Jeep Compass is the FCA’s new global compact SUV and is expected to go on sale in India by the middle of 2017. The Compass will be the first Jeep to be produced in India alongside the global manufacturing hubs in China, Brazil and Mexico. The Jeep Compass is expected to be priced close to Rs 25 lakh ex-showroom.
Based on the same platform as the Renegade, the Jeep Compass has a longer wheelbase than the Renegade. The Compass resembles the Grand Cherokee in terms to appearance with identical grille and headlamps design. The five-seater SUV has squared wheel arches, a traditional clamshell hood with subtle creases on it and a bulge in the centre. It has a floating roof effect with chrome highlights and a black glossy finish.
On the inside, the dual tone interiors gets a large touchscreen infotainment system in the centre. The centre console incorporates the functional features like the gear-shift selection, terrain selection dials, engine stop-start buttons, climate and volume control knobs, and 12V sockets. The Compass has steering mounted controls and comes with LED driver information display stacked within the twin-pod instrument cluster. The manufacturer claims that the Compass comes with a more than 70 available active and passive safety and security features – across global markets.
Globally, the Jeep compass will come with five engine options which includes three petrol engines and two diesel units. In India, the Compass will get one petrol and one diesel engine with manual and automatic transmission options. The Fiat sourced 2.0-litre Multijet diesel engine which develops 165bhp of power and 360NM of torque and a 1.4-litre Multiair petrol unit that produces 140bhp of power and 152bhp and 230Nm of torque is expected to be powering the Compass in India. The Compass also boasts the best-in-class off-road hardware – Jeep Active Drive which can send 100 per cent of available torque to any one wheel with a disconnecting rear axle and power take-off unit (PTU).
Jeep currently imports the Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee models in IndiaCBUs which has pushed the price tag much higher than expectations. Since the Compass will be manufactured at Ranjangaon in India, we should be able to expect a competitive price tag. The Jeep Compass will available in three trim configurations – Sport, Longitude and Limited. With a rumoured price tag of Rs 25 lakh, the Compass will go against the Skoda Yeti, Renault Koleos, and the recently launched Hyundai Tucson in the Indian market.
