2022 Jeep Compass Gets Class-Leading Safety Upgrades

Safety systems, on-road dynamics and cabin are focus of major mid-cycle refresh.

September 1, 2021

Kami Buchholz

Jim Morrison talks Jeep off-road prowess at the CAS 2021 with a 2022 Compass Trailhawk (left) and a Wrangler fitted with the Xtreme Recon package with 35-in. tires. (Stellantis)

An all-new interior and a significant increase in onboard safety systems comprise the major design and engineering changes made to the Jeep Compass for MY2022. The compact SUV now offers more than 75 safety and security features. “We outmatch everybody in the segment,” claimed Jim Morrison, VP, Jeep Brand North America, in an interview with SAE Media at the 2021 Chicago Auto Show (CAS).

Jeep engineers focused on improving the 2022 Compass’s on-road dynamics. (Stellantis)

Stellantis engineers expanded Compass’s safety-systems suite with parallel and perpendicular park assist and traffic-sign recognition, both new for Compass. Pedestrian/cyclist park assist is now standard across the Compass line-up, and a 360-degree surround-view camera is standard on Latitude and above trim levels. Highway traffic assist and a hands-on/eyes-on-the road SAE Level 2 driver assistance system will be offered after the vehicle’s late-2021 market debut.

LED reflector headlamps are now standard on all trims, replacing the previous halogen lights. LED projector headlamps, LED fog lamps and tail-lamps are available on Latitude LUX, Trailhawk and Limited trims.

Chief engineer Chad Parsons stands guard ahead of the 2022 Compass after its unveiling at the 2021 CAS. (Buchholz)

A new 10.25-in. TFT screen is part of a new IP that dramatically improves the ’22 Jeep Compass’s user interface. (Stellantis)

Engineers also aimed to improve the vehicle’s on-road dynamics by fitting a larger-diameter rear stabilizer bar and retuned springs, shocks and struts. “The changes mean the vehicle has reduced understeer and improved response in handling through the corners. The on-road ‘feel’ also improves,” Chad Parsons, Compass chief engineer, said in an interview at CAS. A steering ratio change improves the on-road responsiveness. “There’s now a more linear feel throughout the 12 o’clock to 9 o’clock, or 12 o’clock to 3 o’clock steering positions,” Parsons explained.

The ’22 Compass program included significant investment for revamping the cabin, including a redesigned instrument panel. A new 10.25-in. thin-film transistor (TFT) digital gauge cluster, available on Limited and Trailhawk models, adds to the incumbent Compass’s 3.5-in. and 7-in. cluster. The larger cluster is unique to Compass and offers 24 possible reconfigurable combinations, Parsons said.

The dashboard features a new 10.1-inch Uconnect 5 center stack display interface with standard wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa. The new IP’s design includes slim HVAC vents that “seamlessly disappear” into the panel, said Parsons. The thin-theme also applies to the Jeep’s seat headrests, which were slimmed down by 10-15% to provide additional rear visibility,” Parsons said.

While Jeep’s 4xe hybrid-electric powertrain is available on Compass in Europe, Morrison was tight-lipped about the timeline for its debut in North America. The Compass and Renegade 4xe models are the best-selling low-emission SUVs in Italy, which is Stellantis’ largest market in Europe, noted Jeep Brand CEO Christian Meunier. He added that 100% of Jeep’s SUV portfolio in Europe now has the 4xe system.

At CAS, Morrison declined to answer whether or not Compass, Cherokee and Renegade will share the same electrified platform – or whether or not the vehicles would also have a non-electrified platform. “We have a plan that shows our commitment to electrification and the efficiencies that we get with this new, broader company,” he said. In Stellantis’ July 8 EV Day presentation, Meunier stated that Jeep will offer a zero emission, fully electric 4xe in every single SUV segment by 2025.