Exterior & Styling
The Patriot's styling breaks no ground. Its triumph is that it looks like a Jeep. That might seem minor, but even today this vehicle class carries a cute-ute stigma, and one of the Compass' problems is that it doesn't look like a Jeep — at least not in any of the ways one might want it to. As the photos show, there's a passing resemblance between the two because they and the Dodge Caliber share the same platform, and all are assembled at the same Illinois plant.
One could argue that the squared-off Patriot most resembles Jeep's flagship, the Commander, but it more strongly honors old-school Cherokees and Grand Cherokees.
The two trim levels are Sport and Limited, with few visible differences. The Limited adds a metal-look cover to the front and rear bumpers, and upgrades the Sport's respectable 16-inch steel wheels to 17-inch alloys. The Patriot Sport has standard black roof rails, but the cross-members are optional. The Limited has aluminum rails and cross-bars as standard equipment.
See also:
Compact Spare Tire – If Equipped
The compact spare is for temporary emergency use only.
You can identify if your vehicle is equipped with a compact spare by looking
at the spare tire description on the Tire and Loading Information ...
A Design That's Rugged, Yet Refined
The 2011 Grand Cherokee pulls off the challenging feat of possessing a clear
design connection with its predecessor while looking completely new and modern.
It's clearly a Grand Cherokee, but it h ...
Limited-Use Spare – If Equipped
The limited-use spare tire is for temporary emergency use only. This tire is
identified by a label located on the limited-use spare wheel. This label contains
the driving limitations for this spar ...


