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GenXer

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
On one of my many trips to the dealerships lately, I got into an in-depth convo with one of the salesmen. Not sure where the guy get's his info, but he said that Chrysler is going to drop the Compass from the lineup after next year. He stated cost factor for the Belvidere plant vs sales. I know the Caliber is selling well and the Pat is too, so if anyone has any true input into this, I would appreciate it. I know it is not a Patriot topic per sey, but it is a sibling. :D
 
#2 ·
the true input is that nobody knows it.
There are wide spreaded rumors since Chrysler Spokesman Jim Press told us that Chrysler will cut the SUV fleet to half but that´s all we know.
 
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Discussion starter · #3 ·
I kind of like the Compass and would hate to see it go, but I can see why they would get rid of it. I think in the 90's they had three cars that looked the same and I never could understand why they built so many of the same thing. I think the cars were the Chrysler Cirrus, Plymouth Breeze, and Dodge Stratus. The ex-wife had a Breeze. The biggest P.O.S. car I have EVER drove.
 
#4 ·
I had read that Chyrsler is looking at consolidating some of their lines. The article (and I'm sure this was speculative) said Chrysler was thinking of dropping the Compass and Caliber and keeping the Patriot.
 
#5 ·
If fuel prices continue to rise they will need as many vehicles as they can get to appeal to as many different kinds of buyers and they can attract. Discontinuing any of these three 30 MPG vehicles would be very stupid. VERY STUPID.
 
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#6 ·
The Caliber outsells the other two while average transaction price has risen since introduction. Compass/Patriot transaction pricve has fallen since introduction. Because of flex manufacturing, as long as any single model is selling over about 30k/yr and the plant does not need the extra capacity for other models, it will stay. None will die this year. Compass would be first to go, though. It had good sales until the Patriot hit the market has has been the least popular of the trio since.
 
#9 ·
Considering the Compass is basically (I say basically somewhat loosely) a Caliber with a Jeep badge, I think it'll have to go. I've never liked the looks of it (a "Jeep car" just doesn't look right), and the Caliber fills Chrysler's hatchback niche.

Overall though, Chrysler is pretty damn stupid when it comes to their model lineup. They've got so many of their own vehicles competing against each other that it just makes them all look redundant.

Dodge Caliber vs. Jeep Compass vs. Jeep Patriot (Caliber is ok and the Patriot is stealing a decent amount of sales from the Compass)
Jeep Grand Cherokee vs. Jeep Commander (drop whichever one you like the looks of the least, they essentially share the same dimensions)
Dodge Magnum vs. Chrysler 300 vs. Dodge Charger (Charger killed sales of the Magnum, 300 is a decent classy looking sedan)
Dodge Durango vs. Chrysler Aspen (the Aspen is probably one of the most useless vehicles that Chrysler is trying to market... when I think of a good SUV, I don't think of the Durango, and when I think of luxury, I'd never think of Chrysler... adding the two of those created a disaster)
Chrysler Sebring vs. Dodge Avenger (the Sebring has a notoriously bad interior which getting redesigned, and the Avenger looks like a wimpy Charger wannabe)

And while I'm still in the mood for ranting, why the hell do they still produce the PT Cruiser?! Seriously, do they still move those ugly things off the lots? If Chrysler would stop half-assing their designs (*cough* interiors) and quit making new vehicles that compete against their own products, they could *possibly* transform into a decent company, instead of being leagues behind Ford and GM.
 
#10 ·
From what the salesman and I were talking about when I got my Pat, the possible 3 that could go are the Compass, Commander, and (surprisingly) the Liberty. He was saying that the much cheaper Patriot could blow the Liberty right out of the lot.
 
#11 ·
tb88 said:
From what the salesman and I were talking about when I got my Pat, the possible 3 that could go are the Compass, Commander, and (surprisingly) the Liberty. He was saying that the much cheaper Patriot could blow the Liberty right out of the lot.
Click to expand...
Although the Patriot might sell better than the Liberty, I think they don't compete with each other. They're very different in every respect, including price.

The Compass is a different story, though, and I think it does compete with the Patriot. In my country you see a lot more Compasses than Patriots, for the simple reason that it's been advertised and it's been on the market for some more months. It's not that unusual to see a Compass on the road, while Patriots are very rare. So, over here, it'd actually make more sense to discontinue the Patriot. I'd like to see Jeep sales figures, but I can't find them in Google. Does anybody now a useful webpage for car sales statistics?

I agree that the Commander and the Grand Cherokee are aimed at the same sector of the market, the 3rd row of seats being the only big difference between the two.
 
#12 ·
Jeep needs 4 vehicles...Grand Cherokee (extended to offer three row option), Wrangler, Liberty, Patriot (sorry but compass isugly as sin even with rallye package.)

Dodge needs Avenger, Journey (replace caliber as fuel effcient crossover), Challenger, Caravan, Ram (gotta have a truck but the dakota doesnt hardly sell at all anymore so drop it), Charger (gotta have full size car of some manner), Durango, Viper (gotta keep the competition going, especially since chevy now has a super corvette aka the ZR1)..thats 8 vehicles down from12

Chrysler should revamp its luxury car status it had in the past...They need...300, a compltetly new midsize car along the lines of the cadillac CTS, and the Crossfire... a big luxury car, a midsize luxury car, and a luxury sports car. 3 cars... thats it. And wheezy is right on about killing the flop called Aspen.

There...19 vehicles total... down from 27 (or 28 if you consider the 2dr a seperate model form teh 4dr wrangler). And there is no competing vehicles, so there is no need to tool up production for multiple vehicles from the same factory.
 
#13 ·
Europat. click on top of the board menu on quick links and than choose MK Sales page from the drop down menu. Then you get the Patriot and Compass US car sales numbers.
that are the only importand numbers because Chrysler/Jeep worldwide sales are very low (277 Jeep fleet sales in Spain March 2008 for example).

Well i don´t think the Compass will be dropped this year. It has increasing numbers in March and with gas prizes that high the Compass might recover from low sales.
 
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Discussion starter · #14 ·
Talk about looks, but I think the newer version of the Liberty is not as appealing as the older model. The same can be said about the Ford Escape.

You don't need to look at sales figures to tell who is doing better, the Pat or the Compass. Just drive to any dealership (around here anyway) and you can get the pick of any Compass you want and as I mentioned before, you cannot find hardly any Pat's.

The Commander on the other hand is a different story. Not sure why it is needed, but it is there. Looks like a larger Pat to me anyway.
 
#15 ·
Walkeraviator said:
Jeep needs 4 vehicles...Grand Cherokee (extended to offer three row option), Wrangler, Liberty, Patriot (sorry but compass isugly as sin even with rallye package.)

Dodge needs Avenger, Journey (replace caliber as fuel effcient crossover), Challenger, Caravan, Ram (gotta have a truck but the dakota doesnt hardly sell at all anymore so drop it), Charger (gotta have full size car of some manner), Durango, Viper (gotta keep the competition going, especially since chevy now has a super corvette aka the ZR1)..thats 8 vehicles down from12

Chrysler should revamp its luxury car status it had in the past...They need...300, a compltetly new midsize car along the lines of the cadillac CTS, and the Crossfire... a big luxury car, a midsize luxury car, and a luxury sports car. 3 cars... thats it. And wheezy is right on about killing the flop called Aspen.

There...19 vehicles total... down from 27 (or 28 if you consider the 2dr a seperate model form teh 4dr wrangler). And there is no competing vehicles, so there is no need to tool up production for multiple vehicles from the same factory.
Click to expand...
Exactly what I am thinking!! Almost fits the number they are looking for exactly.
 
#16 ·
Speaking of Liberty I never understood why the Gas milleage is so Wrangleresque ? Why ? Heavy ? Large?. I was at my dealer and he was giving away the Liberty and I said, if you get get me 7 MPG more than I will take it.... but of course that was not going to happen....
 
#17 ·
Interesting views but the reality is that the Compass and Patriot are both selling well in comparison to the other Jeeps. It is basic economics. People can't afford to buy the gas guzzlers any more.

If Chrysler drops either the Compass or the Patriot, it will result in lost sales for the Jeep division. Even though the platform is virtually identical, the Compass and the Patriot really do appeal to two different types of people. The Compass has a more sophisticated style. The Patriot is, well, a box on wheels.

From a production standpoint, the older model, the Caliber, will be due a product refresh within a year or two. Depending on what Chrysler is thinking in terms of fuel efficiency, etc. it is very possible that that line would be discontinued and be replaced with a much lighter and more fuel efficient car. This would mean that the current line would produce only MKs for the Jeep division.

Chrysler is not going to end any product too early if it is making money. It will be interesting to see what happens...
 
#18 ·
Most people interested in MK's really only like Patriot OR Comapss, not both. Despite their size/price comparison, their markets are exclusive. People are not cross shopping both. If the Compass never existed, <10% would buy the Patriot. With the flex manufacturing capability, it does not take many additional sales of any particular model to be profitable.
 
#19 ·
GatorDoug said:
Speaking of Liberty I never understood why the Gas milleage is so Wrangleresque ? Why ? Heavy ? Large?. I was at my dealer and he was giving away the Liberty and I said, if you get get me 7 MPG more than I will take it.... but of course that was not going to happen....
Click to expand...
I would definately buy a Dodge Nitro if it got decent gas milage. Btw I think they ought to make a dodge verison of the Patriot(nitro-style front end), drop the caliber
 
#20 ·
GenXer said:
Talk about looks, but I think the newer version of the Liberty is not as appealing as the older model...
Click to expand...
I am on the other side of fence on this one. I really prefer the newer look over the last model. I am not a huge fan of the bubble cars. 99% of the SUVs out there are round, and bubble shaped. All soft and ready for the mall. I like the mode rugged, lean boxy look.

I have no insider glimpses or other knowledge - just personal observations. All numbers aside... I could see the Patriot, Liberty, Grand Cherokee and Wrangler remain. I wish they would keep the Commander instead of the GC as long as they threw a diesel in it. For that matter put a diesel in every Jeep model.

The GC is too much of a mall crawler for my tastes. I think that Jeep should focus on the off-road vehicles rather than trying to hit every market.

They are going to dump the Commander after 2009 or at least that is the current word I am reading... from the wording it is one of the models being cut. I am not sure what the other(s) is/are yet.
 
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