At long last, the wraps have come off Jeep’s latest creation, the Compass. Not a single trace of the previous generation in sight, the new Compass sports a bold, evocative design that’s very much in keeping with Jeep of today, and if based on looks alone, this is a car that will certainly go the distance.
At launch, the Compass will be available in four trimlevels, those being Sport, Latitude, Limited, and Trailhawk. Jeep has told us that the Compass will be produced from four locations worldwide (China, Brazil, India, and Mexico), and that we should see an Australian introduction in the tail end of 2017.
Signature design cues like the brand’s seven-slot grille and squared-off wheel arches remain, but those are the only cues it shares with its predecessor. It really is a whole new car from the ground up, and it definitely distinguishes itself from the bland and unimaginative image of the outgoing Compass.
The interior of the Compass puts special emphasis on practicality and technology. For the former, the new SUV has a rated 438 litres of space in the boot, expandable to 1,251 litres with the seats folded (60:40 or 40:20:40 depending on market). For the latter, the Compass comes standard with either a 5-inch, 7-inch, or 8.4-inch UConnect colour touchscreen infotainment system, replete with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and features pinch-and-zoom functionality. Drivers get either a 3.5-inch or 7.0-inch colour information display between the dials.
Safety, Jeep says, is impressive too. They say that there will be 70 available safety and security features, and notable systems include autonomous emergency braking, lane departure assist, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross traffic alert. The Compass will also be available with up to seven airbags, putting it in good stead in its segment.
At present, a total of 5 engine options are being offered with the Compass, but the real range of units will be more market specific. There are three petrol and two diesel models, powering either the front wheels or all four.
On the petrol front, the range starts with a 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder (courtesy of Fiat), a 2.0-litre four-cylinder, and a range-topping 2.4-litre ‘Tigershark’ four-cylinder. The 4x4 petrols will see either a six- or nine-speed automatic, whereas the 4x2 models will see either the six-speed automatic or a six-speed manual transmission.
As for the diesels, there will be a 1.6-litre and a 2.0-litre, both turbocharged. The smaller unit will come exclusively with a manual gearbox, while the latter will have the option of an automatic.
Jeep claims that the Compass will be the most capable SUV in its category. The full-time all-wheel drive system will be able to send 100% of power to any one wheel, which should allow it to get out of sticky situations. Jeep’s ‘Selec-Terrain’ system will also allow drivers to specify what they need out of the Compass, which should ensure unrivalled ability off-road.
Those abilities are further reinforced with its suspension setup, seeing MacPherson struts up front and a Chapman setup at the rear, allowing for up to 200mm in rear wheel articulation. The Trailhawk turns the off-road dial up to 11 though, featuring a Rock crawl mode, and improved ground clearance (216mm) and approach/departure angles (30 degrees/34 degrees).
The Trailhawk also gains unique design details, like red tow hooks front and rear, solid skid plates all along the bottom of the car, all-terrain tyres, hill-descent control, and a wading depth rated of up to 480mm.
Check out the massive galleries below for more photos of the new Compass. For more information on Jeep, visit our Showroom.
