The Jeep Compass.
Ah, come on... you say?
Yeah, really. From a model that didn’t seem to be at all a proper part of the Jeep gene pool, it has been made to fit a little better.
Compass in a substantially revised guise will be one of the three pillars of the brand’s new European challenge now that it is in partnership with Fiat. The others are Wrangler, and the brand new Grand Cherokee.
It’s an ambitious challenge. The brand wants to upshift from 15,000 units in Europe last year to around 125,000 by 2014. I’m not sure that’s achievable even if the good times roll up again sooner than anyone believes. Anyhow, as the man said when asked his age, ‘it’s just a number’.
The interesting thing is that the new thrust dispenses with the Cherokee, one of the Jeep icons. Possibly because it is too close in size to the Compass, although arguably more competent than the junior Jeep.
Besides, they say, things have changed on the European SUV scene. Economy and emissions are the godheads. And reflecting that, four out of every ten compact SUVs in Europe are 2WD. There isn’t a 2WD option for the Cherokee, so it can’t be a fit.
Compass is targeted directly at Ford’s Kuga, Toyota’s RAV4 and Volkswagen’s Tiguan. With some of the changes made in this incarnation, it is a valid contender. If the pricing is as aggressive as hinted so far, it could be a serious one.
To be fair, there’s little point in trying to work it out in just an Irish context. We’re a tiny part of a European Market that is hoped to reach 16.2 million passenger car sales in 2014. Analysts reckon that 1.2m will be SUVs across the segment. Jeep are targeting a 10 percent share.
The Fiat marketing might across the Union will be a substantial help. As also will the diesel engines in the three vehicles which have been provided for Europe only.
The Compass will come in Ireland with a new 2.0 petrol unit, but the real interest will be in the 2.2 diesel, which comes straight from Mercedes-Benz. There will be two power versions of the diesel, a 136hp unit for the 2WD car and a 163hp one for the 4WD. At the time of writing that engine starts as a D rated unit for CO2 tax reasons, but we’re assured that by the time it comes in summer the engineers will have tweaked it down to a C rating. Pricing could start in the low €20,000s.
A quick day at Fiat’s automotive proving ground at Balocco near Milan last week was something of an eye-opener in how what was a range of cars with disappointing American characteristics in fit and finish have been so significantly upgraded to suit European tastes.
A decent off-road test track provided a good sense of each vehicle’s capabilities in the rough for which the Jeep brand depends on for its ethos. The Wrangler is a go-anywhere car, the Grand Cherokee not much, if any less capable. The Compass is essentially what we’d call a ‘soft-roader’, though I gather there will be a ‘Trail-Rated’ version coming along with substantially more capability.
The road manners of the Compass and Grand Cherokee were very good, and though tyre noise on the bigger car was probably related to the kind of covers used, it was a very refined driving experience.
Bottom line, much to look forward to when we get the cars in Ireland. It’s a new beginning for the brand here, and it may well be that it will get a seriously better reception than it has over past years.
