New here, have a few quick ?'s

[JohnnyBGood]

Hi everyone, new here from the NOVA area and thought this would be a good place to start my questions. I'm on the fence between 2 Jeeps to get in about 6 months. Either will be a 2010-11-12 CPO vehicle, under warranty, etc. Both will be automatic, but I'm not sure to go more practical Patriot, or Liberty, seeing how the new style looks sweet and they're discontinued in 2013. Patriot's smaller engine and cabin slightly, more ground clearance by like .3 in. but nevertheless. I want a truck with HDC and traditional 2wd, w/ 4Lo-Hi selectability as well. Thoughts ? The only other contender I can think of is an FJ, for the same cost as these, roughly 15-18k, but with 20k or more miles on the clock. Educate me.

 

[NJallDAY]

I would pick a liberty over the patriot, bu thats just me. You should get what you want, as long as both are sound well maintained vehicles it should be up to your personal preference.

 

[rockymountain]

Liberty. better looks, tougher. Actually has 4hi and a 4lo because it has an actual transfercase. And patriots have a CVT, (unless that's changed).

 

[JohnnyBGood]

Oh yeah good point, I know that some of the Patriots are AWD or fulltime 4wd, however you want to say it, and some are only 2wd I think ? I want something with traditional 4-HI and 4W-LO, not fulltime 4wd that will eat more gas, as if any option is economical really. After looking at my 2012 Patriot brochure, it's offered with a "Freedom Drive II" Off road group, that has what it calls CVT2L with Hill Descent Control like the Liberty, ofcourse the tow rating for the 2.4L is only 2K lbs VS the Liberty's 5K rating.

 

[JohnnyBGood]

Another follow-up, anyone know if the Liberty or Patriot have a timing chain instead of a belt ? I know the FJ has a chain but it's also more expensive and the worst efficient on gas too, plus I can't see commuting 90 miles a day/5 days a week in one either Just a matter of deciding on a Jeep now I think !

 

[hectikart]

Liberty is a belt and I would imagine the patriot is too. Wranglers have chains, or at least the TJ did. I haven't been under the hood of a JK. I would imagine the XJ's have chains since its the same 4.0 engine, but I could be wrong. I wouldn't get a patriot. I was with someone who test drove one and it just had no power. Engine was whiny, and seemed to have trouble getting up to speed merging into highway traffic. And you can just tell it is not built for off-road applications. Wrangler, Cherokee and Liberty are all built on truck chassis, which lends itself to the trail rating. Patriot and compass are built on a car chassis. The 4x4 probably does ok in snow on the road, but I wouldn't expect more than that out of it. I don't hate FJ's, but there's no replacement for a jeep.

 

[rockymountain]

The 3.7 is a chain driven timing system.

 

[hectikart]

The 3.7 is a chain driven timing system.

He's right...my bad

 

[rockymountain]

The only advantage of a Patriot is gas mileage quite simply.

 

[sevenhelmet]

I wouldn't even say that. I rented a Patriot on a business trip one, and was absolutely not impressed at all. It was gutless, there's a power lag with the CVT, it only had a 10 gallon tank and still got SUV mileage (I got about 14 MPG, way worse than my Liberty!), and the filler tube had some weird "quick fill" thing going on where there was no gas cap (supposed to be that way, apparently- WTF?)

You get what you pay for. I vote Liberty.

 

[Marlon_JB2]

Everyone is moving to capless fill.

Patriot does have low range if you get Freedom Drive II.

The 3.7L in the Liberty and the 2.4L in the Patriot are both timing chain engines.

Patriot *can* wheel.

I know your pain as my 6 day/wk commute is about 80 miles a day roundtrip.

Buy the Liberty.

 

[SniperJF]

I was originally going to get a Patriot because of the Price and look but when I saw the Chromed Liberty Jet Limited I fell in love with it. I drove both cars within seconds of each other to really get a sense of handling and power and honestly the Liberty wins by miles (pun lol). It is a far better and superior vehicle. It's also taller or feels taller than the Patriot so it's a better SUV at least for me being tall.

Good luck and be sure to get the best deal!