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Last week I bought a 2009 Jeep Patriot. Today it delivered 11 MPG...

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BillBauer

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I love this car. It is my first 4x4, and the freedom is amazing.

Today I went on a road trip - total driving distance of 170 miles, about 10 miles were on an unpaved road (half of it uphill). The car burned 15.5 gallons of fuel. A lot of the highway driving was uphill, but I tried to keep RPM below 3000 (on several occasions RPM went up to 4000). Several days ago I went on another trip that involved highway driving where the car didn't need to climb any hills, and I got about 22.5 MPG...

Is this normal?
 
#3 ·
Welcome!

In answer to your questions, yes and yes. Depending on your drivetrain and your driving habits, your fuel economy could be that low, particularly off-road. I've had two FWD Patriots that spent most of their time on-road and rarely exceeded 70MPH. Mine get right around 30MPG.

If you haven't changed them, I suggest new spark plugs. Patriot plugs are only good for 30,000 miles. This could make a big difference in performance and fuel economy.

Unrelated to fuel economy, also know the CVT needs its fluid & filters (2) changed about twice as often as the manual suggests, so get this done at least every 50,000 miles; some say even more frequently. Regardless, if you haven't done it or don't know that it's been done, make it a priority.
 
#4 ·
My 2014 gets between 20 - 22mpg on average. Mostly highway driving.
 
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#8 ·
I wondered the same thing awhile ago.
I've got bigger tires (245/65/17) though and thought that was the primary culprit.
I decided to try a couple of things and it turns out if I drive like a nun and use the autostick to manually switch gears at 2000rpm I averaged 28.7mpg.
Driving normally and highway speeds of 80-85mph average I dropped all the way down to 20.8mpg.
I drive a 2015 2.4L 6spd automatic 4x4.
 
#12 ·
CVT has no gears. Continuously variable transmission - Wikipedia

However, most CVT-equipped models have an autostick feature that simulates gears with 6 preset ratios on the belt.

I drive mine without using autostick, regularly 70+ mph, and get 23mpg or better. 27ish if I'm going a little slower or the wind isn't against me. Remember, it's not a car, it's the last new Jeep model, so it is a bit of a brick.
 
#13 ·
BillBauer said:
I also discovered that this car forces me to drive like a nun.

You switch to a higher gear once you reach 2000rpm, right?
Click to expand...
I was shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd around 1500rpm but otherwise it was 2000rpm.
Actually my 6spd automatic won't let me shift into the higher gears until I'm at 2000rpm.
Not sure if you have a true automatic like mine or a cvt ?
I can't drive like a granny, I put 800-1000 miles a week on my Patriot so going granny driving adds a lot of time to my work week.
I did it for a week just to see and it added almost 6 hours to my work week.
I need to go when there's an opening, not sit and wait for a big opening so I can pull out onto the road and accelerate slowly plus going 70mph versus my 80-85mph normal highway driving.
It's worth the extra gas money to me.
 
Discussion starter · #14 ·
MIboozeman said:
I was shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd around 1500rpm but otherwise it was 2000rpm.
Actually my 6spd automatic won't let me shift into the higher gears until I'm at 2000rpm.
Not sure if you have a true automatic like mine or a cvt ?
I can't drive like a granny, I put 800-1000 miles a week on my Patriot so going granny driving adds a lot of time to my work week.
I did it for a week just to see and it added almost 6 hours to my work week.
I need to go when there's an opening, not sit and wait for a big opening so I can pull out onto the road and accelerate slowly plus going 70mph versus my 80-85mph normal highway driving.
It's worth the extra gas money to me.
Click to expand...
I have a CVT.

Thank you for the instructions "shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd around 1500rpm but otherwise it was 2000rpm." I will see whether I can implement them on my Jeep.

How many miles do you have on your odometer? Last month I bought this car with 90,000 miles on it. I am a little worried that I don't have too many miles left before I begin running into problems.
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
RossoRacer said:
CVT has no gears. Continuously variable transmission - Wikipedia

However, most CVT-equipped models have an autostick feature that simulates gears with 6 preset ratios on the belt.

I drive mine without using autostick, regularly 70+ mph, and get 23mpg or better. 27ish if I'm going a little slower or the wind isn't against me. Remember, it's not a car, it's the last new Jeep model, so it is a bit of a brick.
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply. I will have to look up how one is to use this autostick.
 
#16 ·
BillBauer said:
I have a CVT.

Thank you for the instructions "shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd around 1500rpm but otherwise it was 2000rpm." I will see whether I can implement them on my Jeep.

How many miles do you have on your odometer? Last month I bought this car with 90,000 miles on it. I am a little worried that I don't have too many miles left before I begin running into problems.
Click to expand...
Image


Almost 227,000 at this point but as I said I drive 800-1000 miles a week just for work then add some more for personal and fun time.
I do take mine off road quite often which is why I went with the biggest tires I could squeeze under the stock suspension though I do get a little rubbing at full turn so I just don't do full clock turns....problem solved.
Like any car they need maintenance.
I haven't really experienced any more repairs with mine than I have had with a multitude of other vehicles I've driven on my route the past 27 years.
However, I take care of problems before they become issues that might cause other things to go bad.
I did take that picture with my car turned off so the key was turned to the on position which is why the engine lights on.
I stayed away from the CVT transmission after a Nissan mechanic I know and a Jeep dealership GM told me to due to issues with higher mileage but if you take care of it it'll take care of you.
Others have said they have no issues with the CVT transmissions so there's that as well.
Just my personal preference to go with the normal 6spd automatic and not the CVT.
 
Discussion starter · #17 ·
MIboozeman said:
Almost 227,000 at this point
Click to expand...
Awesome! I love this car. It is the first 4x4 car I have ever had, and the freedom is priceless. My only concern about it had been its durability, and your post makes me feel a lot better about it.

MIboozeman said:
I do take mine off road quite often which is why I went with the biggest tires I could squeeze under the stock suspension though I do get a little rubbing at full turn so I just don't do full clock turns....problem solved.
Click to expand...
What is the size of your tires?! Also, what tire brand do you have, if you don't mind me asking? The tires on my Jeep need to be changed, and I am looking for a tire that works well on forest service roads and are resistant to punctures. I found several tires that are have reasonable performance on the highway. This week I hope to find out whether any of these brands provide a 10 ply tire with 3-4 ply sidewall.

I found that the tires that fit Jeep Patriot are the size that is normally used for sedans. As a result, most of the all terrain tires are 8 ply tires with 2 ply sidewalls. I would live to increase the ground clearance, while also getting a tire I don't need to worry about puncturing, by buying a larger tire...

Thank you!
 
#18 ·
Bill Bauer the tire size is 245/65/17 and they are Hankook AT/2 tires.
Nice in-between of an all terrain (AT) and mud terrain (MT).
I drive my vehicles like I stole them and maybe that's why they last ?
I know alot of people that baby their vehicles and they seem to have lots of issues so I never really changed my driving style from my younger years.
Sure there's maintenance and parts wear out but that's with any vehicle.
 
Discussion starter · #19 ·
MIboozeman said:
Bill Bauer the tire size is 245/65/17 and they are Hankook AT/2 tires.
Nice in-between of an all terrain (AT) and mud terrain (MT).
I drive my vehicles like I stole them and maybe that's why they last ?
I know alot of people that baby their vehicles and they seem to have lots of issues so I never really changed my driving style from my younger years.
Sure there's maintenance and parts wear out but that's with any vehicle.
Click to expand...
I will look into buying Hankook tires Thank you for your help..

I also enjoy rough driving - driving should be fun!
 
#20 ·
Just make sure you're okay with not turning your steering all the way around...
I did trim my inner fenders a bit as well but that'll happen naturally if you turn that far often.
Otherwise the normal largest is a 235/70/17 but I wanted wider.
 
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