You hold that button down for about 5 seconds until you here a beep. Then its turned off.
You can see it in this picture next to the seat heater button.


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Can you elaborate more on this hill descent control and the functionality of esp button????Thanks.

hill descent control keeps the speed to 4-6 MPH when going downhill in an off roading. This way you dont have to ride the brakes and you can pay more attention to the obsticle. If in reverse, the hill descent control keeps you a 3 MPH. Im not sure what you are looking for regarding the the functionality of the esp button. ESP is the electronic stability control. When you turn it off you are getting no computer assistance for traction control. This can be good in some circumstances like in sand where you want to get some wheel spin that the computer will try to minimize. But when you turn off the esp you also turn off hill descent control as that is controled by the computer, and I would imagine that the brake traction control is as well.

so if you're towing a boat out of the water would one have this hill descent on?

So, his hill desent and ESP available on the FD1 with manual tranny? Or just on FD2 with CVT?

FDI and manual has ESP.

I thought HDC was only available on the FDII package.

ESP is a totally different animal

So, his hill descent and ESP available on the FD1 with manual tranny? Or just on FD2 with CVT?

Hill descent is only available with FDII, ESP is available with FDI, Standard with FDII

so if you're towing a boat out of the water would one have this hill descent on?

No, Just be in low

I thought HDC was only available on the FDII package.

ESP is a totally different animal

Correct.

Hill descent basically applies the brakes for you, it does this selectively, to different wheels. I think this has to do with the anti-roll feature.

I thought HDC was only available on the FDII package.

ESP is a totally different animal

HDC is only on the FDII but it is tied into the ESP that is in FDI. The electronic stability control is your traction control and anti-roll mitigation. FDII ties some more off road programs into the computer which are deactivated when the ESP is deactivated.

I thought there's no HDC on FDI Compass/Patriot?

But regarding to the home page Compass 2009 has it:
http://www.jeep.com/en/2009/compass/capability/suspension/

Hill Descent Control
Hill Descent Control allows a smooth and controlled hill descent on rough or slippery terrain without the driver needing to touch the brake pedal. This system applies the brakes to each wheel individually when needed to reduce forward motion while negotiating down steep grades.

Is it a new thing for 2009?
When adding it to 2007, does it need any extra parts or just reprogramming?
Is it possible to add it to 6-speed manual (CRD)?

I thought there's no HDC on FDI Compass/Patriot?

There wasn't. Now, apparently, there is. :)

Is it a new thing for 2009?
When adding it to 2007, does it need any extra parts or just reprogramming?
Is it possible to add it to 6-speed manual (CRD)?

Yes, it's new.

Can it be added at all to previous year model vehicles is a good question. Apparently a lot of the programming in MKs is tied to the VIN - no retro-fitting FDII components/programming to an FDI Patriot, for example. (Well, in theory, if you knew where the VIN was stored - should be a ROM chip somewhere, no? - and changed that to one with a different VIN... :D But this is just speculation on my part.)

Hmm, that is interesting, Urr. Looks new, but I don't see anything else referring to it including the brochure which is listed in the Patriot one. I doubt it can be added to 07/08 models as HDC requires a longitudinal accelerometer which I doubt they have.

Hill Descent Control (HDC) — If Equipped This system maintains vehicle speed while descending hills during off-road driving situations. HDC will automatically
apply the brakes to control downhill speed to between 4 mph (7 km/h) and 6 mph (9 km/h) depending on terrain. The system is activated by placing the vehicle in “Off-Road” mode and placing the shift lever in LOW or REVERSE. Refer to “Safe Off-Road Driving” under “Starting and Operating” in Section 5.

HDC has the capability to sense terrain and will only activate when the vehicle is descending a hill. It will not activate on level ground. If desired, HDC can be fully deactivated by putting the vehicle into ESP “Full Off” mode. This is done by pressing and holding the ESP OFF button for five seconds. Refer to “Electronic Stability Program (ESP)” in this section of the manual.

HDC operation can be overridden with brake application to slow the vehicle down below the HDC control speed. Conversely, if more speed is desired during HDC control, the accelerator pedal will increase vehicle speed like
normal. When either the brake or the accelerator is released, HDC will control the vehicle back to the original set speed.

HDC is only intended for low speed off-road driving. At vehicle speeds above 31 mph (50 km/h) HDC will no longer function. If the HDC indicator light begins to flash this indicates that the brakes are getting too hot and the
vehicle should be stopped to allow the brakes to cool.

- Dan M

Just google the expedition west off road review for the patriot. It references turning the HDC on and off in real world situations.

I've had HDC in vehicles before, in a Land Rover Discovery and in a Freelander. I don't reckon you'd be able to retro-fit it into an FD1 Patriot, because it only works convincingly in a car whose engine is turning fairly rapidly, ie. in one with a low range box or one with an underdrive. I think there'd be a risk of a stall in an FD1 Pat. In that situation on say, mud or snow, you wouldn't have the friction underfoot to guarantee a bump-start once the car started rolling again.
I know that Freelanders don't have either low-range or underdrive but their bottom gear is, in my experience lower than the Pat.

Rocal

Go on, techno-geeks, dig out the statistics and prove me a G**-d****d liar!
I thought I'd better ditto most of that out, 'cos I know yous Yankees are nowhere near as foul-mouthed as us Euros!

good points on the FDI and gearing rocal.

In some situations you'd want to disable HDC such as in loose sand and soft mud. Wheel spin is a good thing sometimes and needed to maintain momentum.

- Dan M

I've had HDC in vehicles before, in a Land Rover Discovery and in a Freelander. I don't reckon you'd be able to retro-fit it into an FD1 Patriot, because it only works convincingly in a car whose engine is turning fairly rapidly, ie. in one with a low range box or one with an underdrive. I think there'd be a risk of a stall in an FD1 Pat. In that situation on say, mud or snow, you wouldn't have the friction underfoot to guarantee a bump-start once the car started rolling again.
I know that Freelanders don't have either low-range or underdrive but their bottom gear is, in my experience lower than the Pat.

Rocal

Go on, techno-geeks, dig out the statistics and prove me a G**-d****d liar!
I thought I'd better ditto most of that out, 'cos I know yous Yankees are nowhere near as foul-mouthed as us Euros!

HDC in the Patriot is 100% provided by the ABS (brakes)....not tied into the engine/tranny/gearing at all.

so if you're towing a boat out of the water would one have this hill descent on?

I had always thought about a good application to use reverse hill descent control... Yes towing it in, or out you could use this feature.

Hitzy, you're absolutely correct in what you say, that HDC is provided by a computerised application of the ABS system, but this is the nub of my argument. If your gearing is not low enough then the engine is not revving when you're in bottom gear. The frequent application of ABS, as happens during HDC, can result in an engine stall. This doesn't really matter too much when rock-crawling because the friction will mean that you either bump-start again instantly or you'll stay stopped, yet safely. On snow or gloopy mud the stall can result in a slide, leaving you having to do several things at once, control the car and get it quickly re-started.
Since HDC was first introduced in Europe the off-road press has regularly featured instances in which it can be thwarted, leaving you in a worse position than if you didn't have it.
I'm certainly not saying that HDC is bad. It isn't. Its absence is one of the things I miss since changing from a Freelander to a Pat. But, without a bit of education and practice it's not, by any means, the "Idiot's Answer to All Problems".
When going down steep rocky trails, like the ones in the photos of British Columbia it makes driving a pleasure; basically all you've got to do is steer. But once you're off that trail and into the squelch then the brains and the feet have just got to take over.
Rocal

Rocal, your theory only applies to manual trans vehicles. Automatics including CVTs have torque converts that allow the vehicle to be stopped (or even moving in reverse) when in gear.

I doubt even the Compass allows HDC with the manual trans and we all know FDII = CVT.

:doh:
How dumb am I, eh? I'm forgetting. You'll mostly be driving automatics, won't you. I never even think about anything to do with an automatic. I've only ever driven one over in Texas. I only know one feller over here who drives one!

Rocal

we drive on the right side of the road too. ;)

I never find driving in the States too bad, PH. I just sit facing backwards in the drivers seat using my wife's handbag mirror to see over my shoulder and turn the wheel with one hand like it was my boat's rudder. No problem so long as I keep the speed below about eighty.

:)

Rocal

Hey, I'm with you. I prefer manual trans for most of my vehicles. Automatics make slow off-road situations easier when you can apply brake/accel at the same time. Since I only have 2 feet, manuals are a little harder in those situations.

Someone commented that you need to turn off the ESP or the HDC "goes beserk." I understand if you turn it off, you also turn off HDC.

Mine works perfectly in that it holds the speed at steady 5 mph but has loud grinding, cachunking noises. Dealer says the noise can't be right but Chrysler is unaware of any such "noises" with HDC - no problem, no fix.

Anyone else have bad "noises" with HDC? Anyone know of a fix?

Only noises I get Grygor are the braking noises... similar to the ABS going off. Probably the same "grinding" noises you describe. The "cachunking" noise, I'm not sure of.

The ABS and TC and ESC and HDC systems are rather loud compared to many other vehicles. A trade-off of design/materials of what stated out as a $15k MSRP vehicle. Let them work.

The ABS and TC and ESC and HDC systems are rather loud compared to many other vehicles. It sounds like something is going to break. I wouldn't mind so much if I knew that was just the way it works.

It is loud and that takes some getting used to. It does sound kind of crunchy/grindy, but that really is normal.

It's OK for long descents on relatively smooth terrain, but 5mph is too fast for many situations. And on bumpy trails, the combination of the bumps and the HDC brake applications can make for a very jerky ride.

Switching ESP full off disables HDC, but lets you keep in low gear and locked in 4wd.

Grygor, I know that feeling, but it really is OK. I know that takes some believing, but it's true. I first encountered HDC on a Land Rover Discovery about ten years ago. When I first heard the very noises you are describing I thought, Jayzes, I've just blown the transfer box to hell and back! When I eased into the dealership at about twelve miles per hour the mechanic went out for a spin with me and said, "Yes? What am I supposed to be listening for?" "What the..! Waddya mean, 'What am I supposed to be listening for?!'" I thought he was taking the **** out of me.
I agree it takes a leap of faith to believe that that can possibly be normal. But it is!

Rocal

I've been teaching my wife a little on 4 wheeling. I took here to a local area with a steep hill and dropped it in low and locked it in 4wd. Man it is loud! scared her and she thought it was breaking something.

- Dan M

Thanks, guys!!! I'm feeling much better about it. I haven't used it very much and I don't think I would care to anyway, but its good to know that it doesnt' mean that it will break on me and leave me stranded someplace.