2022 Jeep Compass Quick Spin: Not What We Wanted, But That Interior Helps
I’m going to be completely honest with you: I think I was wrong about the Compass. When we evaluated it after the 2021 Chicago Auto Show, I rated it a loser because, while the interior was much improved, Jeep hadn’t made any improvements to its powertrain — long our chief Compass complaint. After getting a chance to (briefly) get behind the wheel, two things are clear: The powertrain still needs work, and I don’t think it’s going to matter to buyers.
Related: Up Close With the 2022 Jeep Compass: Charting an Upmarket Course With New Interior, Technology
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Shop the 2022 Jeep Compass near you
We tested a 2022 Jeep Compass Limited with all-wheel drive and a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine making 177 horsepower and 172 pounds-feet of torque. The four-banger is paired to a ZF nine-speed automatic transmission in four-wheel-drive models, as ours was.
The Bad
It’s still slow. We’ve called the Compass’ powertrain “anemic” before, which still feels accurate — to me, at least. To be a bit more charitable, let’s say that it has just enough power and not a single horsepower or pound-foot more. Stomp on it in a passing situation and the revs scream toward the red line (and I do mean “scream”), but there’s a significant hesitation before those revs feel like they’re being turned into any sort of motive force. The powertrain is loud and the transmission constantly gets in its own way, upshifting and downshifting like it’s picking numbers out of a hat.
This isn’t new behavior for a Compass, however, and it hasn’t really seemed to matter to shoppers. It’s also not particularly different from a host of comparably sized and priced compact SUVs, such as the Honda CR-V or Subaru Forester. Those two SUVs both use continuously variable automatic transmissions, however, and both are significantly more fuel-efficient than the Compass: The Jeep is rated at 22/30/25 mpg city/highway/combined with AWD, while the Honda is rated 27/32/29 mpg and the Subaru at 26/33/29 mpg.
It may seem like I’m really down on the Compass after that, and there’s certainly room for improvement, but all of this is mostly par for the course of an SUV this size; an unrefined, clunky powertrain is pretty common. I just wish the fuel economy figures were better, especially for an SUV that’s less powerful and smaller than the Honda and Subaru.
The Meh
Ride and handling were never the Compass’ strengths, but neither quality was especially terrible. We found the same sort of ride here: some impact harshness and a little sloppiness that may be left over from a history of off-road suspension tuning, but nothing that makes the Compass particularly worse when compared to similar SUVs. Given the growing trend toward firmer rides in SUVs, the Compass may age well in the coming years.
Some Cars.com editors found the steering overboosted and darty, and it’s certainly not extremely communicative. The Compass’ handling probably puts it in the bottom half of the compact SUV class, but, hey, it’s a Jeep, right? Why are you looking for handling here?
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It Probably Won’t Matter Anyway
All of those issues with the Compass’ powertrain and driving experience are probably for naught when you get inside. The interior upgrades — we’ve gone into detail elsewhere — can really make you forgive a lot of the driving experience.
The 10.1-inch touchscreen display and digital instrument panel give the Compass the tech feel of a more upscale vehicle, and the materials in the range-topping Limited I drove also had a downright premium feel to them. Our test car’s $36,280 price (including $1,595 destination fee) probably sounds steep for a small SUV, but the interior feels worth it.
Interior room is also more than adequate for an SUV of this size, though its backseat pales in comparison to larger competitors in the segment. Visibility was also mostly good, though I found the A-pillars impeded forward visibility from my driving position.
We thought when Jeep made upgrades to the Compass’ interior that the brand was focusing on the wrong thing; surely the mediocre driving experience needed some attention. Instead, Jeep may have the right idea: If buyers don’t really care about how it drives, why should Jeep? Instead, Jeep is probably going to sway even more shoppers with a tech-forward, swanky interior.
(Maybe someday Jeep can do something about that powertrain, though? Maybe? Please?)
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