The Compass/Patriot/Caliber does have Electronic Stability Program. Regardless, the handling is much more similar to a small car or CUV than a SUV.
With a $10k budget, you shouldn’t have much problem finding a used Patriot with fairly low mileage if you look hard enough. We have a Jeep Compass with 70k miles and have never had any problems with it.
Aside from it being unreliable and unsafe, it isn’t a real Jeep IMO. It doesn’t come standard with 4WD and is based on the Caliber, which means that it won’t do well off-road.
Hmmmm…Do you suppose that those factors might have been part of this vehicle’s CR rating of #23 out of 26 vehicles in that category?
The only small SUVs that were rated lower than the Patriot were the Jeep Compass, Dodge Nitro, and Jeep Liberty. Do you notice a pattern there?
Ahhhh, Chrysler ? Do I get a prize ?