2012 Jeep Compass Overview Change Vehicle

This 2012 Jeep Compass review explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2012 Compass, and includes Jeep Compass safety, reliability, and fuel economy information.

The Jeep Compass is a restyled Jeep Patriot that’s designed to look more like a Grand Cherokee whereas the Patriot’s styling is patterned after the Wrangler. In the front, anyway. Toward the back the Patriot reminds of the 1980s Cherokee, while the Compass recalls, well, the AMC Gremlin. There. We said it.

True Blue, Rescue Green, and Copperhead paint colors debut. The continuously variable transmission has also been refined for smoother and more responsive operation. Otherwise, the Compass takes an upgrade break after significant enhancements arrived for 2011.

Three versions of the 2012 Jeep Compass are on sale: Sport, Latitude, and Limited. Each is offered with front- or four-wheel drive, and each can be configured with a full-time 4WD system with low-range and a raised suspension for tackling more rigorous terrain.

If you choose the least expensive model, the Patriot Sport, you’ll get a generous helping of what is commonly referred to as “the basics.” Air conditioning, power windows, power door locks with remote keyless entry, power heated side mirrors, cruise control, a tilt steering wheel, and floor mats are included, as well as 17-inch alloy wheels, fog lights, and dark tinted rear privacy glass. The Compass Sport is also equipped with illuminated cupholders, a rechargeable and removable flashlight, an outside temperature indicator, and roof rack rails. A manual transmission is standard on this model, along with a CD player and an auxiliary audio input jack.

Jeep provides a handful of options for the Compass Sport. Chief among them are four-wheel drive, a continuously variable transmission (CVT), and a larger, more powerful engine. An upgraded stereo system includes satellite radio, a USB port, and a CD changer, and the little cute-ute is offered with Uconnect Voice Command Bluetooth hands-free calling and music streaming as well as Uconnect Web which provides a mobile wi-fi hot-spot with the vehicle. We also strongly urge buyers to equip the Compass with front-seat side-impact airbags which, quite honestly, ought to be standard equipment.

There’s one more option for the Compass Sport worth mentioning. Actually, it’s optional on all Compass models. The Freedom Drive II Off-Road Group adds a more powerful engine and a “Trail Rated” four-wheel-drive system and CVT that allows the Compass to tackle more difficult terrain than your typical crossover SUV. Included are a driver’s seat height adjuster, tow hooks, a full-size spare tire, hill descent control, brake traction control, and the ability to ford water up to 19 inches deep.

Moving up a rung on the Compass trim ladder, the mid-level Latitude comes with Jeep’s improved-for-2012 continuously variable transmission (CVT). Additionally, it’s equipped with better seats that do more stuff: heated front seats, reclining rear seats, a fold-flat front passenger’s seat, and a driver’s seat height adjuster are included on the Latitude model. A leather-wrapped steering wheel, remote engine starting, and a 115-volt power inverter are also standard on the Latitude.

The Latitude’s options list is also longer than the Sport’s. To this model, buyers can add a hard-drive entertainment system with music file storage, an in-dash touchscreen, and a DVD player, and the optional Boston Acoustics sound system features articulating tailgate speakers that are perfect for outdoor parties. A power sunroof, a HomeLink universal remote, a security alarm, and individual tire-pressure monitoring are also available on the Latitude, along with a cargo cover.

The Latitude is also available with a Trailer Tow Prep Group as long as you’ve upgraded to the larger 2.4-liter engine. Towing capacity is only 2,000 pounds, but this package provides a full-size spare tire and an engine oil cooler, in addition to a trailer wiring harness.

The Compass Limited is the top-of-the-line variant, equipped with leather seats, a power driver’s seat, automatic climate control, and a hard-drive entertainment system with music file storage capability and satellite radio. The Limited also has four-wheel-disc brakes (replacing the standard rear drums), an auto-dimming rearview mirror, a vehicle information center, and 18-inch alloy wheels. Exclusive options for the Limited include a Garmin navigation system, Sirius Travel Link service, and 18-inch chrome wheels.

The standard engine installed in Compass Sport and Latitude models with front-wheel drive is a rather unimpressive 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine generating 158 horsepower, which is adequate (at best) for motivating the SUV’s 3,100-pound base curb weight. Sport models come with a five-speed manual gearbox, while the Latitude is equipped with a CVT (optional on Sport models). Fuel economy ratings are 23 mpg in the city and 29 mpg on the highway with the manual and 23-city/27-highway with the CVT.

The Compass Limited and all four-wheel-drive models have a more powerful – but not much more – 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. It makes about 10 percent more horsepower and torque, and gets between 21 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway (depending on transmission) and regardless of drive type. The exception would be if the Compass is equipped with the Freedom Drive II Off-Road Group, which is rated 20 mpg in the city and 23 mpg on the highway.

There are two different four-wheel-drive systems offered on the 2012 Compass. The Freedom Drive I system is a full-time, active setup designed to provide the extra traction most people want most of the time.

If you plan to tackle more difficult terrain, you’ll want the Freedom Drive II Off-Road Group, which allows the Compass to meet Jeep’s “Trail Rated” standards. The package includes more generous approach, breakover, and departure angles, greater ground clearance and water fording capability, a CVT with a low-range “crawl” ratio, hill descent control, brake traction control, all-terrain tires, tow hooks, and skid plates.

Considering that front-seat side-impact airbags are just $250 as an option, we’ve got to question why Jeep doesn’t simply make them standard. It certainly isn’t so that a base price of less than $20,000 can be advertised when the destination charge is tossed into the equation.

What does come standard are front and side curtain airbags, traction control, stability control with electronic roll mitigation technology, antilock brakes, and hill-start assist. Sport and Latitude models with front-wheel drive have rear drum brakes, while all other models get a set of four-wheel discs. In addition to side-impact airbags for front seat occupants, the Compass can be equipped with hill descent control and a tire pressure monitoring system that provides individual pressure readings.

If you’re wondering how safe the Compass might be, you’ll need to guess because neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has crash-tested this SUV. Looking at how the Jeep Patriot does in IIHS testing, a model that shares the Compass’s underlying structural elements, it gets a Top Safety Pick as long as the optional side-impact airbags are included. The NHTSA does offer a 4-Star rollover resistance rating for the Compass, but that’s it.

If it’s average dependability you seek, the Compass delivers. Consumer Reports gives the Jeep that rating, but J.D. Power and Associates predicts that long-term reliability is likely to prove slightly below average.

The Compass originally defied Jeep’s “Trail Rated” mandate when it arrived for the 2007 model year. In 2011, when the Compass received a significant facelift and overall modernization, it also benefitted from the addition of the Freedom Drive II Off-Road Group, which allows it to meet “Trail Rated” status and go places where other crossover SUVs can’t.

If you decide to sequester yourself in the back woods, know that the Compass can handle up to 22.7 cubic-feet of cargo with the rear seat in use and as much as 53.6 cubes with the rear seat folded. If the Compass is equipped with the optional fold-flat front passenger’s seat, it can accommodate 62.7 cu-ft of stuff and the driver. As you might surmise from these figures, the Compass is small inside.

The 2012 Jeep Compass is built in Belvidere, Illinois.

If we were to put a positive spin on the 2012 Jeep Compass, it would be headlined “Value.” But the problem is that the Compass, like the Jeep Patriot and Dodge Caliber that share its basic structure and powertrains, wasn’t terribly competitive when it went on sale for the 2007 model year, and certainly isn’t today. Aside from affordability, the best thing about the Compass is that it will go places other small crossovers can’t.

By Christian Wardlaw