I think Cars.com (as well as Popular Mechanics) are not too Jeep Patriot/Compass friendly... Edmunds is another unfriendly entity.

 

Ugh reading stuff like this just drives me nuts. I have the same conversation with my friends when they make stupid comments about certain vehicles, mine included.

The way I explain it to them is look at a vehicle and what it can do for you. For $25000 you can buy a Patriot/Compass or spend almost the same amount and get something cooler like a Civic (or any other vehicle just an example)

My Patriot is PERFECT for my life situation, the price was right the mileage is great and is the most verasatile vehicle for me. I"m guessing if some people got off their high horse and actually lived with a MK based vehicle they would change their mind about how much they think they "suck". Of course i'm biased but if you need a small suv with 4x4 capability the Patriot and Compass are darn near perfect in this segment.

I get better mileage then some of my friend's compact cars, and I have the ability to not get stuck in the winter time and carry more stuff with me.

Ok so end rant, but im' sick of hearing how this may be the "worst vehicle every" maybe tell that to everyone who bought MK's since they are one of Chrysler's most popular vehicles.

 

My Patriot is PERFECT for my life situation, the price was right the mileage is great and is the most verasatile vehicle for me. I"m guessing if some people got off their high horse and actually lived with a MK based vehicle they would change their mind about how much they think they "suck". Of course i'm biased but if you need a small suv with 4x4 capability the Patriot and Compass are darn near perfect in this segment.

You got it right, my friend. Most of these review writers don't live in our world. They live in their world and can't imagine how anyone else could want something different. For years I was frustrated by automotive writers who only got enthusiastic about car that let you "feel the road." I can tell you as an outside sales rep that spent 1000+ miles a week in my car, the last thing I wanted to feel was the road! These guys put down their coffee, hop out from behind their desks and drive a vehicle while they're still on a caffein high. If they listen to anyone its their wife who says, "Honey, you have to think about vehicles that I can pack all the kids into." Great, now we have 2 perspectives. :icon_rolleyes:

In my world I still drive a lot, I often need to carry a fair amount of cargo, my vehicle has to be equally good on expressways, city streets, rural highways, and on marginal roads -- and it snows around here. I don't want anything close to an amateur tank (Hummer) or two motorcycles strapped together (Civic). Chrysler has several vehicles from which I could choose, including the Compass, the Caliber, and of course the Patriot. Only yesterday I was driving across a soggy field, and a little later on the highway I remarked to my wife what a comfortable ride the Patriot has. Seems to me I get the best experience under wideranging conditions, with the least trade-offs.

I think most auto-writers only consider one perspective at a time, and easily gravitate to one extreme or another. They need to realize that versatility is a real advantage, and again, trading off as little as possible to achieve that versatility. The Patriot does what it does very well in all categories, even if it may not be outstanding in any one particular application.

 

Cars.com is entitled to their opinions i guess. You all know what opinions are like....

I have to agree with them on one.

Number one on the list was the SMART.

I don't understand how it only gets 41mpg. Its a 2 door, 2 seater. What gives?

I had a 4 door 5 seater corolla that got 41mpg.

 

Compass FTL!

Most people think it is ugly, but functionally it is almost identical to the Patirot except FDII.

 

Don't be silly, APT, a SMART looks nothing like a Patriot.
Seriously, though, worse car eh? All I can say is they haven't rented out many cars, have they? I've been in some stuff that is totally sub-standard; anything by Citroen. Their vehicles are so bloody eccentric that you have to be born in France to love them; coming from Quebec just isn't enough. They're dreadful vehicles. A Ford Ka. I'm sure you won't have those in the States, 'cos you'd all need treatment for claustrophobia after sitting in one.
How about any 4by4 built by Daihatsu? No, I'll scrap that one because they can restore your hearing these days no matter how bad it's deteriorated.
We've been here before, fellers, haven't we? We all suspect that these guys who write this stuff are so far into the pockets of their favourite car manufacturers that they can.. no, forget that metaphor, this is a family site...
We know it's baloney, Why? Because every single one of us has driven a far worse vehicle than a Jeep in the last few years.

Rocal

 

4x4 compact SUV with decent gas mileage for under $17,000 here in Canada is unheard of. Nothing even close to compare it to, Hyundai and Kia's are over $25k here which is the next cheapest thing. RAV's, CRV's and Subaru's are even more.

 

It's certainly not a bad car by any measure. It's only major fault is that it's not some people's idea of a Jeep. For others, neither is the Patriot. As a former XJ owner, I'm really enjoying the Patriot's greatly increased mileage and updated driveline. After the gas shock of '08, I'm very surprised the SUV market wasn't beating a path to Jeep dealers for MK's. It goes to show that the import loving, make things greener, pseudo-intellectual, Consumer Reports crowd will never be pleased with or will acknowledge American car makers efforts to build for the marketplace. The MK should have a rightful place in the Jeep line up as would a new Gladiator or Wagoneer for those who need real trucks.

 

After the gas shock of '08, I'm very surprised the SUV market wasn't beating a path to Jeep dealers for MK's.

Sales of MKs peaked in the spring/summer of 2008. Compare that to today, when gasoline costs a little more than half and the MSRP's have gone up by $2k with fewer discounts.

 

Jeep lineup, a brand known and respected for its off-road ability.

I keep hearing about the legendary off-roading Jeep brand, but a simple look into Wikipedia soon reveals that Jeep has been making vehicles for other than hard-core off-roading since the fifties. This "Jeep used to be all about rock climbing and mudding until you bastards with your MK's came along!" is an aggravating attitude, made even worse by the fact that it is complete and utter nonsense. Off-road vehicles have always been just one part of what Jeep does.

Oh yeah, and the price of a base Compass in Finland is 25000 euros. 25k€ for a four wheel drive SUV when the competitions prices start at way above 30k€! That there is what I would call a pretty good price.

All I can say is they haven't rented out many cars, have they? I've been in some stuff that is totally sub-standard;

<snip>

A Ford Ka. I'm sure you won't have those in the States, 'cos you'd all need treatment for claustrophobia after sitting in one.

I had a brand new rental Ford Focus once. About 250km in the meter. And both side mirror adjustment handles already broken off... Okay, it was a rental so it could be just the previous renters handiwork. Still, kind of left me wondering about the quality of current euro-Fords...

And don't even get me started on the Ka. Yeah, drove one of those for one day too, and I don't think I've ever driven a worse vehicle. Noise from the tires when over 60km/h was horrendous, and I nearly crashed the bloody thing when I took a curve at the normal speed I usually drive there. The only thing more ridiculous than a Ka is a sports car version of it... :icon_rolleyes:

I loved my Puma. Sure, it wasn't a real sports car, but at least it handled nicely! Damn it was fun to drive. But when Ford decided to stop making the Puma and go for a friggin' sport Ka, I really wondered what the bosses in that company were smoking.

 

If you like the looks of a car is personal, I choose the Patriot because of the brand (Jeep), the looks, the milage and it's price. Other SUV's here in Belgium are more expencive, you see them everywhere, consume more gas, and you get less options for the same price .. You hardly see a compass or patriot here in Belgium, and I like to have a car that's a bit out of the ordinary. I've been soft-roading with it and I was pretty surprised about it's capabilities.

I love my Patriot and I really don't car what people think about it.

 

3rd worst? ouch :doh:

 

Well that is their opinion and they are entitled to it. Many people will disagree however.

I was chuckling to my self with the talk of the Ford Focus. My friends and I called it the Gutless Wonder becuase you could put the hammer down and all she would do is rev high and convert fuel to noise.

 

Jeep Compass 3rd worse sar of the decade

WHAT? The Compass is compared to a DISEASE? THAT'S pretty harsh, don't you think? :icon_rolleyes:

Severe acute respiratory syndrome
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS; pronounced /sɑrz/, sarz) is a respiratory disease in humans which is caused by the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV).[1] There has been one near pandemic to date, between the months of November 2002 and July 2003, with 8,096 known infected cases and 774 deaths (a case-fatality rate of 9.6%) worldwide being listed in the World Health Organization's (WHO) 21 April 2004 concluding report.[2] Within a matter of weeks in early 2003, SARS spread from the Guangdong province of China to rapidly infect individuals in some 37 countries around the world.[3]

As of May 2006[update], the spread of SARS has been fully contained thanks to the efforts of the WHO, with the last infected human case seen in June 2003 (disregarding a laboratory induced infection case in 2004). However, SARS is not claimed to have been eradicated (unlike smallpox), as it may still be present in its natural host reservoirs (animal populations) and may potentially return into the human population in the future.

As for the smart being #1 on their list......obviously they didn't interview those WHO ACTUALLY BOUGHT ONE! :doh:

 

That's right BP. I can see a niche for the SMART, no kidding, but it's in that same niche where, over in the States, people living in big quiet suburbs have a golf buggy just to pop down to the stores for beer and newspapers.
If you were to be in one on, say the M2 in England when the big Eurotrucks were all dashing for the ferry, or on the M25 around London at about six o'clock in the evening, then you'd need the guts of an astronaut. Imagine being in one of those things on a Swedish motorway with one of those fifty ton Euroscanias cruising alongside you at around seventy miles per hour! And you glancing out your window and not even seeing the top rim of its tyres! Safe? Yeah, right...

Rocal

 

I drive mine every day next to large 18-wheelers, both of us traveling 70-80mph. I feel perfectly safe, just as safe as the guy in a Pontiac Grand AM or Honda Accord. In fact, we've seen a couple bad accidents in this area involving those vehicles and in both cases THOSE cars were BROKEN IN HALF by impacts with large trucks.

Sometimes SIZE doesn't matter...but ENGINEERING does! :smiley_thumbs_up:

 

Smart cars?

Those little gutless wonders I'd say are unsafe at any speed.
We were pulling a horse trailer, horse inside, going up a medium-sized hill in the passing lane because the road was returning to a single lane in each direction when what should appear but a gutless wonder trying to pass us:doh:. The single occupant was hunched over the wheel assuming that would cause it to somehow speed up. Well we had to brake otherwise the "wonder" would have been in the wrong lane--oncoming traffic. Try explaining that to the now bruised horse. There is nothing wrong with highway signage either we all knew the road was narrowing up ahead but of course we had to be passed.
Those little wonders might be fine on in-town, small town roadways, but otherwise--stay off the road.
Golf courses is where they belong.

 

Those little gutless wonders I'd say are unsafe at any speed.
We were pulling a horse trailer, horse inside, going up a medium-sized hill in the passing lane because the road was returning to a single lane in each direction when what should appear but a gutless wonder trying to pass us:doh:. The single occupant was hunched over the wheel assuming that would cause it to somehow speed up. Well we had to brake otherwise the "wonder" would have been in the wrong lane--oncoming traffic. Try explaining that to the now bruised horse. There is nothing wrong with highway signage either we all knew the road was narrowing up ahead but of course we had to be passed.
Those little wonders might be fine on in-town, small town roadways, but otherwise--stay off the road.
Golf courses is where they belong.

Sounds like an idiot driver. Of course NO ONE like that drives a Jeep, huh? Don't blame the CAR for the drivers deficiencies.....

 

I don't disagree with their assessment. The Compass was/is an necessary vehicle for the Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge fleet.

 

Gaze, mean unnecessary?

 

Regarding the smart's 'roll over tendency', looks like they may want to 'rethink' that......:icon_rolleyes:

 

Screw Cars.com and Edmunds!

I have not met a single Patriot or Compass owner who was unhappy with their vehicle. This includes three Patriot owners I know who rave about the mileage and two people who drive a Pat as their company vehicle.

Towing my little utility trailer across country from Michigan to California pushed me over the edge from a happy Pat owner to rabid fan boy! I averaged 29 mpg cross country with 1100 pounds of trailer, cargo and me. That includes towing over two 8500 foot passes to get to Yellowstone. I think the Foresters I was looking at were nicer looking cars but you can't convince me that my Tin Cup (a dealer told me that they call base models like mine, with no options at all, tin cups) isn't a heck of a good little truck!

 

Yeah, well where was the criticism of the Jeep Comanche pickup? To the best of my knowledge it didn't come with 4WD.

 

Commanche came in 4x4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_Comanche

 

Y'know, these reviewers just do NOT know wherefore they write. I've seen negative reviews complaining about all types of things about the Patriot when the tester really didn't get "into" the Pat. It was almost as though the reviewer had made his mind up in advance and then worked to confirm that opinion.

My 08' Pat is fast, economical, handles quite nicely, is comfortable as all get out, and it can get me there in all kinds of weather. Is it a rock climber? I guess not, but at hauling all kinds of stuff without a complaint it is a real trail buddy.

I only hope they keep building it, because I feel it is the Swiss army knife of cars.

 

I like my patriot but I have to agree. My patriot does not feel to robust. I have 7000 Km on it and all ready I can fell some kind of radle in my front end. The good thing about are compass and patriot are the price and practicality.

 

consider the source of info,one sided

 

Ya know when I window shopped for this vehicle, I knew its design really didnt seem to be meant for heavy 4 wheeling brutal trail riding fun that the name is reknown for.
This is why I just saved same dough and bought the front wheel drive version. The big selling feature for me was the design, and its roomyness inside. Ive had the thing for 2 years now, and Im almost use to the whining CVT trannie.
Sorry the Compass just didnt have the same headroom and open air feeling in the drivers seat as this does. Calibre is the same...too confined.

 

That is a lot of nonsense. You have to look at the dollars and what you get. To me, the Compass is simply an abomination of styling. That's fine, and sales between it and the Patriot vet that out. We have two vehicles, my 07 Patriot and a Scion xD for my wife and daughter to drive. The xD is okay, but it is twitchy, loud and gets a little lower gas mileage than I expected, between 28 and 32 mpg. My Patriot FWD gets between 26 and 29 mpg, bigger, smoother and more powerful. The Scion's factory tyres lasted a whopping 28K and only two manufactures sell the size it takes (nice). My Wrangler tyres on the Pat lasted 59K. This alone makes my Patriot cheaper to drive if the replacement set of Dunlops don't do better (first set were Bridgestone).

Also, we recently rented a Caliber with around 24K miles on it while on a trip, and my wife thought it was a much nicer car than the Scion and sized better for a family. Granted, the Caliber probably cost a little more in the SXT trim than the Scion did, but not much. The power and fuel consumption of the Caliber seemed good to me with a much better ride. They always seem to compare these vehicles to much more expensive models.

 

The Patriot= the perfect small suv for the average consumer without the embarrasment of owning a Subaru.

 

Or a Toyota, Nissan, or especially a Kia.

It is all in the customers eye. My wife loves the Compass because it is more car like in styling. she thinks my Patriot is too boxy and truckish looking. Inside of course, they are nearly identical except for the better visibility due to the larger square windows in the Patriot.