2010 Jeep Patriot review

I get why people love their Jeeps: They're rough and tumble and go anywhere from a weekend at the beach to an extreme off-roading adventure. However, the 2010 Jeep Patriot feels cheap, sluggish and plastic-y, making it seem more like a toy Jeep than a real one (and not even a cute one like the miniature electric pink Barbie Jeep the neighbor girls have).

Upon starting the Patriot for the first time, I realized pretty quickly that this wasn't a toy electric Jeep. The rumbling engine actually made me wonder for a moment if my test Patriot had a diesel engine. Nope, no diesel, just a really loud cabin.

I was not only underwhelmed with the Patriot but actually annoyed by the continuously variable automatic transmission in it, which was part of the Freedom Drive II Off-Road Package. It felt slow to get up and running from a stop, and if I tried to coax it to go any faster it would rev loudly as if to say, "The kids'll get to school when I'm damn well ready to get them there." Sheesh! On top of stressing about getting the kids out the door on time, I hated having my car bark at me every morning.

See also:

Hill Descent Control (HDC) — Four-Wheel Drive Models With MP3023 Two-Speed Transfer Case Only
HDC maintains vehicle speed while descending hills during off-road driving situations and is available in 4WD LOW range only. To enable HDC, press the HDC switch or put the Selec-Terrain™ syst ...

Compass Variance
Compass Variance is the difference between Magnetic North and Geographic North. To compensate for the differences, the variance should be set for the zone where the vehicle is driven, per the zone ...

Operation Instructions — CD Mode For CD And MP3 Audio Play
NOTE: • The ignition switch must be in the ON/RUN or ACC position to operate the radio. • This radio is capable of playing compact discs (CD), recordable compact discs (CD-R), rewritable co ...