Team-BHP - Jeep Compass : Official Review

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5304646)

Now comes my question. How far can I deal with this nonsense? Every time a different person calls from Jeep and direct me to the same service manager. Doesn't seem to reach the right levels.

Here is my advice to prospective Meridian customers.. Think,
Then Think again..

Jeep customer service is a joke, when you call or write to customer care mentioned in website they only re-direct you to the service center with whom you are already not satisfied. There is no escalation matrix nothing!! I tried escalating an issue and got fed up and gave up in the end. So much for Jeep portraying itself as a premium brand.

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Originally Posted by torque_87 (Post 5303822)

History –

Before I get to writing about my Compass (Nightfury) I would like to give you a small background as this would be my first post ever in this esteemed forum..

Welcome to the forum torque_87 and congratulations on your new ride. Wishing you thousands of happy and safe miles on this car !
A quick question, what OEM tires did your Compass come with. I am assuming the tires are 18 inchers on the S variant.

Thanks for the review. I have a Compass Limited Plus Diesel MT. The diesel engine, probably due to its being MT, is very responsive and takes off with a touch on the pedal. I have driven the Jeep from Chandigarh - Delhi-Jaipur-Ahmedabad-Mumbai-Belagavi (Karnataka) -TWICE. One tyre burst due to an iron pole on the bridge- otherwise- no issues. Incidentally, I bought the vehicle for my pet Beagle. on being posted out, as I didn’t want him to suffer the heat during summers and did not trust any Airline to take care of him :)

Average in city driving is 15 KMPL and highway a whooping 23KMPL. Chandigarh-Delhi - Jaipur AND back with tank full and 100 km still to go.

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5304646)

1. Rattling noise from everywhere. Car spent 4 days in the service center. They claimed the rattling noises were fixed. All it took was one day. The noises are back again. This time from different parts. See this.. My left leg touches the center console as it's is close to the foot we'll. The center console makes squeaky/minor rattling noise. I was told to keep my leg away from touching the center console. Seriously?

My Compass has developed rattling at two places - first above and just behind the driver's head and the second somewhere from passenger side.
One thing I noticed is that the first rattling happens much more if the car is hot (eg: kept in our summer sun for many hours). And then there are some random squeaks occasionally from the dashboard area.
I haven't taken it to the SVC yet but it is very disappointing to pay so much for a premium car and have these kind of issues. In comparison my Scorpio (for which I paid one third the amount) had 0 rattles over 6 years of ownership.

But honestly otherwise the car has been fantastic - I have already done 3k km :D

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Originally Posted by Col.S Virdi (Post 5304852)

I have a Compass Limited Plus Diesel MT. The diesel engine, probably due to its being MT, is very responsive and takes off with a touch on the pedal.

Average in city driving is 15 KMPL and highway a whooping 23KMPL. Chandigarh-Delhi - Jaipur AND back with tank full and 100 km still to go.

Completely agree with your description - just push the pedal and the Jeep takes off. But due to this I have been barely able to maintain a mileage of 14kmpl in mixed city/highway usage. :D

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Originally Posted by timuseravan (Post 5305271)

My Compass has developed rattling at two places - first above and just behind the driver's head and the second somewhere from passenger side.

Check if the first rattle right above the driver's head is coming from the sunroof or not. Open the sunroof glass and see if the noise is still there. Mine had the same issue. Do let us know.

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5304646)

Most annoying issue is #1. I wonder if they did enough testing to make sure all these noises don't come. Is it not any car maker's job to make sure the customers enjoy a quiet ride? Imagine driving a car which makes constant rattling noise during long drives. I can only bump up music volume only upto some extent. It went to an extent, I had to take a train for a recent trip instead of this car.

I have always wondered why many still recommend the new Compass when several owners have reported this issue. This would be highlighted as one of the major cons, a QC issue, for any other car (say, the Harrier). For the Compass, everyone speaks of the comparatively ordinary AT but that is something you can live with; this is not.

Yes, the fit and finish look premium/luxurious but doesn't sitting inside a noisy cabin take away most of the pleasure? Especially when you have spent close to 40 lakhs OTR.

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5304646)

2. The auto box is just not responsive. So much so.. I asked the service center to check if my accelerator pedal was tight. Guess I was very naive.

Then Think again..

I faced the same issue when test driving the 9 speed compass S. There is a lot of lag / delay / disconnect between when you press the accelerator pedal and when the car starts moving. The engine does rev up, but the car itself doesn't seem to move any quicker :D

The issue seems to last till it hits 4th gear or highway speeds. After that, it is as responsive as a normal car and fun to drive. I think they have just given it very short gear ratios for offroading to save costs on including an actual low range gearbox. This leads to the feeling of lag in the initial gears. At first I thought it was just the way the engine was tuned but after driving the Tata twins with the same engine paired to a different 6 speed AT gearbox, the difference is night and day. FCA should just give the jeep a normal 6 speed with a proper low range gearbox.

Rattles and niggles are part and parcel of most FCA cars here and they don't give you much choice. If the dealer ASS can fix it well and good otherwise learn to live with it is their mantra.
This is based on my experience and a few other ex-owners of Fiat cars in Mumbai.
I got fed up taking the car to the service centre almost every month to sort out some irritating niggle or the other and lived with my Palio S10 for 3 years until I sold it at an excellent value for reasons other than the car.
Bottom line : Till today I miss the car. Loved driving it despite its drawbacks.

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Originally Posted by a_chelat (Post 5305465)

I have always wondered why many still recommend the new Compass when several owners have reported this issue..

Just finished my second test drive to showcase the issues to the service folks. This time around their head of service for Karnataka and Andhra joined in person. Left the car in the showroom. Let’s see..

By the way.. the car developed two new rattling noise spots during this test drive 😌

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5305759)

This time around their head of service for Karnataka and Andhra joined in person. Left the car in the showroom. Let’s see..

Hope your issues get sorted out this time. Wishing you great motoring moments ahead with your Compass. It is truly a great car to drive.

The more I think of such issues, it feels like many expensive cars these days seem to be facing many niggles. Increasing number of Compass owners are reporting rattles and infotainment issues, Harrier/Safari don't need any introduction to issues, VW/Skoda have their DSG issues and Kushaq rattles.

Cars getting complex is one thing - that would explain electronic or mechanical issues. But what I cannot understand is an experienced carmaker's inability to build a car that doesn't rattle - especially at such inflated costs. I cannot help but compare, my humble 2006 Accent never rattled, neither did the Punto (nothing major), nor does the Ecosport (apart from the dashcam I installed), nor does my dad's Nexon.

Are we entering a world where supposedly premium cars are getting increasingly harder to live with? Or is it a case of increased customer expectations because of the premium paid for these vehicles?

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Originally Posted by Pancham (Post 5305360)

Check if the first rattle right above the driver's head is coming from the sunroof or not. Open the sunroof glass and see if the noise is still there. Mine had the same issue. Do let us know.

Will test this weekend and update here. Did your issue get resolved? What was the problem?

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5305759)

Hopefully this will be resolved. Do keep us updated on results.

My car is in the workshop. In the process of removing and refitting the bonnet, the service Center folks dropped the bonnet on the floor and it created a dent and a scratch in two places. Car is 6 months old.

They are offering to do dent removal and repainting. But the repainting will not be like the factory one. How do I go about this? Do I accept their repair (or) insist on a replacement from factory?

Accidents happen. But these guys at a next level. Need your suggestions

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Originally Posted by sheelapratosh (Post 5307635)

Do I accept their repair (or) insist on a replacement from factory?

Depends on the dent rather than the paint finish. Replacement panel from the factory will not be a painted one, and still be painted at the dealership only.

If the dent can be properly corrected, go ahead else insist on a replacement.