Compass Sales for March..

Can I put in my cheap two cents on Americans vs. the Compass?

First, it would seem as though to the rest of the world, we are a nation of gluttons, which is only partially true. Sure, there are plenty of us who like our big engines with lots of power. Some of us like our toys, and we like them the bigger, the badder, the louder the better. Heck, I almost bought the 5.7 Hemi Grand Cherokee, but when it came down to what I was actually planning to use this car for, the Compass suited me, personally. When I was looking into the Liberty, I thought, a 3.7? I don't want to go down from my 4.0. However, if the Compass qualified for the free Hemi upgrade, you bet I would be first in line, even though I say, just put the Hemi in there in the first place and be done with it.

That being beside the point, sure, we like our gas guzzlers. That is until gas prices spike, at which time, people will probably ask themselves gee, why didn't I go with the more economical Compass or Prius or whatever? When gas prices rise exponentially and supplies dwindle, it creates a panic. Then all of a sudden, cars like ours look more attractive. I will be interested to see what happens when gas prices go through the roof over the summer, if Compass sales don't follow the trend, and hopefully DCX can get in on some of the action.

As far as the whole Jeep vs. (non-Jeep) Compass goes, true, it looks more sheepish than Jeepish, but I knew that when I bought it. I bought Jeep's first car, period. I have the Cherokee for everything else.

No, I think the bobble-heads might have dis-credited this car, even though I personally liked them as fresh and interesting, kind of like the Compass. However, if your target demographic is educated 30-somethings with a median income of 55-60K, then, yeah, bobble-heads probably dumbed down that target market, and made it more appealing to high school or college kids.

Anyway, those are my thoughts.

P.S. - Yes, I am sure the Patriot will have a much better reception down here, it looks more like the Jeep that people are familiar with, and it at least offers a trail-rated option.

ACX, here's a question, how long do you think the Compass will actually be in production? How many model years do you give it, considering the results have not been great, to borrow the word, mediocre, and many people are complaining that the Jeep brand is stretched too thin, Commander vs. Grand Cherokee, and Compass competing against Caliber for sales, seeing as how there is no known competitor in the Jeep lineup for the Compass?

No sarcasm intended, as I was actually having this conversation the other day about my Compass, and wondering if it will continue to survive, even make it as long as the Commander, which is being discontinued. Bad as I hate to think about it, I have to believe it is true, especially with the bind that DCX finds themselves in right now, they are beginning to listen to the masses. After all, the real gem for Chrysler is Jeep and the Jeep name, as well as the icon that it represents.

I love mine, and was optimistic that it would take off, but even I have to admit, this one was a bit of a stretch for Jeep, seeing as how they really aren't known for the crossover type vehicle. Truth is, I wondered about that even before I bought mine, even though I have never been one to let (un) popular opinion sway my decision. I believe I bought a great car.

Neely2005 said:

:?:

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yes indeed sir.. Caliber production is usually 3-3500 per week..

for volume the caliber is the big mover, it in fact is the best selling model internationally as well. I don't know the volume internationally of the compass or patriot.

For the year to date around to april 7,

56,545 calibers
23,559 compasses
12,880 patriots

hav ebeen produced..

Cherokee, in terms of how many model years does the compass have.. tough to say.. I would think definitely a few, but with the prospect of chrysler's sale to a private equirty company, this could change fast.

There are 2 ideas at play:

Is there a market for a vehicle like the compass? Yes, I think so...

did they execute the compass properly? Not 100%.

the R&D and cost of the unique parts of the compass should be allowed to pay for themselves and run their course but underpinnings obviously are the same as the patriot. Arguably did they need both the compass and patriot? Maybe not - so they could harmonize them into 1 model

Overall jeep had to decide, do they want to grow the brand, or do they want to keep it small. I guess.

the facts are, that the bottom has fallen out of the mid sized suv market, so the grand cherokee, their former crown jewel is playing to a shrinking market.

the new liberty looks fairly interesting, but they are giving it the same warmed over engine and transmission combo, so it arguably starts a step behind.

I myself think the lineup has room for probably 4 competent machines,

the historical jeep, and an SUV in 3 sizes, small medium and large. If sales warrant the redundancy of 2 minimobiles then fine. They spent something like 400 million to upgrade the belvidere plant to enable it to make 3 models. Normally that money would be spent on only 1 model, so they got a lot of bang for their bucks.

The thing they have to realize though is that likely the patriot / compass and liberty sized machines are where their sales growth is going to come from, since the big behemoths are falling out of favor fast, with the exception of the big blingmobiles.

Cliffnotes are though, that the compass will be the first one on the bubble in terms of being axed.

I think that one thing that comes into play is the number of Dodge dealerships as compared to Jeep dealerships ... there are probably quite a few more Dodge dealerships than Jeep ones, and therefore you're going to have more Calibers out there for the public. Dodge dealerships are also used to marketing smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles (like the Neon or PT cruiser in the past) while I'd bet most Jeep dealerships are lost when it comes to marketing the Compass. It's a new concept for Jeep ... and Jeep has to cultivate a following for the Compass. The original 'bubblehead' advertising was ill-conceived and a bust (I think).

I'd imagine that DCX is pressuring many of the Jeep dealers to move the gas guzzlers (Commander, etc.) from their lots ... and that may have an impact upon Compass sales. I don't think that many Jeep dealerships have been well-prepared for the Compass. The Patriot will probably fare better because it's similar to what they're used to selling.

I wonder how the Compass/Caliber platform would have done if they had come out in Sept 2005, when gasoline was well over $3 a gallon in the States? The fuel efficiency alone would have boosted sales ... and in the case of the Compass, you could still get a 4x4 with good mileage to boot!

I think that the Liberty will be in trouble because it just isn't fuel efficient. I have a friend with a Liberty Sport and he doesn't get any better mileage than I did with my Wrangler ... and 18pmg just isn't going to cut it any more. Here in New York state you cannot buy the Liberty diesel (and is it still being made anyhow?), so that killed the more fuel efficient option. The Ford Escape offers a more fuel efficient 4cyl, with FWD, and it's actually roomier than the Liberty. It might be better if Jeep (and DCX) redesigned the Liberty with FWD and a 4x4 option, much like the Compass. The technology is there for that ... and it's time for Jeep (and DCX) to utilize that instead of the older 4x4 technology currently being used on the Liberty ... that older technology works fine for the Wrangler but I think it's time for a change in the Liberty. Despite the current commercials showing the Liberty's being driven through the mud, etc., I doubt that many Liberty's are purchased for that ... again, that's a Wrangler thing!

When I first saw the Compass I was a little put off ... it looked a bit odd. But once I drove one, then I was sold. Getting people into the Compass and letting them try them out is going to be key for Jeep's success with this model.

Thanks, ACX, and that is a good thought. Like you, I kind of agree, that if the axe does actually fall, the Compass will be the first to go.

It may seem narrow minded so to speak to keep the Jeep brand "small," but Jeep is an icon, and has a tremendous following. I am kind of too old for the license plate game while driving, but where I live, for every car I see, there are at least 2 pickups and 3 Jeeps. The Liberty is very popular as is the Grand Cherokee. The Commander, yeah I liked that one, too, but form didn't really meet function there. I agree, the mid-size segment is dwindling, so in Jeep's case, keep it simple should be the rule of thumb, small but capable Wrangler (in all of its versions), compact but versatile and agile Compass, and bling but still functional Grand Cherokee. There you have it, small, medium and large.

For me, the difficult part is, I love my Compass, but I can also see where the Jeep purists are coming from, because I am a bit of one myself. That was my original thought with this one, was that times do change, as do people and their needs in a vehicle. Truth is, I was familiar with the Compass concept, but I never really saw this one coming, kind of found myself blindsided, so to speak. Jeep does not need to grow their brand as much as others do, because classic Jeep is what Jeepers are after, which is why they have such a cult following. They can have a narrow range of offerings, and still sell cars. I would be interested to see what the Compass/Patriot offspring would look like, but the '08 Liberty, now that is a looker. Why didn't they just do that in the first place??? Perhaps if they had, I would have bought that one. Unfortunately, besides its looks, the Patriot doesn't have much going for it, either, due to the watered down engine/tranny combo. Granted, those things work great in the vehicles they are designed for, but since when did people start buying Jeep for the mpg? They are still advertising the 30mpg, but time will tell.

Yeah, they re-vamped the Ill. plant, but have they really gotten all their money's worth? My thought, no. Truth is, if Jeep did dilute the brand, they did it in a couple of ways, first, by introducing what they took to be a forward thinking and progressive vehicle, i.e. the Compass into unsure territory, beyond the initial focus groups, but also by doing so at such a low base price with no options. What really gets my goat is that "Dr. Z" was all for the idea of the Compass/Caliber/Patriot, and now that he has seen how much it cost DCX in lost sales and reputation, now he is just ready to ditch it? I say leave the outside investors out, and leave Jeep to do what Jeep does best, build quality vehicles that people want.

kwc, as far as dealerships where I live go, typically Dodge dealers also sell Jeep, but dealerships down here, while they may specialize in one brand or other, sell pretty much anything. My dealership was Chrysler, Dodge Jeep. Not to say it is not different elsewhere, but one without the other is almost an oxymoron.

Chrysler was one of the few who had increased sales in the US. Their sales increased in Canada too.

Predictably the patriot is hot on the tail of the compass (it is a grand cheaper and more conventional in styling)..

for US

Caliber 9306
Compass 3239
Patriot 2904

Canadian numbers are still eluding me, but I'll get them. Caliber / Compass / Patriot numbers in Canada TOTALLED 3160.

My guess would be 1600 calibers, 900 compasses and 800 patriots, but that is just a guess. :lol:

An interesting note is a recent article about the compass stating that it is stealing many many sales from former import owners and other brands (something like 84% of compass buyers come from outside the brand). that could be its ace in the hole. I mean, my g/F got rid of her civic for the compass.

8)

you may well be right, we will see indeed. clearly on a percentage basis the caliber and compass have been better received than in the US, as will the patriot I'm sure (but as you hint, how much better??).

As I thought (actually I can't believe they didn't do it sooner) the patriot is starting to get more production time in belvidere.

As of may 5th

last 7 days production

caliber
3,809 (73,088 for year)
compass
1,389 (28,322 for year)
patriot
2,278 (20,531 for year)

I expect a slowdown in Compass production as they do have a decent inventory built up now.

one thing I don't regularly get my finger on.. International sales by model..