I test drove 13 small/mid-size SUV's and found the stock Patriot stereo to be one of the better systems. I initially was going to replace the factory speakers but have stuck with them for now. I'm very impressed with the sound, and I am a stickler for decent car audio.

Good to know some positive reports are coming in for the Patriot!

 

I have the Boston Acoustic system in my Pat, and it is awesome.
I had a problem with the door bolsters squeaking when the volume was turned up high, so I removed the bolsters and added felt tape to all of the retainer tabs. I reinstalled the bolsters and no more noise.

 

My Sport 25E came with the base model single cd player 4 speaker setup, but it blows my wifes 07 Saturn Outlook system out of the water. :banana:

Of course when one of my rear factory Panasonic 6x9s crapped out, I took it upon myself to run a 12" pioneer subwoofer off of a pioneer 300 watt rms amp and a 1 farad capacitor. My wife tries to find excuses to drive my Patriot.

 

It would be nice if a positive assessment like that came from a magazine with more credibility than Consumer Report.

 

I have to side with Neil on this. A year or so ago we were slamming CR as biased because of the lame reviews the Patriot was getting. Now that the reviews are more favourable, we can't all of a sudden think the CR is less biased. They may now be more astute [wry smile], but they are still CR.:icon_rolleyes:

 

I agree that Consumer Reports has an unfair bias toward foreign manufacturers (especially Honda and Toyota). I was extremely dissapointed with my test drive of both the Rav4 and CRV after CR made them out to be the greatest things since sliced bread. However, aren't their reliability numbers based on empirical data? Just curious.

 

The numbers are based on empirical data that they are unwilling to share -- so you don't even know the sample size.

Also, this data is collected from consumers, not dealerships or a manufacturer. There can be bias based on a customer's perception. Their reports also do not address what "routine maintenance" explicitly is. For a more eloquent explanation, I'll refer you to:

http://www.allpar.com/cr.html

In my opinion, Consumer Reports is not the final word on anything. They should be treated as another resource to use while conducting your own research. I will not base my purchasing decisions on a single source.

 

This was to be expected. Last year the Compass was rated well. The only reason the Patriot wasn't was because it didn't have long enough of a history behind it.

 

:banana:I will say that it's great that CR gave the Pat a good report but the best report I saw and heard came from my wife after buying the Pat on May 31, 08 she liked it so much we bought another on Aug 9, 08. Her brother bought one in Sept 08 so, I guess that is a better report than CR could give they just drive them, and we own them.epper::smiley_thumbs_up:

 

You're dead on Neil.... CR's reputation wouldn't fill a thimble...

 

RE: the stereo. Couldn't care less. So long as the car is reliable and cheap to operate I'm fine.

 

Glad to see everyone else dis-trusts CR as much as I do.

I have always thought that they were sooo conservative as to question their motives. If the vehicle didn't have Toyota or Honda stamped on the front, it was no good.