| The seating position is high in the Patriot; with the upright windshield, the forward visibility inspires confidence.
The Jeep Patriot Sport's standard front seats have manual adjustment and come with cloth upholstery.
They're OK, but the optional material called YES Essentials, which is stain, odor and static resistant, fits this Jeep's character better.
The leather upholstery in the Limited is great, but it seems to overdress the Patriot.
The cabin layout is functional and roomy.
The black dashboard and instrument layout is simple, and the gauges are a tidy white on black with glowing orange needles.
The climate and sound system controls are easy to understand and operate.
Jeep says the available UConnect Tunes system can hold up to 6700 songs, which can be ripped from a CD or USB memory stick.
We thought the doors sounded kind of tinny when they were closed.
The space between the seats includes a nook for change or cell phones, two fixed cupholders, and the parking brake lever.
The center console is split for two levels of storage and is now padded.
The door pockets are on the small side, but they can hold six CD cases; much of the space is taken up by the six- by nine-inch speakers.
The door handles are easy to use.
There's a nice tray over the good-sized glove compartment that's big enough for books.
The standard rear seat is a 60/40 split.
It folds flat easily.
Simply flip up the seat cushion and flop down the seatback.
Reclining rear seats are optional, as is a flat-folding front seat.
With the rear seats folded flat, there's a spacious 54.2 cubic feet of cargo capacity.
Fold down the passenger seat, and the Patriot has room for something eight feet long.
With all the seats in use there's 23 cubic feet in the back, comparable with any compact SUV.
The cargo area has a removable carpeted floor. |