It has been a while coming but Jeep India finally brought a diesel-automatic variant of the Compass to India in the form of the Trail-Rated Compass Trailhawk. However, this range-topping version of Jeep’s smallest SUV for the country is priced at a significant Rs 3.7 lakh premium over the Compass Limited Plus, which means that those hoping for a more affordable Compass diesel-automatic may have been disappointed. This situation is expected to change before Diwali this year.
Jeep is likely to make the BS6-compliant 2.0-litre diesel engine (which makes 173hp and 350Nm of torque) and the 9-speed torque convertor automatic available on the lower-spec and mid-spec variants of the standard Jeep Compass. Dealer sources tell us that Jeep will most-likely not offer the diesel-AT configuration in the Compass Limited Plus variant as it could be priced too close to the Trailhawk. In addition they also reveal that the Compass diesel-AT is likely to be only available with the front-wheel drive; Jeep’s excellent 4x4 system is likely to be given a miss to keep prices in check. Expect details on the exact equipment list and variant breakup to surface closer to its market launch.
With the introduction of a more affordable diesel-automatic Compass, buyers of the Mahindra XUV500 (Rs 15.32-18.45 lakh*) and even those interested in the Volkswagen Tiguan (Rs 28.07-31.46 lakh) and Hyundai Tucson (Rs 23.62-26.95 lakh*) would have another option.
*Prices are for diesel-automatic variants only as on July 22, 2019
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Dipan Sur
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