Mario James, Gleaner Writer
The 2008 Jeep Patriot, available at Motor Sales.
It's ironic that this week's Sunday drive is a Jeep Patriot, seeing that the New England football team lost last week. But, unlike the Patriot's all-conquering season, which ended in defeat, the Patriot is a steady performer that's not perfect, but delivers the goods when and it where it counts.
This Automotives tester lives in a place that could only be considered as 'remote'. Cars have a hard time getting to my locale, with all the road obstacles and chasms thrown up by the recent storm. And it is far from town, so mileage is of paramount importance. But when traversing these 'road imperfections', the conveyance shouldn't beat the occupants into submission. However, every other SUV I've taken home (and I've brought home quite a few) that had the clearance necessary for me to reach home would shake the fillings out of your teeth. That includes my faithful Bronco II.
The old Ford, with its Twin Traction Beam front suspension, was the most trail-ready; it had the power and the articulation in the suspension to tackle anything. But the ride would cause your unborn child to come out before time. The Japanese versions have more pliant suspensions, but they don't have the clearance/suspension travel of the Ford. SUV consumers are caught in a classic Catch 22 situation.
Jeep, though, marches to the beat of a different drum. When the first-generation Cherokee was built in 1984, the manufacturer utilised unitised body construction with a 'quadra link' suspended live axle that had the strength to take the off road abuse but had really good suspension characteristics. The unibody was stiff enough to go off road in a serious way, yet it had the ride characteristics of a car. It was light (3,100 lb) yet had unheard of towing capacity. It still is the standard by which SUVs are judged (in my opinion).
Today's Jeep has not changed. The Jeep Patriot offers best in class ride. Brought in by Motor Sales, the full-time four-wheel drive vehicle rides like it is way under-damped, which goes a long way in explaining that 'floaty' feeling it delivers over bumps. But in contradiction, it rolls very little. Off road, it is the best soft-roader Automotives has driven.
We took it up through the Blue Mountains and its poise was confidence-inspiring. Its steering is very effective, with no vagueness on centre. The off roader runs on the front wheels when unstressed, but can send up to 60 per cent to the rear wheels if necessary, without driver intervention. The descent control, engaged when Patriot senses a steep enough grade in low range off road mode, takes most of the fear out of serious dirt play and is a feature that only the X-Trail shares in the current crop of soft-roaders.
Once you've experienced this feature, there is no way you'll want to wheel without it; computers take over and hold the car at a steady speed, no matter the incline! Engine-wise, our tester came configured with a 2.4-litre 'World' engine that was made in conjunction with Mitsubishi and Mercedes. It produces 172 hp at 6,000 rpm, and 165 lb/ft of twist at 4,400. Patriot also comes with a 2.0-litre that produces 158 hp. The 2.4 is a lovely engine, but it is coupled to an unsophisticated CVT transmission that initially gets in the way of the torque. Once in the power band, however, the vehicle moves, thanks to its Variable Valve timing.
True virtues
It is when you've settled in for a period of time that the true virtues of this vehicle come to the fore. The interior, while utilitarian-looking, offers surprising comfort; the seats are supportive and are probably better at preventing aches and pains than your average office chair. It is very roomy, with a lot of cubbyholes and bins. The radio, a four-speaker Boston Acoustics setup, sounds good. Back to the utilitarian part; both rear and front passenger seats fold flat, not just away, to open up a cavernous cargo hold long enough to hold eight-foot surfboards!
So what do you get, for $3.9 million? Lot of space, decent power, sophisticated features, like descent control and a 150-watt 110 volt plug. It has a low range, which helps when you're out in the boondocks, and is trail-rated by its manufacturer (something that most of the lower end Japanese SUVs don't really do well) and feels unburstable. Last, there's that comfy ride. Think of it as a Wrangler with most of the capability, but without the back-breaking ride. In the words of Canadian Driver magazine's Jil McIntosh, it is 'how Jeep does Lite'. I'll add 'with a touch of sophistication!'
