I've spent plenty of time comparing these two and wrote a lengthy thread (that seems to have disappeared...likely due to my ineptitude), and I can't come to a clear distinction between the two, other than the slight clearance differences, etc.

Has anyone got any input?

Assembled from essentially the same parts bin with completely different looks.

Time will tell which is more sucessful. From a design standpoint - the initial sketches to the first debuts in the car shows - it looked to me like the compass was the tuner and the patriot was the off roader.

Only main difference besides looks would be the off road package for the patriot.

When Consumer Reports reviewed the Compass, it complained that the steering wheel was not telescoping. The Rock Crawler review stated that the Patriot had a telescoping steering wheel. Not sure why DC would outfit one with telescoping steering wheel and not the other...? Not a major difference; I just thought it was odd.

To me it looks like the Compass is for people who want more of a car with a Jeep name, the Patriot is more so for those who have had Jeeps before and still think the Liberty was a bad replacement for the Cherokee. Patriot is more off road capable, has more of a traditional styling, what i would consider the Cherokee would look like had it been kept in production; Compass is radical and looks more like Element or Scion.

Assembled from essentially the same parts bin with completely different looks.

Time will tell which is more sucessful. From a design standpoint - the initial sketches to the first debuts in the car shows - it looked to me like the compass was the tuner and the patriot was the off roader.

Only main difference besides looks would be the off road package for the patriot.

Newbie here, but I've been lurking for a month or so...and I'm reviving an old thread too, hope that isn't a no-no.

I'm wanting to get a Patriot but the hubby wants me to test drive both the Patriot and Compass as he seems to think I will like the Compass better (ha...you'd think he would know me batter after 16 years of marriage). I thought they differed only in looks, and I like the boxier looks of the Patriot much better...so if one isn't getting the off road package with the Patriot...are they same vehicle?
same engine, same drivetrain, same suspension, same frame???

muchos gracias...kat

Yes, for the standard (non FDII) vehicles, the Compass and Patriot are basically identical.

The Patriot has slightly more interior room, and the Compass -might- get slightly better mileage at higher speeds because it appears to be more aerodynamic.

Other than this, its a matter of exterior styling preference.

so if one isn't getting the off road package with the Patriot...are they same vehicle? Same engine, same drivetrain, same suspension, same frame???


Pretty much.

The looks are polarizing. People generally like one or the other. But, that's the major difference, exterior looks. Interior would be hard to tell one from the other. I prefer the Patriot, but since they are the same for 5-speeds, I saved abotu $2k by getting the Compass.

This really makes me want to follow through on that idea that I had about swapping the underpinnings of my lifted FDII pat onto a Compass and takin 'er offroad to watch the confused looks.

If you want a Vinyl interior, like I did, you have to get the Patriot. Dog proof vinyl seating is not an interior option on the Compass. We have both a Compass and a Patriot. I find the sight lines and visibility better in the Patriot. They are both fine cars, but be sure to get the one you like better! Otherwise you will have regrets.

Patriot was built for men, Compasses were built for women and effeminate men..

Yep, good advice. Get the one YOU like. If you're talking about non trail-rated the underpinnings are virtually identical, except for the 17" wheels you can get with the non-trail rated Pat, if you wish. Because of the more square look of the Pat it does have more height in the load area and it looks more Jeep like to me. I chose the Patriot for myself, but it's really about what floats your boat!

Patriot was built for men, Compasses were built for women and effeminate men..

This coming from a FWD owner. I mean, who buys a FWD/2wd jeep? ;)

My wife & I tried out the Compass and the Patriot, and we felt that the Patriot had more room. I also think that the Patriot looks more like a Jeep than the Compass.

Just one more thing to consider. I don't know about where you live, but in my neck of the woods, the Patriot is $450 more expensive to insure every year compared with the Compass. I have no idea why that is, but the insurance companies just say it's a completely different car, despite all the specs being nearly the same! Here in Australia, the Patriot is also more than $400 more expensive to insure than a Wrangler (which costs $6000 more)! Tell me how that makes sense... :confused:

This coming from a FWD owner. I mean, who buys a FWD/2wd jeep? ;)

When I struck a deal and got the 2008 for the same knocked down price of the 2007's that were sitting on the LOT, and the fact that Im not sure a 2.4 litre engine is large enough for kick-asz 4-wheeling, then the decision was very easy to make.
I live in the city, I commute within the city, I know how to drive in snow and ice already, so all wheel drive wasn't important to me.

Our front wheel drive cars were not able to navigate our driveway in the winter so 4x4 was a must on both the Patriot and the Compass.

Younger people are sometimes of the belief that all Jeeps were always capable of roving over the biggest rocks and winning the war. Truth is that Willys (both the company and the guy) would build any vehicle for anyone who would buy it.
I was at a lecture sponsored by the Midwest Willys Association where they said that hilly San Fransisco once bought a huge ambulance with a tiny 134ci engine. It was ALWAYS last on the scene. But it was what the customer (thought they) wanted. Jeep has built many many 2 wheel drive vehicles over the years in all there vehicle lines and models. The most important thing is that a Jeep is available that meets the needs of the customer.

Katriot,

Like jepstr67, I too own both vehicles. Love em both... Very hard to tell any difference ride wise. MPG is better with the Compass, most likely due to it shape. Here in Florida, the decision to get a 4x4 verses 4x2 was easy. No snow, no mountains, and I'm too old to go play in the local mud holes. Both ours are 4x2 grocery getters. But these are the best looking grocery getters on the road... :)

If you like the Patriot, the go for it... Being from where it snows, get the 4x4 as from the reports I've read here, the Patriot is avery sure footed 4x4 in the white stuff.

Congratulations on whichever you go with...

Here in Florida, the decision to get a 4x4 verses 4x2 was easy. No snow, no mountains, and I'm too old to go play in the local mud holes. ...


am I ever glad to hear some reason coming from a Floridian!

I visited Miami and the Keys for the first time, and COULD NOT BELIEVE the number of huge 4X4 SUV's there. I guess it's a status symbol to have a vehicle that you could drive through snowbanks with, and could drive up steep hills with - if you had snow and hills...

am I ever glad to hear some reason coming from a Floridian!

I visited Miami and the Keys for the first time, and COULD NOT BELIEVE the number of huge 4X4 SUV's there. I guess it's a status symbol to have a vehicle that you could drive through snowbanks with, and could drive up steep hills with - if you had snow and hills...

Perhaps that group plays a game called "Low tide, High tide" Where you park your car at the edge of the water at low tide and try to drive away at high tide.

:banana:

Fingers, I'm just messin' with you. I would have been fine with 4x2 as well, but got $7k off my MK. It's like I got 4wd for free. Heck, I used to drive RWD vehicles in the winter (with Blizzaks).

Perhaps that group plays a game called "Low tide, High tide" Where you park your car at the edge of the water at low tide and try to drive away at high tide.

:banana:

I've seen that game played here many times, before the city government banned driving on the beaches here. Almost all of the time the tide won, as the driver had passed out in the vehicle from all the beer he had drank during the day.