SHOCKER: ocnblu goes green!

[ocnblu]

I brought home my new Jeep tonight. Details coming soon.

Edited December 3, 2011 by ocnblu

[Northstar]

Got rid of the Cruze?

[ocnblu]

Yes. Good car, just not for me. Wanted to get back into a 4X4, researched small crossovers, found the attributes I wanted in the Patriot.

[AAS]

Nice! Looking forward to the pictures.

[pow]

Do you have automotive ADD or what?

[ocnblu]

Perhaps. But I'm always more content in a 4X4 than any of my cars. Kumbaya.

[caddycruiser]

Ha. It was about time. Jeep...interesting.

[Drew Dowdell]

add it to the garage!

[Camino LS6]

Saw this one coming a mile away...

Congrats Ocn, hope you enjoy it.

[Cremazie]

Congrats man!

Too bad about the Cruze, they are great cars.. but it is a car.

[GMTruckGuy74]

If you think ocnblu has ADD, just wait until the 2013 (2014?) Chevrolet Colorado comes along....

Oh, and btw, congrats on the Jeep purchase!

[ocnblu]

Thanks folks. I will add it to the garage as soon as I can pose it for pictures.

[ocnblu]

WHOA... just thinking this morning. My new Jeep ® has one of the most diverse backgrounds of any vehicle on the road. It's got a little bit of all of these flavors wrapped up in a sweet little American dish:

Willys

Kaiser

AMC

Renault

Chrysler

Mitsubishi

Diamler

Anyone else in its ancestry? Italians just married in, but haven't been around long enough to add their own spices to the plate.

[pow]

WHOA... just thinking this morning. My new Jeep ® has one of the most diverse backgrounds of any vehicle on the road. It's got a little bit of all of these flavors wrapped up in a sweet little American dish:

Willys

Kaiser

AMC

Renault

Chrysler

Mitsubishi

Diamler

Anyone else in its ancestry? Italians just married in, but haven't been around long enough to add their own spices to the plate.

Hyundai, too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Engine_Manufacturing_Alliance

[ocnblu]

Here are some photos taken today. Sasquatch took the first one. He emailed it to me. He said he likes it:

Edited December 3, 2011 by ocnblu

[Robert Hall]

Looking good...like that green...would like to see a Challenger or Charger in that color..

[A Horse With No Name]

Saw this one coming a mile away...

Congrats Ocn, hope you enjoy it.

Agreed...

[ocnblu]

Thanks everybody. I'm thinkin' it's pretty snazzy. Can't add it to the C&G garage, model year only goes up to 2011.

[pow]

Very nice, congrats! The black cladding makes a world of difference... it looks more truck-like now.

[Drew Dowdell]

Thanks everybody. I'm thinkin' it's pretty snazzy. Can't add it to the C&G garage, model year only goes up to 2011.

It's a shame you don't know who to email about that.....

[balthazar]

WHOA... just thinking this morning. My new Jeep ® has one of the most diverse backgrounds of any vehicle on the road. It's got a little bit of all of these flavors wrapped up in a sweet little American dish:

Willys, Kaiser, AMC, Renault, Chrysler, Mitsubishi, Diamler

Anyone else in its ancestry? Italians just married in, but haven't been around long enough to add their own spices to the plate.

If you're going for every drop of lineage blood, you'd have to include Rambler, Frazer, Hudson, Nash, Knight, Overland, and one of the grandaddies of 4x4s, Jeffery.

[wildmanjoe]

You forgot American Bantam, Ford and AM General.

[daves87rs]

Like it!

[ocnblu]

Cool on the family tree info. I did forget about the other members of AMC, and other companies who built the original military vehicle that became the Jeep. Thanks for the comments.

I'll check the C&G Garage shortly.

[caddycruiser]

Greeny. I like. CVT or geared?

[ocnblu]

Trail Rated Patriots are all CVT, with a low range position on the quadrant for pulling CX-9s out of the ditch.

KIDDING. Thanks, cc.

[AAS]

Looks good!

Do Trail Rated Patriots not come with the other wheels anymore? I think they were 17", 5-spoke wheels with the light and dark finishes (sort of IROC-ish).

[ocnblu]

Thanks, AAS. These are the 17" wheels since the style freshening. They're supremely easy to clean.

Side note: I had a quarter tank to go, but I filled it up. First tank, 21.8 MPG. I was back and forth to work all week with no long trips, then yesterday I did some suburban driving.

[Drew Dowdell]

Question.... will this Patriot make it up the roller ramp like the Subi did or will it sit and spin like the CR-V?

[ocnblu]

It will make it up the ramp... guaranteed.

[ocnblu]

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Bwxi989YMOE?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FRMXt9QCiyw?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Edited December 5, 2011 by ocnblu

[Drew Dowdell]

Woah, they really did make it trail rated!

[caddycruiser]

Friend I sold my Avalanche too wanted to buy one of these before, back in the first model year. This from an Expedition, Explorer, truck, etc. guy. CVT and all, he really really liked driving it, CVT included.

Always seemed to be a well done little ute, even vs. the weird Compass it shares guts with.

[caddycruiser]

Trail Rated Patriots are all CVT, with a low range position on the quadrant for pulling CX-9s out of the ditch.

KIDDING. Thanks, cc.

Ha. I'll just out slalom you, at full throttle. Rocks and ditches...

[A Horse With No Name]

Thanks, AAS. These are the 17" wheels since the style freshening. They're supremely easy to clean.

Side note: I had a quarter tank to go, but I filled it up. First tank, 21.8 MPG. I was back and forth to work all week with no long trips, then yesterday I did some suburban driving.

Not bad...

Woah, they really did make it trail rated!

Jeep doesn't play around....

[the_yellow_dart]

Holy cow, how can you guys afford to just change your mind like that? Don't you lose like $5k in the process?

[67impss]

I'm impressed for sure with those Vids

[Drew Dowdell]

Holy cow, how can you guys afford to just change your mind like that? Don't you lose like $5k in the process?

[Cory Wolfe]

I think Ocn wins any new car buying contest.

Congrats on the Jeep. My Grandpa is still enjoying his.

[A Horse With No Name]

I'm impressed for sure with those Vids

I am also, for sure.

[knightfan26917]

ocn ... CONGRATULATIONS on the new Jeep!

Sure wish I could afford a new car...lol.

Cort | 38.m.IL | pigValve + paceMaker + cowValve | 5 MCs + 1 Caprice Classic

CHD.MCs.CC + RoadTrips.hobbies.RadioShows.us66 = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"Somebody snitched on me" __ Barry Gordon __ 'Nuttin' For Christmas'

[ocnblu]

Thanks! I'm enjoying riding higher off the ground, having an accessible, roomy cargo hold, and all-weather mobility in a small, maneuverable CUV package with iconic Jeep style.

[ocnblu]

I'm loving this thing more each day. No issues to report after 1k miles. The remote start, sunroof and heated seats are really nice to have, among other things, and I've gotten several compliments on the colour.

[A Horse With No Name]

Hopefully this thing lives around here for awhile...

[knightfan26917]

Hopefully this thing lives around here for awhile...

*chuckles*

After reading OCN's update ... and BEFORE I saw your post ... I thought the EXACT same thing.

Ohhhh...to have a new(er) car.....

Cort | 38.m.IL | pigValve + paceMaker + cowValve | 5 MCs + 1 Caprice Classic

CHD.MCs.CC + RoadTrips.hobbies.RadioShows.us66 = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy" __ Eagles __ 'Take It Easy'

[Blake Noble]

Side note: I had a quarter tank to go, but I filled it up. First tank, 21.8 MPG. I was back and forth to work all week with no long trips, then yesterday I did some suburban driving.

Have you seen any improvement since this post, blu?

Do Trail Rated Patriots not come with the other wheels anymore? I think they were 17", 5-spoke wheels with the light and dark finishes (sort of IROC-ish).

While those rims do resemble the old IROC 5-spokes, they were more or less modeled after the old "Icon" and "Ecco" rims from the XJ Cherokee:

XJ Cherokee "Icon" 16" alloy rim:

XJ Cherokee "Ecco" 15" alloy rim:

MK Patriot 17" alloy rim:

Additionally, the "Icon" and "Ecco" rims may possibly mount up to a Patriot, provided they provide ample clearance for the disc brakes. I know people mount the MK 17" rims up to XJs all day long without any problems.

What really looks sweet on MKs and XJs alike are the Wrangler Rubicon "Moab" 16" or 17" rims:

Jeep upgraded the rims on their Patriot Extreme concept to a set of Moabs (they had to install a 2" lift to fit the meater rubber):

Edited January 9, 2012 by black-knight

[ocnblu]

Fuel economy is still hovering about the same. Non-Trail Rated 4WD Patriots are rated 1 mpg higher in city and 3 mpg higher highway with manual transmission, I believe, if that is your goal. Did not test drive one without FDII. FDII CVT shifts once like a 2-speed. Very decent to drive, I was surprised at how agreeable the powertrain combo is. It does not feel like a hotrod, but it has the deliberate throttle action an off-road vehicle should have. My advice: try a couple different configs to see which you like best.

[ocnblu]

Clarification further: I'm lovin' this Jeep, and it is giving me the mileage I expected, in line with EPA estimates.

[Blake Noble]

I spent some of the day today with a 2007 model (4WD Sport, CVT2, Steel Blue Metallic) and $10 bucks was enough to put almost a half tank of 87 octane in it. The mileage was very impressive for an SUV of its capabilities and class, possibly exceeding the EPA scores.

The CVT is very suprising, although it made the little guy sound a bit like a snowmobile (which, oddly enough, began to grow on me after a while).

Edited January 10, 2012 by black-knight

[ocnblu]

With a 13.5 gallon tank, it does not cost much to fill it up, and I can still run 2 weeks back and forth to work if I don't take too many side trips on the weekend.