I have a 2012, basic Sport, no a/c, 2.0, 5 speed manual. I've been from Maine to Florida three times, and from Maine to Minnesota four times. I live on the coast, so I seldom miss not having a/c, except when I'm crossing OH/IN/IL or Ontario in August and it's 90 degrees and humid. I get about 31 mpg on the highway in the summer, but it drops off to about 28-29 in the winter. At 106,500 miles it runs as well as the day I bought it. It had occasional groaning rear brakes for 100,000 miles until I had the shoes and rotors replaced, and that ended the groaning. I was losing a small amount of coolant while it was still under warranty, but the local dealer couldn't locate the problem. I went to a dealer in Minn when it was out of warranty and they replaced the water pump, which fixed the problem. I've owned Volvos, Hondas, Chevies, VW's, and Fords in my 50 years of owning and driving cars (35 years as an over-the-road, 40,000 miles-per-year salesman) and I have to say this little gem, which was $15,400 out the door brand new in 2012, is about the most dependable of all of them. The seats are more comfortable than my '98 Volvo or '04 Accord ever were, and it's still fun to drive. What I don't understand is why Edmunds and Consumer Reports rates the Patriot so low.
