that most small SUVs would not be able to handle.
(STEPHEN McGEE/Detroit Free Press)
MARK PHELAN |FREE PRESS AUTO CRITIC - - The Compass is the smallest vehicle in Jeep's lineup, but it was a big gamble for reasons most of its owners will never know or care about.
The reason comes down to chassis engineering and Jeep's history of building vehicles that scale cliffs like mountain goats and ford rivers like water buffalo.
The little Compass, you see, is based on the same structure, or architecture, as the hot-selling Dodge Caliber compact car.
If you just thought, "Who cares? I'm not taking it on safari," you are the ideal Compass owner.
The Compass has Jeep looks. Properly equipped, it can handle moderate off-roading that would stymie most small SUVs.
The base front-wheel-drive model, however, shouldn't go farther off-road than a dew-covered backyard.
If that tarnishes Jeep's reputation for tough off-roaders, the brand has lost its greatest asset.
Jeep engineers developed a two-pronged strategy to prevent that.
First, they set out to ensure that the Compass can do more off-roading than its main competitors, the Honda CR-V, Hyundai Tucson and Toyota RAV4.
Second, they used the same architecture for the Compass and Caliber as the basis for the Jeep Patriot, a boxy model with old-time looks and better off-road credentials.
The Patriot goes on sale later this year. It will be the least expensive Jeep, with a base price somewhere south of the Compass' $15,425, and its looks should appeal to the Jeepsters who are still smarting over the death of the old Cherokee SUV.
With the Patriot hedging the bet, the Compass may not be much of a gamble after all.
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