Thanks for the review.

Sorry you are having the issues.

May I ask 2 questions?

When was your Patriot built and have you seen and/or discussed this with your dealer re: your stumbling.

Thanks
Jim

 

My Patriot was built in late May, and yes, I've seen this TSB info....

 

This is very upsetting to me. I am going from my trouble free 97 Subaru Outback(giving to son-in-law) and getting a 2008 Patriot. The Jeep dealership in my town is highly regarded. The Subaru dealership(Porsche,VW, Subaru) 15 miles from here has a poor reputation, so I'm still going with the Jeep, but I sure will keep my eyes peeled!

 

TMax - Is your 94' Liberty a 4x4 and Automatic?

The Liberty 4x4 automatics get an average of 17-18MPG for City/HWY based on user comments at http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=428882

My patriot is a 4x4 CVTI like yours and I'm getting a happy 23-25MPG.

Thats 35-40% better fuel economy. Not bad for a vehicle that is almost as big as the liberty!

 

Yes, my Liberty was a 4 X 4 automatic and I was lucky to get 17 mpg around town. During winter where the temperatures here can stay in the twenties and teens (or lower) for extended periods, I was often getting 12 or 13 mpg. I do appreciate the improvement in gas mileage with the Patriot.

 

Tmax60, I am sorry that you have had so many problems. I don't know if it it because of the end of year rush to produce as many Patriots as possible or due to a problem with your vehicle in particular. My experiences have been very different.

I own a March build car where the only build problem was the DLR flash. I saw some shipping issues where the hold down straps made small marks below the roof rack on both sides, a tiny amount of door insulation poking through the passenger side handles, a tinny sound when closing the front passenger side door, a thunk when shifting quickly (solved by advice in this column), and general dealer confusion.

I am saying this only because the build quality is superior to all but my 1991 and 2004 Mazdas build in Japan. I have also driven somewhere in excess of 24 different rental cars in the past two years including a Jeep Liberty. Most were brand new due to my club status. The Patriot is equal to or better than most including the 06 Liberty Limited with less than 800 miles on it on receipt that I drove for two weeks last year. This also includes two Mazdas, an MPV and the 5 series minivan that were inferior in fit and finish to the Patriot. Both of those had less than 100 miles when I received.

 

Thanks for your perspective Silvermike. I suspect that I have one of the statistical 'outlyers' that got through. When I had my Patriot at the dealer this past week, there was a silver Limited on the showroom floor that was also built in May (per the door sticker). I thought that the assembly and fit and finish of that particular vehicle was much better than mine after doing a cursory inspection of the areas that were questionable on my vehicle.

Even so, the items you had on your 'short list' of problems, however minor, are still issues you should not have had with a brand new vehicle at delivery. I think we've sort of learned to accept these kinds of issues as normal or expected; it really shouldn't be for a $25K vehicle (or at any price range for that matter). Again, I point to the major Japanese car makers...I just don't believe you'd see this kind of sloppiness on a Toyota. In fact, my dad bought a new RAV4 about the same time I ordered my Patriot. Not a single issue. Attention to detail is the key...the Patriot is nicely finished where it shows, but the Toyota is nicely finished where it shows and where it doesn't. The body seams are flawless both on the exterior and interior and the seam sealer 'gunk' they use is neatly applied. On my Patriot (around the liftgate opening for example), the seam sealant looks like it was finger painted on by a 3 year old.

 

Thx for the frank review. This is good stuff to know about. It's important for Patriot owners to share their experiences, both good and bad.

 

There is never any excuse for sloppy build quality. Especially body panels not lining up ect.

That being said you cannot really compare the Jeep Patriot to many others in light of the purchase price.

The Toyota Rav4 for example may have a better build quality, I would expect it to when it is $8-10k more to purchase a similar model.

 

Tmax,

Send your comments DIRECTLY to Jeep. If they don't know, they can't respond. Don't rely on the dealer relaying info back to the manufacturer. Your comments may improve quality down the line.

Hang in there bud! Try driving a 11-1/2 year old jeep and not knowing when it could die. It is like spinning a roulette wheel! LOL!

 

I feel for you. If I would have had the problems you have, I'd have been a little upset myself.

As it stands, I can't complain about my Patriot. About the only thing I could point to on mine that has me upset is the lack of "lifetime supply of gasoline".

(one can always dream)....

 

Thanks for your review Tmax. Sorry about your experience.
I just became a member of this forum just so I could say I also have had my patriot about two months and love it. I test-drove a few before buying and there was one Silver Limited that just didn’t feel right, and sure enough, when I pulled out of the lot about a half a cup of water came out of the o’head light. The salesman tried to tell me the “sunroof’s interior drains must be plugged, we’ll fix that” Glad I left that one on the lot and went up the road a piece. Good luck.

 

Tmax, At the same time I purchased my Patriot it turns out my in-laws purchased a Rav4 and my sister purchased a CR-V. Both were significantly more than my Patriot with a stripped 4x4 Rav4 going for around $25K USD and a well equipped CR-V 2wd going for $30k USD. They did not have any defects reported but for the record neither did I. The flash reprogram I normally would not have taken it in for as it did not impact me. The other items were just too minor.

My sister went through two failed front axles in her 3 series AWD BMW in 3 years and dumped her X3 BMW after 6 months due to constant mechanical problems. Those were both $40-50k USD vehicles.

If you think Toyota and Honda are immune to problems well Honda just went through a situation where transmissions were failing in their minivans. My friend went through two. There is, however, no question that the Japanese manufacturers on the whole deliver cars to customers with superior fit and finish. Toyota does a fantastic job, however, you pay for it by a several thousand dollar premium at purchase. The 2.4L Toyota 4 engine is a work of art. Beautiful motor.

I am absolutely not discounting your problems. The leaky sunroofs appear to be a consistent issue. Sloppy construction in detail does not. The dealer or 3rd party installer did get that sealant gunk on my headliner when they were having trouble with the hitch install. That wasn't a Chrysler screw up. As for engine stumbling; I cannot comment on the CVT. The engine likes to keep the revs up on the five speed and is flat below 2000 rpm. For the record my sister's BMW X3 also stumbled on acceleration.

I am truly sorry that you are having problems. They can be so exhausting to deal with. Hopefully they will be cleared up and things will look better. My only issue with the Patriot is that it needs more torque on the low end - read diesel. Not build quality.

 

My sister went through two failed front axles in her 3 series AWD BMW in 3 years and dumped her X3 BMW after 6 months due to constant mechanical problems. Those were both $40-50k USD vehicles.

If you think Toyota and Honda are immune to problems well Honda just went through a situation where transmissions were failing in their minivans. My friend went through two. There is, however, no question that the Japanese manufacturers on the whole deliver cars to customers with superior fit and finish. Toyota does a fantastic job, however, you pay for it by a several thousand dollar premium at purchase. The 2.4L Toyota 4 engine is a work of art. Beautiful motor.

I hear you Silvermike. Can't count the European makes in the same class as the Japanese makers...while beautifully engineered, they've never been known for outstanding reliability or problem-free ownership.

And I agree, while problems can exist with any make of vehicle, overall I think that the chances of getting a problematic Japanese built vehicle is significantly less than with a domestic brand.

I don't hate the Patriot....I want to like it a lot, but at this early stage with what I've already experienced, it's going to have to work much harder to win me over!

 

I have not had a bit of trouble or any issues in over 5,000 miles. It's the most well-rounded vehicle that I've owned...so far.

 

check out the owners' reviews for the rav-4 at yahoo autos- a lot of them are not happy...

 

that stinks that you've had so many problems. i've had mine (4x4 Sport fully loaded with FDII & CVT2L) for almost 3 months, and have over 5k miles on it, and i don't have any real complaints. i get better than expected highway miles (get 25 mpg + vs the 23 listed on the sticker) and have had no issues with the body, transmission, or anything else mechanical. sometimes the Sirius reception stinks when i am in a wooded area, but i can't blame Jeep for that. at this point i just hope it holds up for the long haul. my 2 Wranglers fell apart mechanically after 60k miles, and hopefully the Patriot will do better down the road.

 

Yeah man I'm really sorry to hear of all the problems you have encountered so far. The only bit of justification that I can offer is that both products (KJ and MK) come from different factories.

Maybe one has a workforce that is more entune with "attention to detail?"

 

Just wanted to offer my condolences on the problems too. My only problem thus far has been a bad piece of wiring in the rear wiper, fixed quickly. After reading about the sunroof issues I sat in my Pat for 20 mins during a downpour to make sure the seals were good.

I'd agree that Toyota/ Honda have exceptional finish to their interiors, I'd even throw Hyundai in there now, the new Santa Fe is IMO the most attractive interior out there in the small/ midsize SUV area. But that finish comes at a big cost. I just priced a RAV 4 to match what I got in my Pat, and I'm getting an MSRP of $29,474. That's nearly $5,000 more than the Pat. For the CRV it comes out to around $27,000. And it's not like they're running awesome specials on those vehicles either, you won't get too much off MSRP with them, no more than the Patriot.

Again, bummed out that you're having problems and I hope this is just a blip on the screen overall for you. Good luck!

 

There are hundreds of people complaining about Rav4 problems. See on this forum:

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f0c40d0/492

 

To whom it may concern and any reading,

There is no reason to attack the OP or get defensive because he posts a critical review of the Patriot.

 

I also want throw my "condolences" in the pile at the nasty luck you're having with your patriot. In your shoes, I'd feel the exact same way.

I think that within each make, there are always "lemons" that get a few more issues than others of the same year, model, etc. I'm lucky that I got a good one. Other than a slight rattle in the middle of the dashboard and the plastic "silver" inner door covering scratching too easily, I'm very happy.

 

Hey, Tmax60!

Rent a copy of the old movie "Christine." Now THERE'S a problematic red MOPAR that will make your "lemon" seem like Godiva chocolates.....

 

Here, here!

You are a funny dude....I love reading your posts...they've made me chuckle more than once.

 

A few people have mentioned that rattle in the dashboard. Any idea of what the cause is?

 

Surprisingly, with all the other issues, my dashboard does not rattle (yet). I think AZCycle had this issue...I remember seeing some posts early on from folks who got that taken care of.

 

we have 5200 miles on our patriot & have no problems so far. it is the fwd 1. It will not ever follow my k1500 chevy. When we go camping!

 

Hey Tmax,

Since owning my Patriot for 3 months now I unfortunately have to report I have run into some pretty crappy construction myself.
So far I have had, body moulding fall off. Roof rail caps come loose, a shoebox size patch above the passenger airbag turn colors. Small white bleached looking spots pop up in about 6 different places on the interior surface of the doors, the radio cosole popped loose on the driver side and now does not fit together properly.

Basically the interior is imo, very poorly constructed. I can put my hand in the center of the dash where it meets the windshield and press down buckling the cheap soft plastic almost 4 inches. Same thing with the plastic on that rectangular cap above the stereo. Press on that and you can get a couple of inches of buckle there. And don't get me started on the metal they used on the exterior of the doors.

I do love my Patriot and the engine, drivetrain, chassis, mechanicals feel very solid. I am just saddened by the cheapness of the interior and overall fit and finish of anything plastic.

Anyway, I just thought I would post this since we haven't had any of those wonderful 'Well MY Patriot doesn't do that' or 'Other cars suck too' posts lately. So I thought I would relight the fire.

Jim

 

I am sorry to hear that there are owners facing these types of problems..
I would assume that part of the problem is that this is Jeeps entry level vehicle, nevertheless if you buy a loaded Patriot the options add up, and it will price up to the Toyotas price range.

I would totally understand if we are upset finding problems.

I received mine in late June. I had a minor acceleration problem, a check engine light and a minor heat shield rattle by the gas tank..

Other than this I really cant say that I have found a significant problem with mine. The dealer was very helpful, I cannot complain of the service I did receive...

I am not crazy about the quality of the plastics used inside, the dash I can live with. What I especially do not like, is the trim edge piece which is part of the seat belt retractor. Its the panel inside, not the door itself, but the piece that I would call the door entrance trim. I had a friend exit the car, and he almost pulled out this trim piece. I did push it back into place, what happens if this piece keeps comming loose?

Another observation is, a plastic seat rail trim that is already starting to break. This part does not bother me that much, since the small piece that is breaking is always getting cought by my pants - leg cuff (if that makes sense) This happens when I start to push myself out of the drivers seat to exit.

:zzz::blah: I guess I do consider myself lucky, these really are minor problems.....