2022 Jeep Compass vs 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee, with its timeless design, continued to impress even a decade after its debut. It balanced rugged utility and upscale sophistication, featuring big wheels under flared fenders, making it a quintessential SUV. The Grand Cherokee's design contributed significantly to its success, offering a blend of mainstream, luxury, and performance SUV characteristics. The lineup ranged from the affordable Laredo and Limited trims to the upscale Overland and Summit, and the performance-oriented SRT and Trackhawk models. The 2021 model introduced minor updates to the Laredo and Limited trims and debuted the Laredo X and 80th Anniversary Edition versions, with prices spanning from $35,000 to nearly $90,000.

Our test vehicle, a Summit trim, came equipped with a 5.7-liter V8 engine, four-wheel drive, and several premium packages, totaling an MSRP of $68,185. The Platinum Series Group enhanced the Summit's appearance with body-color accents and platinum chrome finishes. Inside, the Summit featured premium leather, genuine wood, aluminum, and simulated suede, with a striking Indigo and Ski Gray color scheme. However, the interior showed signs of aging, with outdated switchgear and non-flush panel fits, indicating a need for a redesign.

The 2022 Jeep Compass received exterior styling updates and new wheel designs but retained its familiar look from the 2017 redesign. Our High Altitude test vehicle featured 19-inch multi-spoke wheels with a dark sparkly finish, giving it an upscale appearance. Inside, the Compass High Altitude impressed with a new dashboard design, updated digital instrumentation, and infotainment systems. The cabin featured soft-touch surfaces, luxury-grade leather seats, and added sound deadening, enhancing its premium feel.

The High Altitude trim, the most expensive in the Compass lineup, offered a range of features, including standard all-wheel drive and option packages like the Elite Interior Group and Driver Assist Group 1. Prices for the Compass ranged from $26,020 to $35,085, excluding a $1,595 destination charge. Our test vehicle, with all possible upgrades, had an MSRP of $40,470.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee came standard with a 3.6-liter V6 engine, producing 295 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. It could tow up to 6,200 pounds, making it a capable choice for most needs. For those seeking more power, the optional 5.7-liter Hemi V8 delivered 360 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque, with a best-in-class towing capacity of 7,200 pounds. The V8 engine featured cylinder deactivation technology for improved fuel efficiency, though it achieved only 17 mpg in combined driving. The Quadra-Trac II 4WD system, Quadra-Lift air suspension, and Selec-Terrain traction management made the Grand Cherokee Summit adept at off-roading and highway driving.

During daily driving, the Grand Cherokee Summit was speedy, responsive, and relatively quiet. However, the V8 engine consumed fuel quickly in city driving, and the air suspension could feel bouncy on uneven surfaces. The Grand Cherokee's tight turning radius and effective brakes were useful in various driving situations, though it lacked surround-view and forward-view camera systems.

The 2022 Jeep Compass featured a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, producing 177 horsepower and 172 pound-feet of torque. While the engine, dubbed "Tigershark," lacked the power of its competitors, it was paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission for all-wheel-drive models and a six-speed automatic for front-wheel-drive versions. The transmission aimed to maximize fuel efficiency but often resulted in a busy and unrewarding powertrain character. The automatic stop/start system was slow to re-engage the engine, leading to hard engagement during acceleration.

The Compass High Altitude averaged 23.8 mpg in combined driving, slightly below the EPA's estimate of 25 mpg. With 8.1 inches of ground clearance, the Compass was suitable for light off-roading and snowstorms. The Trailhawk trim offered enhanced off-road capabilities with a different AWD system, hill descent control, skid plates, and 8.6 inches of ground clearance. The Compass High Altitude's 19-inch wheels improved grip on pavement, but the suspension struggled with speed humps and bumps, revealing its dated status.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit featured a luxurious interior with flat, firm, and supportive seats wrapped in quilted and perforated leather. The Signature Leather-Wrapped Interior Package added a premium touch, though it was an expensive option. Both front seats offered eight-way power adjustment, heating, and ventilation, with controls embedded in the Uconnect infotainment system. The rear seat was comfortable but had limited legroom for taller adults, and the optional rear-seat entertainment system added to a sense of claustrophobia. The Grand Cherokee provided 36.3 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat, expandable to 68.3 cubic feet with the seats folded down.

The 2022 Jeep Compass offered a spacious interior for four adults and their luggage, with upgrades for 2022 enhancing its premium feel. The High Altitude trim featured eight-way power-adjustable front seats with heating and ventilation, a heated steering wheel, and heated rear seats. The Elite Interior Group option package added premium leather upholstery and light-gray contrast stitching. The redesigned dashboard, new Uconnect 5 infotainment screen, and improved primary controls elevated the Compass's perceived quality. The Compass provided 27.2 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat, expandable to 59.8 cubic feet with the seats folded down.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee featured the Uconnect 4C with Nav infotainment system, offering a nearly flawless user experience with fast response times and pleasing graphics. Highlights included navigation, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, a 4G LTE WiFi hotspot, and a Jeep Skill for Amazon Alexa. The system also included SiriusXM services, voice recognition technology, and a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system in the Summit trim. While the Grand Cherokee's infotainment system was impressive, it lacked some of the advanced digital features expected in modern vehicles.

The 2022 Jeep Compass introduced the Uconnect 5 infotainment system, which was five times faster than the previous generation. It featured an 8.4-inch touchscreen display, with a 10.1-inch touchscreen available as an upgrade. Uconnect 5 supported wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, satellite radio, and voice text-to-reply capability. The system also offered over-the-air updates, a navigation system, connected services, a WiFi hotspot, and a wireless device charging pad. The voice recognition system was fast and accurate, though it had some limitations in specific scenarios.

The 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee had mixed safety ratings. While it received a five-star overall rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for 4WD models, it performed poorly in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) tests, earning "Marginal" and "Poor" ratings in small-overlap frontal-impact collisions. The Grand Cherokee Summit came with a comprehensive suite of safety features, including adaptive cruise control, forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, and automatic high-beam headlights. It also offered a backup camera, parking sensors, and a ParkSense parking assistance system.

The 2022 Jeep Compass improved its safety features, with every version now including forward-collision warning with pedestrian and cyclist detection, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert. The Compass also added Highway Assist, which paired adaptive cruise control and lane-centering assistance for highway driving. A parallel and perpendicular parking assistance system and a 360-degree surround-view camera system were available. While the NHTSA and IIHS had not yet published safety ratings for the updated 2022 Compass, the previous model's ratings suggested a need for improved headlight performance.