[Mindgrinder]

great review as always, i am happy with my decision to skip the Jeep as of now (not taking another fanboy decision), i still think its expensive for what it offers. 5.65 m of turning radius!! my linea has 5.5 and its a pain in the city, all the best to Jeep owners. I will wait for at least a year or 2 before deciding on a Jeep they might improve certain things and even add some missing features. Would also wait for the review of the DCT petrol version when it comes out.

[vb-san]

Excellent review there – worth the wait!

I did a test drive of the car a day after the price was announced and is mighty impressed with its driving dynamics, build quality and overall presence. It’s not a big car but has oodles of character. The whitish/grey leather seats maybe a dirt magnet but I think cleaning up leather seats will be easier compared to light colored fabric upholstery. And it’s a welcome change in its segment that all the electronic safety aids come as standard in all variants – a Tucson or its big brother Santa Fe can take a note!

Now, agreed that they have packed quite a bit into the car, but there are some glaring or rather silly misses:

• Lap belt for the rear middle row seat – wonder how much our manufacturers are saving with this!
• Dummy buttons on the steering wheel – heard a reason that FCA is providing the exact export quality vehicle in India; some features are out but they were adamant to keep the export quality steering for India
• No side/curtain airbags for 4x2 models – even more imaginative reason that 4x4 cars go to terrains which can be dangerous and hence only those need the extra airbags… Wonderful!

All said and done kudos to FCA for the efforts and I hope they keep up the good work and build on the brand.

[hemanth.anand]

First Accident of Jeep Compass reported from Karnataka! From the Pictures, it is clear that it is Bangalore.
I can identify it as Cubbon park entrance and close to Cubbon park police station. Must have happened in the limits of this police station and police have towed it and kept it here.
Sad to see a car in this state. Now the owner must be staring at a huge bill looking at the impact.
A total loss would also not be surprising to me. If not a total loss, it will be a test for Mopar warehouse setup regarding spare part availability!


Information source Cartoq
Quoting text and attaching pictures and a link to the video from the source website

Here is the first Jeep Compass to have crashed. The crash is set to have occurred in the state of Karnataka. The reason for the crash is not yet known but what is known is the fact that the vehicle lost control, climbed the footpath and collided against a tree. There is no clarity on what speed the vehicle was travelling at and what caused the crash. In the video, it is evident that the road is narrow as well as slippery, which means the driver could have lost control of the vehicle.

The vehicle in question is a red coloured vehicle, in Limited (O) trim courtesy the black roof. Damage to the vehicle doesn’t look very extensive and the passenger cabin is intact. The airbags have deployed too.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/D8XHUKRLPJM

[Tapish]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Sad to see a car in this state. Now the owner must be staring at a huge bill looking at the impact.
A total loss would also not be surprising to me. If not a total loss, it will be a test for Mopar warehouse setup regarding spare part availability!

Happy to see that the passenger cabin is fully intact despite the collision. Does seem like a total loss considering this is a monocoque? Experts can weigh in.

[aviraj]

Excellent detailed review. You guys must really love your job. How about taking this to the next level with video reviews alongside the text based ones.

I will perhaps skip buying this for now until the product stabilises in the market with respect to the after sales support and reliability reports.

[Reinhard]

A fantastic review. Rated it fully deserved 5 starts while I had read it only half & then continued reading!

Many features like the invisible auto-sensors behind the door handles for instance seem to be carried on from the FIAT500X. Having driven it for a good 4k kms in Germany, I feel that this Compass is pretty much based on the 500X's DNA if not fully borrowing from it.
If I'm not mistaken, the 500X has the same underpinnings as that of the JEEP RENEGADE with a different body style. So not too surprising to see things / ideas getting shared.

That ZIGZAG defogger pattern on rear windscreen is to avoid damaging the rear wiper-blade due to heating right?

Another high price car where the arrogant western car makers do NOT put the light & wiper controls on the RHS orientation of steering controls. A blemish in my opinion on an otherwise wonderful car package. When is India going to wake up & stop excusing such mistakes?

The image alongside the CRETA is a million dollar one. Puts the Compass' size in correct scale. This one is going to be very helpful in deciding between the two IMO.

[perty]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

First Accident of Jeep Compass reported from Karnataka

It was on Lavelle road in Bangalore. The driver lost control and rammed into a tree. The news was on the local TV channels yesterday. Passers by pulled out 6 people from the car.
The news item suggested that it was a DUI case.

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

First Accident of Jeep Compass reported from Karnataka! From the Pictures, it is clear that it is Bangalore.
I can identify it as Cubbon park entrance and close to Cubbon park police station. Must have happened in the limits of this police station and police have towed it and kept it here.
Sad to see a car in this state. Now the owner must be staring at a huge bill looking at the impact.
A total loss would also not be surprising to me. If not a total loss, it will be a test for Mopar warehouse setup regarding spare part availability!

Originally Posted by Tapish

Happy to see that the passenger cabin is fully intact despite the collision. Does seem like a total loss considering this is a monocoque? Experts can weigh in.

Whoops! Airbags have done their job well. Looks like a huge impact at first glance but I don't think its a total loss. This seems easily repairable - once the spares are available. I don't think FCI would have anticipated spares orders of this magnitude so soon . I hope the service stations are trained enough already to put this back together.

Considering its a brand new car - unless it is a case of DUI (I believe insurance won't cover in that case or no?) I don't think the customer would take a similar bump on the wallet. Most will be borne by the insurance provider.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by deetjohn

Had a question. Is the Auto mode on the 4x4 always on? I prefer it like that if it's so. On the Duster AWD, it can be set to 2WD for instance.

It is electronically controlled, depending on the need power is transferred to the right axle end. I prefer this over a permanently off system, for the simple reason that it is way more safer and offers better control on the vehicle. Moreover i am paranoid about keeping features "off" over prolonged period and getting it conked lol

FYI duster does have an Auto mode and that is the mode to be preferred for a safe drive.

Originally Posted by hok kolorob

Jeep, however, should come with AWD with AT. Only XUV has AT with AWD in this price bracket.

Yes even i had shared the same feedback with the folks from Jeep, good news is the Petrol launch has been advances looking at the interest (which was the other part of the feedback). So let us pray they do the same for diesel AT also, sadly it might not come with AWD for now :(

Originally Posted by Shwet

What Exactly was FCA thinking with a 390 kg loading limit.

I believe this is more to do with RTO regulations and keeping the Yellow board off, just like the VMax, though the vehicle is capable it is rated from company as much lesser to adhere to rules. In reality it is above 600 kg if you dig inside international specs.

Originally Posted by civic-sense

It's a shame that you didn't get the petrol Compass to drive, and if indications are correct petrol versions are going to be paper-only.

You are going in for a surprise real soon, as per some reliable information from last weekend. Petrol is coming much earlier than expected.

Originally Posted by Mindgrinder

great review as always, i am happy with my decision to skip the Jeep as of now (not taking another fanboy decision), i still think its expensive for what it offers.

In India all the vehicles are grossly overpriced, so it is all relative. From my view point, this is the vehicle to get if you are looking for a small AWD vehicle in 20 Lakh budget. And if you make your purchase decision from heart like i do, 4x4 variant all the way.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

That ZIGZAG defogger pattern on rear windscreen is to avoid damaging the rear wiper-blade due to heating right?

Not sure, but i vaguely remember it as being mentioned as a design detail, more from aesthetics perspective.

[ambivalent_98]

I test drove the Jeep Compass and two things which kinda put me off apart from the "small" aspect of it
1) Boot space is really limited.
2) I could always feel the steering column when my foot was on the clutch pedal. It was strange and for a 20+ lakh car this should not have been an issue.

I did like the solid build and the engine performance of the car on the test drive. I can't say much about the suspension though since the test drive route had a decent road. It felt most car like. All in all it will sell and give Hyundai and other vehicles in that segment a run for their money.

[amit1agrawal]

Originally Posted by perty

It was on Lavelle road in Bangalore. The driver lost control and rammed into a tree. The news was on the local TV channels yesterday. Passers by pulled out 6 people from the car.
The news item suggested that it was a DUI case.

I hope everyone is safe and sound. The passenger cabin looks completely intact with airbags deployed so I suppose there were no major injuries.
On a lighter note, this is first crash test of Indian made Compass and demonstrates its strong and safe build.

6 people! I would assume couple of children. Else, I don't think 6 adults can be accommodated unless one unlucky guy goes in the boot

[nitinralli]

Excellent review and nicely detailed as well.

My wish list for things to be added/upgraded in near future:
1. Sunroof
2. Better Ground clearance with better approach angle.
3. Fatter tyres (current looks too skinny)
4. 8" or bigger touch screen
5. Black leather seats with ventilated front seats.

Question:
How good are the fog lamps while working as cornering lamps? Compared to XUV's cornering lamps which sits high on main headlight unit resulting in excellent throw of light, wouldnt fog lamps of compass have restricted throw?

Originally Posted by perty

Passers by pulled out 6 people from the car.

Bound to happen. People here are saying its hardly a 4 seater and this guy fits in 6

[JoshMachine]

With this review, the level of details are going sky-high, no wait a minute - space-high

Its been little more than 24 hours since the review has been put up and we are already close to the end of the 5th page.

I cannot see a emoticon which says "take a bow" else would have put that right here. So in absence of that, have to be content with just

My view is that this machine is going to wean off potential buyers from both XUV and Creta, given the tremendous cross-proposition of "AWD in a compact SUV" that it offers at the price.

[srivatsahg]

Originally Posted by nitinralli

Excellent review and nicely detailed as well.
Question:
How good are the fog lamps while working as cornering lamps? Compared to XUV's cornering lamps which sits high on main headlight unit resulting in excellent throw of light, wouldnt fog lamps of compass have restricted throw?

I guess the cornering function in the fog lamps should not be mistaken with the adaptive headlights, as this is primarily useful during parking manoeuvres to illuminate the space where driver is about to turn.

Experts correct me if I'm wrong !

[volkman10]

Jeep Compass gets a lukewarm response in Europe. A full month sale (after release) it does sell 1631 , out of which 700 are from Italy!