Autoblog

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Calling it a crossbreed between the Wrangler and Grand Cherokee, Jeep today took the covers off the Bluetec diesel-powered Trailhawk concept. The Trail Rated off-roader is intended to provide a means for transporting four people off-road, and the three-panel removable glass roof allows the rock-crawling to commence with the open sky above. A chopped roofline and fat fender flares almost give it a low-slung appearance, and the interior shows off some clever touches such as rear-mounted speakers that dismount to provide portable audio.

This concept would probably make more sense if Jeep hadn't just released the Wrangler Unlimited, a user-friendly way (at least when compared to previous Wranglers) to accomplish the same task.

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This is the kind of sub-$20k SUV we expect from Jeep, rather than the Compass that’s barely trail rated to cross the street let alone a rocky fjord. The Patriot, however, will share much of its mechanicals with the Compass, including the 2.4L World Engine four-cylinder that produces 172 hp and 165 ft-lbs. of torque and your choice of either a standard five-speed or CVT transmission. The Patriot can be had in mild mannered FWD trim or with two other more capable off-road packages that do a passable job of impersonating a real Jeep.

The first is called Freedom Drive I and features available full-time, active four-wheel drive with a trick Lock mode that acts like full-time four-wheel drive. The Freedome Drive II package jacks the Patriot up an inch and comes with a second-gen CVT that’s got  a “low range” mode, skid plates, tow hooks, a full-size spare and such electronic off-road nannies as Hill-Descent Control, Off-Road Brake Traction Control and ESP.

The Patriot will go on sale in the third quarter of 2006 and will be built by the prodigal employees of the Belvidere assembly plant.

There’s lots more details on the Patriot in Jeep’s full press release after the jump, as well as a full gallery of pics.

[Source: Jeep]

Jeep's controversial new compact SUV will tap your wallet for $15,985 (MSRP, including destination charges). Arriving in U.S. and international dealerships in the fall, Jeep's first-ever road-biased crossover is targeted squarely at young, first-time Jeep buyers (ages 25-35, with a predicted 60-percent female 'take' rate).

According to Chrysler, 368,000 compact SUVs were sold in the U.S. in 2005, a 24-percent uptick from 2004. The company expects the segment to continue to grow, nearly tripling in size over the next ten years.

The base model ships with FWD, powered by Chrysler's 172 hp, 2.4-liter World Engine through a five-speed manual transaxle. Customers can step up to a full-time 4x4 "Freedom Drive I"-equipped Compass at an MSRP of $17,585. Those with a bit more scratch will have the choice of going for the Compass Limited (FWD) at $20,140, or the full-boat Compass Limited 4x4 at $21,740.

[Source: Chrysler Group]