Jeep is relaunching its mid-size Qashqai rival, the Compass, in Europe, and although the company claims that the car is 'all-new' it is in fact just a thorough facelift and update of the Compass we already knew.
LED lights, new bumpers
Indeed, even the facelift is not all that new - it's basically identical to that introduced in the Chinese market by Jeep last year. There are new LED headlights, a new grille and bumper, and some new colour and exterior trim options.
Under the skin, the Compass is getting the new Jeep-Fiat family of 1.3-litre turbocharged petrol engines, which come in front-wheel drive form, and in 130hp or 150hp forms. You can have those with a six-speed manual transmission or an optional DDCT six-speed dual-clutch automatic.
Or, if diesel's still your thing, there's a 130hp 1.6-litre oil-burner, which only comes with a six-speed manual and only front-wheel drive. Jeep claims that both the diesel and the petrols have improved CO2 and fuel consumption figures - as much as 27 per cent improved, depending on the model.
Plug-in hybrid version
Fancy four-wheel drive on your Jeep? Well, then you'll have to go for a plug-in hybrid model, which pairs the 1.3-litre petrol engine in either 130hp or 150hp spec with a battery and a 60hp electric motor, so you can have it in either 190hp or 240hp forms. The rear axle is electrically powered, and Jeep says that the Compass 4XE's CO2 emissions are between 47 and 49g/km. Electric-only range, on a full charge, is around 45km.
Inside, you'll see some major changes, with an entirely new cabin that looks to be of much higher quality than the outgoing Compass. There's a new central 'uConnect' touchscreen (8.4 inches as standard, 10 inches on speccy models) and a new digital instrument pack too. The steering wheel is also all-new, and is basically lifted from the new seven-seat version of the Grand Cherokee. It all looks a lot classier than before, and the uConnect system is said to be as much as five-times faster in its processing speed than before.
Jeep says that the Compass is also more practical than before, with more storage space in the cabin and the centre console - a total of 7.2 litres of storage, if you were wondering.
Advanced driver aids
The updated Compass is also the first European Jeep model to get 'Level 2' advanced driver aids - nothing groundbreaking here; just radar-guided cruise control and lane-keeping steering, but those are worthy additions to the lineup all the same.
As ever, Jeep is offering a wide variety of customisation and personalisation options through its Mopar parts and accessories service, including bike carries, interior organisers, and a dash-cam.
The Compass hasn't been a big seller in Ireland so far, but it has done well in Europe, making up 40 per cent of Jeep sales on the Continent, and the PHEV model is the best-selling plug-in hybrid in Italy. Indeed, the Compass is actually made in Italy, in the same Melfi plant that Jeep (and its overlords at the newly-formed Stellantis group) has recently been talking about, with an eye to reducing production capacity. If the updated Compass chimes more closely with European buyers' tastes, maybe those discussions will be a little less urgent.