Chrysler might be having a hard time keeping up to demand for the popular Dodge Caliber crossover, but interest in the Jeep Compass appears markedly lower. While the compact vehicle hasn’t been on the market as long, early signs suggest the Compass is off to a slower start than the Caliber, according to Automotive News.
Dealers say many consumers are opting for the more expensive Liberty, with incentives playing a significant role. The average transaction price of a new Compass has dropped by $1,000, while Calibers, on average, rose $1,000.
In August, a consumer panel assembled by the Detroit News showed a much stronger interest in the Dodge Caliber over the Compass, with ten out of ten recommending the Caliber, but only two out of ten praising the Compass. While the vehicles are nearly identical, consumers seem to have a strong perception about what a Jeep should be.



10/10, 8:45 AM
posted by:
Renton
Not surprised.
The Compass is ugly, its proportions just don’t work.
Plus, its not a real Jeep.
10/10, 8:47 AM
posted by:
90Z
With the Compass, Patriot, and the Liberty, isn’t this a bit confusing for the average consumer? They all seem to look alike.
10/10, 8:55 AM
posted by:
zan
I thought about buying a Liberty and when my wife asked about the compass the salesman tried to push us away from the compass. In not so many words he said that the compass was not a real jeep and was not even close to as well built as the Liberty, but we test drove it anyway.
I think we got maybe a mile before we were convinced the Compass was a total piece of crap. The decision was made even easier by the fact that I could get the liberty for the same or less money with incentives.
The compass has no power at all and the interior just felt extra cheap.
The Liberty is a much better vehicle
10/10, 9:01 AM
posted by:
Brendino
That’s interesting, zan. The dealers aren’t psyched to sell it.
I think another factor is that it’s the same vehicle as the Caliber, only the Caliber is less expensive and much more well-received and well-advertised (Sorry, but the Compass ads aren’t all the great). So if people are looking for a vehicle in the segment and a dealer has both cars on the lot, they’re going to choose the Caliber.
10/10, 9:25 AM
posted by:
snork
First off…I didn’t even know there are Jeep Compass ads, LOL. Secondly, it’s just plain ugly. I’d definitely go with a Caliber over the Jeep. And if Liberties are going for similar money, that seems like a no brainer. I had a Liberty rental a few months ago…it was definitely a nice little Jeep for the money. Jeep should can Patriot and Compass and spend those resources on making the Liberty better. They seem to sell plenty of Liberties, can’t say I’ve even scene a Patriot or Compass yet and I live in NJ where you can see just about every car on the road…I probably see a Maybach weekly and Lambos and Ferraris a few times a week. Given those pretty RARE cars, it doesn’t bode well that I’ve never even scene these new Jeeps…heheh.
10/10, 9:46 AM
posted by:
wenge
It amazes me how much marketing I’ve seen for the Compass but I have yet to see one on the road. I can’t believe ANYONE is buying that POS!
10/10, 9:49 AM
posted by:
lewissalem
I know the Rav4 is a few thousand more… But its just so much more… REFINED.
I was a little confused as to why this product was built. It doesn’t even look like a Jeep. Atleast the Patriot does.
10/10, 10:30 AM
posted by:
1234
Reminds me of the old AMC Gremlin only with a Jeep front end. No wonder they’re not selling.
10/10, 10:30 AM
posted by:
DaveO
Caliber (though also cheap) is much better looking. I see the Patriot outselling them all however. Much better looking and it has the retro Cherokee thing going for it.
10/10, 10:31 AM
posted by:
DavidS
The people Jeep intended as the target audience wouldn’t be caught dead driving this stupid looking thing. As much bashing as the Caliber gets, as this article says, it’s selling a lot better and isn’t trying to be something it’s not (which is what the Compass is). Caliber seems like a good little car. The Compass looks half-finished, like they allowed an entry-level engineer to design the exterior as his first project.
I still say the Caliber SRT should have been AWD…
10/10, 10:41 AM
posted by:
snork
^^^The Caliber SRT should definitely been AWD. 300HP FWD just doesn’t make any sense. And for the price, another $2k to add AWD would still significantly undercut Subaru STI and Mitsu EVOs which would be the logical comparisons. The price diffence would probably even be enough to justify not matching up to the Subie/Mitsu’s handling while still giving a run for the money in a straight line and probably be a tad quicker than a similarly priced regular WRX.
10/10, 10:43 AM
posted by:
Brendino
lewissalem, this thing is in a different segment than the RAV.
Though I won’t argue your point.
10/10, 11:20 AM
posted by:
1c3d0g
The Patriot is much better than the Compass, IMO. I think it’ll sell better.
10/10, 11:35 AM
posted by:
A4
and yes the caliber SRT4 definatly needs AWD. can dodge say torque steer?
10/10, 11:43 AM
posted by:
atomicbri
No suprise here! It is ugly, looks like a bloated fruit and is NOT a Jeep. I am shocked they even considered to bring it out really. The concept car that was the Compass was hot….this was a complete disappointment. I except this car will be gone after its model cycle.
10/10, 12:31 PM
posted by:
Impulsive
Seriously, who decided that this would EVER work? I can’t, for the life of me, understand who runs these companies making these decisions? Monkeys should be washing these things, not designing and approving them.
Cut your losses NOW and can this mess. Then can the monkeys who were part of this birth.
10/10, 12:32 PM
posted by:
zan
The people who go to a Jeep dealer are not looking to buy a Caliber and thats what the Compass is. It just isn’t a real Jeep.
This is really sad because Jeep was one of the few American manufacturers that did not share frames with every other car made and it looks like they might be headed in that direction.
10/10, 1:55 PM
posted by:
Bush
Jeep now has their own “Aztec”.
10/10, 3:37 PM
posted by:
Bobzooki
It seems all the people with bad taste bought the Caliber already and there is no one left to buy Compasses
10/10, 5:04 PM
posted by:
nowei
I’ve actually been curious about how the SRT breakdown is going to work for these models. Will they make a Compass SRT-4? Because it might make sense that the Compass would get AWD whereas the Dodge stays FWD. I think that could give the Compass a much needed sales boost. I’d give it a look but I haven’t exactly been thrilled with the Caliber.
One of my friends bought a Caliber and I was less than impressed. The dash is like two miles wide, and in the process of trying to make the Caliber seem like an SUV they’ve made it feel like you’re driving a bathtub. They could have just completed the package and made the visibility truly terrible by adding a smoked glass windshield.
Plus, the advertisements for the Caliber are some of the worst ads on TV at the moment. The Caliber just isn’t a tough car, no matter what Dodge says. It’s kind of like when KFC advertised a whole bucket of fried chicken as a way to start eating healthy. I’m just not stupid enough to believe that. The Compass ads, while far from great, are at least using motifs (hip hop and bobblehead dolls) that appeal to the theoretical target demographic of the car. Also, unlike Dodge, they’re not trying to advertise the car as something it’s not. It may not be a Jeep, but they’re not really advertising a Jeep.
So, yeah, has anyone heard about a Compass SRT-4?
/no
10/10, 9:28 PM
posted by:
Ricardo Head
Because sales of the Compass have been slow as ****, DCX decided to go retro, pull from their roots, and restyle it into the all new 2007ComPacer….
… http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k148/WaaaaHoooo/ComPacer.jpg
10/10, 10:22 PM
posted by:
Diel
Last I heard Doge’s AWD system for the Caliber was not able to handle the power of the SRT-4.
10/10, 11:56 PM
posted by:
Vertical
I agree with Impulsive. Some decisions by some of the Detroit auto bigshots are completely baffling. DCX decided NOT to build the fantastic looking Gladiator, and instead decided to build the hideous Compieceof****. And these idiots get paid serious coin to make these stupid decisions.
10/11, 12:39 AM
posted by:
mblommel
1. It’s fugly
2. Trying to sell with product with bobbleheads is stupid.
10/11, 8:17 AM
posted by:
BIGJAMESBO
THEY NEED TO QUIT MESSING AROUND AND PUT THE 4.7 V8 IN THE COMPASS AND BOTH HEMI’S AS OPTIONS IN THE JEEP WRANGLER. THEN I WOULD CONSIDER A JEEP. DAISY DUKE HAD A V8 IN HER JEEP!
10/11, 10:32 AM
posted by:
Fatstrat
Didn’t I read somewhere that the Compass was designed to appeal to women and the Patriot to men?
I would like to hear from women on how they like the looks of the Compass, because my wife (not into cars at all and rarely comments on them) actually said she wanted to look at one.
10/11, 11:31 AM
posted by:
lanapat7
Everyone I’ve asked mentioned the Compass doesn’t look like a Jeep.
No wonder sales are way off.
10/11, 1:11 PM
posted by:
tppp
The article states Jeep Compass off to a slow(er) start…meaning slower start then the Caliber. It doesn’t say the Compass is off to a slow start. As far as Chrysler is concerned the Compass is preforming pretty well so far. No, its not selling as fast as the Caliber did for awhile but now the Caliber sales have slowed down some and the average transaction price of the Compass’s being sold is consideribly higher than the Caliber which stands to reason that its not going to put up the same kind of numbers as the Caliber did. At this point the Compass is the hotter product of the two right now in my opinion. After driving them both it is also the better product of the two. The Compass has better interior materials, more interior volume, and way more sound deadening material.
10/11, 8:28 PM
posted by:
elviososa
Compass is FUGLY….I said that before…and I don’t mind to say it again.It even looks uglier than the plastic toy cars that is Made in China in the the Wal-Mart.
Yeah….I am kinda wondering who is running the Jeep brand now….a monkey??
10/13, 12:14 AM
posted by:
girlwholovescars
From a womens perspective this car is like dating a 80 year old with no money. It’s pointless.