A Manual Fades From the Jeep Lineup

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

When you think of the rapidly dwindling handful of vehicles still available with a manual transmission, you probably didn’t list the Jeep Compass among those remaining holdouts. And yet the compact crossover does offer such a setup, ever since the current-generation model went on sale for 2017.

Well, Jeep offered, but not many buyers took them up on it. Actually, it seems Jeep could barely find any takers — which is why, for 2021, the Compass will carry only an autobox.

This news comes by way of CarsDirect, which noticed the six-speed manual missing from the 2021 Compass’ spec sheet. Offered as standard kit on the entry-level Sport (4×2 and 4×4) and step-up Latitude (4×4 only) trims, the stick shift paired with the standard 2.4-liter Tigershark four-cylinder.

Come ’21, the six- and nine-speed automatics already offered throughout the Compass range will fill the gap.

The reason for the transmission deep-sixing should be clear to anyone. No takers. Speaking to CarsDirect, Jeep spokesperson Amy Grundman said, with no shortage of understatement, “there wasn’t much of a demand for a manual transmission.”

Indeed there wasn’t. Poring through U.S. inventory listings, the publication noticed that less than 1 percent of existing Compasses carried a three-pedal arrangement, suggesting that the actual number of unsold stick-shift units out there number somewhere around 100. The Compass sold more than 144,000 units in the country last year.

Of course, this all means that getting into a base Compass next year will be pricier, though not for the vast majority of buyers who chose to outfit their Sport with an automatic, anyway. That option cost $1,500, which makes the base 2021 model’s MSRP of $25,390 (a $1,615 markup over 2020) pretty easy to swallow.

[Image: Fiat Chrysler]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Kwik_Shift Hyunkia'sis doing what they do best...subverting expectations of quality.
  • MaintenanceCosts People who don't use the parking brake when they walk away from the car deserve to have the car roll into a river.
  • 3-On-The-Tree I’m sure they are good vehicles but you can’t base that on who is buying them. Land Rovers, Bentley’ are bought by Robin Leaches’s “The Rich and Famous” but they have terrible reliability.
  • SCE to AUX The fix sounds like a bandaid. Kia's not going to address the defective shaft assemblies because it's hard and expensive - not cool.
  • Analoggrotto I am sick and tired of every little Hyundai Kia Genesis flaw being blown out of proportion. Why doesn't TTAC talk about the Tundra iForce Max problems, Toyota V35A engine problems or the Lexus 500H Hybrid problems? Here's why: education. Most of America is illiterate, as are the people who bash Hyundai Kia Genesis. Surveys conducted by credible sources have observed a high concentration of Hyundai Kia Genesis models at elite ivy league universities, you know those places where students earn degrees which earn more than $100K per year? Get with the program TTAC.
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