So I love my 4x2 but there are many of times I think to myself I should have shelled out the extra grand or two for a 4x4. But over all Im am happy with the engine and comfortable ride. Plus the look of the Pat is awesome. I am definetly looking forward to my trip next month from Southern Cali, to Portland Or!!!! Hope to take some pics!!!

As of now I have added these things to my Pat. Tint, Hitch, and DVD headrest. Waiting on my DVD player and Compass Bezel though....

After playing at the off-road park with the guys that do have FDI, yes I wish that I had been a little less "cheap". Afterall, I upgraded my wheels so why not get the basic 4X4. Oh well, I still can have a little fun. :)

From what I can see the 4x2 accounts for itself very well , given its limitations...

I did get the 4x4, but I wish I had purchased the same aftermarket hitch you have. I never liked how the factory one has the bumper cut out, but that is what I have.

I do wish I had a 4x4 especially when I woke up to snow this morning. But with gas prices creeping back up, I am satisfied with the 4x2. I am getting 28 mpg combined and I got almost 30 this week.
The 4x4 Patriots were more than $1,000 higher around here. I have learned to be satisfied with what I have and what I can afford if times get really tuff for me.
Even though I got the base model I look forward to driving it every day.

Mods: 2" hitch tubular hitch carrier and cargo box for said carrier, molded mud flaps.

Good input, Just wanted to make sure I wasent the only one. I really do like the 4x2. atleast its not rwd, then we'd be in a world of hurt in the snow.
Thanks, I was unsure about the hitch at first. B/C I did like the look of the cut out bumper but now that I have it installed I am very satisfied with the outcome.
I'll also post an article when I get everything for the headrest to dvd install and prices. Prices is what it all comes down too!!!

I sometimes wish I purchased the 4x4 then as I drive from Rochester to Jamestown I never have problems when I encounter snowstorms on the thruway. I have nothing but great things to say about my pat!

I sometimes wish I purchased the 4x4 then as I drive from Rochester to Jamestown I never have problems when I encounter snowstorms on the thruway. I have nothing but great things to say about my pat!

The Pat being FWD and nearly 8" of ground clearance, there shouldn't be too much that stops you--especially snowwise. My little front wheel drive Neon with no real ground clearance was a little monster in snow.

Thats another good point, Believe me at first I didnt want to believe that the non 4x4's were FWD, But now I very satisfied, The next time encounter snow it will be with much confindence!!!

Only when off-roading. :D (or trail-ing.. whatever you want to call it) .. when you hit that hill, and it just doesn't want to go up that sandy mess any further..

On one occasion I drove miles down a small unplowed rural road with powdered snow up to my rocker panels. At first I was sweating it out and preparing to spend some time trapped in my pat but within a mile or so up the road I began to feel quite confident and made it through without any problems whatsoever.

for the most part the patriot, even in 4x2 is pretty decent off-road. It almost makes me want to see how a neon would do in these situations.

I have a FDI, but I wish I bought FDII... Unfortunately, no diesel FDII are available :(

you're lucky you even GET diesel :P lol

After I bought the Pat I had second guessed about being too cheap and going without the 4x4. Now that I have been thru this past winter with the heaviest snowfall Cleveland ever saw and I am glad I held out.....you don't NEED it. This thing is awesome in the deep snow with only fwd. Mind you this is a "city" Jeep and will never set a tire off-road. If I wanted to go off-road for real I would have looked at a Wrangler before I would spend the dough on a 4x4 limited Pat. But that is only my opinion :banana:

Oh god do I wish I bought the 4x4.:mad: I dont think the jeep does well at all in the snow with stock tires. I was skating all winter, especially when going closer to the mountains. I let my mother talk me out of the 4x4. I've come to the conclusion that I was an idiot for taking automotive advice from someone who wouldnt know when to change her oil If she wasnt reminded
PS. Love you mom
lol

If it was my ride I would mind, but it's not. My next vehic will be the FDII with a 5-speed. If it was totalled today, an auto-stick.
http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb229/snokat1/Jeep%20Patriot%20Shots/Off-Road20in20DuPois200342028Small2.jpg

I also thought about the 4x4 as I have always wanted to have the capability to go off roading, but I could not afford the 4x4. THis is my first Jeep, and my first front wheel drive. I look forward to many many many miles of fun, nothing will keep me from going off roading, maybe I will have to get towed out if I get stuck but thats the fun part.

That's funny the 4x2 wish they had the FD1 and the FD1's (me included) wish I had a FD2 and I bet you FD2's wish they had a V6 hehe

I had been thinking for quite a while that I wanted the FWD for reasons of fuel economy. But then in December Seattle had one of its rare snowstorms. My Suzuki is only 2200 lbs and is also RWD; I came to learn that it is COMPLETELY USELESS when there is even just an inch or two of snow (and I grew up in Syracuse so I definitely know how to drive in the snow). My car was stuck for 9 days. After that I decided that I'll shell out the extra bucks for 4x4 when I get my Patriot.

If I lived in Florida or Texas I'd probably opt for the FWD, to save gas. But here in the Pacific Northwest it can be useful to have 4x4; we often go camping/hiking in the Cascade Mountains or the Olympic Mountains.

GOD I love living in the tropics. Makes car buying all the more easier to do!

We do have hurricanes though and things can get pretty muddy and flooded for awhile after the onslaught. The FWD 4x2 should do just fine. Can't say one way or the other about snow but in my mind, snow = tracked vehicles.

i thought the same thing time and time again even though i might never use the 4x4 i would look for a reason to.

while sometimes when i see MPG some others are getting i wish i had the FDI or 4x2,
while dont need the 4X4 often,
and when i do use it, would probably be fine with FDI,
but i never know where the road will take me,
have places in PA, and in the snowbelt of NY,
so wouldnt want to venture there in storms without the FDII

Oh god do I wish I bought the 4x4.:mad: I dont think the jeep does well at all in the snow with stock tires. I was skating all winter, especially when going closer to the mountains.
lol

that's your problem right there. Get better tires for the snow. 4x4 doesn't help you stop.

I bet you FD2's wish they had a V6 hehe


I hope you're kidding! I'm super happy with my purchase.

pretty happy with my 4X2, filled up the gas tank with 41 L of gas, got 470 KM from it.

That's funny the 4x2 wish they had the FD1 and the FD1's (me included) wish I had a FD2 and I bet you FD2's wish they had a V6 hehe

NO....the FD2's wish they had a Rubicon ! :banana:

The only time I wish I had 4WD are when the streets are wet and w/FWD my factory tires lose traction too easily. I'm hoping a tire upgrade later this year will fix that, but at times I think having AWD would be worthwhile for city streets...but neither FDI or FDII work that way, do they?

Do you think my bf and I should trade for an 07 4x4 sport with the power package? It's Jeep green with the factory tint, the steelie wheels, and darker interior floor.

Anybody with a 4x4, I would like to know what the light that says "4x4!" in the center of the dash means when you hold the handle up for about 12-13 seconds.

After having an AWD Subaru for 8 years, I think it is somewhat overrated. It IS good in the snow, and rain, but you also pay a price in both fuel economy and acceleration. It behaved like a RWD car on ice, no help there. With gas hovering around $4 last year, I think I can live without 4 wheel drive. FWD is not that much more work.....

After having an AWD Subaru for 8 years, I think it is somewhat overrated. It IS good in the snow, and rain, but you also pay a price in both fuel economy and acceleration. It behaved like a RWD car on ice, no help there. With gas hovering around $4 last year, I think I can live without 4 wheel drive. FWD is not that much more work.....

AWD for snow yes, not necessarily for rain. Good performing rain tires do the trick nicely. Besides... rain or snow means slow down! That's why I didn't go out and spend the extra cash for a 4x4. I am careful driving on wet pavement (hydroplaned in an Alfa Romeo 164L once... not funny).

That's funny the 4x2 wish they had the FD1 and the FD1's (me included) wish I had a FD2 and I bet you FD2's wish they had a V6 hehe

NOT! VW diesel, it has 130 ft. lb. of torque!

Before I bought the 4x2 I drove a 4x4 onto an unplowed road using 2wd, figuring I'd learn what it could do in 2wd and if/when I got stuck I'd use 4wd to get out. Surprise! I turned around and drove out (slight upgrade) in 2wd -- never needed the 4wd. Most of my driving is hwy so why waste the extra $ on 4wd?

So will a double din fit standard in an 08 patriot? If not can anyone point me in the right direction on a double din bezel or whatever it is i may need.

No it wont unless you have the navigation bezel. Look at another one of my posts and there is a link that will show you what you need. I went to sonicelectronix and crutchfield dot com. Just pick a double din deck and they will show you what else you need. Including wiring harness. All you need is a Jeep Compass navigation bexel I think I got mine for around $70. JUST make sure you get the right bezel for the year of your jeep!!!

I thought about the 4x4 Pat and did almost buy it, but it was a couple grand more and didn't feel like shelling out the money. So far I like the Pat, but the stock tires on it are junk. I need to find better ones because they didn't do too well this past winter.

Well, considering it's a 4x2, it wasn't going to come with the off-road tires. I'm impressed with our tires; we don't have the HUD that some have; all four of our tires were low, without us even noticing (the warning light went on).. offroad wise, they did pretty good; but we didn't exactly go rock climbing..

Only wish we had the FDII because it would be more fun off-road, and we'd be tempted more often; although we'd rather keep the "sport" steelies over the 17" wheels that come on the FDII. We also wish we had a 6-cylinder (inline-6 would be great; but it won't fit)

My 2 cents on this subject is: always get as much car as you can afford & a bit more, as it is a big purchase, you have looked high & low for the vehicle you want/love; likely keeping it for a number of years. The worst thing is to second guess yourself after, & it is way too late to do anything about it.

I thought about the 4x4 Pat and did almost buy it, but it was a couple grand more and didn't feel like shelling out the money. So far I like the Pat, but the stock tires on it are junk. I need to find better ones because they didn't do too well this past winter.


funny I never thought about having a 4wd as a daily driver, and never intend to get off road any further than a 4x2 will go, thus shelling out extra $$$ for something I would never use just didn't register with me.

Don't really like the tires as well, can't wait to upgrade rims+rubber... soon, very soon

So I love my 4x2 but there are many of times I think to myself I should have shelled out the extra grand or two for a 4x4. But over all Im am happy with the engine and comfortable ride. Plus the look of the Pat is awesome. I am definetly looking forward to my trip next month from Southern Cali, to Portland Or!!!! Hope to take some pics!!!

As of now I have added these things to my Pat. Tint, Hitch, and DVD headrest. Waiting on my DVD player and Compass Bezel though....

May ask who the hitch and DVD head rest are made by and approx prices on both. I would like to add those too. I am buying this car tomorrow (keeping my fingers crossed for the best deal).

Yes and no. We have an F-150 4x4 we use in bad weather. Yes, we regret not buying a 4x4 Pat because the F-150 Ford sucks fuel like crazy. Actually, we are thinking of picking up another Pat in 4x4 and use a trailor for our truck needs.

The mpg doesn't change much for the 4x4 I still get over 450 k's per tank. I've always seen jeeps as 4x4 vehicles so personally I didn't even look at the 4x2.

I'm wrestling with the idea of getting a 4x2 because they are so inexpensive. There is one locally that I can get out the door under 10K. I live in central Virginia and I'm worried that once or twice a year when it snows I'd regret not getting a 4x4.

That and I'm having a hard time finding a 4x4 sport with MT any where within 200 miles. I don't want to miss out on the $3500 incentives.

In the UK the only option we had was 4x4 ,personally I would prefer a trail rated diesel with an auto box with manual overide. The diesel manuals are very good if you use 1st as a crawler gear however at times you have to slip the clutch on climbs.

I personally didn't have the option of getting a 4x4 pat. The one I bought was the only '09 left within a 200 mile radius from where I live. The reason I got it was because I love the look and styling of the patriot, It is a Jeep and I wanted to take advantage of the $3500 rebate and the $4500 I got for my ranger (cash for clunkers). Do I wish I had the 4x4 so I could feel more confident off road? Yes. Will I be off road that much? No. The pat i got serves my needs perfect and I love it and got it for a great price.

...In a perfect world I would have got a TJ with a AEV brute truck body conversion.

...Oh and mods blacked out muffler and painted rims.

In the future hopefully a lift, new wheels and tires, sound system, air intake/filter, hitch, muffler?

There's been three times when I wished I had a 4x4, but considering my normal use for the Patriot, I let it pass...

used to own Subaru AWD, It is a good vehicle in snow but I think good tires make major difference.
currently have Pat 4X2 and loving it. I have factory tires right now and they are ok but next time I will be getting really good tires for snow. I have not tried it in snow yet but I will be this year. looking forward to see how 4X2 does. will keep updated

good tires make all the difference, but for good fun in the snow awd is best, understeer is eliminated by a heavy foot. If you have just fwd you have to slow down to make a corner in the snow to avoid understeer. With awd as soon as you start to understeer you just gas it and the back end will kick out.

When winter comes around I start getting 4x4 envy, but when the snow's gone and summer comes back the envy goes away. This year I got snow tires to try and conteract my 4x4 envy but it never truly goes away. Now I'm just waiting for the snow to play in my new tires :)

Both of mine were bad in the snow last winter, but to be fair, Mich had a pretty nasty 2009 winter.

Got 2 sets of Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires from The TireRack for this winter and hopefully that will improve the performance.

Think alot of it has to do with the poor Goodyear tires that came on the vehicles.

Im not gonna lie, Im just moved back to Nebraska a couple weeks ago and we just had first snow fall two sat. ago, so im cruising along like im back in Cali.....apparently i've been to use to the wonderfull weather b.c I was anti locking it like it was cool!!! Pat doesnt stop as well with alittle bit of snow fall! So I figure I will just take it easy this winter.....REALLY EASY!!!! I sure do miss Southern California though!!!

NOT! VW diesel, it has 130 ft. lb. of torque!

Pfff! My 05 Passat has 300 ft/lb. in a 3600 lb package.
My wife's Golf rocks 260 ft/lb in a 3000 lb package.
Both have oem turbo's.

Huge snow storm here in Pittsburgh and my 4x2 failed the test miserably. Got stuck in multiple places on my drive home last night and now I can't even get this POS out of my driveway it flat out won't move. Should of bought a 4x4.

I'd like to thank the Jeep dealer that let me walk out 2 years ago because he wouldn't come down $5 (yes, that's five dollars) on the monthly payment for the 2008 4x2 I wanted ordered. Now I'm contently waiting for the arrival of my special ordered 2010 4x4 from someone else. THANKS AGAIN, AND AGAIN, AND AGAIN, AND . . . . . . .

I love my 4x2 it gets great mileage. I even have the 2.0. In my experience it is more about the driver than the 4x4. I have taken a Geo metro in places where most 4x4's will get stuck. I have gone i and pulled out 4x4's with a 4x2 truck before. you have to know how to drive on the surface you are traveling on.

Overall, no regret of not having 4x4. Funny, maybe once a year in a bad winter snow storm, I might wanted the assurance of a 4x4. But really never encountered any problem in Toronto nor the burbs. I'm wearing OEM all-season rubbers as well. Touch wood.

FD1 would had cost me $2k extra, another $1k in Canadian govt fuel economy rebate, and any extra mpg loss for FD1 over plain 4x2. My basic 5-speed Riot suits urbania well.
The Riot can easily mount sidewalk curbs in narrow streets. Flexibility & economy. LOL

For my wife, yes and no. Yes for the security of added protection in the snow, althought the vehicle has handled great. For me when I get mine, I will be buying 4wd for replacement of my 4wd exploder

Just took my new (used) 08 Riot to cape cod this weekend. Found a trail that had a steep uphill angled section and it just couldn't get past it. Mostly I blame the loose sand which in my humble opinion is the HARDEST surface to drive on. But what it did on the rest of the trail I'm more than pleased, now I'm itching for snow in boston? I must be crazy.

Just took my new (used) 08 Riot to cape cod this weekend. Found a trail that had a steep uphill angled section and it just couldn't get past it. Mostly I blame the loose sand which in my humble opinion is the HARDEST surface to drive on. But what it did on the rest of the trail I'm more than pleased, now I'm itching for snow in boston? I must be crazy.

Well you got the snow you asked for lol, how did the 4x2 do? I got my 4x4 to late in the season to take advantage of the amazing amounts of snow New England had this year.

I'm elated with my 4X2. Fuel economy is phenomenal, and with good tires the thing handles any road in the snow. I posted my most recent adventure on two other 4X2 threads so I won't do it again here. That said, I got myself into what could have been a real mess :doh: but lil Ignatz bulled his way through several miles of hilly snow & mud. I still haven't found its limits, but I think I was close.

I wish I had a 4x4. Instead I have an AWD patriot.