We just got our 08 7 days ago and its already in the shop cause the clutch blew up and we both were raised on standard transmission so i dunno anyone else having trouble

I've got about 700 miles on mine and no problems with the clutch

None yet, everything has been smooth sailing. Will put some more kms under the wheels this weekend.

must have just got a fluke clutch i guess love the truck its awesome

We just got our 08 7 days ago and its already in the shop cause the clutch blew up and we both were raised on standard transmission so i dunno anyone else having trouble
Imagine that, in the shop with a blown clutch in less than week! What a terribly disappointing and frustrating experience this must be for you.

When all is said and done and your Patriot whole again, would you please let us know what the service department discovered and what part or parts failed and why? Clutch, throw-out bearing, pressure plate and suchlike??

It would be good to know too if this is an isolated incident and whether or not other factors were also in play resulting in this catastrophic failure. I'd recommend you make sure that Jeep USA and your zone's regional Jeep representative are fully aware of the problem, because things like this just aren't supposed to happen.

Good luck my friends, and condolences on the clutch.


Irish Waif ;)

Very sorry to hear about your troubles with such a new car. Hope it works out and fast.

When I testdrove the 2008 Patriot 2.4L+Manual I noticed that the clutch was slightly slipping (the car had 20 miles on it). I enquired about this from the dealer and he commented that it's typical for brand new clutches to slip a bit and this is why you should take it very easy during the break in period - not just becouse of the engine, but the transmission/clutch as well. If you skip the break-in and do HARD accelerations and top speeds with a brand new car, something is bound to break-out.

According to the dealer, there was a local fellow whom got the 2007 Compass and he blew up the clutch in a matter of days just becouse of this.

Of course I'm not saying this is the case on your behalf, but it's just something I thought to point out to avoid things like this for other owners.

I had a clutch problem. Check my old posts. Titled Clutch failed. The problem with mine was a defective slave cylinder. I am not sure what you mean by clutch blew up?
Did it just quit working or did it make a huge noise and fail? A note to all 5sp drivers: the brake reservoir and clutch are shared. The reservoir is divided. If the fluid level drops in the back part then your clutch has lost fluid. This is what happened to mine. The lower (slave cylinder) was leaking. The front part of the reservoir is for the brakes and the fluid level will drop as the brakes wear.

my slave went than the preassure plate springs or somthing like that they had to order a whole new clutch assembly

Ouch! Good luck with that. Mine has been OK since the repair.
Sounds like yours failed while in use.
Mine would not leave the driveway that morning.

Have 2500+ miles on mine-no problems yet

1300+ here and smooth sailing! Sorry.

I've never heard of having to "break in" a clutch???

I have 5300 miles and no problems..

I find the shifter clunky

I regret to inform you all that on the way home from work today my 5 speed fails to shift into 3rd without grinding loudly ..it makes it there but not without an ear bleeding crunch ...the truck has only 4000 miles on it and im freaking out , ive never had a problem with a manual in all the years ive been driving..all the other gears shift smooth and fine otherwise ...It gets dropped off at the dealer on Thursday :(
any input would be great as what it "could" be

I regret to inform you all that on the way home from work today my 5 speed fails to shift into 3rd without grinding loudly ..it makes it there but not without an ear bleeding crunch ...the truck has only 4000 miles on it and im freaking out , ive never had a problem with a manual in all the years ive been driving..all the other gears shift smooth and fine otherwise ...It gets dropped off at the dealer on Thursday :(
any input would be great as what it "could" be

Damnnn, sorry to hear about that, 08. I am mechanically retarded, but from what I understood about manual trannys was that each gear has it's own synchronizer (so to speak) and if that's the case, it sounds like it shot craps on ya. (that would explain why the others are still doing ok, but again..I'm just spitballing here)
Good luck and keep us posted on what they find.

Got back from the dealership, turns out according to the tech that the 3rd gear Synch failed under normal operation, unfortunately because this is a new issue with a new truck they are sending a stuffed shirt from the home office to inspect the tear down and repair of the problem..could be 2 weeks before it goes in for the repair , until then they deemed the truck road worthy and sent me on my way

Failed transmission is a failed transmission. CRX standard policy is to replace with a factory rebuilt or factory new if a rebuilt isn't available. Sounds like your Service Manager either suspects abuse or is trying to pad the bill with CRX since they reimburse the dealer for labor at a preset rate.

The other possibility could be that CRX regional doesn't believe the sync failure. Maybe they suspect linkage problems so won't ship new transmission until confirmed? CRX should ship the new transmission and then inspect on the rebuild.

Also, thanks for the heads up on the fluid level for the hydraulic clutch. I will watch that closely from now on.

ours started grinding while going into 3rd a couple days ago(around 12000 km). Sounds like a syncro to me. It;s going into the dealership this week.

Hi Everyone
My first post to this forum. We bought a 2008 Patriot last Nov. Yesterday when shifting into 3rd there is a major grinding sound. Dealer came and towed it back to the shop. This mornings phone call from the dealer said it was the third gear synchros causing the problem he also said there where no parts in the system it could be up to three weeks. I know this is becoming a major problem for Chrysler. Should they be replacing the whole transmission? I'm awful leary these days of the Chrysler dealer mechanics doing anything more than changing parts. Anybody else have any problems,fixes,or suggestions?
Thanks

REPLACE THE TRANNY they replaced mine under warranty ..they should replace yours..its a brand new car ....Mine was also the third gear syncro...dont take no for an answer ..if they give you a hard time ..give me the number of the dealership and ill call for you..ive had it with Chrysler...I love the Pat but its a mechanical failure as far as im concerned..and ive owned chrysler all my life..Seriously ...a repaired tranny is not a new tranny ..do the right thing

just curious... for those of you that have had issues, anyone know how much a clutch costs?

I've never had a clutch blow up. Never knew you had to "break-in" a clutch other than just take things easy. A new clutch should never slip on it's own. Even the old miltiary jeep with 1,000,000+ miles doesn't slip and it has been thru water, mud, and what else.

Slave (and master..) cyinders do fail, but that would mean the clutch would not disengage, I believe!

Good luck with this repair--and please keep us all posted on the progress and further "technical" explanations from your illustrative service dept.

Thanks guys, the more I read the more I'm inclined to hold off on ordering the Patriot. At this stage in my life I don't need any more grief! Guess I'll just continue driving the '95 Saturn SL2 as she turned over 204,000 this week.

I have over 12,000 miles on mine with not so much as a wimper. Shifts great so far. Did take about 500 miles to break-in. Would like some options for leather or billett shift knobs.

I think I saw someone write about slow shifting, saying that he could shift some previous car faster than this one. Trying to speed shift is a good way to ruin the synchros.

DAMHIK (Don't ask me how I know.) :)

I have 12,000 miles on my 08 and have no problems with the clutch.

I have over 12,000 miles on mine with not so much as a wimper. Shifts great so far. Did take about 500 miles to break-in.

Barry..
Could you please elaborate on what you mean by 'break in' in reference to your Patriot's transmission? I've owned and driven my share of vehicles with manual transmissions in my life and have never had to break-in an MTX before it operated correctly.

Everybody else..
If I've read this thread correctly, there are three reports of manual transmission troubles related to a bulky, failing or failed third gear synchro; am I correct? If so this is a worrisome trend if representative of the larger subset of MTX Patriots (and perhaps its' Compass MTX sibling, too).

Fwiw, I've test driven three MTX Patriots to date: one a Limited 4x4, one a base 4x4 and the other a base 4x2. The transmission and linkages of two of the three test drive models seemed to operate seemlessly and effortlessly, while the third (the base 4x4) was not at all smooth. Additionally I've been in other parked Patriots with MTX trannies on area dealer's lots and discovered the throws in some seemed uncomfortably 'notchy' in 5th and I believe in 3rd, too. Seems to vary from unit to unit in my limited experience. Anybody care to comment?

I've been dragging my feet about getting a new Patriot because I've been undecided about whether to go with the MTX or the CVTII (primarily because the Limited Lifetime Warranty does not cover the manual transmission in its' entirety) and, after reading about the woes encountered by fellow JP.com members with their MTX Patriots, I'm finding it even tougher to make a decision.

Should I Just wait for a 2009 and see if these and other issues are addressed?

I regret to inform you all that on the way home from work today my 5 speed fails to shift into 3rd without grinding loudly ..it makes it there but not without an ear bleeding crunch ...the truck has only 4000 miles on it and im freaking out , ive never had a problem with a manual in all the years ive been driving..all the other gears shift smooth and fine otherwise ...It gets dropped off at the dealer on Thursday :(
any input would be great as what it "could" beThere is a speed where the engine and wheels are running the same speed where you can shift without using the clutch. See if you can find that sweet spot for shifting. If you can shift there without grinding, then you have a bad synchronizer in 3rd gear. Of course it doesn't really matter what the problem is, you still have to take the transmission apart to fix it.

I have noticed that if I don't fully depress the clutch pedal prior to upshifting into 3rd it will grind a bit and not go in. I mean the pedal has to be to the floor for it to go in.

Has only happened a few times though and only during acceleration. I chalked it up to a missed shift. Otherwise, the tranny operates fine.

You are right on about the "notchiness" feel though as I have the base "D" FDI model. It's a different feel that what I am used to but not unbearable. You get used to it.

Mine started out a bit notchy, but after 500 miles got noticeably smoother. Given the better gas mileage and that I like to drive stick, I am extremely happy with the manual gearbox. It took me about 1000 miles to really get use to the best shift points as well as get the most out of the four banger. I am not so sure I would have bought it with an automatic.

:banana:07 Steel Blue 5spd 2.4L Sport Nova Scotia, Canada:pepper:

We got our Pat in July of 07, got about 15000kms and all of a sudden it started to "pop" out of 1st gear from a stop. Scared the s**t out of us when it happens, it has done it about 10 times, took it into the dealer. They gave us a crappy old neon (not impressed but that is another issue). Friends and family seem to think its something to do with a "sync mesh" (i think that's what its called i dont know). Anyway, they got it into the dealership with the transmission out. I also found that the shifting was a little clunky, but don't get me wrong i love my patriot. Can't wait to get it back, the neon doesn't even have a cd player and my pat had the boston system. Sucks!!

Add me to the list of 3rd gear problems. I think mine gradually got worse until it was grinding on 100% of the throws to 3rd. Took it in on the 18th and the dealership (Buhler in Hazlet, NJ) is just ordering a whole new tranny.

Been hearing "oh we didn't get the part yet today" for a week, hopefully it won't be much longer.
-Tim

How many miles?

A little over 2500 miles. Just started to get the oil change warning when I'd start up in the morning.
-Tim

:banana:07 Steel Blue 5spd. 2.4L Sport Nova Scotia, Canada:pepper:

Got the word from the dealershop today, the gears in the tranny were starting to wear and some had chips in them. They said that it was pretty much the same cost to order a new tranny rather than the part. Sounds like there are a lot of trannys on order.

It happend to me few times gear shifted to nutral from first & not engaging the reverese gear. I have been drivin my saturn for over 10 years (bought new) and it has 215K with 5 speed manual.

Now, after doing some my own reasoning i found that the way the shifter is located and highted in patriot, i tend to just slide the first gear when using the arm rest, beacaus i didnt wanted to loose my arm support. Now, I make sure that i fully push the first in gear in and now it does not slip.

The problem with the reverse gear was that i was so used to my saturn's smooth gearing (little short throttle then patriot). Now everytime i put in reverse i make sure that, i push it all the way right in nutral and slide it down pusing right. And now it fully engages in reverse.

You can feel it when gear is not engaged. If it is engaged it will give double click kind of feeling. If it is not engaged it will give u short single click.

Also, we all have lifttime power train warrnaty right? so, don't worry!

Also, we all have lifttime power train warrnaty right? so, don't worry!
Sad to report, but the Limited Lifetime Warranty DOES NOT fully cover the 5-speed manual transmission and clutch. :/ Check the papers that came with your Patriot and read the fine print that detail the exceptions.

Sad to report, but the Limited Lifetime Warranty DOES NOT fully cover the 5-speed manual transmission and clutch. :/ Check the papers that came with your Patriot and read the fine print that detail the exceptions.

Can you post more details about that? Their website lists the transmission as covered in the lifetime warranty...

"# Q2: What does the new powertrain limited warranty include?
# A2: The Chrysler Lifetime Powertrain Warranty covers the cost of all parts and labor needed to repair covered powertrain components – engine, transmission and drive system – on most new Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge 2006 MY, 2007 MY and 2008 MY vehicles. "

Just an update for everyone on our tranny problems with our 2008 Patriot. Dealer suspects 3rd gear synchrous causing grinding problems. The parts where on backorder and they couldn't give us a date as to how long it would take. Funny how they knew which parts to order without taking the transmission apart.
We ended up calling and some heavy duty complaining to Chrysler next thing we knew the dealer took a transmission out of another new patriot they had on the lot and replaced ours with that one. I don't know if our repaired transmission will go back in to the new Patriot.

Recently I was on a jeep dealers lot when I noticed a guy trying to park a Patriot. He was grinding the gears and the vehicle was lurching and stalling. I asked him what the problem was and he said he had never driven a manual shift before. Turns out he was a salesman trying to park the Patriot. I'm wondering if some of the transmission problems owners are having are caused by salespeople before the customer receives the vehicle. There are a lot of younger salespeople who don't have a clue as to driving a stick.

Recently I was on a jeep dealers lot when I noticed a guy trying to park a Patriot. He was grinding the gears and the vehicle was lurching and stalling. I asked him what the problem was and he said he had never driven a manual shift before. Turns out he was a salesman trying to park the Patriot. I'm wondering if some of the transmission problems owners are having are caused by salespeople before the customer receives the vehicle. There are a lot of younger salespeople who don't have a clue as to driving a stick.
This makes me feel that maybe ordering one would be the better way to go instead of getting a thoroughly abused tranny from one that's been sitting on the lot for a while.:(

Recently I was on a jeep dealers lot when I noticed a guy trying to park a Patriot. He was grinding the gears and the vehicle was lurching and stalling. I asked him what the problem was and he said he had never driven a manual shift before. Turns out he was a salesman trying to park the Patriot. I'm wondering if some of the transmission problems owners are having are caused by salespeople before the customer receives the vehicle. There are a lot of younger salespeople who don't have a clue as to driving a stick.

My vehicle was ordered for me and only had 6 miles on it when I got it. My salesman had taken it for a drive because he said how comfortable he thought the position of the shifter was. He is about 60 years old. He also said back in the 80's when they were selling so many Horizons, Colts and Omnis, people would buy a car with a manual transmission because of the lower price and better mileage and when the car arrived they would ask him to teach them how to drive it!

I have not had any problems yet. I have observed some difficulty in getting reverse every time. I never have any problem finding a gear if I am not rushed, but once in a while if I'm at a light and it changes before I'm ready I don't always get it all the way into 1st.

I had my console and shifter area apart to add some wiring. I was not impressed with how the shifter was anchored to the car. Most of the structure is plastic. Granted, thick plastic. But still plastic. The whole structure moves a little every time you shift.

On the flip side, I'm pretty easy on transmissions. I dropped a 360 4 barrel in my J-10 in front of a stock T5 transmission. I didn't think much of it until people couldn't believe I drive all that power through that lightweight transmission without problems.

I think people who have said the like to drive a stick "angry" are going to run into problems with the Patriot transmission.

First, we love the Patriot...it has superb interior room for its size and it drives great...wish somebody made a turbo kit for it though!

At about 2500 mi it began grinding when shifting to third gear. Took it to the dealership Jan 08 and they ordered parts that took about three weeks to get ?!?! They said to keep driving it...the grinding got worse then 4th gear started to go as well. Jeep fixed it no problem, but it was quite disconcerting to have such a sever mechanical issue so soon.

I had my console and shifter area apart to add some wiring. I was not impressed with how the shifter was anchored to the car. Most of the structure is plastic. Granted, thick plastic. But still plastic. The whole structure moves a little every time you shift.

Terrible, well I guess we know why they're cheap to buy. They don't build them like they used to. My old Cherokee's a tank.

Replacing a tranny after 2500 miles is beyond embarrassing, it's pathetic on Chryslers part. If that happens to me (a veteran manual driver) I will loose it.

i had the same occurance, 9600 Km and grinding going into third gear. i have had to wait 3 weeks + for new tranny, have had to drive with no third gear forever it seems

Mike

That is awful news to hear. ours has 13K miles & the only problem is makeing the payments .....

Almost no manual transmissions on the lots of any dealer nearby right now...

I regret to inform you all that on the way home from work today my 5 speed fails to shift into 3rd without grinding loudly ..it makes it there but not without an ear bleeding crunch ...the truck has only 4000 miles on it and im freaking out , ive never had a problem with a manual in all the years ive been driving..all the other gears shift smooth and fine otherwise ...It gets dropped off at the dealer on Thursday :(
any input would be great as what it "could" be

i am having the EXACT same problems right now!! first gives me issues too, it doesnt grind but you have to fight with it to get it in gear every time. im having a TON of other issues, i just posted a new thread on them today. :( the dealership isnt helping much either!!

normally i love being first ....the first with this problem tho, well ..it kind of stinks ..I think anyone with this problem should print out this thread and shove it up the services Arse ...mailing a copy to chrysler wouldnt hurt too ...i may do that

TSB Technical Service Bulletin covering the syncros:

http://www.wkjeeps.com/misc/Caliber/TSB/Caliber_2101108.pdf

There is a manufacturing date range of affected vehicles.

TSB Technical Service Bulletin covering the syncros:

http://www.wkjeeps.com/misc/Caliber/TSB/Caliber_2101108.pdf

There is a manufacturing date range of affected vehicles.
How can you tell the build date of your vehicle? From the VIN?

Everyone with tranny problems covered in this TSB should print it out and bring it with you to the dealer, it is quite clear what needs to be done if the vehicle was made in the dates stated.

Thanks for the link to the TSB, bd1. When my Patriot was new, I had some trouble getting it into Reverse and 1st gear. However, it seems to be 'broken in' now (@2500 mi), and I haven't had any problems in a couple of months.

For now, I'll take the 'wait-and-see' approach before I talk with my dealership about this. Like they say...if it ain't broke, don't fix it! However, this TSB is a great piece of info just in case a problem arises.

Well, I emailed Chrysler customer assistance with my VIN, and they told me my build date was 2-1-08...the TSB covers up to 2-2-08....guess I need to keep an eye on my tranny.

It seems to shift a little sluggish sometimes, not sure if it is normal or not, or just my imagination, now that I know mine might have the defective syncros...:(

You can add me to the list of people with the 3rd gear synchro problem. 2500 miles on my 08 Patriot when it started . It's going in the shop Monday. I have been driving a manual for years, and you usually don't see this kind of problem before 100k miles. Terrible quality. I have been a loyal Jeep owner, but between this and the non-stop problems with our Town and Country I am done with Chrysler.

Really a shame.

My Patriot tapped out at 4660 miles. Out of nowhere, third gear just pretty much disappeared yesterday night. Called the dealership and was told, and I quote, "Look, it's not like you bought a BMW or a Ferrari, you should expect this kinda thing to happen" and "We can't give you a time your Jeep will be fixed and I can't give you a courtesy car either. You just didn't pay enough for that kind of customer service, sorry". I am more horrified by what he said to me than the fact that the synchro crapped out on me this fast.

I finally talked to someone else that said, expect it to take three weeks for the part to come and then a week to fix. Meanwhile, I have two questions for anyone that knows:

1. What other damage could arise from driving it for 3 weeks this way? I double clutch into 3rd and it doesn't grind much if at all. Dealership mechanic said not to worry, but they also told me that I didn't buy any customer service either.
2. Once fixed, were there any residual problems stemming from the replacement of the synchros?

I drove a Mustang for about three years with a bad 5th gear synchro and had no problems. I let the revs go down to a point where it did not crunch when I put it into 5th (I would not double clutch since I have caused an early demise with a transmission doing just that). You could probably get away with shifting from 2nd to 4th and skipping 3rd. Just spin it up to about 4000 or so in 2nd and then go to 4th. By the way, I deal with a Mercedes dealer (for a C230 Kompressor) with the free loaner, and it is no cakewalk - their pricing for service more than offsets that free loaner by a long shot. Your service advisor is a total jerk - I think I would take it up a level unless that is the only show in town.

Guess what..... Transmission number 2 started acting like the first one on the way home from a christening my wife and i were attending today. grinding into third gear , its the god damn syncro again ..I'm growing tired of all this , I'm printing out a copy of this thread as well as printing out that TSB about it and I'm going to get some damn customer service or I'm going to file a lawsuit.

Same thing going on here. 2700 miles, 3rd gear is taking a crap. It might be a cheap car, but damn. Im an E4 in the navy and cant afford an expensive car. I thought going with a Jeep would give me some of "Quality and Reliability" theyre always talking about. i hope this problem gets resolved soon because i would hate to ever hear the word come out of my mouth that "i would have been better off with a kia or hyundai"

No probs w/ the clutch but i am having the same problem as 08slvrpat, when i shift into 3rd as well. it grinds like crazy but does go into 3rd. I take mine to the dealer on tuesday (4-22-08). i only have 3000 miles on mine and has been gring for over 2 weeks. i'll let y'all know what happens on tuesday.

This entire thread should be emailed to Chrysler. The right people need to know what's going on "out there".

It appears the following all have the same issue:


08slvrpat
Canuckian
Rupert
Timbert
Mindpaste
bjlo4life
SHWill
snapper875
rink
rkhpt
Weatherman


Anyone else not on the list?

After two hours of arguing with people who's English was their second language , i was able to speak with Tom , a manager type from the Chrysler office who informed me that most and soon all of customer service is and will be outsourced. also that Chrysler is no longer backing loaner cars , its up to dealerships to provide if they want and most do not because of cost, they will not pay for my rental because they are not contractually obligated and i should not expect anything other then the transmission to be fixed in a timely manner (2 weeks).

he explained to me that Chrysler's entire company is transitioning to all outsourced parts including the ones i need and thats why they will take so long to arrive (also why they are crap) Tom said his job is probably next and he wishes he could help me but the bottom line is im **** out of luck because the corporation are basically honoring word for word only what they are obligated to pay for and nothing more ..he said if i did not want to buy a vehicle from Chrysler again he is pretty sure it dosnt matter to the people running the company. Its a new day ...cut your losses and run.

he explained to me that Chrysler's entire company is transitioning to all outsourced parts including the ones i need and thats why they will take so long to arrive (also why they are crap) Tom said his job is probably next and he wishes he could help me but the bottom line is im **** out of luck because the corporation are basically honoring word for word only what they are obligated to pay for and nothing more ..he said if i did not want to buy a vehicle from Chrysler again he is pretty sure it dosnt matter to the people running the company. Its a new day ...cut your losses and run.

This is why "I" wouldn't count on the Lifetime warranty, and will try to treat my vehicle as if there is no lifetime warranty...

Wow, that sounds the kind of poor decision making that AMC was so famous for.

Add me to the list. I have a manual 5 speed and at about 4,500 miles it would grind every shift into 3rd. It is less of a grind if I let the rpm's rev down before shifting. I took the car to the dealer and they said about 2-3 weeks for the parts. What a joke, and I hope my gears can last that long. This sucks. Does anyone who called corporate have a number they can share?

So the grinding has started up on my 2nd tranny. I originally had a problem back in mid-Feb, the whole tranny was swapped out on March 28th, and yesterday the new tranny started doing the same thing going into 3rd. The 1st tranny would grind on ANY push into 3rd gear. This one seems like it only grinds when I'm accelerating from a stop, so at first I thought I was just not hitting the clutch far enough.

I called the dealership and will be dropping it off on Monday. Craziness! I'm just hoping that my 2nd tranny was built before the TSB came out on March 7th and not that this problem is still unresolved!

Original problem: 2500 miles
Replaced tranny around: 3000 miles
Current problem: 5400 miles

I understand the clutch isn't covered by the the lifetime warranty either. That's not so good.

My tranny took a dump at 3,500. They are putting the new one in on Tuesday. Hoping I won't have to go through this again. Loaner car is going to run me $10 a day.

I'm not currently having any problems with mine, at all. It was a little stiff shifting at first, but I attributed that to it being brand spanking new. I have almost 900 miles on it now, and it's shifting MUCH smoother.

I am a little paranoid though, reading through this thread, and I'll be watching mine like a hawk. My build date is 5-13-08 though, so I might be alright, if the issue was actually resolved...

On a side note, I once bought an '01 Hyundai Accent for my wife. It was a dealer program car, we bought it with a little over 400 miles on it, for a super sweet deal. At about 1300 miles, it started grinding. A couple of days later, it would not go into second gear, so I was skipping it, then it stopped down shifting altogether. All you could do was come to a complete stop, and then put it in first. Dealer replaced all synchros at no cost, and the car was 100% trouble free the rest of the time we owned it. Until a little over 70K miles.

I really hope y'alls Pats turn ot to be a similar deal. I'd hate to see this be a really chronic problem.

I have a brand new 08 Pat 4x4 5 sp.

The only thing that I have been noticing is 'pulsing' on acceleration in 3rd and 4th. It's annoying. I thought it might be the AC unit causing it, but no. I thought it might be bad
fuel, but changing vendors didn't seem to help. I have 3200 miles on it and they are easy miles. I also notice a fair amount of noise from the power steering unit from inside the cab. It only occurs when the wheel is at it's index.

I trade my Wrangler TJ in because of the gas prices and I needed to economize but I just couldn't see buying anything but a Jeep product. The Patriot seemed to fit the bill, but I keep comparing it to the Wrangler and my little Cherokees. I am not sure it's nearly as sure footed on the trail..in fact, I am very hesitant to take it off road until I put a lift on it, harden the bottom and upgrade a few things.

I had a Jeep Rallye - Compass. The first week, the CVT tranny failed. It wouldn't go in Drive and then it wouldn't go in Reverse. The dealership wanted to 'fix' it..I told them no way..and give me back my Wrangler.

So...I will never go to the CVT...all that winding up to accelerate is just unnerving. At least with the stick, I know I'll get what I am asking for when I downshift to accelerate.

So for my Patriot, the jury is still out. In general..so far so good.

Tough times getting into reverse without a grind otherwise Okay for now 2,000 miles or so.

Done

This entire thread should be emailed to Chrysler. The right people need to know what's going on "out there".

My new gearbox got put in today, and it's good to go. Now hopefully it will stay that way. I'll let you know if this one craps out too.

I have a 2008 Patriot Sport 4x4 manual with around 6700 miles that started out grinding going into 5th gear. Then it would sporadically pop out of 5th gear. Took the TSB into the deaer on the 11th of June and they ordered the synchronizing rings as suggested in the TSB. This did not fix it as more damage was found once tranny was removed they then ordered a new transmission which was supposed to come in yesterday but never did. They say it should be in today. I'm hoping they keep it for twenty days so I can put a lemon law claim in. Its been 9 days today. Sounds like they need to do a recall. At least the dealer provided me a rental car and I did not even purchase it through them.

Add me to the list. Just under 12,000 miles and coming home from work last night, shifted into 3rd and a god-awful grind. Thought maybe I hadn't depressed the clutch all the way, but the next shift into 3rd did the same thing. Going to dealer this afternoon.

Considering sticks are probably a small minority of models sold, this seems like a fairly large problem. If we could somehow link this to being a safety issue, then I'm sure DC would issue a recall pretty quickly. I only have 2300kms on my stick so far, and no signs of anything abnormal yet, but I will be monitoring it closely.

I have the 08 sport 4x4, I was pretty viscious with mine barking the tires through 1st and 2nd, even found some slick pavement dropped in the 4wheel and busted a 4wheel burn out. no problems what so ever, so hopefully this is isolated I just reached the 2k mark on mileage

Just passed 20K - no problems so far.

Yikes ! 15 thus far. Not sure if that is good or bad?


08slvrpat
Canuckian
Rupert
Timbert
Mindpaste
bjlo4life
SHWill
snapper875
rink
rkhpt
Weatherman
dtocks
wrest3
ravens
richjet5353

Got my Patriot back today, ring gear, transmission and shift cable replaced after nine days in the shop. Drove home like new 15 miles from dealership to house averaged 33 mpg driving 55mph. Hope this transmission lasts longer than the last one.

It would be interesting to know if the problems are mostly occuring on 07 or 08 and is it mostly on 4x4 or FWD?

I think this is an 08 problem only. My 07 with 4 wheel drive and manual has 22,000 kms (~13,200 miles) on it with no problems.

I had my transmission changed at only 1000 kms. It kept slipping out of 5th gear and they didnt know why. Took them 5 weeks to fix it and couldn't so they changed the transmission. 4 months later, just like everyone else, the syncro went. I was told the syncro was improperly manufactured. I had it replaced but they couldn't do it themselves, had to shop it out to a transmission specialist. Go figure...

An update to my situation. I took the car in on Friday afternoon and they looked at it on Saturday. Today is Monday and after not getting an answer on the phone I went to the dealership to request a loaner ( since I need to work ) since I bought the extended warranty at purchase I was entitled to a loaner. The service manager told me that there was a Bulletin put out by Chrysler and they would be replacing (whatever that means) the 3rd 4th and 5th gears. Seems like it would be easier to just replace the transmission. Oh...on Friday the manager asked me if this was my first manual transmission car, I believe insinuating that maybe I was at fault. Glad I had the last laugh.

Just past 1000 miles. Love the 5-speed so far and none of the mentioned problems so far. Knock on wood.:banana:

I just want to thank members like bd1 and 08slvrpat who did the homework and patiently (maybe not always) made phone calls for the benefit of the rest of us with this problem. Mine should be done today or tomorrow, hopefully problem resolved. As for the clutch not under warranty, I'm sure that if any damage occurs to the clutch because of the synchos, this should defintely be covered.

Okay, that's it. I'm NOT buying this car.

You do not want a vehicle with a manual transmission that has problems shortly after the car goes to market. We have run into this with other brands. Any special bearings that may exist in the transmission are just not available in after market anywhere and often dealers can't get them either. It makes for many days without your new vehicle.

I have nearly 7000 miles on mine and no problems yet. yippy skippy!

You do not want a vehicle with a manual transmission that has problems shortly after the car goes to market. We have run into this with other brands. Any special bearings that may exist in the transmission are just not available in after market anywhere and often dealers can't get them either. It makes for many days without your new vehicle.

I have nearly 7000 miles on mine and no problems yet. yippy skippy!

At the very least, the dealer or Jeep is obliged to provide you with a loner until your car is fixed. From what we're reading here, they don't always sound willing to do that.

I'd go a step further. If they have no idea when they will be able to get the car fixed, they owe you a car like you own. Not some crappy gas guzzling lunker that was just taken in on trade.

I'd go a step further. If they have no idea when they will be able to get the car fixed, they owe you a car like you own. Not some crappy gas guzzling lunker that was just taken in on trade.

I'll up that with a brand new replacement car if this happens during the first year or 10,000 miles, whichever comes first.

What is it with this thread. Over 5000 views and only 90 comments. What's the matter everybody else? Cat got yout fingers?

My 3rd Gear went out last Wednesday! No parts available till 7/1. :mad:

8,000 Miles 4x4 08

My 3rd Gear went out last Wednesday! No parts available till 7/1. :mad:

8,000 Miles 4x4 08

I may start buying up some parts just to keep on hand. :doh:

~3000 miles and no problems yet.

Given the TSB, you would think Chrysler would have a "reasonable" estimate on the number of vehicles that will possibly fail, and have the needed parts ready...or are they purely "reactionary", in that they only order the parts only when absolutely needed?

I'm now busy hunting for another car. Might go back to the Corolla.

Still keeping my fingers crossed, but I am a little over 3,100 miles now, and still no tranny problems. In fact, it's operating considerably smoother than when it was brand new. Shifting much easier now.

No ginding, no reverse troubles, everything fine so far.

3500 miles on mine so far, no clutch or shifting problems... though my clutch does squeak. I tried to lube the spring but there is ~no~ room under the dash... can't get to it.

Just to let you know, Dealer in Somerset, Kentucky has a problem with a 5 speed 08. Has to replace Trans and Clutch.

The only reason why I know this is the Service Advisor told me I needed a new Clutch and Trans for my Patriot and I told him he had the wrong customer.

They have been waiting 2 weeks to get parts in. I hope this helps

At least it seems to happen fairly quickly with the synchros......do you think they will hold together if you make it a year+

Close to a 1000km in a land of steep hills and curves that requires regular shifting up and down. Manual transmission functionning smoothly. Just love the short course of the stick shift. No clutch slipping, no problem getting in gear. Guess your problem is pure bad luck.

updated, at dealer right now getting looked at!! :mad:


Yikes ! 15 thus far. Not sure if that is good or bad?


08slvrpat
Canuckian
Rupert
Timbert
Mindpaste
bjlo4life
SHWill
snapper875
rink
rkhpt
Weatherman
dtocks
wrest3
ravens
richjet5353
johnkb24

Just got off phone with dealer

Dealer wanted to do new transmission, but Jeep told them to get parts from TSB and fix problem this way. Lets hope it works out well.

For peace of mind I would like new transmission, but if these parts fix it, I guess all is ok.
Lets hope it holds up alright.

Could be done on Friday this week....

Good Luck Man!
I hope you can get it fixed...
But like what you've said, a New Transmission will surely be the best solution (for peace of mind)...

Got a new 08 Patriot 4x4 5 speed a week ago. Glunking noises when shifting from 2nd into 1st occasionally. Now (1000 km) popping out of 3rd. Will update on dealer response.

Yea!!! Finally got my Patriot back after 2 1/2 weeks at the dealer. They put in a new transmission, and after picking it up this morning WOW it just feels great! Very smooth! I had a 2008 Toyota Rav4 as a loaner, and while it is a nice car, great acceleration, it felt cheap and tinny. The doors were so light it never felt like I had actually shut them. Gas mileage was unimpressive too. It was a 4 cylinder and my round trip to work is 280 miles. With both the Patriot and the RAV4 I would get home with 1/4 tank, but the RAV has a 16 gallon tank! I'm so glad to have my Patriot back!! Hopefully this transmission will hold up better.

2,600+ miles, no problems

Just got off phone with dealer

Dealer wanted to do new transmission, but Jeep told them to get parts from TSB and fix problem this way. Lets hope it works out well.

For peace of mind I would like new transmission, but if these parts fix it, I guess all is ok.
Lets hope it holds up alright.

Could be done on Friday this week....

Got it back

Runs great, fixed parts in trans.

NOT NEW TRANS

Oh dear. The more things I read on here the more I can associate with them.

3 times in the past week I have had problems getting it into third gear. As I split the driving between the jeep and another car I thought it was me not getting it right.

So far i'm having the following problems -

wheel rotation noise from passenger front wheel (mainly under 30mph, when straight or with wheels at any angle)
rear load cover not retracting back correctly
and now the problems getting it into third gear.

The car has not long ticked over 2000 miles - i'm NOT happy at all.

Oh dear. The more things I read on here the more I can associate with them.

<snip>

The car has not long ticked over 2000 miles - i'm NOT happy at all.

Sure sorry to hear that. I haven't had any problems with mine. But, I am driving it conservatively for gas mileage (see my sig) and longevity.

Hope it gets resolved to your satisfaction. :)

Thanks. With the price of fuel still high in the UK I don't drive it to break any land speed records, I have my rover tomcat for that.

Apart from the little faults the riot is great, let's hope my dealer experience is a good one!

Our 08 Patriot had 64,500 km when I had the MT tranny fluid flushed and replaced. At 67,000 km it started to make a grinding noise when shifting from 4 to 5. I printed out the TSB and gave it to our dealer. We are getting our Patriot back tomorrow after the Fix. Our transmission was built during that 3 month period ( Sept to Dec 2007 ) when they had the defective synchros.

No problems so far except it is usually hard to get into reverse...been like that since it was new.

i've had no probs with mine as yet, although it did do a little funky jump from 2nd to 3rd today, but that might have been me not paying attention. i was up north for the holidays, and both my parents drove my car, and commented on how smooth the tranny was, but they haven't driven manual in 15+ years so maybe they're outta touch. i have never found this tranny all that smooth myself. oh and i'm at 22000kms on an 09.

Sorry to hear about your clutch issue. I have 25,000 on my 09' and no problems as of yet.

Has anyone had this issue? I noticed it when I got the car, but assumed I would just get used to the clutch as it was different from my other 5 speeds (I have always driven manual trans).

I read on another post that jeep did a recall, is this true? I can reverse but need to ride the clutch in order to back up and am going to need a clutch replacement far sooner than I should.

Anyone have ideas?

Matt

33 000 here and shes still like new ... hope mine dont just randomly blow up tho ... that would be a bummer.

Has anyone had this issue? I noticed it when I got the car, but assumed I would just get used to the clutch as it was different from my other 5 speeds (I have always driven manual trans).

I read on another post that jeep did a recall, is this true? I can reverse but need to ride the clutch in order to back up and am going to need a clutch replacement far sooner than I should.

Anyone have ideas?

Matt

Don't sweat it, unless you are driving to work daily in reverse you are not going to wear out your cluch.

came from work at 5pm, park the pat 08 sport pat 4x4 5 speed as usual in nutral with hand brake on. Went out at 10PM, start the pat, pull the hand brake down, tried to press clutch and put in reverse, but the clutch has no pressure....what the HELL happened?...when it's on i am unable to change gear because the clutch has no pressure, feels like its not connected with anything...but when engine is off, i am able to change gears...i remembered that while i was driving to work in morning, the brake light came on for few minutes, i thought it's time to change brake or something...but the damn cluch is not engaging now?....anyone someone everyone please help...is this covered under lifetime limited powertrain warranty?....one of my friend told me i need to replace clutch cable, is it true?....or it's a hydraulica problem?...help help help..thanks a lot..btw, the pat has 48k miles..:) ... :(

33000 km. Smooth shifting, no problem with manual transmission at all. And I shift a lot for compression and maximum power in the mountains, hills and curves typical of the area here.

48k mile.08 4x4 5 speed. No pressure in clutch. I have started hating pat. Last car Saturn 5 speed drove 192k mile without ever filling brake or tran fluid and never had prob with tran. This jeep junk died in 2 years under 50k mile.just don't buy jeep pat. Might save little on gas but will spend double in repairing.

Sorry for your bad experience but let's not generalize too much. This doesn't make the Jeep Patriot a piece of junk like you say. That is your personal statement and is not backed up by any scientific proves. We read about members who have problems but those who don't have anything to complain about, don't write about it. Please to balance the opinion on the matter, could members satisfied with the manual transmission just say so in this thread.

48k mile.08 4x4 5 speed. No pressure in clutch. I have started hating pat. Last car Saturn 5 speed drove 192k mile without ever filling brake or tran fluid and never had prob with tran. This jeep junk died in 2 years under 50k mile.just don't buy jeep pat. Might save little on gas but will spend double in repairing.

I'm driving a 95 Saturn SL2 5-spd (241K miles) as we speak and just ordered a 5-spd Patriot 4x4 yesterday. Hope I have better luck than you're having. But I doubt there is anything out there that will outlast a Saturn SL2. You're right about the clutch and brake fluid, and I'm running the original struts and shocks to boot. Don't know yet if the Patriot has a hydraulic clutch but if it does it sounds like yours needs bleeding.

Sorry for your bad experience but let's not generalize too much. This doesn't make the Jeep Patriot a piece of junk like you say. That is your personal statement and is not backed up by any scientific proves. We read about members who have problems but those who don't have anything to complain about, don't write about it. Please to balance the opinion on the matter, could members satisfied with the manual transmission just say so in this thread.

This is a FREE COUNTRY, with FREEDOM of SPEECH. The member should be able to express their honest opinion, and this is what it is. Don't try to tell anyone to "balance the opinion on the matter". you can go stay in cuba or iran if you want to balane your opnion.

I'm driving a 95 Saturn SL2 5-spd (241K miles) as we speak and just ordered a 5-spd Patriot 4x4 yesterday. Hope I have better luck than you're having. But I doubt there is anything out there that will outlast a Saturn SL2. You're right about the clutch and brake fluid, and I'm running the original struts and shocks to boot. Don't know yet if the Patriot has a hydraulic clutch but if it does it sounds like yours needs bleeding.

pat has hydraulic clutch. the brake reservor is shared with clutch. dealer told me the master cylinder need to be replaced in my pat, part cost $90, but labor is $900. pat is no dout fun to drive, i suggest that if you find any small thing, get it all fixed while it's still under warranty, and do bue extnded warranty, YOU WILL NEED IT.

pat has hydraulic clutch. the brake reservor is shared with clutch. dealer told me the master cylinder need to be replaced in my pat, part cost $90, but labor is $900. pat is no dout fun to drive, i suggest that if you find any small thing, get it all fixed while it's still under warranty, and do bue extnded warranty, YOU WILL NEED IT.

Why not get an estimate at another garage? It's not a warranty repair, you don't have to get ripped off by the dealer.

Why not get an estimate at another garage? It's not a warranty repair, you don't have to get ripped off by the dealer.

checked with two other places...[1]my usual mobile mechanic was $550, but he told me that he has never changed this part in jeep pats. so, no warranty on work. [2] the tranny specialist was at $750, also said that they know how to fix it, but never done it on this car. [3] checked with my friends, the labor was free, but i love my friends, one my buddy said that last time he changed this part was in 1992 300z about 8 years back..so i ended up with dealer to get it fixed first time

What is it with this thread. Over 5000 views and only 90 comments. What's the matter everybody else? Cat got yout fingers?

20,000 MILES on a diesel manual '08 with no probs, happy now?!!!!

No point posting if you have no probs, perhaps we all like to read! (don't wanna brag and make all those with probs feel bad)

07 manual with 41k, no issues, but I will say that its a bit different and takes some getting used to compared to my fords I had....

the dealer repaired the clutch master cylinder yesterday after spending 1.5 days...but suddently i had new problem withn 24 hrs of the repair...i was driving in 5th gear and suddently the pat went in nutral...i thought gear slipped but i was wrong...the stick was still in 4th, but it was not engaged...i tried put in 3rd, but it didnt enganged...tried put in in nutral, and it engaged in 4th,,,tried put in 2nd, it did work,,, reverse gear works, 1st does not work...what the hell happended suddenly?
current: 08 Pat 4x4 5-speed 49,500 miles
previous: 97->08 saturn 4x4 5-speed drove 185,000 miles

The gear shift connects to the trans via a mechanical linkage. It is obviously out of adjustment.

The gear shift connects to the trans via a mechanical linkage. It is obviously out of adjustment.

problem fixed. no charge by dealer. :pepper:
"shift cable came out of bracket on transmission; reinstall shift cable in bracket"
:notworthy:

My 08 has 49,654 miles. No clutch issues or any issues for that matter

Sorry for your bad experience but let's not generalize too much. This doesn't make the Jeep Patriot a piece of junk like you say. That is your personal statement and is not backed up by any scientific proves. We read about members who have problems but those who don't have anything to complain about, don't write about it. Please to balance the opinion on the matter, could members satisfied with the manual transmission just say so in this thread.

My 07 Pat with 5 speed manual is doing great at 47,000 miles. No problems. I tell my wife at least once a week that I love my Patriot! My understanding of the lifetime warranty is that it does not cover the clutch since it is a wear point. The tranny is covered...

This is a FREE COUNTRY, with FREEDOM of SPEECH. The member should be able to express their honest opinion, and this is what it is. Don't try to tell anyone to "balance the opinion on the matter". you can go stay in cuba or iran if you want to balane your opnion.

"Don't try to tell anyone"... cancels out your free speach coment in the prior sentence.

All opinions are valid, even yours... I'm not a fan of iran or cuba either though!

"Don't try to tell anyone"... cancels out your free speach coment in the prior sentence.

All opinions are valid, even yours... I'm not a fan of iran or cuba either though!

Agreed. :blah:

This is a FREE COUNTRY, with FREEDOM of SPEECH. The member should be able to express their honest opinion, and this is what it is. Don't try to tell anyone to "balance the opinion on the matter". you can go stay in cuba or iran if you want to balane your opnion.

Temper temper my dear! Accept the fact that your experience is not a universal truth and please don't mix politics with mechanic.

I have noticed that if I don't fully depress the clutch pedal prior to upshifting into 3rd it will grind a bit and not go in. I mean the pedal has to be to the floor for it to go in.

Has only happened a few times though and only during acceleration. I chalked it up to a missed shift. Otherwise, the tranny operates fine.

You are right on about the "notchiness" feel though as I have the base "D" FDI model. It's a different feel that what I am used to but not unbearable. You get used to it.

I just 3 weeks ago bought a 2010 FD1 sport patriot, and that was the first thing i noticed was the "notchiness" of the shifter its like your not in neutral or something. I have a 2003 PT cruiser 5 spd and that thing is smooth as silk so it was... different getting into my patriot with that clunky shifter, but like you said its not unbearable just needs getting used to. I have also had that prob where it was grinding from not pressing the clutch down all the way and like you i figured it was due to the learning curve and a missed shift. Now im kinda worried, hopefully this issue has been resolved by now, but i will keep you all posted!

I just 3 weeks ago bought a 2010 FD1 sport patriot, and that was the first thing i noticed was the "notchiness" of the shifter its like your not in neutral or something. I have a 2003 PT cruiser 5 spd and that thing is smooth as silk so it was... different getting into my patriot with that clunky shifter, but like you said its not unbearable just needs getting used to. I have also had that prob where it was grinding from not pressing the clutch down all the way and like you i figured it was due to the learning curve and a missed shift. Now im kinda worried, hopefully this issue has been resolved by now, but i will keep you all posted!

It's probably been mentioned, but the 5 speed has cable linkage which is why it feels clunky and sloppy.

I'm still happy with my 2008 FDI 5 MT's shifting. But, I don't hot rod it. I plan to drive it for at least ten years/150,000 miles and I drive for gas mileage instead of how fast I can get there. I did plenty of the latter when I was younger. Besides, I didn't get there all that much sooner. Especially the times I stopped to talk with the cops. :)