Jeep

2010 Jeep Liberty Sport Four-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A five-passenger, four-wheel drive sport utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families who need no more than two LATCH positions, decent cargo space and off-road capability.
What's Hot: Reversible cargo floor, full-length canvas roof.
What's Not: Poor fuel economy for such a small vehicle.
Family Friendly Options: Navigation, Bluetooth cell phone integration.
How It Got Its Score: The four-wheel drive Liberty costs more than the rear-drive model, dragging its Family Friendliness score downward despite good crash test scores. Some of the blame lies with poor fuel economy.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 7.5

2010 Jeep Liberty Sport Rear-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A five-passenger, rear-wheel drive sport utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families who need no more than two LATCH positions and ample cargo room.
What's Hot: Reversible cargo floor, full-length canvas roof.
What's Not: Poor fuel economy for such a small vehicle.
Family Friendly Options: Navigation, Bluetooth cell phone integration.
How It Got Its Score: The Liberty's low price and good crash test scores help offset its poor fuel economy rating.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 7.7

2010 Jeep Patriot Limited Front-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A small, five-passenger, front-wheel drive crossover utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families who dig the Jeep look but don't need off-road capability.
What's Hot: Neat looking Jeep styling, one of the lowest priced crossovers on the market, more powerful engine than base model.
What's Not: Cheap interior, noisy engine.
Family Friendly Options: Seat-mounted airbags, upgraded audio system, Bluetooth, navigation, iPod integration.
How It Got Its Score: The Jeep Patriot Limited is the model Jeep wants you to buy, and it saves most of the good options for its most expensive model. However, the higher price hurts its Family Friendliness rating.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 7.9

2010 Jeep Patriot Sport X 2.0-Liter With Front-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A small, five-passenger, front-wheel drive crossover utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families on a tight budget who dig the Jeep look.
What's Hot: Neat looking Jeep styling, one of the lowest priced crossovers on the market.
What's Not: Cheap interior, too many features are optional.
Family Friendly Options: Seat-mounted airbags.
How It Got Its Score: The Jeep Patriot Sport X leaves a lot of things on the table that should be standard, such as air conditioning. Its low price bumps up its score, and its interior volume pushes it into the midsize class of crossovers, but it's still a small crossover.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 8.2

2010 Jeep Patriot Sport X 2.4-Liter With Front-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A small, five-passenger, front-wheel drive crossover utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families on a tight budget who dig the Jeep look.
What's Hot: Neat looking Jeep styling, one of the lowest priced crossovers on the market, more powerful engine than base model.
What's Not: Cheap interior, too many features are optional.
Family Friendly Options: Seat-mounted airbags, upgraded audio system.
How It Got Its Score: The Jeep Patriot Sport X leaves a lot of things on the table that should be standard, such as air conditioning. Its low price bumps up its score, and its interior volume pushes it into the midsize class of crossovers, but it's still a small crossover.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 8.1

2010 Jeep Patriot Sport X All-Wheel Drive

What it Is: A small, five-passenger, all-wheel drive crossover utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families on a tight budget who dig the Jeep look.
What's Hot: Neat looking Jeep styling, one of the lowest priced crossovers on the market.
What's Not: Cheap interior, too many features are optional.
Family Friendly Options: Seat-mounted airbags, upgraded audio system, navigation, Bluetooth, USB, iPod
How It Got Its Score: All-wheel drive Jeep Patriots come with a bigger engine and a more straightforward lineup. However, nearly everything is on the options list, and you have to move up to the more expensive Limited model even to get Bluetooth.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 8.1

2010 Jeep Patriot Sport X All-Wheel Drive Freedom Drive II

What it Is: A small, five-passenger, all-wheel drive crossover utility vehicle.
Who it's For: Families on a tight budget who dig the Jeep look and occasionally need a low range.
What's Hot: Neat looking Jeep styling, low range most competitors lack.
What's Not: Cheap interior, too many features are optional.
Family Friendly Options: Seat-mounted airbags, upgraded audio system, navigation, Bluetooth, USB, iPod
How It Got Its Score: The Freedom Drive II package adds a low-range to the Jeep Patriot, giving it off-road ability its competitors lack. Still, there are way too many options unavailable on lower models, and fuel economy suffers with the bigger engine.

Quick Specs

Family Friendliness: 8.0