[Reinhard]

I'm happy to see the Longitude 4x4 AT come up finally. Its a very good combination of features & technical pack. Something that should have been made available 2 years ago to be honest. This variant would have been a fly away success back then. A 4x4 Longitude MT would also be a very good package. That's something I'd personally like to own & actually think of as a potential upgrade in future.

When Renuka K asked the Jeep honcho about why no 4x2 AT, the answer was very lame. Quite unpolished. "We are a premium brand and premium brands sell 4x4 Auto". What logic is that at all? If its any logical line that is.

[padmrajravi]

I think the Longitude Plus definitely makes a difference. With the XUV AWD AT discontinued, this is the cheapest 4x4 AT available now. Compass is anyway costlier than Seltos and Creta. Even if Compass comes with a 2WD AT, it will still be costlier than Creta sisters. So sales success of Creta and Seltos is not assured in case of Jeep.

Also, It does not make business sense for them to develop an AT 2WD combo just to get the additional minuscule numbers from India. World wide, Jeep is known for its 4x4 pedigree and people don't buy two-wheel drive compact SUVs from Jeep. So any time and money spent on that effort should be aimed at numbers from India or other emerging markets and that number may not be large enough to generate their typical margins.

[d3mon]

Originally Posted by GTO

Other than die-hard Compass fans, no one is really going to bother with the Compass Diesel AT. Jeep shouldn't have woken up at all. The Compass will soon be the oldest product in the class, the most expensive and the one with the smallest cabin.

GTO, is that a statement that's mostly made for the mass market consumers? I think the Seltos is a winner as far as the VFM tag + mainstream appeal goes, but for an enthusiast, these cheaper variants of the Diesel AT may be a good option.

If Skoda can sell the Kodiaq for 40Lakh, why is the Jeep Compass 4x4 ZF9 a bad option for 26L? If anything, the compass is closer to the BMW X1, than it is to the Seltos.

[The Rationalist]

Above all this, in the Autocar interview, MD of FCA says they will evaluate the need for a AT in the lower models! " NEED " is not for the customers Sir, it's for your company. There are many options for the customers unlike you who have only one model! The joke is on you. He goes on to say Premium so many times, please sit inside a Seltos before you utter premium and Compass! The last time I sat in Compass, I didn't find anything premium to say the least.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by d3mon

but for an enthusiast, these cheaper variants of the Diesel AT may be a good option.

Agreed. My post said "other than die-hard Compass fans". Do note that I am a diehard Compass fan .

But there is no doubt that this cheaper Diesel AT variant is a classic case of too-little-too-late. In a market that loves Automatics, Jeep will now have 2 to offer. The petrol is lame, the diesel is too expensive & too late. Not to forget, it has the smallest cabin & will soon be the oldest in the segment.

Other than me, you & some other BHPians, no one in the market is going to give a damn about the Compass Diesel AT.

[d3mon]

Originally Posted by GTO

Other than me, you & some other BHPians, no one in the market is going to give a damn about the Compass Diesel AT.

I absolutely agree the market appeal is still limited. But the important part is that there's more than enough differential value in the Compass AT vs the Seltos AT and the other ATs in the lower price band for enthusiasts to spend their extra monies on this and feel supremely satisfied with their purchase. It's truly a one of a kind offering in this price bracket.

[Sandeep500]

Originally Posted by d3mon

I absolutely agree the market appeal is still limited. But the important part is that there's more than enough differential value in the Compass AT vs the Seltos AT and the other ATs in the lower price band for enthusiasts to spend their extra monies on this and feel supremely satisfied with their purchase. It's truly a one of a kind offering in this price bracket.

The one trait of FCA is that they have excellent engineers who make brilliant cars but have duffer or really bad marketing people who are trained to ruin or destroy the hard work of their engineers.By the way with the current discounts of about 2-3 lakhs going on as someone in this forum pointed out (17.5 lakh) for longitude option, I think it is a better deal than a Creta or Seltos even though it is manual bs4.

[revsperminute]

Originally Posted by GTO

I feel I should applaud the turtle-slow Jeep guys sitting somewhere else in Maharashtra (that's me being sarcastic).

For years, there was a void in the segment for a good diesel AT SUV, other than the Creta. Jeep did nothing. They finally launched a Diesel AT 2 years too late, but it was so overpriced that only Mukesh Ambani could afford it.

If anyone wants to know how to ruin a product, just talk to the Jeep India guys.

Add their absolutely PATHETIC sales team to this. Contacted Andheri dealer few months back about test driving a limited plus petrol model. I was told there were no stocks available and none would arrive before BS6. Magically, after one week from the initial phone call, the dealer recieved exactly one car of each colour. Upon asking why this information was withheld initially, the sales rep just denied the statements he made earlier. This has put me off big time and I don't feel any sense of attraction towards the brand anymore.

[GT145]

Longitude 4x4 AT at 26 lakhs on-road (if rumors are correct) is a good option for those who are looking for an SUV with decent 4x4 capabilities and AT gear box. As GTO mentioned this will only attract Jeep Compass lovers or I would say people who are looking for a 4x4 AT but can't afford Endeavour or Fortuner. So personally I'm happy that Jeep is going to launch 4x4 AT in Longitude variant

Also, I hope it will be just a matter of months that we may see some huge discounts which may further reduce the on-road price to 25 lakhs :P

[Durango Dude]

The Compass AT comes at a premium of ₹ 4 L for the gear box alone and Limited Plus with all the goodies should break the back/bank at ₹30 L and above on road. FIAT legacy continues and may be if they continue on this "marijuana trip" they will end up like FIAT.

[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by GTO

If anyone wants to know how to ruin a product, just talk to the Jeep India guys.

They are the masters with PhD in destroying whatever good opportunity one can have on hand.

Originally Posted by GTO

Other than me, you & some other BHPians, no one in the market is going to give a damn about the Compass Diesel AT.

+1. With more launches in and around this segment, Compass will become irrelevant sooner than later except for the die-hard fans.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Originally Posted by GTO

Jeep shouldn't have woken up at all. The Compass will soon be the oldest product in the class, the most expensive and the one with the smallest cabin.

What Jeep urgently needs are cheaper 4x2 AT variants. 4x4 increases the cost of the car, and most users of the Compass live in the city, and will pickup the 4x2 only. It may be the oldest product, but it surely does have a fan following like the Duster once had. Jeep failed to utilize it.

A 4x2 AT would have been cheaper by atleast 1.5Lakhs, which would have made more sense.

[arun_josie]

Yes, this AT should have been launched long time back and on the 4x2 variants too. Looks like they are happy to use their Ranjangaon plant for export market and sell the 2.0 MJD to Tata and MG.

I happened to check the 4x4 Diesel AT variant(Limited Plus) today at PPS/MPS motors(Electronic City, Hosur road).

Lookwise, it is same as the current Limited Plus, not a single difference. No badge to indicate that this is a AT variant or it is a BS6 variant. It just has the 4x4 Limited Plus badge like the current one. Even the interiors are same without any changes.

Here is what it gets when compared to current 4x4 Limited Plus.

• ZF 9-SPEED AT
• Engine stop/start feature
• BS6
• Cruise control

Here are few pics,







Inlet for Adblue



Option for engine stop/start feature





Cruise control



The display unit

[46TheDoctor]

I always felt that Compass variants are priced 3-5 lakh more than what they should have been priced in the first place. When the car was launched, there was a big void in its price bracket which allowed for such pricing but now with Seltos conquering that price bracket, Jeep should rationalize the Compass prices if it is to generate some good sales numbers for Jeep in our domestic market. I think Compass being a mechanically superior product, can command a premium of 5 L rupees over equivalent Seltos variants and not more. Otherwise the sales numbers arent likely to pick up from current slump. And since the Compass is manufactured in India, i feel it should be possible to bring Trailhawk below 30 L on the road and other variants priced proportionately downwards.

[fhdowntheline]

I would have keenly taken a look at a Limited Plus 4x4 variant priced around 26-27 lac, even to replace my less than 2 year old Honda City. But the way things are going, it appears to be in the 30 lac territory. It is pointless to keep a mechanically superior Trailhawk version so close to the Limited Plus 4x4. Ideally these could have been launched at the following price points 24 lac- Longitude 4x4, 27 lac -Limited Plus 4x4, and then the other manual variants get pushed down into the Seltos territory. And for gods sake, Jeep give us at least 6 airbags as standard.If you call yourself premium (official company line), we expect you to equip your cars commensurately.