Bogie's New Vehicle

Sunday, after getting back from the fruitless dickering at Nissan, I spent a lot of time online figuring out which vehicles might fill my needs. My requirements were, I thought, modest; it must hold 4 passengers comfortably (doesn't happen often, but sometimes we take others with us and we can't cram into WS's xtra cab), folding rear seats for taking the dogs to the vet, 4WD, standard transmission and All Terrain tires.

I thought about a Tacoma (of which WS has one), but to get a true 4 passenger capability I would have to get the double cab - which is out of my price range. Same for other makes and models.

So, I decided to re-look at what I had looked at hardest during cash for clunkers - a Jeep Patriot. There are two issues with those - finding a standard transmission can be a hassle, and it isn't true 4WD. The Patriot is All Wheel Drive, that can be forced into 4WD mode - but it has no 4Low (a crawler gearing for super sloppy conditions). Technically, I could get the off-road package and get a true 4WD, but that adds to the cost and puts it out of range for me.

After performing an internet search of inventories, I found a dealer in Keene that had 5 standard transmission Patriots - pretty good considering during CforC, there was only 1 in the state, and on Monday, the only ones in the state were at the one dealership.. As for the AWD-4WD, I figured I could get by with the set up presented. Fortunately (or unfortunately), the my pet-sitting customers that live in the real boonies have re-homed their horses, so I no longer have to get there. Also, I no longer work in a job that I have to get to work at a certain time, so if conditions are really bad, I can leave later (after the roads have been plowed).

So, I contacted the dealer in Keene by email, I set up a test drive for Tuesday late morning, stating out my needs to the salesman. He had a problem with my need for AT tires, since they don't come standard. But I pointed out that he had a Patriot enroute (on the truck) that had the tire package that I wanted. Since I had enquired about a specific vehicle in his inventory, I could understand why he didn't look this up. Obviously, this dealer had a very good website since I was able to determine what was in inventory and what was still to come!

Tuesday, I left at 9:30, for my test drive. The vehicle was a bit smaller than my Xterra; not as wide or as tall, but probably the same length. Additionally, the Patriot sits lower, so the ground clearance isn't the same. However, to make up for this, the MPG is 23-28. I've been getting 18.5 with the NIssan, and with all the miles I travel per year, the MPGs were attractive.

The salesman was great, explained everything that I wanted to know, never any pressure and didn't ask when WS was going to look at the vehicle (God, I hate when they do that!). I asked them to appraise the Xterra for trade-in value, and they came back with a number that I liked. With the cash back from Jeep, the numbers looked good, so I spent most of the afternoon in paperwork.

At 3:45 Tuesday afternoon this was sitting in our driveway:

 

Yes, I know, once again I've managed to get a really ugly vehicle (but, for a change, the ugliest part is the front end - not the back end). Hey, but all jeeps are ugly (except the Wrangler), so what do you want?

I haven't gotten to drive it in snow yet, but since it is supposed to snow most of the weekend, that is coming soon. I have put on about 150 miles and really like the zippy 4 cylinder engine, the clutch is quite smooth (and, it has a hill holder - quite a nice feature that I just found out about yesterday) and the heater is quite effective.

WS hasn't seen the inside yet, and has only seen the outside in the dark or under a blanket of snow. Not that it matters, he won't be driving this anyway.

I hope this one serves me better and longer than the Xterra did!

Comments

[Cop Car]

Bogie--Congratulations - it is beautiful! Surely a Jeep will give you good, long, faithful service. Happy 2010!

[Wichi Dude]

Nice. Appearance is all a matter of taste, to me, I don't think it looks bad at all. As long as it gets you from point "A" to point "B" easily, safely, cheaply, and dependably, that's all that matters.

[DCE]

I remember when you got the Xterra all those miles ago. The new ride looks pretty darn good!