Topic: Test Drive: 2012 Jeep Compass North 4X4

[Autos_Editor]

Although a great alternative to a compact sedan or AWD hatchback, the Jeep falls short as a fully equipped compact SUV.

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[Thinking Out Loud]

I was at the Chrysler dealer recently after getting my Wrangler and I was truly 'sticker shocked' at $32,000 MSRP - almost identical to the Wrangler I got in price (likley only a few thousand less than the 4 door Wrangler).

They are playing in RAV4 and CRV and Santa Fe and ...... other bigger, newer and more competant players.

Hope there is $10,000 in cash on the hood of this!?

[D70]

Near the end of its life cycle with a Fiat based equivalent ( Alfa Romeo Giulietta–based ) about to be launched in the near future I would think. However I spotted one in a real outpost where 95% of the vehicles are Land Rovers

http://www.flickr.com/photos/d70w7/5384750708/

[Winterpeg]

It's time for the Compass to "point" in another direction.....and earth calling Jeep, get rid of those dredded cvts for a REAL auto.   

[richink]

I can easily understand the attraction to the Rubicon or even a Grand Cherokee, I can also very much appreciate all the effort that has gone into Chrysler vehicles of late. This just makes me want to It's kinda like Chrysler forgot the poor little Compass, or they ran out of time and/or money to do anything significant about it.

I never knew how Chrysler so skillfully messed up the Lancer platform to make the Caliber such an awful vehicle to drive, this just just a Caliber on stilts with a gangly application of Jeep styling that comes off as pretentious. That interior is futtbucking ugly. The list price of this vehicle is utterly laughable at $32,815.

[Mike]

It's kinda like Chrysler forgot the poor little Compass,

Fully agreed.  That is what I was alluding to in the article.  The Caliber not getting a refresh makes sense since it was to be replaced, but this vehicle received a sort of half-baked refresh.

[Soram6275]

Unless I got this as a second hand beater, I don't see any point whatsoever to this "wannabe" Jeep.

[CanuckS2K]

I can easily understand the attraction to the Rubicon or even a Grand Cherokee, I can also very much appreciate all the effort that has gone into Chrysler vehicles of late. This just makes me want to It's kinda like Chrysler forgot the poor little Compass, or they ran out of time and/or money to do anything significant about it.

I never knew how Chrysler so skillfully messed up the Lancer platform to make the Caliber such an awful vehicle to drive, this just just a Caliber on stilts with a gangly application of Jeep styling that comes off as pretentious. That interior is futtbucking ugly. The list price of this vehicle is utterly laughable at $32,815.

That's certainly one accurate way of describing that interior.   

[5 Wheel Drive]

A guy I work with has one, I've been in it a few times.  I agree with all you had to say Mike.  There's lots of room inside.  But the plastics and the fit & finish are simply horrible.  The engine is loud and thrashes like someone dropped a bolt into the oil filler cap.  The whining cvt just makes it all the worse.

A friend of mine had a Caliber as a rental last year after his Corolla got rear ended.  It was 15 years old or so, it was written off.  Going from a beat up 15 year old Corolla with no a/c to a brand new Caliber...he hated every second of it and could wait to give it back.  What does that tell you???

[Ace]

With all your negative comments eg. poor mileage, sub par fit and finish, so so handling, crappy trans., how can you say "It's still a great deal"?? If it looks, sounds and walks like a duck; call it a duck !!!

[Mike]

With all your negative comments eg. poor mileage, sub par fit and finish, so so handling, crappy trans., how can you say "It's still a great deal"?? If it looks, sounds and walks like a duck; call it a duck !!!

Well, you carefully and selectively picked a few words from my review.  Keep reading that paragraph and you would see the rational behind that phrase.  I 100% stand behind the comment that at $18,000, the Compass is a great deal.  Hard to get a more spacious and versatile new vehicle for that money.

Even with its negatives, the Compass is still a great deal.  Judged on its own merits, it is a solid vehicle when compared to other lower-priced models, as it is possible to purchase this high-riding, spacious CUV for the price of a similarly-optioned Honda Civic.  However, when viewing it against the wider variety of choices in its class, it becomes harder to justify.  Check off too many option boxes and the Compass wanders into Honda CR-V/Subaru Forester/Toyota RAV4 territory, where it starts to lose its appeal.  And that basically sums up this Jeep: it is a great alternative to a compact sedan or all-wheel drive hatchback, but not so great as a fully-equipped compact SUV.

[hemusbull]

Whit new management under FIAT, Chrysler forgot who are they. And I'm furious knowing FIAT's expertise in lower priced vehicles, including small 4x4s like Panda. There were years when they sold them...in supermarkets in Europe with advertising sticker price of 10 euro grands. Do you guys want to follow the catastrophic sales results of the new 500?
Hello fellow Mr Marchionne, you should listen to our posters here!

[Fobroader]

Unless I got this as a second hand beater, I don't see any point whatsoever to this "wannabe" Jeep.

A rebadged Caliber doth not make a Jeep, not saying everyone needs a Rubicon, but come on, a rebadged Caliber?!?!?! Bring back the Cherokee, you know, the one with the 2 solid axles, a proper 4 spd auto and actual offroad ability that you sold millions of. I think since 2002 Jeeps been declining.....it all started with the Liberty, continued with the minivan motor inside of the Wrangler and has steadily continued with the Compass/Patriot.

[Spec5]

I'm amazed anyone with any common car sense would buy one of these things. Having said that I bet it will sell a lot better now with the new face on it and some actual potential to do more than traverse a road with a snow drift.

[richink]

Bring back the Cherokee, you know, the one with the 2 solid axles, a proper 4 spd auto and actual offroad ability that you sold millions of. I think since 2002 Jeeps been declining.....it all started with the Liberty, continued with the minivan motor inside of the Wrangler and has steadily continued with the Compass/Patriot.

That was in fact the idea behind the Liberty and it's Dodge underpin twin the Nitro. Solid axles make for lumbering, dinosaur-like handling on road, 99.999999% of people who buy SUV's will never have them in that kind of off road scenario to benefit from that kind of set up.

I hear you though, but Jeep has been suffering from the same misguided management decisions that drove Chrysler to the brink of extinction 3 years ago. Hopefully the Italians will change that once and for all.

[Fobroader]

Bring back the Cherokee, you know, the one with the 2 solid axles, a proper 4 spd auto and actual offroad ability that you sold millions of. I think since 2002 Jeeps been declining.....it all started with the Liberty, continued with the minivan motor inside of the Wrangler and has steadily continued with the Compass/Patriot.

That was in fact the idea behind the Liberty and it's Dodge underpin twin the Nitro. Solid axles make for lumbering, dinosaur-like handling on road, 99.999999% of people who buy SUV's will never have them in that kind of off road scenario to benefit from that kind of set up.

I hear you though, but Jeep has been suffering from the same misguided management decisions that drove Chrysler to the brink of extinction 3 years ago. Hopefully the Italians will change that once and for all.

The Liberty was recieved by the Jeep crowd like a warm cup of chum....it did nothing better than the Cherokee, it got worse gas mileage, was harder to work on, wasnt built as well and suffered all sorts of electrical gremlins. Jeep needs to refocus itself, You have one great offroader(JK), one suburban soccer mom assault vehicle (WKII), you need to get the rest of the lineup up to snuff. 

[richink]

The Liberty was recieved by the Jeep crowd like a warm cup of chum....it did nothing better than the Cherokee, it got worse gas mileage, was harder to work on, wasnt built as well and suffered all sorts of electrical gremlins. 

Yep I hear you once again. Cherokee's as they were when last produced were decently built if not crude beasts, reliable enough, that 4.0L straight six was tough as nails and a torque monster for it's day. If I remember correctly those things were good for 230 lb/ft at very reasonable engine speeds, trully amazing for a brick hammer engine. I'm sure there will be an abundant supply of these trucks from salt free regions for years to come, the MOPAR community will support parts ad infinitum.

Liberty's and Nitro's were downright awful. About 5 years ago I was speaking with my brother-in-law and how him and his gf had just got a great deal on a little truck. Much to my shock and awe the "great" deal was a 2002 Jeep Liberty. He saw the look on my face and heard the pitch drop in my voice but assured me it was in near-showroom shape. Sure enough it almost immediately lived up to it's the unreliable and gas gulping reputation of it's brethern. Shortly thereafter he took a contract in AB so fortunately for me I never (awww shucks) HAD to turn a wrench on it. It went out there with them. Last I heard it became so unreliable that my B-I-L mounted a snowplow on it to clear the driveway and bought his gf a Fusion. When they came back to Ontario last summer there was no Jeep to be seen. Likely included as an accessory when they sold their house.

[X-Traction]

I think there's a place for this Compass and the Patriot.  If you happen to want a smallish suv that has a low range or gear, the only alternative is the Suzuki Grand Vitara.  SOME people really do use their small suv's for what the commercials depict.  An off-road equipped Compass or Patriot will do things you'd never dare to try or accomplish with a Rav4, Escape, CRV, Forester, Rogue, X3, Tiguan, baby Land Rover, etc. etc. etc.

Though it isn't a full-on off-road capable 4x4, the Grand Vitara is no slouch in the rough stuff.  I've gone head-to-head with an equivalent Patriot, and the Patriot was a match for the Grand Vitara for ditches and rock crawling.  The Grand Vitara is better in snow and on ice, and is just better turned-out overall.

Though the price for the Compass seems high, I'd guess you could get it discounted more than perhaps any similar small suv.  So basically I don't understand the hate for the Compass/Patriot.

[Fobroader]

the Grand Vitara was a great little truck, full frame, real 4 wheel drive and a lot of aftermarket support. Jeep has always been one of those customizable vehicles that the aftermarket has embraced fully and their owners have always taken advantage of that. With the new models, not talking about the Wrangler, the aftermarket has stepped back. You can get a full coilover link suspension for a Cherokee with no problem, try finding something for a KJ/KK(Liberty). I just hope their new models get back into that way of thinking.

[sacrat]

With all your negative comments eg. poor mileage, sub par fit and finish, so so handling, crappy trans., how can you say "It's still a great deal"?? If it looks, sounds and walks like a duck; call it a duck !!!

Well, you carefully and selectively picked a few words from my review.  Keep reading that paragraph and you would see the rational behind that phrase.  I 100% stand behind the comment that at $18,000, the Compass is a great deal.  Hard to get a more spacious and versatile new vehicle for that money.

Even with its negatives, the Compass is still a great deal.  Judged on its own merits, it is a solid vehicle when compared to other lower-priced models, as it is possible to purchase this high-riding, spacious CUV for the price of a similarly-optioned Honda Civic.  However, when viewing it against the wider variety of choices in its class, it becomes harder to justify.  Check off too many option boxes and the Compass wanders into Honda CR-V/Subaru Forester/Toyota RAV4 territory, where it starts to lose its appeal.  And that basically sums up this Jeep: it is a great alternative to a compact sedan or all-wheel drive hatchback, but not so great as a fully-equipped compact SUV.

Hi Mike. I understand the reader's perception problem because it took a bit to get to the point further down the paragraph. Had you said "Even with it's negatives, the base model Compass is still a great deal" it would have been clearer where you were heading. Great article overall, and I speak for many here who appreciate that you hang out to discuss your articles and others as well. You come across as a true "enthusiast".