Overview & Reviews

Most people think of Jeeps as tough off-road vehicles that love to get muddy, but when the Jeep Compass debuted for 2007, it wasn't like other Jeeps. It didn't look rugged, it wasn't trail-rated, and as far as we could tell, it didn't even like dirt. Instead, it was a car-based design built for the majority of small-SUV buyers who wanted a fuel-efficient runabout that was easy to drive around suburbia. Four-wheel drive was available, of course, but it was a single-speed system -- enough to get you through a snowstorm and that's about it.

As you can imagine, Jeep purists didn't much care for the Compass, which they regarded as the antithesis of all things Jeep. The company evidently took this early criticism to heart, because the latest iteration has revised styling and newfound capabilities that edge the Compass closer to "real Jeep" status. Even so, the Jeep Compass faces stiff competition among today's compact, car-based SUVs. Its low base price and interesting features may be compelling at a glance, but for those who dig deeper, its subpar engines, modest cargo capacity and relatively crude driving dynamics will likely prove significant liabilities.

Current Jeep Compass
The Jeep Compass is a compact SUV offered in Sport, Latitude and Limited trim levels. Standard equipment on the base Sport includes alloy wheels, full power accessories, cruise control, air-conditioning and an auxiliary audio jack. Stepping up to the Latitude gets you heated front seats, a height-adjustable driver seat and a leather-wrapped steering wheel with auxiliary audio controls, while the Limited gets items like leather upholstery, a power driver seat, a 6.5-inch touchscreen, a rearview camera and automatic climate control. Notable options include a navigation system, Bluetooth and a USB port.

Every front-wheel-drive Jeep Compass Sport or Latitude model comes with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder that produces 158 horsepower. A 2.4-liter 172-hp four-cylinder engine is standard on the Limited and all four-wheel-drive Compasses. It is optional on the others. A five-speed manual transmission is standard on the Sport, but a six-speed automatic transmission can be specified instead. The Latitude and Limited come standard with the six-speed automatic.

Of the two available four-wheel-drive options, the light-duty "Freedom Drive I" system operates in front-wheel-drive mode under normal conditions and automatically sends power to the rear wheels only when needed. The Freedom Drive II Off-Road package (available on 4WD versions) includes hill ascent/descent assist and a host of other all-terrain equipment, but unfortunately it requires the undesirable continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) -- which also comes standard with the optional Altitude and High Altitude packages.

In reviews, we've found the Jeep Compass to be one of the least appealing compact SUVs. At its core, the Compass still shares its underpinnings with the thankfully departed Dodge Caliber hatchback, and suffers from the same weak and noisy engines. Acceleration is slow regardless of which engine you opt for, though the six-speed automatic does improve on the CVT's whiny, sluggish operation. In terms of refinement (or lack thereof), the 2.4-liter is almost as rough and loud as the 2.0, and neither achieves impressive fuel economy.

To be fair, the Freedom Drive II package makes the Compass an unusually capable crossover in the dirt, but if that's what you're after, there are superior alternatives, including Jeep's own Cherokee. And aside from Freedom Drive II, there's little else to recommend the Compass over its peers. Rear passenger space is adequate overall, but legroom is tight back there relative to the norm, and the harsh, bouncy ride haunts both seating rows. Maximum cargo space behind the front seats also trails the pack.

Used Jeep Compass Models
Introduced for the 2007 model year, the Jeep Compass is in its first generation, but there have been significant changes made. From 2007-'10, the Compass featured different exterior styling that was less indicative of other Jeep models. It was rounder, a little more avant garde, and if we're honest, not very attractive. Prior to an interior overhaul for 2009 that addressed both design and materials quality, the cabin was one of the worst on the market. It was upgraded yet again for 2011, which was also the first year for the current car's more capable Freedom Drive II equipment and "baby Grand Cherokee" styling. The six-speed automatic debuted for 2014 as a considerably more civilized alternative to the CVT, though the underlying shortcomings of the engines were not addressed.

User Reviews:

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  Bad car to buy - 2012 Jeep Compass
  By Irving vega - December 10 - 2:42 am

  Please save your money and dont buy this vehicle , nothing but problems ,car seen dealer ship tons of times.

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  worthless investment - 2007 Jeep Compass
  By Paul - October 16 - 6:23 pm

  Jeep billed this little jewel as a great buy. I feel that I have been cheated. The fuel economy is what attracted me to this vehicle initially. After I bought it I quickly found out that the posted MPG were very WRONG. Then, within one month of purchasing the vehicle, the manufacturer posts new fuel economy numbers for the stupid thing. Guess what...they were lower than originally posted. Their response to my complaint, "Sorry.". Never again.

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  Worst car Ive driven in years - 2016 Jeep Compass
  By Eric - September 29 - 8:08 am

  This vehicle is ridiculously underpowered and poor on gas. The seats are not comfortable at all. No lumbar support and headrest is way too far back from your head. On normal highway driving the engine revs past 6000 rpm to try to keep up with 65 mph traffic.

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  Terrible car - 2014 Jeep Compass
  By cad700 - July 12 - 3:54 pm

  I just got the 2.4 automatic Compass Limited last week. Its a fleet vehicle, didnt have a choice so didnt test driver one. Picked up the car one evening, didnt do anything but drive home 5 miles. Woke up the next morning and the remote access buttons on the key did not work, used the key, got in, started the car and the radio wasnt working either. All kinds of similar issues. Im sure that can be fixed but the biggest problem is the engine/powertrain. The vehicle does terrible when you try to accelerate to change lane or merge, pulls to the point of almost losing control. I drove a 12 Escape with a 2.5 engine, much more powerful engine.

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  Inferior Vehicle to Others in Same Class - 2016 Jeep Compass
  By Bill R. - May 17 - 5:41 pm

  While our Honda CRV was in the shop a couple of weeks after a collision we had the opportunity to drive a 2016 Compass. This comparison is being made to the CRV and the RAV4 that we previously owned. Overall the three vehicles cant really be compared because although they are in the same price range they seem to be in totally different classes of quality. The materials, technology, drive and overall feel of the Jeep Compass is far inferior to either the CRV or RAV4. What bothered me most about the Compass was the seemingly lack of logic when it comes to the design of the vehicle, such as extremely poor layout of gauge instruments, poor lighting and control buttons for audio that just dont flow well. The acceleration of the 4 cylinder lacks a lot as it seemed to really strain to gain speed getting on the interstate. In addition the air noise coming through the windows seemed to indicate that there was some problem with the seals around the windows. The vehicle we drove had 12,500 miles on it so it was fairly new but it seemed to drive like a very old vehicle.

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  dont buy Jeep - 2014 Jeep Compass
  By grammielil5 - August 24 - 8:13 pm

  I bought one and had to sell it back within 3 months due to seal of driver side window/door doesnt seal. In service X 3 and Jeep notified by me.......Now I see everywhere on internet numerous compaints! I just got subaru outback and its great and made all in America

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  Jeep should be ashamed.. - 2007 Jeep Compass
  By slh22 - January 27 - 10:06 am

  I purchased my Compass brand new in 2007 and was so excited to have a reliable vehicle--wow was I wrong! Since buying my Jeep, Ive had nothing but repairs. A new transmission around 30,000 miles, new sway bar, two new ball joints, front and rear brakes replaced, and now both of my outer tie rods need replaced--all of this with only 65,000 miles on it. Jeep really should be ashamed of the poor quality they put into this model. Coming from a "Jeep Family," I will never buy another one.

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  Always in the shop. - 2007 Jeep Compass
  By Megan - March 4 - 4:16 pm

  I had my Compass for a little over 2 years. Those years, I had my car in the shop more than it was on the road. The entire front end broke, I had to replace the control arms three times, the wheel pulled to the left no matter how many times I got alignments or my steering checked, the glue holding in the headlights gave out and I replaced the drivers side headlight twice, plus the fuel economy sucked. I filled up about every two days. The material of the seats were of poor quality and got easily stained. In my opinion, I found the backseats comfortable. My Compass was recently totaled due to hitting a deer. Sadly, I was not going fast, under 10, and it it pushed everything under the hood back and caused major damage. As far as I am concerned, I will never buy another Compass and am leery of Jeeps in general now.

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  A serious piece of junk - 2007 Jeep Compass
  By TimeLimitXceeded - January 18 - 10:00 am

  I bought my Jeep Compass 4x4 with 47,000 miles on 3/1/10. I bought it from a Jeep dealership thinking the car would be in good shape. I had the car checked out by my mechanic and uncle and they both gave the go ahead. On June 5th my Jeep kept on stalling every single time I would come to a stop. After doing tons of research, I found that the PCM needed flashed.Done, no problems sense (warranty repair 80k on PCM) On Sept 9th at 53,000 miles while going in for an inspection, I was told by my mechanic that the Jeep was unsafe. Both control arms, ball joints and sway bar links needed as they were literally falling out of place. These are parts that are supposed to last not crumble at 50k!

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  Regret my purchase so much - 2017 Jeep Compass
  By syntya - January 12 - 2:30 pm

  I havent even had the car a week and already started having problems. My stomach hurts just thinking about this car. First, my gas tank wont fill up all the way. At first I thought it was the gas station nozzle. Went to second gas station only to have the same problem. It kept popping off like if It was full. It gets maybe 90% full. I drive home and suddenly its full... okay great! Next morning get on and its lost a quarter overnight just by being parked! The gas milage is a joke I been driving it speed limit and it has never reached the 25MPG advertised. The computer keeps reading 16 mpg is my average... I cant believe I have to spend so much money on gas this is false advertising and I hope more people complain about this. Today my central computer screen turned off and rebooted on its own. I have to call the dealership already. The air-conditioning is like room temperature at most. I have have to use the MAX a/c button to try and cool down as I live in SoCal. My first jeep and I should have stuck with Toyota as my previous two vehicles were from there. I am completely devastated over this purchase. Seriously if you have some of these same problems email me as I am going to start asking for things to be fixed and the more people complain the faster. [contact info removed]