2018 Jeep Compass earns second Top Safety Pick in as many years from IIHS

April 10--After getting redesigned halfway into the 2017 model year, the Jeep Compass improved by leaps and bounds, securing its first-ever accolades from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Thanks to a revamped design, the new Jeep Compass clinches a Top Safety Pick award from the institute once again for 2018.

Only Jeep Compasses built after January 2017 qualified for the 2017 model year Top Safety Pick designation, which was given to last year's model for its impressive showing in the safety watchdog's evaluations.

For 2018, the Compass earned Good ratings in all five crashworthiness tests, including the newly introduced passenger-side small overlap front test, and scored a Superior rating in the crash avoidance category.

When the Full Speed Forward Collision Warning Plus system is equipped as part of the Advanced Safety and Lighting Group package, the 2018 Compass avoids collisions in both the IIHS's low-speed 12 mph and high-speed 25 mph tests, helping it lock down the top Superior rating in the category.

Unfortunately, Jeep didn't address a glaring issue that kept the crossover out of the Top Safety Pick+ club: the Compass's Marginal-rated headlights.

Because the Compass's headlights couldn't light the road ahead enough for the IIHS's liking, it had to settle for the Top Safety Pick award again for 2018.

In the headlights test, the HID projector lights available as part of the Advances Safety and Lighting Group package on Latitude, Trailhawk and Limited trims only provided adequate illumination on one gradual curve test. Otherwise, they were fair or inadequate in the other evaluations. The standard halogen bulbs had to drive home with a Poor rating.

The non-profit automotive safety organization is a stickler for headlights, as many vehicles with otherwise superb crash-test performances have failed to meet the institute's lofty expectations. Unless you happen to often drive at night or on poorly lit roads, the headlights could be a non-issue.

As for the LATCH ease-of-use category, which evaluates how easy it is for a typical person to install a car seat in the vehicle, the Compass bombed the category with a Poor rating. The lower anchors in both outbound rear seats were too deep in the seat, hard to find, needed far too much force to attach to the upper tethers and proved to be too difficult to maneuver around the anchors.

While some car buyers don't need to worry about car seats, those with small children (or children on the way) may want to take the Compass's LATCH test results into serious consideration when shopping for their first family SUV. The LATCH category doesn't influence whether a vehicle earns accolades from the independent safety monitor.

Despite the Jeep Compass's impressive showing in IIHS crashworthiness tests, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) was not as enthused with the small crossover.

Earning a four-star overall rating in the government safety evaluation, the 2018 Compass came up short with four stars in the frontal crash test and an abysmal three-star rating in the rollover category. The side crash test was the only category the Compass notched a perfect five-star rating.

Because SUVs, such as the Jeep Compass, have higher centers of gravity than sedans or cars, they have a greater propensity of tipping over. For a crossover SUV, a four-star rating in the rollover category is a non-issue, however the Compass's three-star rating on the other hand, is far more troubling -- especially when considering an SUV's higher likelihood of being flipped over.

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