Jeep Patriot Diesel - is it awful? Real Road Test! 

In the U.S, these are just reliable enough that they're still on the road, but so bad that no one really wants to buy them. They've replaced the PT Cruiser as the go-to vehicle when you just need a running car and want to spend as little as possible.

"We can go anywhere a Ford Fiesta can go" - Love it!

Built for extreme on-roading! Good one Ian, and so accurate!

"There's a lot of tissues in there, we won't ask questions" Absolutely hilarious 😂😂😂

Here in Canada I had a 2007 Jeep Compass 4x4 (same platform as the Patriot) with a 2.4L petrol and CVT it did 327,000 kms (203,000 miles) before we had to scrap it, best car we ever owned it and miss it. Oddly despite the cheap bland interior, the plastics held up pretty damn well and barley rattled plus the seats had little stress marks.

The automotive press hated the Jeep Patriot, but the people I know who've actually owned one were happy with it -- they just wish it got better fuel economy with the gas/petrol engines it came with here in the U.S., because styling a vehicle to look like a box on wheels unsurprisingly does not make it very aerodynamic.

I own a 2008 Jeep Patriot 2.0CRD Limited and I agree with what you have stated here. I enjoy driving the Jeep but it's not as nice as some of the competition. But at least it stands out and is quite reliable compared to its land rover equivalent

I had one of these and loved it. Only got rid due to getting the opportunity to trade it in for a nice 3 series BMW, but did really love the Patriot. Never had any problems in the 3 years I owned it.

The Diesel (and manual transmission!) were forbidden fruit for us here in the home market. I encountered one of these things on the trail while Jeeping in Colorado. I specifically recall encountering a particularly nasty muddy dip in the trail, that the Patriot owner gingerly drove around. I was right behind him in a Wrangler JL Rubicon, so I just forged straight ahead 😂

Rural. Is an understatement. What lovely countryside.

A decent car for trailer pulling, isn’t it? Nice road test with the British humour I like so much…

Very refreshing review Ian The 2.0 diesel were a little more refined than the 1.9TDI with 16 valves over the 8 . i recenly drove a 2.0 Golf and was totally bored . My 1.9 TDI from 98 is a tractor as they often seem to be from that era but i love its torque

They're nice and unique if you want something different, and quite practical too. But man do they have some issues, early models had major subframe problems both front and rear, ABS faults very common, oil pump issues resulting in an oil starved engine, turbo issues, power steering issues, rear arches rot in real-time whilst you look at them. It's a shame as if Chrysler had put just a bit more money into them they could have been great. Have one sat outside needing all of the above, can't bring myself to get rid but can't justify the cost either, it's one of those cars.

I had one of these on a 2008 plate. Slightly different, more angular interior and way more sound proofing. A decent vehicle really but the turbo blew inside 20k (replaced under warranty) then the engine spat it's dummy out at 62k!!! Sold for scrap after putting a claim in against Chrysler......which I won. Great vid and nice to see more of the average. Also Mrs hubnut, great camera work.

I love it when Hubnut does a car review. Very informative and entertaining.

Always know it's the height of summer when Hubnut gets those Sandals out again 😜 #Legend

I love your driving impression videos. Especially on everyday vehicles like this. I'm impressed by its efficiency to be honest. That would actually be a great everyday vehicle. Would be interesting to know if your Falcon has more ground clearance though.

The centre passenger on the back seat has to be legless because their footwell is filled with cupholder, as thin as a lamppost because the seat and even the headrest are incredibly narrow but with incredibly long arms to reach the seatbelt that's next to the tailgate

Quality got better lately Horray😜🔝❤️

The vehicle sums itself up neatly with one word on the tailgate... LIMITED

My satnav took me up that steep hill the other week! I was surprised that our works 1 litre focus managed with ease although I was not sure I was going the right way!

Interior reminds of my old Chrysler PT cruiser,i loved that styling especially linked to the 2.2 merc lump. The ride was surprisingly tight & pretty capable on the quicker roads. I did toy with the Idea of buying a jeep but was soon put off with the price of parts like with the PT cruiser. Now where did i put my violin case😂

I love the phrase extreme on-roading 😂 perhaps jeep could use that in its marketing.

We considered one back when they were new. That Fisher Price interior meant we never got further than seeing one in the showroom. Mind you, from memory the Outlander we checked out at the same time wasn’t much better. We couldn’t stretch to a Grand Cherokee, so opted for Mazda’s excellent CX-7. No regrets there.

10:28. 'a goodly amount of bass on offer'. Great adjective you've invented, there 👍

...so the best thing about it is the exterior styling and the stereo - so it would make an excellent "garden monument/DJ booth", but a less good vehicle. One of the most "glowing" reviews of one of these I have seen. Cheers!

Absaloutly brilliant video Ian miss hubnut❤👍 I used to have the Grande Cherokee Ltd 4 litre and that was very refined and smooth and fantastic for space brilliant

I could be wrong but I think secondhand good value for little money...I have always liked them..My neighbour has a Lovely Red one ...No problems and he loves it...!!!

Not my kind of vehicle, but it seems like a perfectly acceptable Freelander alternative.

Can't believe how loud that engine is, I've had a couple of golfs and a Passat coupe with that lump and they were nice and quiet inside.

I like how you've colour-graded the outtakes differently from the finished shots. Unless that's just my poor colour vision.

I think this might be when Cerberus took over Chrysler/Jeep at this time of manufacture, Daimler had enough and sold them. 2.4.litre and CVT were mostly sold in the US. My friend, now deceased, had one, after a owning a 1992 Jeep Cherokee. And many are still on the road where I am in upstate New York. The Jeep Renegade is basically a Fiat 500X.

Interesting review. My wife drives a 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport (made in Japan, earlier models were made in the States). It has the Mitsubishi 2.4L (4B12 version of the GEMA engine) and the CVT (all CVTs are awful in my opinion, however this is one of the better ones). I can see similarities to the Patriot, but the build quality and materials in our car are first rate. You mentioned the a/c, it is one of the best air conditioning systems I have used, better than our Honda or Toyota. What you did not mention was the steering feel, in our car this really lets it down and does not do a good job of realigning the wheels, maybe I should get the tracking checked. This is a temporary car until our first EV arrives when we will totally re-evaluate our fleet and try to get down to 3 cars (from 6).

Nice to see you using Bow Street tran station car park!

This sort of car would be ideal for my job. I live in a rural area, have to use my own car for work, and have to go to wherever my customer’s house is located. The slightly tougher nature of this Jeep, and four wheel drive, would probably cope with whatever I threw at it. But because I’m not wise, I’ve bought a Mondeo instead; 2WD, large, and mostly unsuited to the unmade and narrow roads I often find myself on. I just can’t bring myself to buy an SUV, despite being someone who has a use case for one as a daily driver.

Airways enjoy the Hubnut analysis, thank you.

I think these had the 2.0 pumpe duse engine rather than the later 2.0 common rail, which probably explains why it's not particularly refined.

Had me a 17 Compass. Nice comfortable and good on gas

Beautiful demonstration at 14:32 of some world class "Palming" 😁 I think all Jeeps of that era had light steering for full palming potential.

Lovely scenery ❤

What a perfect addition to the fleet…Welsh winter winner😃💪

Your down to earth objective narrative is as always refreshing ,you are too kind to this Jeep .

Love a jeep but the trackhawk another great video has always Ian and miss hubnut and hublets and hubmutts 👍

I guess they gave up with the VM Motori diesels as often fitted to chrysler products outside of the US, but this one still seems to produce the clag that they were known for anyway... :P

A certain lack of refinement in NVH is actually a considered positive factor in a Jeep. A call back to the rough and ready days. In the US Jeep offered two roughly parallel cars, the Liberty was more a successor of the older rougher Jeeps, and the Patriot more of a car dressed up as a Jeep. To my taste the Liberty was sort of common for its time melted stick of butter style of the time, while the Patriot actually harkened more back to the angular styling of the Cherokee (the opposite of their supposed function).

In Canada we never received either the diesel or six-speed. I did once rent a Patriot to drive 600 kms to my client's other site where I spent a week driving around in it before driving back home. It was a gasoline version with the cvt transmission and I disliked it a lot.

Funny you said Escort van as I was thinking Transit at that point - and not a recent one either!

Love the outtakes 😂

If I remember correctly, later models had a Mercedes 2.2 engine, in place of the VW unit. Not sure if the refinement was improved by that change.

11:23 To my knowledge the C4 Aircross and C-Zero (both Mitsubishi clones just like the C-Crosser) were also made in Japan.

The first gen Patriot and Compass are essentially a more Jeep-esque. Dodge Caliber. They’re mostly reliable (for a Chrysler product) as long you have one that’s a manual. The CVTs that were in these cars were garbage because they’d eventually grenade themselves if you didn’t change the fluid every 50,000 miles (80,000 kms). The subframes also rot which is usually what kills them if the CVT doesn’t.

For a strange reason when they first came out (Patriot and Compass) they were quite popular in Greece (petrol only, diesels were not allowed in Athens and Thessaloniki). Even the Police got some Patriots! Also, so nice looking countryside!

Always liked the look of these,but would want a 3.0 straight six upfront like a BMW M57, would be a great combo

Hit the nail on the head with school run.... I could see parents at my kids school using these and the only off roading it would do is bumping onto the kerb. Have to agree a bit more sound deadening might have made it a more pleasant drive, but going to have to say I would buy one just to take along to the car meets up here and pull out the speakers in the boot and crank up the bass.

You are a walking Encyclopedia Hubnut , I think you could rival that Chat GTP Artificial intelligence , I looked up about the Mitsubishi's in USA and they were lucky they got the Dodge Colt GTS Turbo it was very fast for the mid 80s

13:15 42mpg is pretty reasonable, thaught I'd add that I own a Freelander TD4 (albeit 8 years older) which you comment on as being a rival and I tend to get a similar figure from mixed driving, however on a recent trip to scotland it achieved 51mpg! (and yes it is still 4wd) so some of these smaller 4x4s can be suprisingly economical ot seams if they have the right engine.

Style wise it has a lot of character from those days when everything arguably just looked odd. As you mention refinement is not one of the best points but maybe Jeep thought that it added character. Having worked in the States during the 2000's the interior quality and finish was somewhat different to the European vehicles so maybe priorities were steered in other directions. If I had to pigeon hole its 4x4 capability I would say its more soft roader than off roader like the vast majority of 4x4 SUV cars. Many thanks for sharing.

Doing the light shots at the end, it sounded like the Land Rover 110 used at Prince Phillips funeral

It’s a limited 4x4 diesel. It’s got the info center and the sub if it has nav this is so cool

I remember Jeeps of that generation coming off the boats at Portbury and driving them to the compounds and thinking how rough they were.

"Extreme on-roading" perfectly describes the conditions often experienced in Mindanao, Philippines. Filipinos have a great attachment to Jeeps, but surprisingly I haven't seen Patriots around.

I had a Jeep Compass in the states back in 2013 for a few weeks, it wasn't bad but the interior was a bit pants

I used to have a VW Passat 1.9TDI 130bhp SE 4motion 03. I kept it for 6yrs great car.

I've got one of these. I've had to replace one of the wheel hubs because the ABS sensor clip had rotted out (quite a common thing for these vehicles, apparently). However, other than that, it's been pretty good. The previous owner put lowered springs on it, so it sits a few inches lower. Most people seem to think it looks great like that. I don't, since I'm not a teenager, and I'll look to get the normal ones put back in. I mean, what's the point of a 4x4 if you haven't got the ground clearance to use it?!? Anyway, It's spacious enough with the seats down that we were able to transport our 4 greyhounds with us to a holiday in Wales and back in relative comfort. Also averaged about 54mpg en route, although that was 60mph most of the way. The only real criticism I have is the interior. I've got the pre-facelift version, and it looks like it's been taken from an 80's Datsun - all angles and cheap plastics .

I used to diss this vehicle. Now I drive one (2014, 4wd, auto, 2.4L w/ 150k+ miles on the odo) as a company vehicle everyday in the US upper Midwest. There are some minor body squeaks and the trans/driveline wasn't properly serviced by the time it was issued to me at 133/k miles. The only real interior noises are from the gear I carry around. The mileage isn't great, but better than the 1/2 & 3/4 ton trucks most others are issued. It actually has a pretty decent ride (for what it is) and acceptable seats. People get caught up is dissing things for what they really aren't. If the company would let me get some good tires, it would have some decent off-road abilities. As it is, it's competent in on-road corners though. Plus it isn't full of useless crap, which I appreciate for long-term ownership.

"Pretty much o. k." - That is a wording I will add to my vocabulary as non native English speaker. It oozes irony, but only for those who are a bit used to the subject.

From 2010 onwards the engine was a 2.2 litre mercedes diesel engine. I had mine for 9 years and was sorry to lose it.

Well now you have something to compare to if you ever give the wrangler a go 👍

I didn't realise that this JEEP was built on the same platform as the Mitsubishi Outlander. You need to drive a Honda CRV. My dad has a 2010 plate one and it is pretty decent. If you drive a CRV you will like that the pedals are linier with the driver and not off set, plus the MK2's had the clever folding seats.

Please test a Buchanka or UAZ 469 :-)))

To be fair, that same engine I thought had poor NVH characteristics in a SEAT Leon too, creating a nasty rattle in the front passenger footwell

I wish the vw tdi version was available in Canada. They would have sold like crazy. Tons of mk4 and 5 tdi's still on the road here, and lots are actually lifted, people love the mileage, if the partiot tdi was sold here i think they would have filled that void in the market.

I suppose the bonus of the citroen and peugeot versions of that chasiss is that they had the superior peugeot HDI engines instead of the VW diesels.

Wonder who supplied the manual transmission - rare here in the US. Chrysler era Jeep auto transmission is notorious.

Yep this is the sort of road test I love. 150bhp produced by a diesel engine, I’m guessing the maximum torque is pretty impressive.

Off to the classifieds I go.....

Passed a silver one of these from traffic lights the other day in my 2.0 Grand vitara...All the Jeep seemed to do was produce black smoke and little else!!...😁

What genius in naming this raucous effort the Limited. It was apparently almost tagged as a Mundano, but they feared Ford might object.

A good vehicle for space & family. But a bit rough & ready.

Did 800miles in a petrol auto Patriot un 2011 in the US. Very comfortable car. Could make a good Hubnut tow car?

dashboard was lit up like Blackpool Illuminations....i like the grand Cherokee in 4.0 litre form

Even if the Evo conversion isn't possible, there was a performance variant of the Dodge Caliber (also on the same platform), the SRT-4, with ~280hp through the front wheels, which would likely be an easy enough, ill-advised swap.

My wife has a CR-V, that's what you want to buy, or the Toyota RAV4. These two are as reliable as it gets and have really good resale value as well as being great cars. As an American, this is note and American car. It was designed and signed off by a German company. Now Jeep is owned by an Italian and French company. What can go wrong.

So which would you rather have Ian, Patriot or Maverick? I can see both have their merits.

I chuckle when I see 'limited' on the back of American cars.

I test drove one. The clutch pedal felt heavy. Not sure if it was faulty or just that stiff.

There are people living in mountainous areas were buying an 4wd without serious off roading abilities make a lot of sence. Typical areas where they also get a lot of snow in the winter.

I spot a ring Ian, a secret ceremony or is it a engaged ring?

Think that level crossing is on a par with the one here in Burnley on huffling lane. Its horrid!!

this would be a good vehicle to tow bob.

Had one for around 12 months drove good when it worked ,within 6 months had a NEW turbo, NEW alternator, NEW wheel bearing all part expensive with labour the bill at the end of 6 month was £300 less then I paid for the car 😢😢 for sale it did go

Much better towing vehicle than the Berlingo 👍

It doesn't sound like the Volkswagen TDI of that era. I know it is but the start-up is different. Sounds more common-rail if that makes sense compared to the flatter souding PD unit in VWs. Maybe Jeep made a few changes or VW didnt want it to be as refined?

Your sound quality from wireless lavalier sounds good.What brand are them?

The rear wiper test was funny, full of centre rear headrest

Have been driving stick vehicles since 1974. When available. Nothing in fleet now.

Is it a PD diesel ? They are proper traftor like but an old school mechanical pump but are solid engines,

I own this car but it's 2007 not a diesel. Great vehicle rusted out but still running great at 190k miles

Not sure I'm keen on the automated voice that corrects you when you say tissues😂

I have always like them