Jeep Compass has huge appeal — until you drive it
Many of us have dated someone dazzling only to find that he or she is cruel or irredeemably dim. It’s the feeling I got with the 2020 Jeep Compass crossover.
Since its redesign in 2017, I have been smitten by the second-generation Jeep Compass. Looking very much like the Jeep Grand Cherokee’s kid brother, its handsome styling is quite fetching for a compact crossover, and it has the sort of clever detailing we’ve come to expect from FCA stylists.
The compact Compass slots above the sub-compact Renegade, but below the midsize Cherokee. I love its looks and have been intrigued by what seemed to be a good value. The Compass lineup starts at a reasonable $22,280 for the Sport, followed a step up by the Latitude and then by the Limited and the Trailhawk. Two special editions are available: the Altitude Appearance Package available on Latitude and a High Altitude Appearance Package offered on the Limited.
All models are available with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive except the Trailhawk, which gets standard all-wheel drive.
For 2020, the base Sport model now has two option packages that are well worth having. The first one, the Safety and Security Group, includes blindspot monitoring with rear cross path detection, rear parking assist, rain-sensing windshield wipers and vehicle theft security alarm. The other, the Advanced Safety Group, gets leather steering wheel, forward collision warningplus, lane departure warning-plus, 2020 JEEP COMPASS HIGH ALTITUDE 4X4
Base price:
Engine: auto high-beam headlamps, adaptive cruise control, advanced brake assist, auto-dimming rearview mirror.
FCA was kind enough to provide a stylish Limited High Altitude for testing — a fitting name given its $38,390 price, a significant premium over the $22,280 Sport trim.
Not surprisingly, it was lavishly equipped with
It’s power everything, an 8.4inch touchscreen with FCA’s excellent Uconnect infotainment system, power ventilated and heated front seats, leather trim, a sunroof, rain-sensitive wipers, a 4G LTE Wi-Fi hot spot, a power rear liftgate and a number of USB Ports.
My illusions were shattered when I engaged it.
No matter how you dress it up, the Compass comes with one engine and it’s not a great one — FCA’s unremarkable 2.4-liter Tigershark four-cylinder engine rated at 180 horsepower at 6,400 rpm and 175 pound-feet of torque at 3,900 rpm. It mates to a six-speed manual transmission on the Sport and Latitude.
The Compass is not an off-road warrior like the
Wrangler, nor an urbane sophisticate like the Grand Cherokee. It’s just a cheap Jeep. Now you could fault it for being underpowered, but that’s a long-standing Jeep trait. The sluggish nine-speed automatic makes matters worse because it’s more concerned with fuel economy than delivering power, which comes on strong at higher RPMs.
The 2020 Jeep Compass could be a wonderful compact crossover if not for what lies under the hood, where its sluggish, lethargic driveline is a disappointment.