Click above to view a gallery of the Patriot's new accoutrements
All you used to need to know about the Jeep Patriot is that it looks Jeepy; drives super-solidly (even when making forays above 80 mph); and comes with a nasty interior that will shred your knuckles on that excess flash all over every piece (Ed. note: flash is what's left over from injection molding where the two halves of the mold come together). Take that painful and bloody criticism, print it out on heavy paper, and then savor the sound as you crumple it up; our bloviating has been rendered irrelevant by Chrysler delivering on its promise to fix the Patriot's insides.
Our final judgement will come down after we get a chance to sample one of the new interiors in person, but these pics of the new interior we picked up on last week are inside vehicles that have already made their way to some Jeep dealers' lots. There's a new, smoother dashboard; SRT-reminiscent seats; and door panels that look more well thought out (nevermind that manual window crank). It's nice to see that Chrysler's owner-pooch has put its money where its three mouths are and delivered a more attractive interior that appears higher quality. Click the gallery below to see more angles of the Patriot's new flash-less interior. Thanks for the tip, Jeffrey!
[Source: Cars.com]
2010 Nissan Cube breaks cover in Japan
Officially Official: 2010 Ford Mustang!
2010 Ford Mustang revealed early on Ford's own website!
2009 Nissan 370Z rolls out early in So. Cal
VIDEO: 2009 Nissan 370Z revealed early in So. Cal.
In the Autoblog Garage: 2009 HUMMER H3T Alpha
In the Autoblog Garage: 2009 Mercedes Benz C63 AMG
In the Autoblog Garage: 2009 Hyundai Genesis
In the Autoblog Garage: 2009 Chevrolet Traverse LT
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
ken_aisin @ Aug 11th 2008 11:38AM
looks very cheap and plasticky
2007RC46SP2 @ Aug 11th 2008 12:05PM
+1000
friko @ Aug 11th 2008 12:39PM
you sound like a hater and/or whinner
The Luigiian @ Aug 11th 2008 12:39PM
Hideous. Reminds me of the interior of a toy car.
I was hoping for better than this when Cerberus said they would fix these interiors.
The Luigiian @ Aug 11th 2008 12:43PM
Edit: Although I'll admit it looks a lot better than it did.
Nellydesign @ Aug 11th 2008 1:16PM
Good for them. They have now reached Ford's levels of refinement from 5 years ago.
Brent @ Aug 11th 2008 1:58PM
Please look at what it used to look like.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b239/hanyou_kimura/7482016199245938751IM104565x421_A56.jpg
Also, realize the base price is only $17k.
The Luigiian @ Aug 11th 2008 2:57PM
@ Brent: After seeing those pics, a whole LOT better.
I know it costs $17K. The new dash looks good, don't get me wrong. I have an issue with the doors specifically. They look tough but toy-like. There doesn't appear to be much room on the armrest, and the door has no differentiation in color between the crank and the door panel. On the other hand, when you zoom in it looks like they've done a good job on plastics grain. The seats look like they might be too soft and unsupportive, with the same recline levers as they already had. Build quality looks like it might be iffy in a few places.
Bottom line: It looks like it might be uncomfortable. But I'll have to see it in person before I come to a final conclusion.
azzo45 @ Aug 11th 2008 4:46PM
Who cares about the "improved" interior...
... same FUGLY exterior styling still there!
ken_aisin @ Aug 11th 2008 6:30PM
To be honest, if you show me these interior pictures without the Jeep logo on the steering wheel, and ask me what I think of them, I would straightly tell you that it's a made in China vehicle, or a Chinese knock off.
Actually, I've seen made in China interiors that looks better than this.
gforce @ Aug 11th 2008 11:38AM
Looks much better. These are obviously the lower end versions (the Sport). I'm interested to see the differences in the Limited, which from the earlier shots looks to have a fair bit more brightwork.
Brent @ Aug 11th 2008 2:09PM
The limited is the 2nd set of pictures....
TJ @ Aug 11th 2008 11:39AM
looks great!
Bryant @ Aug 11th 2008 11:40AM
Nice swastika there on the driver's side floor
BlackEmblem @ Aug 11th 2008 11:42AM
LOL.
icetraxx @ Aug 11th 2008 12:51PM
At first I had no clue what you meant but now I see. That had to be done on purpose. LOL
HAWC1506 @ Aug 11th 2008 4:06PM
I see what you're talking about but that looks nothing like a swastika haha
The Other Bob @ Aug 11th 2008 11:46AM
As bad as it is, the interior is not what kills this vehicle for me. Its the CVT that kills it. Give me a decent, durable automatic instead and maybe you would have a sale.
MikeW @ Aug 11th 2008 12:10PM
It isn't the CVT that makes it bad, it is Chrysler's piss-poor programming.
Chrysler should program it to operate as a 7 speed auto.
If M-B can have 7 speeds with a 6:1 ratio, so can Chrysler.
Just copy the % change in gearing from the 7g-tronic
1-2 65.3%
2-3 67.2%
3-4 71.2%
4-5 73.1%
5-6 82%
6-7 88.8%
Then you'd have a real good use for the AutoStick.
The Other Bob @ Aug 11th 2008 12:57PM
MikeW-
You might be right, from a performace perspective, but I just cannot trust the durability of a CVT - they all suck and are expensive to replace. I suppose Chrysler's life-time warranty helps with that, but I'd rather have the peace of mind of regular auto instead.