Scott and Judy, I think you nailed it. Current Jeep owners may be turning to the likes of Toyota Hilux, Ford Ranger and similar type crewcab 4wds in future car purchases because this will be the only genuine means of outback travel.
Under Machionne's leadership, Jeep is heading into kerbside bubblecar latte territory. Jeep is not alone. Other Marques are also doing the same.
At the end of the day, if someone wants a hardcore offroader with a Jeep badge they'll buy a JK - just like I plan to replace our XJ with, albeit a second hand one...
I personally don't mind the look of the new compass and IMO the Patriot is far closer in styling to the XJ than the KJ and KK ever were, even though it is really a soft roader.
If it turns out to look like a cross between the current Grand Cherokee and Patriot I'm sure it won't look half bad. They're probably also aiming to replace the Patriot with this model as an in-betweener anyway.
And with a 9 speed gearbox, hopefully the first couple of gears will be nice and low - combined with hill decent control gadgets might not be too bad. Especially in a diesel.
Don't forget it states they are Alfa body panels - they must be testing the drive line...
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Grand Cherokee
