Jeep's controversial
new compact SUV will tap your wallet for $15,985 (MSRP, including destination charges). Arriving in U.S. and
international dealerships in the fall, Jeep's first-ever road-biased crossover is targeted squarely at young,
first-time Jeep buyers (ages 25-35, with a predicted 60-percent female 'take' rate).
According to Chrysler, 368,000 compact SUVs were sold in the U.S. in 2005, a 24-percent uptick from 2004. The
company expects the segment to continue to grow, nearly tripling in size over the next ten years.
The base
model ships with FWD, powered by Chrysler's 172 hp, 2.4-liter World Engine through a five-speed manual transaxle.
Customers can step up to a full-time 4x4 "Freedom Drive I"-equipped Compass at an MSRP of $17,585. Those with a bit more scratch will have the choice of going for the Compass Limited (FWD) at $20,140, or the
full-boat Compass Limited 4x4 at $21,740.
[Source: Chrysler Group]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Gunnar Heinrich @ Apr 5th 2006 7:38AM
So DC is actually going forward with their plans for this Compass. It was just last week that this site was questioning the crowded lineup at Jeep. I guess crowded is good in DC lexicon.
http://www.automobilesdeluxe.blogspot.com
Sal @ Apr 5th 2006 7:52AM
Jeep is in dangerous marketing territory here. They have too many models, their products look too much alike, they don't have memorable names. Ultimately, the Jeep brand will suffer for it.
Remember, Germans have a knack for getting apealing products to market, then screwing up the marketing and reliablity part of the equation.
And this thing isn't even appealing!
comment @ Apr 5th 2006 8:02AM
crowded are you kidding. jeep has had 3 models in their lineup for the past 6 years until this year. why, because it's an american manufacturer they shouldn't expand, give me a break! apparently it was ok for toyota,honda,kia,mitsubishi and others to venture into the suv market in the past BUT it's NOT ok for jeep to expand...same old double standard for the foreign manufacturers. give it a chance BEFORE you judge. it'a slated to get 30 mpg. and under 20k for the most part, you don't have to buy it but maybe it's the right choice for others.
VTdriver @ Apr 5th 2006 8:15AM
It remains to be seen how good the Compass is, but Jeep had to move into this segment and should've been there five years ago. I don't think Jeep's lineup is really crowded at all. The Wrangler is iconic - doesn't really compete with anything and the Liberty is upmarket, so where's the crowd? The Compass certainly looks like a smarter move than the Commander...
Roanoke @ Apr 5th 2006 8:26AM
FROM THECARCONNECTION.COM
Eberhardt Says Compass Gives Jeep New Foothold
Joe Eberhardt, Chrysler Group executive vice president in charge of sales and marketing, said Tuesday that the new Compass will give Jeep a strong entry in the small sport-utility vehicle segment, which is expected to expand rapidly in next few years. Sales in the segment passed 300,000 units in 2005 and could easily triple to 900,000 by the end of the decade, added Eberhardt.
"The segment is going to grow exponentially," noted Eberhardt, adding the Compass also is expected to attract younger consumers looking for an affordable vehicle, and women. The Compass, while it represents a departure from Jeep's traditional emphasis on off-road prowess, also takes the Jeep line into new territory, Eberhardt added.
"I think if we had changed the traditional Jeep, there would have been a problem," because it would have compromised Jeep's traditional appeal, he said. The Compass, which is built on the same assembly line in Belvidere, Ill. as the Dodge Caliber passenger car, takes Jeep into an entirely new segment, Eberhardt said.
Chrysler representatives also pointed out that the Compass will still the most off-road capable vehicle in is competitive set, which includes vehicles such as the RAV4, Kia Sportage, Saturn Vue and Honda CR-V. To make sure the Compass could go off-road, the underbody sits a full inch higher than that of the Caliber, said Michael Berube, senior manager for Jeep Marketing. The fuel line also has been tucked up in the body and the seating position in the Compass is two inches higher than in the Caliber, he added.
Eberhardt also emphasized that the 13-percent increase in the Chrysler Group's passenger car sales was no fluke, with the entry of the Caliber into the passenger car segment in a big way. Moreover, the group's passenger cars now sell with few incentives and have strong residuals, he noted. However, all manufacturers are offering substantial incentives in the pickup truck and SUV segments. Honda, for example, usually offers nominal incentives, roughly $200, on its vehicles but it has been forced to offer hundreds of dollars in incentives on the Ridgeline pickup truck, Eberhardt noted.-Joe Szczesny
Steve B. @ Apr 5th 2006 8:27AM
Why shouldn't Jeep build it, aside from questionable stying?
They marketed the Jeep Wagon (the old precursor to the Wagoneer and Cherokee) as a vehicle to "Give your wife more grip" when it's rainy.
They turned the Jeep into a sort of open top tourer with the Jeepster, and later the Commando.
They turned the compact 4x4 market of the S-10 Blazer and Bronco II into a family car market by offering 4 door models, and 4x2's with high mileage 4-cylinder engines (remember, 30 mpg wasn't unusual in the early days of the XJ).
They simply should've been on the forefront of the CUV, rather than palying catchup.
An interesting thing about Jeep, no company has held them for more than 20 years without being acquired by another corporation.
Bantam-Overland (Pre WWII)
Willys (until 1955)
Kaiser (until 1970)
AMC (until 1987, though they were partially owned by Renault A.G. through much of the 80's, leading to the defense contractor spinoff of A.M. General)
Chrysler (until 1998)
Daimler-Benz (current)
Roy @ Apr 5th 2006 8:55AM
It is what the Liberty was when it first came out, a $20,000 vehicle. Checked Liberty prices lately? Closer to $30,000. And yes, price does matter to MOST people.
CoffeeJedi @ Apr 5th 2006 8:59AM
I drive a Mazda 3 5-door because I like compact sporty hatch-back/wagons. I was pretty interested in the Calibur because I thought it was going to be another entry in this segment. I saw one on the road for the first time yesterday, it looks like a small SUV, very high off the ground, not what i think of as "sporty" at all. If the Calibur looks that much like a RAV4 or CRV competitor, I don't see how DC can differentiate the Jeep version enough to justify the increase in cost.
Kowell @ Apr 5th 2006 9:10AM
Beside this thing IS a caliber.... they kept everything.... engine, CVT2, even the interior is the same they didn't even changed it one bit.
Dustin Tarditi @ Apr 5th 2006 9:11AM
1) Jeep making a road-only car now is like Land Rover making one... Doesn't fit the brand. They wne through such efforts to promote "trail rated" and the lifestyle just for this... first time Jeep buyers already line up to get Wranglers and maybe stretch to get Libertys...
2) It's not a bad car, but they should use it as the Dodge Caliber alone, maybe have a Chrysler version, but certainly not Jeep.
3) 60% female "take" rate? It seems like it will be more like 85%-90%.
Mike @ Apr 5th 2006 9:38AM
remember, they did a focus group with 2 models based on the caliber... the compass and the patriot. compass was liked better by females, patriot was liked better by males, and the group split 50/50 on which one was better... so we get both. The production patriot bows at NY.
Guenther @ Apr 5th 2006 10:07AM
I'm not sure wheather the Blasphemy or Verarschung is a better word here. breathe....deeeep. ok, now some objective comments: Toyota has just as many SUVs. Differentiate? start with price - the RAV(ioli) and CRV a a chunk more money. new Rav is a lot bigger too. It'll make a dandy Mall Hauler/Bike toter. The (ill handeling) Liberty is going away in the near future. Customers will be split between the car based models and the up-coming LWB Wrangler. Now if they would just sell me something with a diesel...
Michael Karesh @ Apr 5th 2006 12:17PM
I'll get the prices into the database at http://www.truedelta.com as soon as option prices are available. Prices for the Caliber, which should be similar, are there already.
I fully expect the Patriot to be DOA. Ugly and senseless. The more Jeep-like Patriot should sell much better.
My review of the mediocre Caliber: http://www.epinions.com/content_221800074884
John @ Apr 5th 2006 2:23PM
I think the compass will be an important step for the Jeep brand to expand abroad... although if the car is executed poorly, it'll really mess up the Jeep brand name.
If you ever speak to any Europeans (which isn't so hard because many of them speak English as their second language), you'll soon discover that they refer to many vehicles as "Jeeps" even if the vehicle is not a Jeep brand car. Sort of like how some people refer to any carbonated soda-beverage as "Coke" even if it's not really a Coca-Cola. The reason is that the term "Jeep" is often used to describe any versitile MPV/Off road vehicle that has some attitude about it. I've heard this from Greeks, Germans, British, and even Russians.
So, I think if they only offer the more "serious" (4x4 and torquey) versions of the Compass abroad along with the Caliber, they could expand that brand... but only if they make sure people over there don't view the Compass as a marshmallow failure... and things don't seem to be off to a rosey start thus far.
G.R Lingo @ Apr 5th 2006 5:46PM
Ugly.Ugly.Ugly.
Price it whatever you want- the only people buying this piece of junk obviously dont know what the word "attractive" or "classy" is. It looks to me that Jeep whipped this one up just to fill in the 2wd drive segement they didn't have; all the while without thinking of anything close to proper styling.
Funny how Jeep went to great lengths with the whole "trail rated" spiel, now only to completely contradict themselves with the Aztec.. I mean Caliber..sorry, uh, Compass. I also think it's strange for any car company to make it so obviouse which of thier automobiles are for women and which are for men.
Jeep had a good thing going for them when they had thier big "unisex" three: Wrangler, Grand Cherokee and Cherokee. Now with the addition of the new bloated and rather unattractive "chick" cars: Commander, Liberty and Compass (including the rumored "guy" derived Patriot...God, if that does get released I hope they dont call it that) I believe Jeep has completely lost the point.
Brian W @ Apr 5th 2006 8:32PM
Eberhardt also emphasized that the 13-percent increase in the Chrysler Group's passenger car sales was no fluke, with the entry of the Caliber into the passenger car segment in a big way.
LOL
They are selling more Stratus and Sebrings than 300's.
It's called sell enough fleet cars so that your sells go up 1-5% a month so that you won't be compared with GM,Ford.
I thought the Jeep Liberty was the women's SUV?
carter @ Apr 5th 2006 8:33PM
I recommend going to jeep.com and looking at the compass. You can rotate it and look at it from every angle. My initial reaction was just like everyone else's, that front end is definately questionable aesthetically. However, after turning one of them every which way and trying every color, I have concluded that its not that ugly after all. It is no worse than a Subaru, which in my mind is the niche Jeep is jumping into with this car.
scott @ Apr 5th 2006 8:51PM
I thought the styling was really questionable at first as well. I followed Carter's advice and went to Jeep.com , because, after all, I really wanted to like this Jeep- the previouse two were dissapointing to me.
I did, looked at all the angles, and I have to say I don't question the styling anymore. I just think it's downright ugly. A subaru is alot better looking than this.
What a shame, I used to really like Jeep because they were different.... this just looks bland, ugly and unoriginal.
Carpenter @ Apr 5th 2006 9:23PM
Interesting point, Steve B.
And in case it has escaped anyone's attention, Jeep has been the leach the virtually killed off every one of it's owners, too!
Well, seen any new Bantams lately?
How about some Willys or Overlands?
Kaisers?
American Motors (AMC) cars?
Chrysler partly went extinct with the ditching of it's "primary mass market" brand (Plymouth) but that was after the D-B take-over (merger of equals, eh?)
So, next question. Which company will take over DCX and carry on the tradition, then be weakened by it?
Yeah, it's weird if you think about it. Jeep survives, at the expense of it's owners. Always.
carter @ Apr 5th 2006 11:53PM
That really is just too much, Carpenter. Jeep wasn't a leach. It was the crown jewel of all those companies (except Chrysler). Chrysler bought American Motors because they wanted Jeep. Jeep has been a very strong company since the days of the first XJ and a cash cow since the Grand Cherokee. Far from being a leach, it has been a source of strong sales with little investment in new products for the previous 20 years! It is high time a parent company put some money INTO Jeep to bring out some new products, and that is just exactly what DCX is doing. When the four door wrangler comes out later this year, I'll personally thank them by retiring my XJ and buying one!