snowsquall: I have had my Patriot since July and I offer my comments to those review comments you posted...
"being noisy..." The Patriot IS noisy. No doubt about it. I have the trail-rated version. This means I have the Goodyear SR-As. My tires contribute to noise. The Patriot is a four banger and my CVT2L tranny causes my engine to rev higher. This adds additional noise heard in the cabin. Being a four banger in an SUV (read as: a less appointed interior) you hear the engine noise more so than in a "car". The noise can be wearing.
"The steering lacks feedback..." Yes, it does to some degree. Then again, it is power assisted and not designed for Le Mans. I noticed some early understeer but I must admit, I was making an incredibly sharp, last minute right turn, under heavy braking, downhill on a steep highway grade. I have a feeling that the computer was reacting to situation as well.
"Sloppy handling" Horse hockey! It makes our 98 Cherokee Classic a handling clunker in comparison. Handling in the snow is so remarkable that I am sure there are drivers out there on the Toronto roads cursing me that I have attitude as I pass them on curves like it was a dry summer's day. A work colleague's range Rover doesn't even come close to the snow handling capabilities of my Patriot. The reviewer must have just finished test driving a Ferrari.
"Cheap looking..." Sure seems *adequate* to me. It is NOT plush and a tad harder than our Cherokee. I call it *utility grade*. When I open the door on a very very gusty snow day, the interior gets snowy real quick. I don't worry about stains or spots. The interior wipes down very easily. It is designed to get dirty.
"Emergency handling..." Hard to comment there other than what I said earlier. I was telling a mechanic friend about the Patriot being buffeted by crosswinds on some very icy roads. I had mentioned that I could feel the Jeep swerve ever so slightly. He laughed and said, the Patriot wasn't being buffeted by the wind but that the roads were very icy and the Patriot was going into skids. The skids were many but all were being mitigated by the traction control system. The ESP systems were monitoring and keeping me on course. He's a Volvo mechanic, not Jeep mechanic.
"No reliability info..." I have no leaks as are reported here [touch wood]. I do have the "flappen hood" issue when there is extreme winds. My only current mechanical gripes are that the gas tank is small and I cannot for the life of me top up the air in my tires. I have those pressure sensor valves and all I seem to accomplish is letting more air out than I can get in. I have no squeaks or rattles.
Lastly, as an off-roader vehicle, I have no idea how it will perform. It seems that the naysayers only traverse extreme offroad courses in modified (lifted, crossbarred, flotation-tired) vehicles to which any unmodified Wrangler probably couldn't compete either. They used to pan the Liberty when it first came out too by the way.
That said, make no mistake, the Patriot is NOT as hard and hearty as other Jeeps or SUVs. Don't put a winch on it for example. For the record, I was in a snowstorm last week and some guy in a new Nissan Rogue thought he could keep up with me. I was curious too. He shut the pursuit down real quick when the roads grew more treacherous. But, I am certain I lost out to his Rogue in the snazzy, cushy dash, well-placed cupholder department. What was I thinking?
Keep in mind that ALL SUVs and CUVs handle just like cars on ice - no exceptions. Ever notice when traveling the snowy highways that there is an inordinate number of SUVs in the ditch? It's because these urban warriors think their SUVs are invincible. After all, ice is just really hard snow, right? Wrong!
But don't take my comments as anything gospel. It is just my two cents. Go out there and test drive a Patriot for yourself. I am very happy with mine and I accept what it is and more importantly, what it is not. The Patriot a sport UTILITY vehicle.
Geez, I talk a lot. Sorry.
