If you have the extra cash to spend and not afraid of losing your lifelong saving on the almost RM250k for the American Jeep Compass, then go ahead to write a cheque for it. Even since DRB Hicom had a great launch party for the brand, we could hardly see any Jeep on the road yet. The Compass Limited is the brand car-based SUV that is suppose to hit the Honda CRV or Nissan X-Trail market, but sadly, the build quality is still far from the competitors, yet the distributor is demanding an RM100k more for such segment SUV.
The rather small (to American's standard) displacement 2.4-litre engine is only capable of 170hp/220Nm of power, though it is mated to a 6-speeder auto gearbox. Comparing to the slighly larger Honda CRV, where its 2.4-litre engine could easily churn out 187hp/222Nm of power from a 5-speeder autobox.
Interior of the Compass is good as how an American car could be. Still very confuse to find anything great on the Jeep Compass, and it seems the 8-colour choice of body colour could be the only winning factor here. The 9-speaker Boston Acoustics system could be a plus point, but again, will you spend RM100k more for the speakers, which the 6.5" screen is desperately the minimum size available in the market nowadays.
Exterior of the car looks as dull like it is from the 90's. Except for chrome grille that makes its brand stand out, the front is not handsome, the rear is never sexy. The Compass design might win many hearts back in its home soil, but definitely not in Malaysia. The price you pay could bring a feel praise from your peers on how daring you are to get a Jeep, but nothing more. The car does not turn any head, and it is an urban SUV, which is not design to be fully 4WD capable. The Japanese could easily proof to be the wiser choice here. Be prepare to pay hefty maintenance as well if you decided to get one. The currency rate is getting scary at almost RM3.8 to USD1 now!
