Weekend Athlete: 2008 Jeep Patriot

For starters, it’s easy to parallel park, even if the mirrors are set for someone else. Visibility is good, and the load floor is a nice height for both taller and shorter athletes.

As with the Caliber, though, the headrests are fixed, which means folding the rear seats down can be a problem. If you’ve got the front seat reclined too far, the seat won’t fold down. Removable headrests would be better.

The cargo area proper is proportional for a small car; it doesn’t wow you by being bigger than you thought. You’ll have to remove the bike wheel to get the thing in the car, and if you’re carrying a bike and camping equipment it takes a bit of thought to get everything stowed.

As I always say, I’m not out to rip anybody’s car; if this is what you own or want to buy, go for it, but I think you could do better pretty easily.

Weekend Athlete Scores (Out of 10)

Ease of loading gear – 5: I won’t hold its size against it, but there’s not much reason to rank it higher.

Ease of seat operation – 4: Merely having removable head restraints would help so much.

Bike hauling ­– 5: Average for this size of vehicle.

Locker-room cred – 6: It’s better than showing up in a sedan or coupe, and I think it’s preferable to the Caliber.

All-around – 5: Note, the Caliber received a 6.5 under the old grading system, but if I had one today it would probably also score 5.