Vehicle on test
Jeep Compass
Good:
Luggage space, ride & handling
Not so Good:
Looks, performance, noisy diesels
Overall:
You’ve probably heard the old line “if it looks good, it probably is good”. It flashed through my mind when I first clapped eyes on the Jeep Compass, only with “doesn’t” and “isn’t” replacing the rather more positive original words. Jeep reckons the Compass takes the company into a whole new marketplace; one that it’s never really thought about until fairly recently. The rise in popularity of the so-called “soft-roaders” in recent years means that it’s a corner of the market they can no longer afford to ignore and so the Compass is targeting (drum roll) – “young and female buyers”. Women, then.
Walking around the Compass, I can’t say that my first impression was changed in any way. Okay, it looks like a Jeep from the front, with that seven-slotted grille and the round headlights, but the rest of the car looks a bit odd, to be honest. Take a look at the video and you’ll see what I mean – the detail line that runs the length of the car’s side wanders up and down depending on whether it’s a wheel arch or a door it’s crossing.
Climbing inside, another first impression and another black mark; the black and chrome dashboard reminded me of the Dodge Caliber. To be fair, the standard leather seats were pretty comfortable, while folding the rear row of seats unlocks a respectable amount of space. The Compass gets a decent amount of standard-issue kit and at around £18,000 for the diesel-engined model we tested, and a little over £19,000 for the two 2.4 litre petrol-engined variants, it offers good value for money.
Driving the Compass over a variety of Scottish roads demonstrated that its handling is not at all bad. It’s actually the first Jeep that offers front-wheel drive, with drive to the rear wheels only kicking in when things get a bit slippery. That’s no surprise; all the vehicles it’ll be competing with have a similar set-up, although the likes of the Freelander, the Honda CR-V, Nissan X-Trail, Toyota RAV4 and the Mitsubishi Outlander have all been at it a little while longer. I’d liked to have been able to tell you about its off-road abilities, but the nearest we got to the rough stuff was a gravel track. Never mind, ground clearance isn’t its strongest point, so perhaps it was for the best…..
The biggest criticism of the way the Jeep drives, in fact, concerns the diesel engine; the same, Volkswagen-sourced two litre turbodiesel that I enjoyed so much in the Outlander. In the Mitsubishi, it seemed completely at home, yet in the Compass it seemed to be a different beast. Sound deadening isn’t as good, so it’s noisier, while despite the fact that it’s only two-tenths of a second lower getting from 0-62mph (11 seconds, as opposed to 10.8 in the Outlander), it feels sluggish and even appears to struggle a little at times.
So that’s it, then. The Americans have got it wrong and the Jeep Compass is a sell-out.
The trouble is, after editing the video and coming to that conclusion, I didn’t feel entirely convinced that I’d got it right. Surely, Jeep couldn’t have botched it so badly? I called a contact in the trade who’s responsible for selling them to see what the initial reaction has been and his reply both puzzled and reassured me. Apparently, men hate its looks and find fault with the way it drives, while women absolutely love it.
That’s all right then, it’s just a bloke thing. Congratulations Jeep, you appear to have succeeded in reaching the Compass’ target market!
Report by Mark James
