Jeep Compass 2017 Specs & Reivew

Hi guys and welcome once again to goa. Jeep, a name synonymous with utility vehicles which are build to carry around people, irrespective of the terrain. While this might be a wrong connotation, akin to us indians calling bottled mineral water as bisleri, photocopy as xerox and of course short-wheelbase SU vs as jeep. Now this has happened because jeep was the first manufacturer of the SUV in the early 1940s and now they are entering the mass market segment of india with this vehicle, the compass.

Now I am going to tell you 5 good bits about the compass and 4 bad bits, let's start with the good ones. The design of the compass is unmistakably jeep with that 7 slot grille up front, trapezoidal wheel arches, sloping roofline, chrome lining which runs from one mirror to the other and of course LED lights. The cabin of the jeep compass is of excellent quality, once inside you feel like you are in a tank.

Almost everything feels nice to touch, the best part are the seats which offer terrific amount of comfort. Now I am sitting in the rear seat of the jeep compass and there is good amount of legroomkneeroom headroom and even shoulder room. So sitting three at the rear, isn't an issue at all. In fact, under thigh support is also very good. For the first time, FCA's own vehicle debuts its diesel engine in india because the compass is powered by a 2. 0-litre multijet-II diesel motor. Now this motor is quite refined but there is the diesel clatter at idle. Now there is some turbo lag to contend with below 2000 RPM, the mid-range is very strong and punchy and makes the compass a swift performer on the highway.

The gearbox too is very smooth, although the throws are quite long while the clutch is light and there is also a clutch rest. The compass is quite eager to corner, in spite of its weight, yes there is body roll but what's fantastic is the steering wheel, it offers tremendous feel and feedback, it also gets pull and drift compensation. The compass has a fantastic ride quality, absorbing everything in its stride, yes it does thud a bit over really bad roads but overall, the ride quality is just fabulous. Now what makes the ride quality so good is frequency selective dampers, this is something which isn't available in any car of this segment so jeep has given this vehicle a very premium feature.

Even high-speed stability is excellent, the compass remains glued to the road and it's the most aerodynamic jeep to have been ever produced. Braking performance is excellent too and it stops right in its stride. Now jeep is offering the compass in both 2-wheel drive as well as 4-wheel drive versions. Now the 4-wheel drive versions are loaded with a lot of tech, it gets a terrain management system which has 4 modes - auto, snow, sand and mud. Now there is no low range but still this jeep is very capable off-road. There is good amount of ground clearance although the flap tends to touch. Now let's have a look at some of the bad bits about the compass.

Now the jeep compass is loaded with a ton of features but it does miss out on certain equipment such as automatic headlights, automatic wipers, cruise control and also a sunroofall these features are available on the cheaper mahindra XUV 500. Heck, it even misses out on an auto-dimming inside rearview mirror, something which even the hyundai xcent has! Now in india, we don't get the 8. 4-inch uconnnect infotainment system, instead, we get the 7. 0-inch unit. While it has a lot of features in it, using it isn't that great because it doesn't take command so fluidly, you have to double press to get through an input.

The compass is a tall SUV so getting inside does take effort, specially if you are short or old because jeep hasn't provided footboards with this vehicle. The compass will be competing with the tucson, endeavour and forutner in the indian market. Now we all know how jeep's after sales network isn't that great, moreso when you compare it to brands such as ford, toyota and of course hyundai. So to conclude, the made in india jeep compass is a very promising vehicle and it can shake the segment if it is priced attractively.

While it does have some negatives, the positives far far far far outweigh the not-so-good bits of this vehicle. This is a vehicle which can turnaround FCA india's fortunes for the better.