Let's look even closer now. The Patriot is built on a car platform, although a pretty good platform,
which is the Dodge Caliber. The Dodge Caliber is a unique looking street ride with some macho looking lines.
Hurrah for the Caliber! I kinda like it...for what it is...a car for the street.
The Caliber even comes in an all-wheel drive package for those bad weather days depending
on where you live and drive. Again, hurrah for the Caliber!
The Jeep Patriot shares much of the engine and drive train components of the Caliber, but has
more sophisticated 4-wheel drive system options for some off-road work.
Although the Patriot is a front wheel drive vehicle (like the Caliber) which means an independent
front suspension, it can be equipped with the Freedom II off-road package that gives it the "Trail Rated"
seal of approval from Jeep. It must pass some rigorous testing in many off-road conditions to get the
Trail Rating.
The answers are a vague "Maybe"...and..."Yes".
The 2-wheel drive version is nothing more than a Jeep Car or small SUV...while the 4-wheel drive versions
(especially the Trail Rated one) appears to approach some of the functionality of the time honored Jeep
tradition.
2008 Patriot (Rearview)
This is all well and good. The Patriot is beginning to sound more like a traditional Jeep, at
least when equipped with the more expensive Freedom II package option.
So... is the Patriot a true Jeep in the traditional sense, or is it merely another Jeep Car?
Does the Patriot compare with the Wrangler?...No Way!... Maybe more like the Jeep Liberty and the dreaded Compass... specifically due to the fact that these models have Independent Front Suspensions
(IFS) in 4-wheel drive mode.
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my-2008-patriot
I recently purchased a 2008 Jeep Patriot. It has more height room then the compass and the dodge calibur. I got the metallic blue color. I am happy with ...