I've put about 1,250 miles on our long-term 2007 Jeep Compass in the past two weeks, most of consisting of highway miles amassed during four-hour, one-way trips. For a vehicle to be a successful long-distance tourer in my opinion, it must rank high in terms of comfort, amenities, storage, passing power, quietness and range. Here's how I think the Compass stacks up.
Amenities: The optional Rockford Fosgate sound system is pretty good in terms of sound quality. It has an auxiliary audio jack and comes with satellite radio. Jeep offers an optional trip computer and compass, but our test vehicle doesn't have these features.
Storage: The bin above the smallish glove box is surprisingly useful, and center console storage will take care of the typical MP3 player/cell phone detritus. The rear seats fold flat, as expected. Total available cargo space is 53.6 cubic feet, fewer than what you'll get from just about any other small/midsize SUV.
Passing Power: The Compass' tardiness has been documented before. (Our 0-60 mph test resulted in a pokey 10.6 seconds.) On the highway, planting the throttle results in the CVT moving to engine redline; a noisy racket ensues. I do like the programming of the CVT in terms of hills and grades; the transmission responds well to throttle inputs and almost always selects the appropriate ratio.
Quietness: Above-average amounts of wind and road noise can make the Compass wearing on long-distance drives. On our car, there's a noticeable wind leak coming from one of the rear windows at speeds above 70 mph.
Range: On our fuel log, we've exceeded 300 miles on a tank of gas just once. And that was done by me this weekend after driving for an extended period with the fuel light on. The fuel tank holds 13.6 gallons. Revised EPA fuel economy for this vehicle is a combined average of 22 mpg.
Sum-up: I wasn't really feeling a whole lot of love for our Jeep Compass the past two weeks. Around town, its faults are less noticeable. But next time I have a lot of long-distance driving to do, I'm navigating well clear of our long-term Jeep Compass.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor, 10,920 miles
tackepj says:
12:17 PM, 09/18/07
A 13.6 gallon tank and combined 22 mpg is a pretty poor combination. I'd want an absolute minimum of 300 miles per tank on average (for a runabout, everyday driver).
My range champ is my old GM full-size pickup. With a V6, 5-speed manual, and a 35 gallon tank, I've gotten 625 miles before refueling on highway runs.
Of course, 35 gallons at more than 3 bucks per...ouch!
chrishs2000 says:
03:31 PM, 09/18/07
I've always found Chrysler vehicles to have the worst center armrests of any car - always very narrow, unpadded and the center console is so flexible they feel like you could rip them out. But then again, most domestic vehicles are this way (they've gotten much better recently).
I'm amazed more automakers don't make armrests a top priority in the interior - IMO, it's one of the most important considerations when I buy a car.
And 13.6 gallons for an "SUV"? Yikes. Does the Caliber only have a 13.6 gallon tank as well?
redmaxx says:
03:54 PM, 09/18/07
Just out of curiousity, why were you idling along at 5-10 MPH on such a large road? Around here, that's an invitation for someone to clip your bumper.
neely2005 says:
04:33 PM, 09/18/07
http://www.myjeepcompass.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=59
Something is wrong with your Compass if you can't easily break 300 Miles on a Full Tank of Gas.
bromans says:
05:01 PM, 09/18/07
Redmaxx: Taking the picture. :)
Neely2005: I doubt anything is wrong with our Compass. Most of the posters in your thread listed fuel economy similar to the EPA's combined average. And 12.6 gallons (assuming one leaves 1 gallon in the tank) times 22 mpg equals 277 miles. -- Brent
SubyTrojan says:
05:53 PM, 09/18/07
One hand at the top of the wheel....Brent is gangsta! j/k
neely2005 says:
07:28 PM, 09/18/07
Brent:
Trust me something is wrong with that mileage - If you read ALL 6 Pages in the thread, you'll see that most people are getting MUCH better mileage once they pass 5000Km. The lowest total is 22MPG Combined but most people are getting Much higher mileage some as much as 30MPG.
Have you had the CVT Software Update done?
http://www.caliberforumz.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=725&d=1177786251
http://www.myjeepcompass.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=59&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=15
bromans says:
08:24 PM, 09/18/07
I fail to see how our mileage is "wrong." It is what it is. And I did look through the threads. Yes, some owners are reporting higher mileage as well as the odd aspect of potentially getting slightly higher mileage with the 4x4 mode locked, but others are reporting mileage similar to ours. As always, the most objective measure of fuel economy are the revised EPA ratings.
That said, I doubt our vehicle has had a CVT software update. We're coming close to the 12K service; I'll make sure that we have the TSB addressed. It will be interesting to see how much of an improvement it makes. -- Brent
opfreak says:
06:01 AM, 09/19/07
arnet all these things really just features of the jeep?
I mean 'its a jeep thing you wouldn't understand'.
like wind noise. Its their to add to the outdoorsy feel.
its also funny that you have to pay extra for a compass in a compass.
crowb says:
06:04 AM, 09/19/07
HAHA!! @ Suby
steel5blue says:
09:23 AM, 09/19/07
neely, you're still out there staying calm, objective and giving useful info. Admirable. I have concluded that the good folks at Edmunds who don't pay for their own cars and know less about them than they pretend to , would rather find and blog about "problems" than fix them.
Makes a certain kinde of sense, from their perspective.
ateixeira says:
12:44 PM, 09/19/07
Perhaps mileage is poor because you have to really wring it out to get it going fast. They may not be as patient as you.
jriz says:
04:25 PM, 09/19/07
steel5blue: "The good folks at Edmunds who don't pay for their own cars" actually do pay for many of these long-term cars. The Compass is in fact owned by Edmunds Inc. as are several of our other long-term cars such as the Aura, Civic GX, Scion xB, Ford Edge, Ferrari 308, Honda Fit and Chevy Tahoe.
daxtripper says:
04:36 PM, 09/19/07
steell5blue, whty do you even post on here if you so thoroughly despise this site and the editors who work there? You're comments are so filled with anger and illogical accusations, how can anyone actually take you seriously? The Compass stinks, I think they've actually gone easy on it.
firstwagon says:
06:45 PM, 09/19/07
"The Compass stinks, I think they've actually gone easy on it." sounds sounds like a angry and illogical conclusion to me.
Have you driven one? Sure it's not a top line vehicle but it's not priced like one either. It will do everything a CRV will do for 2/3's the price.
The only real problem I see is the CVT which is a bad idea in almost every application.
I have a co worker who just bought one with a 5 speed and loves it.
steel5blue says:
08:48 PM, 09/19/07
jriz: I have no doubt that many of your long-term vehicles are owned by Edmunds Inc. I was talking about the actual people like yourself who are employed by the corporation to contribute your journalistic or literary skills to the site. Unless Edmunds is a collective or otherwise emplyee-owned , I doubt that you or your colleagues have actually paid for the vehicles you are writing about. Correct me if I'm wrong.
daxtripper: I post here to provide some balance to the party line, both in my opinion and style of expression. Don't you get bored with the usual accolades or inanities many people post? " My honda civic had much better gas mileage, but the floor mats sucked like they do in all hondas."
Personally, I prefer spirited arguments, and find polemic and vitriol far more entertaining than blandness and irrelevance.
daxtripper says:
01:28 PM, 09/20/07
I fail to see how not owning the cars affects their perceptions on the cars. As I see it, not owning them allows them to be free of the propensity to defend one's buying decision -- just as you're doing with your Compass. I don't want people ripping on my Civic Si, or my favorite restaurant, or the expensive shoes I just bought. Defending our decisions to pay our hard-earned money -- especially something as huge as a car -- is natural and clouds objective judgement. By not owning these cars, edmonds staff doesn't have this buyers defense baggage. That's just how I see it, and I didn't have to be vitriolic to express my opinion.
steel5blue says:
08:54 PM, 09/20/07
I'm so happy you know what "vitriolic" means.
dodo2 says:
01:30 PM, 09/21/07
"By not owning these cars, edmonds staff doesn't have this buyers defense baggage. "
... But they have their own biased, they don't know the cars as well as the actual owners and sometimes, for whatever reasons, they are not objective at all when judging the cars (2>1 every day not only sometimes). By not paying for the cars, they don't value too much the the bang for the buck aspect either.