Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start?

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Sharing the GS platform with the Dodge Caliber and the Jeep Compass, the first models of the Jeep Patriot were released to the world in 2007.

While it was widely appreciated, the model had its fair share of issues that raised many concerns.

Many of these issues had the owner asking,” Why won’t my Jeep Patriot start?”.

While the majority of these issues were just faulty components, others were caused by outside conditions which users could not take into account.

The problems were not why it was discontinued in 2017, but they played an important role that led to this decision.

Here are the main reasons why the car from turning on:

  1. Bad Alternator
  2. Bad Starter
  3. Fuel Issues
  4. Dead/Low Charged Battery
  5. Weather Conditions

If you want to understand all these problems for whatever reason, you are well advised to read this article from start to finish.

This will help you identify the key issues in your Jeep Patriot and help to resolve them efficiently.

What Would Cause A Jeep Patriot To Not Start?

What happens when your Jeep Patriot won't start? Read my guide to find the reasons

The Jeep Patriot had a lot of issues that its owners had to deal with.

The most prominent of these issues was the fact that many issues and critical systems would simply fail.

This would be either due to manufacturing faults or damage.

The other issues were region specific and affected the car because of external factors.

1: Bad Alternator

There are usually a few common issues that each car faces when it is unable to start and among these issues is a bad alternator.

The alternator is a very difficult tool to manage and deal with simply because it is so hard to detect any faults.

The reason for this lies in the job of the alternator. The battery of the Jeep Patriot can retain its charge only because of the alternator.

This happens because the alternator converts the mechanical energy generated by the engine and sends it to the battery as electrical energy. This is enough to charge the battery of the car.

If the alternator is busted, it will not be able to charge the battery. This will result in the car being unable to turn on at all.

It is hard to detect this way as you must catch your battery drained multiple times before you figure out the alternator is to blame.

What Should You Do About It?

  • Start to monitor how long the battery of the car lasts and see how many times you find yourself jump-starting it.
  • If the alternator is faulty, you will jump-start the car every day.
  • You should also look for issues like leaks or loose wires. If you find any of these issues, you should get them fixed as soon as possible.
  • If your alternator has any visible damage or does not work, you will have to take it to a mechanic.
  • You can choose to get the alternator fixed, but it may be easier and more reliable to get it replaced with a new one.

2: Bad Starter

The next issue many people can face is the car’s starter, which can easily grow defects over time. The starter has the most important job of actually engaging the engine.

Once the ignition system has started, it is up to the starter to get the engine up and running. It does this by using the small motor to start moving the other parts of the engine.

All of these parts have to start moving in sync if you want to ensure the engine works, which is why the starter motor is integral to starting the car.

Unfortunately, the starter motor or the starter can wear out over time due to any number of issues. This makes it very difficult to get the car started.

While you can use methods to turn the Jeep Patriot on without a working starter, this is not a viable solution to the issue.

What Should You Do About It?

  • The first thing you need to do is to check if the starter motor is working as intended.
  • You can do this by taking the motor out of the car and trying to turn it on.
  • If the motor turns on, your starter should be working, and the problem is somewhere else.
  • If your motor does not spin when it is taken outside the car, it means your starter motor is defective.
  • It is quite difficult to fix the starter motor, so you are better off getting the component replaced with a new one. This might be much cheaper to do as well.

3: Fuel Issues

The Jeep Patriot is also notorious for having fuel system issues. For first-time drivers, you may often forget to top up your tank with fuel.

Without fuel, you cannot hope to turn on your car, so you need a decent amount of fuel. Other common issues you can face with the car are fuel pipes.

You may develop blockages and leaks, which may also prevent adequate amounts of fuel from reaching the engine.

The worst-case scenario that you can develop with your car is component failure.

While most of the fuel system components are built to last, the fuel injectors and, even more commonly, fuel pumps can go bad.

What Should You Do About It?

  • The first thing you will need to do is check if the car has enough fuel in the tank. If it does not, then you will need to get more fuel.
  • Make sure that the fuel pipes do not have any leaks or blockages.
  • You can do this by checking the fuel filters and having them cleaned out if they are blocked.
  • You will have to patch up any leaks if this is the case.
  • If you are facing component failure, you must take the car to the mechanic and have the component assessed.
  • If there are slight issues with the component, then you can get it fixed.

4: Dead/Low Charged Battery

I have already talked about the many major issues that are common to most cars, but the most common concern that people have is, by far, the battery.

The battery is the most integral component of the car as it supplies all the other parts and components with the power they need to turn on and run.

If anything happens to the battery or even around it, it will have a lasting effect on it and degrade its health. Eventually, it will not be able to start the Jeep Patriot.

Issues with the battery can also arise from loose connections of the wires and any corrosion. Here is what you can do if you are dealing with battery issues.

What Should You Do About It?

  • The first thing you need to do is inspect the battery for any corrosion or lose wires. You should be easily able to identify this issue and get it resolved.
  • You can then move on to a voltage test. If the voltage test outputs are below 12 volts, your battery is low on charge.
  • You can simply get the battery jump-started. This will help you if the battery is relatively new.
  • If the battery is very old, you should get yourself a new battery.

5: Weather Conditions

This issue is not a problem of the car directly.

Issues caused by the weather usually occur due to the vehicle’s inability to withstand a certain climate which is why things start to go wrong for the Jeep Patriot once you put it in cold weather.

The cold weather starts by reducing the battery’s power output significantly. It then proceeds to reduce the efficiency of the spark plugs.

Eventually, it will cause so much trouble that your engine will not be able to turn on.

The worst thing about this issue is that you cannot avoid it in certain areas or climates unless you take specific precautions.

What Should You Do About It?

  • Try to keep the car inside and away from the cold weather.
  • Before taking the car for a ride, try to warm up the engine.
  • Since the battery is already working on low power, try to start the car with every non-essential thing off.
  • While this is not a realistic fix, you could try moving to another area with a hotter climate or riding the car during hotter seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start With New Battery?

Please check if the new battery has been installed correctly.

If there are any loose wires, then you will have to reconnect them in their correct positions.

If the battery has been installed correctly, you will likely be dealing with an issue separate from the battery, which you will have to check out.

Q2. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start Even With A Jump?

As I have and will say multiple times in this article, jump starts are the solution to issues related to the battery.

If a jump start does not work, your battery has probably lived past its lifetime and will need to be replaced. This is likely the case; otherwise, your problem lies elsewhere.

Q3. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start But Lights Work?

The lights of any car, whether internal or external, do not require a lot of power from the battery, which is why they can turn on when the engine cannot.

Your battery is probably low on charge, so you can get it to jump start. If it still does not work, you will need a new battery.

Q4. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start But Cranks?

Cranking is what all cars do when attempting to start the engines, but if your Jeep Patriot cranks and still does not start, you are likely dealing with a problem in the ignition system.

Alternatively, you can also be having issues with the fuel system as the engine could be getting less fuel, limiting it from starting.

Q5. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start Just Clicks?

If the Jeep Patriot is clicking, you likely have an issue with an electrical component of the car. This can be anywhere from the battery to the ignition or the starting system.

You may have some loose wires as well, which can be causing the issue, so make sure you find any corroded, loose, or frayed wires and get them fixed.

Q6. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start In The Cold Weather?

As mentioned in the article, the cold weather is very hard on the Jeep Patriot as it directly impacts the battery’s output and prevents it from working at its full potential.

It also makes it much harder for the engine to turn on and the spark plugs to light up the fuel. All of this can be avoided if you keep the car warm.

Q7. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start After I Get Gas?

If you have recently filled your car’s fuel, but it is still not working, then you might be having issues in some other part of the system.

Unless your fuel pipes are blocked or have a faulty component, your issue is somewhere else in the car, and you will need to figure out where.

Q8. Why Won’t My Jeep Patriot Start But Radio Works?

The Jeep Patriot’s radio does not take much power to turn on. For this reason, even a low-charge battery can turn them on. This will not work for the engine, however.

You will need to recharge the battery to get the car up and running. For this, a simple jumpstart should suffice.

Related: What Are The Worst Years For The Jeep Patriot?

Conclusion

What inevitably led to the discontinuation of the Jeep Patriot was its lack of innovation and development over the years.

It had remained mostly unaltered beyond its 11th model, which hurt it in the long run. With that being said, its problems over the years did not help it either.

Issues that make anyone ask, “Why won’t my Jeep Patriot start?” are big problems and sometimes not easy to identify, let alone fix.

Hopefully, with the help of this article, you should be able to identify and solve the problems listed in the article.