Jason:

Alright Stefan, I got the Jeep Patriot the other day. Interesting car. You’ve driven it right?

Stefan:

I have indeed.

It’s very… Jeepy.

Jason:

Yeah. That’s just what I thought.

It’s not too bad for the price either, considering it starts at $18,000 and hits about $24,000 pretty stocked.

But, you never forget you’re in a Jeep.

Stefan:

You get a lot of capability for the dollar.

A Jeep is a Jeep is a Jeep. They all go everywhere if you do it right.

Jason:

And most of them feel a bit plasticky and a bit rough around the edges… The Patriot being no exception.

Stefan:

True. That said, I’m a big fan of that Chrysler Lifetime Powertrain Warranty. Of course it makes you wonder if it’s the Jeep’s lifetime, or Chrysler’s.

Jason:

Yeah, but we all know Obama will personally pay out of his pocket if something happens to your car after Chrysler goes bankrupt.

I saw it on his campaign trail.

Stefan:

Big promises.

Jason:

But a friend of mine actually has a Patriot, and she loves it. I think it fits her single-mom lifestyle very well. Not a minivan, and not a total gas-guzzler, but still roomie enough for a trip to soccer practice

Stefan:

It is all of those things. They drive well on and off road. Here’s something though. I have a hard time distinguishing between the Partiot and the Liberty and the Compass. I mean, I know they look different, but they seem aimed at the same segment.

Jason:

Yeah. I hear you. It’s part of why a Jeep is a Jeep is a Jeep… I think really they’re all the same car with different logos.

The marketing department just shoots them at different angles.

So I had my test unit for a week. For the most part, I liked driving it. It’s a good size for driving in a city (although, Jeep would never show the unit in an urban landscape, this is only for climbing 14,000 foot mountains you know.)

However, my biggest complaint was that it felt pretty stiff. It wasn’t the smoothest or quietest ride I’ve experienced.

Stefan:

Given the choices in the small, x-over SUV market, cars like the Patriot, Forester, Mazda Tribute, Mitsubishi Outlander, etc, the Patriot would be my choice.

Jason:

Why is that?

And while smaller, do you consider the CR-V in the same market?

Stefan:

Perceived durability, I suppose. All those others are little SUVs built around a car. Jeep only makes Jeeps, and they’re rugged and proven. I consider them more of a 4×4 than and AWD.

Jason:

Yeah, but you pay for that in the day-to-day driving… They’re not exactly like driving a ‘benz.

Stefan:

CR-V and RAV 4 to an extent, sure.

Jason:

But I hear you though. You don’t feel bad inviting your dog into the backseat.

Stefan:

Exactly. The others will certainly feel better on the bum during your day-to-day driving, which, if we’re being honest, is all people who buy these things ever do anyway. I think the CR-V is king of that hill. But my inlaws just hit a deer with their Patriot.

Bent the license plate.

Jason:

haha, nice.

not for the deer, but for the repair bill.

Stefan:

Yeah. I was kind of astounded by that. That seems like Volvo 240 strength to me.

Or a lucky hit.

Jason:

“Jeeps make their own luck”

Stefan:

Is that a slogan?

Jason:

I don’t know why I put that in quotes, it just sort of felt like it deserved it.

Stefan:

It seems apropos.

Jason:

So, summarize: If you can’t distinguish between the other Jeeps in the lineup, don’t feel bad. And if you want to hit deer for fun, the Patriot is a great choice. But all that fun and luck come with a price, a sore bum. Anything I missed?

Stefan:

Don’t expect a whole lot of refinement from the thing.

Jason:

We really just defined the perfect hunting rig… Does it all, even bags the deer.

Stefan:

True story.

Jason:

Alright, that’s our take on the Jeep Patriot. Join us next time when we talk about something else.

Some quick stats on the Big Bad-Ass Box (BBAB):
Model: 2009 LR3
Color: Zermatt Silver w/ Almond Premium Trim
Mileage: 12 city/17 hwy
Price: $55,400

It came with the Heavy Duty Package, the HSE LUX Package, and the 7-Seat Comfort Package. And it has 3 sunroofs. THREE!

But really, how does BBAB drive? It drove amazingly well for a BBAB. Just last week I’d had the distinct pleasure of driving “the-most-expensive-Kia-of-all-time.” It was a $36,000 Kia Borrego, which is simply offensive, but the difference between that Korean appliance and this British exploratory force is far more than the $20,000 that sits between them.

The BBAB was smooth on the highway (like a baby’s bottom, only through the miracle of high-tech suspesnion and Almond leather). It had excellent visability all-around, and glided effortlessly through lane changes all along the urban landscape with which it was tested. Which leads me to my biggest complaint about the car; at almost $56,000, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone willing to take it off-road in order to properly experience it’s rugged capabilities. Driving around the city in this thing feels like making a thoroughbred racehorse give pony rides at the fair. It’s not what it was built for. But, even with all of that potential, it’s a rare safari that takes these high-capacity rigs into the real desert.

Of everyone I know that owns a Land Rover of any kind, none of them take them off the pavement. Not one. And with that, there’s a constant internal conflict that refuses to resolve as you drive it. Everywhere you look inside you’re reminded that you can change it’s ride height, set different performance options for desert, ice, gravel and pavement.

In the end, I thought the car was a fantastic ride. It was smooth and elegant when it needed to be, but tough and brawny, like a big-brother backing you up in a fight. You had no worries as to what mother-nature could throw at you. I just wonder, does a garaged Land Rover LR3 feel trapped in the city like a caged lion? And is it an offense to mother nature to keep her there?

On the outside, the Borrego is a great looking mid-size SUV. It has sophisticated lines, a great looking grill, and the “strong-jaw” of the automotive world; a nice boxy backend. The interior is excellent. Very nice. A bit plasticky in certain spots, but over-all very clean and very efficient. The entire cockpit is designed to give you immediate access to whatever you need, without a stretch or that feeling of being overwhelmed with buttons. That’s good.

It’s also well-equipped in terms of the luxury amenities. It had heated seats and an auxiliary music input with an iPod USB interface, allowing simple control of almost all types of players (and with the USB, it charges the devices as well). Even the way the center console is designed gives you access to devices, with a pass-through to the outlet in which they are plugged in. For a second, you almost feel like somebody finally designed a car that actually thought about how it was going to be used. And they designed a car that fits the way people drive these days. I was truly shocked and impressed with these touches coming out of a car line that has been known for their affordability, not engineering.

The ride height was also well designed, as it allowed you to effortless glide into the seats and out of them. There was no climbing up, like you do in a large SUV, and there was no falling in, as you do in small compacts. You just lean in and sit down.

However, it feels heavy. Too heavy. With it’s low center of gravity and the V6 power-plant, matched with the touchy throttles that all Kias are known for, it was easily one of the most difficult automobiles to drive smoothly. A touch on the gas and it lurched forward, making you adjust your foot, lifting it slightly, which caused a rapid drop in fuel to the engine, causing the vehicle to quickly pull to a slower speed. On again, off again. It really was the most lurching car I’ve ever been in, and I feel that’s largely the responsibility of the gas pedal being overly touchy. It’s also surprisingly big; wide, tall, long… Just a lot to manage when you’re having a hard time with throttle management.

Another major disappointment I suffered in this car was that the key slot sits on a console that is slightly tilted in such a way, that the rest of your keys actually ‘lay’ on the plastic, rather than hanging freely. While this may not sound like a big deal, you quickly realize that your keys are sliding back and forth, rubbing and making a gawd-awful sound as they rub and rub and rub with every turn. And trust me, I’m a person who prides himself on carrying the absolute basic number of keys on his ring, this is just bad design. I mentioned it to Stefan, who drove it three weeks after me, and he immediately came back with the same frustration. It’s little things like this that will cause an otherwise acceptable driving experience to be maddeningly unacceptable.

In the end, the Kia Borrego feels like it’s in conflict with itself. At $36,000 you can drive many other vehicles that are known for their luxury and engineering. And while Kia is definitely growing out of its past econo-image, it hasn’t shed that view completely in most people’s eyes. And for that price, you get a collage of great, well-designed luxuries and features that feel in-line with that coming out of Germany, however with small details like the key-on-the-dashboard and the terrible throttle management, you’re constantly in doubt if the car really is as good as you want to believe. As I got out of the car for the last time, and locked the door walking away, to be honest, I still didn’t know what I thought of the car. At times it changed my mind about Kias, and at others, confirmed what I already believed.

Who doesn’t want to take a the car out from the garage at this guys house. Totally awesome driveway with some nice corners. I have to say, I give him just as much credit for getting this past the wife.

MotiveMag Forums: This guy’s driveway = WIN.

I hoped.

Well, welcome to the future.

ALL VOLVO
While not representing every idea available in the SCC, the Volvo C30 does reveal enough of the SCC as a real production car, and to me it is as exciting as the flat images I saw back in 2001. To walk around it, to see it, the C30 is all Volvo. The face evokes the style and curves that have defined Volvo since the S60 first bent people’s minds around the “new” Volvo in the late 1990s. The sides carry the broad hips most people recognize so easily in the bricky 240 series and the 140s before them. And rear of the car takes you back to the  lovely 1800ES built from 1971 to 73.

But it also takes you forward to the SCC. The rear hatch—complete with its oversized window—looks fabulously matched onto the squat and curvy frame. I admit the rear design might not be for everyone, as I know several people who didn’t fall in love, but for those of us who did, it didn’t matter, because love is all you need, as they say.

THE GUTS
With just one engine option available, I had the 2.5L inline-5 cylinder turbo (borrowed from the S40 and V50). With 216 hp, it was plenty quick and plenty fast. While that number may seem low, Volvo employs it efficiently in the small, 3,000-lb car, and the fun-to-weight ratio was right on. Personally, after 10 minutes of driving this car around city streets, I dubbed it “the Mini killer.” I can’t imagine anyone choosing a Mini Cooper over this thing. One of my gripes with the Mini was a sluggishness off the line, and the C30 certainly took an opportunity to establish itself as a car without such problems.

ABOUT TOWN
Driving the C30 is always fun. It’s a small zippy car with great visibility, and it darts in and out of traffic easily. It jumps from green lights like a greyhound after the rabbit, and it’s comfortable as it does so. In the way a Subaru Impreza or Mini Cooper just aren’t. Sitting in the C30 is also delightful. Volvo endowed all of its cars, from the top-end S80 all the way down to the entry-level C30, with exquisite interior design. Nothing feels cheap or thrown together, and like its big brothers, every detail in the C30 seems well thought out and practical. No dial or gauge is hard to read or reach. No knob is out of place. It looks elegant and simple, something rarely found in cars under $30,000.

And this car, starting at only $23,000, is a steal.

NOT ALL ROSES
The few gripes I have about the C30 are obvious, the kind you might see if you just looked through one of the car’s windows. The back seats are small (yet not so small as those in the Mini), and the car has no rear cargo cover, so anything in the rear compartment is plainly open for anyone to see. While I can see the design didn’t lend itself well to a cover, after having one for years in most of my cars, you do feel a little “exposed” when you have to leave something back there, Especially if its an expensive something.

I would love to see an all-wheel-drive version, but that’s just not an option at the moment. But honestly, that’s about it for my quibbles. It might be impractical as a family car, and it might not be the best “only” car of the family, but when my wife gets around to replacing her current driver, we both agree it will be with one of these.

Five stars.

Sir Ben Kingsley earned an Oscar nomination for his devil-may-care role as the badass Don Logan, and the film’s title, its leading man, and it’s slogan–”Sometimes it’s hard to say no”–perfectly exemplify this most British of sports coupes.

Ironic, then, that Jag hasn’t really been all that British for quite sometime. Even more so now that Ford has sold it off to–of all places–India, where its new parent company, Tata, will write the historic marque’s next chapter.

World automotive political realities aside, the XKR is its own kind of badass. With leading-man looks derived from its former Aston Martin sisters, the car’s shape turns heads. People can’t help themselves when this thing goes by; triple takes and long, drooling stares are not uncommon. That the looks are derivative is a bit unfortunate. I understand those very same automotive realities and the economy of scale, but it would be nice to see an XK as distinct from any other car in the world, the beautiful Aston DBs included. Still, the commoners among us can’t help but crane our necks when this thing rolls by.

Maybe it’s the sound that gets them. The XKR makes great noises and draws its addictive power from a supercharged 4.2-liter V8, putting out 420 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 413 ft-lb of torque at 4,000 rpm. Despite the blower, it plays a fairly insignificant role in the chorus that really begins to scream from beneath that long hood as the revs climb. I don’t have a problem with that, as it certainly does its job with a smooth, even-handed energy that seems all to happy to accommodate a heavy right foot.

We’re talking put-you-in-your-seat, stomach-in-your-chest acceleration here, and once you realize how easy it is to get that feeling, you find yourself aiming for it on every empty bit of road you encounter. The twistier, the better, as the Jag’s relatively lightweight and able suspension make for a car that goes where you point it, with little complaint.

If all that power has a downside, it comes in the way it is put to the rear wheels. Unfortunately, the XKR comes with a 6-speed automatic only, which means anyone looking for the thrill of three-pedal driving should seek it elsewhere. The XKR’s unit is a capable one, I suppose, and offers a remapped, snappy Sport mode with paddle shifters. The system blips the throttle on downshifts, but it’s anything but seamless. In fact, there’s enough jerkiness in the process to make it somewhat distasteful in anything but the most aggressive braking. Ferrari still reigns supreme in this department, and Jaguar’s best just doesn’t cut it here.

Inside, driver and passenger alike are coddled in soft leather and supportive seats. The gauges are well placed, though the touch screen with audio and climate control takes some getting used to. Why they even put a back seat in the thing is beyond me, as you’d have to be a legless dwarf to make it work.

Overall, I’d rank the XKR as the best Jag to come along in years, though certainly it has its faults. For the $86,000 price of entry, you get a well-balanced, sexy beast willing to push you into your seat as long as you can stand on the gas.

It’s hard to say no to that.

Most notably are the obvious. With over 8 inches of ground-clearance, this car sat much taller than it’s little brother. It was slightly longer in the cargo area, and it’s exterior styling was much more aggressive and macho. I’m personally a big fan of the XC styling, and think that has that little something that begs to be taken outside, run through mud puddles, stormed up to the mountain, and hosed off when home. Not to mention the addition of stock four-wheel drive on the XC70s, the differences are slightly more than cosmetic, and Volvo has provided a car worthy of the mountain in both its function and appearance.More…

Another note about the XC70 was that it seemed to be slightly more refined inside. My wife called it “the black-label V70”, noting a few small touches and refinements she hadn’t noticed in the smaller, slightly less expensive V70. Both had family-friendly features such as a B-pillar rear-passenger air vent that was at head-height instead of stuck in the foot compartment of the rear center console. Several passengers riding in the back showed appreciation that they too, like the front seat riders, could adjust warm air to their upper body instead of merely having it pointed at their feet.

One thing my XC70 came equipped that I didn’t see in the V70s option list, was child door locks tied in to the window locks from the driver’s door. On the driver door, where you would expect to find window controls for all four windows, you also had the ability to lock passengers from adjusting their windows. But with this lock, you could also activate the rear child safety locks, keeping your passengers stuck in the back until you chose to release them. We found this feature on accident, as I had inadvertently bumped the window lock feature with my hand, but soon after, as nobody could escape the back seats, we went on a hunt to discover how to deactivate the feature. Evidently, some models have a standard switch inside the door jam, but this XC70 had the feature tied to the window locks. I can see this as both a feature and an annoyance. For those with kids, it would be great to have absolute control over them, their windows, and their doors; however, those with adult friends could easily find themselves bumping the button and locking perfectly responsible people into their car. I guess that’s why it’s an option in this car…

As with the V70, I loved driving this car. And since I’m becoming more and more a fan of increased ground-clearance, I appreciated the taller ride-height. The interior again was beautiful, elegant, and characteristic of modern Volvos, which I not only love, but pine for when driving all but $50,000+ cars. They just know how to make an interior feel like home. With the XC70 starting at only $4000 more than the V70, and the four-wheel drive, improved styling, and slightly longer wheelbase, I’d be hard-pressed to recommend the V70 over this car. But to be honest, I’d be hard-pressed to recommend any other wagon in this class over the XC70. The Outback is nice, but the XC70 is amazing. 5 stars.

Parallel parking has never been this fun. In case driving around in a convertible didn’t make one feel smug enough, pulling up to spaces 95% of cars can not even consider, and swinging in one-handed on the first try is a big perk for me with this little gem. So long as the top is down, changing lanes is a lot of fun too–I confess that behind the Mini wheel, I became a bit prone to “darting.”

There doesn’t seem to be much gray area in Mini public opinion. Most people who saw me in the car were dying for a ride, but those who weren’t didn’t want to touch it with a ten-foot pole. But I’m really on the fence: if you have to describe the Mini in one word it’s easy—FUN. This car made me more excited about “the driving experience” and “the journey” than any other I have ridden in or driven. However, I am not running to the nearest dealership. I felt plenty of “go” moving from second to third or third to fourth, but from a red light or up a steep hill I was disappointed. I was also uncomfortable driving with the top up because of the horrible visibility out the back window. One more note on the convertible top: I never used the half-way open, “built-in sunroof” setting. With the heated seats and the visibility issues, it just seemed like I might as well go all the way.

Style trumps usability on the interior control panel of the Mini for sure. Several features are not where you expect to find them, such as the speedometer, gas gauge and window controls. However, as a designer and student of branding, I appreciated the attention to symmetry and personality in this area. The driver’s seat has a great “cockpit” aura. After the first moment of confusion, for the most part I did not have a hard time adjusting to the unusual layout. I was thankful that the small digital display just above the steering wheel could be customized to show my speed however, as I never did get used to looking at the HUGE speedometer in the center of the dashboard. The buttons on the steering wheel did not have the nice attention to tactile feedback and material finish that the rest of the car displays.

The price on this convertible, leather model was $27, 000. For this price, and the size of the car (don’t kid yourself, no one with legs can sit in the back), I would like to see it get better than 35mpg on the freeway. If they could give me 42, and knock it down to $22,000 you can call me Ms. FUN.