The seating position is high in the Patriot, two inches higher than in the Caliber; with the upright windshield, the forward visibility inspires confidence. The Jeep Patriot Sport's standard front seats have manual adjustment, and come in a material called Vinyl Tech; they're okay, but the optional material called Yes Essentials also fits this Jeep's character. Our seats were a boring Pebble Beige; Slate Gray looks better. Leather in the Limited is great, but seems to overdress the Patriot. In either leather or cloth and vinyl, the materials are two-tone.

The 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. The vinyl panel, with a center stack trimmed in brushed aluminum-look plastic, doesn't try to be stylish; the lines are pretty square, but who cares?

The space between the seats includes a nook for change, two fixed cupholders, and the parking brake lever. A short armrest flips up to open the main console compartment, where there's a pocket for a cellphone or iPod. It slides forward three inches for shorter drivers.

The door pockets are on the small side, but can hold six CD cases; much of the space there 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.

Although the Patriot is more than four inches shorter than the redesigned 2007 Honda CR-V, there's nearly an inch more legroom in the rear seat: a healthy 39.4 inches. That's the same as the Compass and a couple inches more than the Liberty, longest of the three.

The standard rear seat is a 60/40 split that easily folds flat, by flipping up the seat and flopping down the seatback. Reclining rear seats are optional, as is a flat-folding front seat. With everything folded flat, there's a spacious 62.7 cubic feet of cargo capacity, and room for an eight-foot-long kayak, ladder or whatever.

With just the rear seats folded, there's still 54.2 cubic feet; and with all the seats in use there's 23.0 feet in the back, good for any compact SUV. The rear cargo area is something called Ultra Floor, a washable and removable vinyl. No worries with dogs and lawn mowers.