2009 Jeep Patriot Owner's Manual - Page 281

STARTING AND OPERATING 279 designated and approved. You should tread lightly and avoid damage to the environment. You should know your vehicles abilities and be able to recover it if something goes wrong. You should never stop or shut a vehicle off when crossing deep water unless you ingested water into the engine air intake. If the engine stalls, do not attempt to restart it. Determine if it has ingested water first. The key to any crossing is low and slow. You want to use low (L Off-Road) with the 4WD LOCK engaged and proceed very slowly with a constant slow speed {3-5 mph (5-8 km/h) maximum} and light throttle. Keep the vehicle moving; do not try to accelerate through the crossing. After crossing any water higher than the bottom of the axle differentials, you should inspect all of the vehicle fluids for signs of water ingestion. CAUTION! Water ingestion into the transaxle, transfer case, engine or vehicle interior can occur if you drive too fast or through too deep of water. Water can cause permanent damage to engine, driveline or other vehicle components and your brakes will be less effective once wet and/or muddy. Before You Cross Any Type Of Water As you approach any type of water you need to determine if you can cross it safely and responsibly. If necessary, get out and walk through the water or probe it with a stick. You need to be sure of its depth, approach angle, current and bottom condition. Be careful of murky or muddy waters, check for hidden obstacles. Make sure you will not be intruding on any wildlife and you can recover the vehicle if necessary. The key to a safe crossing is the water depth, current and bottom conditions. On 5