2021 Jeep Compass facelift to be revealed on June 4th

The Jeep Compass has been around for quite some time now, and naturally it is time for the Compass to receive a mid cycle update which will be unveiled to the world on the 4th of June, 2020. Jeep will be resorting to an online unveiling which has to be the trend lately thanks(not really) to Covid 19, and to hype the launch event, Jeep teased a photo of honeycomb mesh grille with grey borders with a tagline attached to it which says, “CONNECTED WITH FREEDOM”. This makes me believe that the face-lifted Compass will not only see a facelift, but the technology within the vehicle will be upgraded to match up against it rival or even go past them.

Expected changes on the outside of the 2021 Compass

With respect to the exteriors, the changes are not plenty but they will be quite recognisable as the headlamps will receive a redesigning, the front and rear bumpers will be tweaked, and the front grille will be a new one with honeycomb inserts (much like that of the teased image), which would still carry forward the Jeep seven slat design.

Expected changes on the inside of the 2021 Compass

It is the inside of the Compass which will receive several changes, and if I am being honest, the change was much needed. Let me start by talking about the biggest update, which is the inclusion of FCA’s (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) Uconnect 5 Infotainment System, and this system will be making its way to the Compass in the form of a rumoured 12.3 inch touchscreen media system. This infotainment system was showcased by FCA during the 2019 CES (Consumer Electronics Show), and it is quite a well equipped technologically advanced gadget.

This infotainment system supports Android Auto, Apple CarPlay and Amazon’s Alexa, so whatever be your software assistant preference, the new Compass will be able to support it. (sans Microsoft’s Cortana though, but then again, who uses it?) Furthermore, thanks to its advanced connectivity, the media system can receive over the air updates and update itself. There is yet another new feature of the infotainment system and that is the 6 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage space which it present within it, which would allow the owner to download music, photos, and videos onto the system thereby letting him/her access these files whenever they want, without having to connect to the internet.

The dashboard which holds this infotainment system will also be revised, and it is being said that colour options for the upholstery will be offered.

Expected changes on the powertrain of the 2021 Compass

And I pranked you, there are no changes being expected with respect to the powertrain of the Indian-spec Compass. The engines of the Compass recently became BS6 compliant so it would continue offering the 1.4 litre turbo-petrol which produces a healthy 163 hp and a 2.0 litre diesel which makes a hearty 173 ps. A 6 speed manual is offered as standard on both, but for the ones who want an automatic, a 7 speed dual clutch transmission is available on the petrol spec engine and as for the diesel, a 9 speed torque convertor unit is present.

When would the facelifted Compass be released ?

Some reports suggest that after its international debut, the Compass would make it to Indian shores by this year end, while some other reports are saying that the 2021 Compass will land in India by first few months of 2021.

Once the 2021 Compass releases in India, will it be well equipped to take on the likes of the Kia Seltos, Hyundai Creta, MG Hector and the Tata Harrier? In fact, considering the pricing, it will also have to take on the newly released Skoda Karoq, Volkswagen T-Roc and the incoming Hyundai Tucson. The Compass was a hard sell for Jeep because of the pricing and better equipped SUVs were available at much lower prices. Although, now we have more unreasonably priced mid-to-high end SUVs in India and the Compass is the only one with enough 4×4 capabilities WORTHY of the price. Maybe this time it works out for Jeep and the FCA.