Forget what you thought you knew about the Jeep Compass; this incarnation is poles apart from any Compass you may have driven before.
The Jeep Compass isn’t a new nameplate to New Zealand, but the latest model is significantly different enough from the previous – and far enough away timewise – that it might as well be.
Jeep has really pulled out the stops with the 2019 Compass, but then it really had to. Having a seven- slat grille – iconic though it may be – is just not enough for today’s ultra-competitive SUV market.
Today, the Compass is a formidable force in medium SUVs with a difference. It still carries the heritage hallmarks of Jeep product: the seven-slot grille, trapezoidal wheel arches, go anywhere-ability with an immensely capable 4x4 drivetrain and a raft of new safety technology, along with that indefinable sense of “I’m driving something different” which only Jeep can pull off.
So the Jeep Compass is going to look different in the car park, that’s a given. Just how different depends on the model you choose and while there are notionally three to choose from, there really are only two, the 4x4 Limited and the 4x4 Trailhawk.
Of these, the Limited is likely to be the popular choice – especially with readers of this magazine as pricewise, it sits under the Trailhawk and, given the engine/transmission/output is the same between the two, the Limited is likely to be the one Kiwis will gravitate to.
All Compass models feature the 2.4-litre Tigershark petrol engine with Stop/Start, mated to a smooth shifting, ZF nine-speed automatic.
It would be remiss to not make mention of the 4x4 system of the Compass, given the brand has such a high profile in this regard, so hold tight, here comes the technical bit:
The Compass offers two fully automatic, no-driver-intervention-required 4x4 drivetrains: Jeep Active Drive as found in the Limited and the more complex Jeep Active Drive Low for the Trailhawk.
Each system can send 100 per cent of available torque to any one wheel.
Both systems operate in conjunction with Jeep Selec-Terrain traction management system which uses a rotary selector for Auto setting, snow, sand and mud conditions and a 4WD Lock function, which is driver controlled.
But this is not NZ4WD magazine, so that’s as far as we’ll take that. What about the safety tech mentioned earlier?
A five-star ANCAP vehicle the Jeep Compass has 70 advanced safety and security systems available.
These include forward collision warning plus, LaneSense departure, blind spot monitoring and rear cross path detection, Parkview reversing camera parallel and perpendicular park assist, electronic stability control, electronic roll mitigation, six airbags and safety cage high strength steel body design. As to the cabin…
Well, it’s very different in here. The interior is busy, but logical and laid out very well. There seems to have been a concerted effort on the part of the designers to make the interior as distinctive as possible, and they’ve succeeded admirably.
The new interior design cues are fresh, contemporary and yet so far removed from other manufacturers, it’s as if the designers had never seen any other dashboard layout, but just put everything where it should be with the right blend of tactile and visual planes and surfaces.
If you’re looking for something different in your choice of medium SUV, but you’re at a loss as to which way to turn, the Jeep Compass can show you the way.
Specifications:
Jeep Compass
BODY TYPE 5 door, 5 seat SUV
DRIVE 4x4 / 9 speed auto
ENGINE TYPE Tigershark 4-cylinder petrol
ENGINE CAPACITY 2359
MAX POWER 129kW @ 6400rpm
MAX TORQUE 229Nm @ 3900rpm
L/100KM (COMBINED) 9.7
CO2 EMISSIONS 230
BOOT CAPACITY 770 - 1693
ANCAP RATING 5 Star
PRICE $44,990
