Occasionally they tease us with a limited run like the Peugeot Cherokee, VM Motori 2.8 1st Gen Liberties and the current crazy overpriced Grand Cherokee.

Then I realized what you meant: this is what Jeep told you — “take two (Compasses)” — cause they can’t get rid of them and they’re costing them interest and insurance to keep around.

So now that you have two Compasses that I know you wouldn’t torture yourself driving, what are you planning to do with them?

http://www.rockcrawler.com/trailreports/naias_2002/jeep_compass/index.asp

Wow… I now do remember this. Why didn’t they build it too look like this?!

And you’d think they would learn from it? Guess not? If they wanna be cheap on parts, better make sure the end result still delivers a good product. (Actually, maybe they should do that irregardless! *chuckles*)

I wonder what happened to the Aztec designers? Did they get hired at Jeep?

My mind can not comprehend how this was allowed to happen. The Aztec and now this? How!? Is anybody at the helm in carland?

picard234: “What a shame. From the outside in, the concept is fantastic and the reality is Aztec-like.”

The problem with bringing a concept to production is that concepts are styling exercises built from the ground-up from a clean-sheet. Getting one into production in a profitable manner gets the bean-counters involved. It’s rare when a concept goes to production largely intact due to cost considerations (the Viper is an example).

That’s what happened with the Aztek – getting the concept into production meant basing it off an existing platform and GM unwisely chose the minivan. Likewise, the Compass concept had to be built off something already existing so it went to the Caliber platform.

That’s not to say it doesn’t always work. One of the original concepts that went to production using off-the-shelf parts and proved to be a phenomenal success was the Mustang from the Falcon’s chassis and drivetrains. To this day, the Mustang success is something that all the manufacturers shoot for.

A recent example was the PT Cruiser which was largely based on the Neon platform and it did great. But, more often, it ends up being a bastardized mess (like the Aztek and Compass).

Thanks for the link. I clicked on a few pictures, but I had to stop because it is sad.

What a shame. From the outside in, the concept is fantastic and the reality is Aztec-like.

You’ve got me all wrong. I don’t hate Chrysler, although they only make one or two vehicles I would even consider buying (Viper, Challenger SRT8). And the PT Cruiser is by far the worst thing I have ever had the displeasure of driving. But I proudly drive a GM product (Corvette), so I’m not an anti-domestic guy at all

What I do hate are useless turds like the Compass that have absolutely no reason to be on the market, and do nothing well. The fact that it can get through some snow says nothing to me, since pretty much anything FWD or AWD should and is able to do that with a competent driver behind the wheel. That’s like saying it’s a decent car because it didn’t spontaneously explode when you turned the ignition-it’s the bare minimum that’s expected. The fact that “it’s good in the snow” is pretty much the only good thing that has been said about this piece of shit is extremely telling

I live about an hour from the Belvidere plant and even I never see these things on the road.

Two of my least favorite things about winter are everyone competing to see who has the worse weather and bragging about how much better they are in driving in it.

I am totally with derm81. I can’t even get the Passat Wagon up my street today, and it will likely be a few days before we see a snowplow. Getting around town tonight is essentially impossible in anything without 4WD. The Wrangler works great and I bet the Compass or Patriot would as well. Probably a Nissan Rogue would be fine too, but you can’t get that with a stick.

There *is* a legitimate market for this kind of cheap 4WD trucklette. The idea was fine…it was just the execution that was a bit lacking. Anyone who thinks a Honda Civic with snow tires is all you ever need in the snow is probably talking about the kind of snow they get in, say, southern Missouri. Or, their municipality has a lot more snow plows than mine!

The original concept was a 2-door vehicle that was much more attractive. You can see the original concept if you go to the following link and scroll down:

http://www.rockcrawler.com/trailreports/naias_2002/jeep_compass/index.asp

While Chrysler did not do as bad a job as GM did with the Aztec in translating it from concept to production, the Compass definitely lost something in the transition.

Yes, but were the snow drifts packed and made into the shape of a road?

Just because you passed a stuck Subaru wagon doesn’t mean the Compass is good in the snow

I was able to get through 2ft snow drifts with relative ease. I am telling you again that tt drives very good in the snow. Look, just come out and admit how much you hate Chrysler and their products.

Just because you passed a stuck Subaru wagon doesn’t mean the Compass is good in the snow. There’s no reason why ANY FWD or AWD vehicle on non-summer tires should be stuck in moderate snow, unless the driver did something wrong. Chances are the stuck Subaru driver fit into the Compass’s target demographic(if you get the hint)

The fact that they shoved you into an ‘07 model in December 2008 is telling. (’07s are generally built starting in ‘06.)

I mean really, beating up on a two year old Jeep Compass, the poster boy for TTAC’s annual ten worst list is like… is like… well you’re the simile guy, but it’s hardly cricket, is it?