Page B 6
September 12. 2 0 0 7
P orfl an J Ofc s e r v e r
Auio R e v i e w
News and reviews on new motor vehicles
2007 Jeep Compass Sport 4X4
The New Compass is Diversity
by
K athleen C arb
The 2007 Jeep C om pass is all
new . a term usually m eaning that a
vehicle has been com pletely rede
signed. But in the case o f the C om
pass, it's a com pletely new vehicle:
first generation.
Jeep is diversifying its lineup
with a car-based crossover that
foregoes off-road capability in fa
vor o f urban m aneuverability. The
C om pass is the first Jeep not to be
trail rated. Jeep's new C om pass
certainly is pointed in the right di
rection; little w agons like this are
popular and are fast replacing tradi
tional sport utility vehicles.
T he C om pass is one o f those
vehicles that pretty m uch sells-it-
self when potential custom ers take
it for a spin from a dealership be
cause it's easy to m aneuver and fun
to drive. The C om pass is especially
appealing because it's in the hot
market for crossover vehicles that
com bine SUV and car features—
and carries the revered Jeep nam e
plate.
U nder the hood of all C om pass
m odels is Chrysler's new 2.4-liter,
inline four-cylinder "world engine",
jo in t ly
d e v e lo p e d
by
D aim lerC h ry sle r, H yundai and
M itsubishi. Em phasis during d e
velopm ent o f this engine was on
fuel mileage
It's a solid, sophisticated, 16-
valve engine, quieter and stronger
than a four-banger was believed
capable o f being, 10 years ago. It
features electronic variable valve
tim ing that continually changes the
torque curve, bringing more versa
tility to the 165 peak pound-feet o f
torque, and more capability to the
172 peak horsepow er.
The Jeep Com pass Sport offers
aC ontinuously Variable Transaxle,
Specifications: 2.4-Liter 4-Cycle 16-Valve 1 72-hp @ 165 Ib-ft. torque Engine: Automatic-CVT2
Transmission; 23-City 26-Highway MPG; $17,175 MSPR
w hich perform s like an automatic
transm ission, and it's a doozy. The
C V T transm ission, which is more
fu el-efficien t than a four-speed
autom atic transm ission, has been
calibrated to feel a lot more like a
normal automatic transmission. We
felt the off-the-line acceleration to
be rather sluggish.
S ports
Tiger Racks
Up his 60th
Golf Victory
(AP) - W hen the cheers finally subsided in
another com pelling finish in the PGA Tour
Playoffs, T iger W oods w alked off with an 8-
under 63 for his sixth victory o f the season. It
put his name in the record books for a variety
o f feats and restored him to the top o f the
playoff standings.
The 63 tied the course record at Cog Hill and
m atched his best closing round on tour. He
finished at 22-under 262 to break by five shots
the tournam ent scoring record that Scott Hoch
se, in 2001 and W oods m atched tw o years
later.
This 60th victory o f the PGA T our made the
31 -year-old W oods the youngest player to hit
that m ilestone.
Front-w heel drive is standard -
in fact the C om pass is the first Jeep
with this layout - but o f course, this
being a Jeep, all-wheel drive is avail
able. The system is called Freedom
Drive 1, and it’s fully autom atic but
has a lockable center coupling for
extra-rough conditions.
The Com pass offers a fairly long
list o f standard key safety equip
ment, and features. T hose include
side-curtain air bags, electronic sta
bility control, traction control, elec
tronic roll m itigation, four-w heel
disc antilock brakes, and hydraulic
brake assist.
O th e r sta n d a rd fe a tu re s in
clu d e clo th seats, o u td o o r-te m
p eratu re d isp lay , A M /F M sin g le
disc C D rad io w ith an au x iliary
in p u t ja c k for an iPod o r o th er
M P3 p lay er, a vinyl lo ad flo o r, a
ce n te r co n so le w ith slid in g arm
rest, 6 0/40 split fold-flat rear seat,
tilt steerin g co lu m n , th e ft-d e te r
ren t sy stem , rear w ip er/w ash er/
d efro ster, fog lig h ts, an d 17-inch
alum inum w heels.
Anotherclever item is a recharge
able interior lam p that can be re
m oved and used as a flashlight.
There's also a 115-volt outlet in the
center console for powering laptops
and other small electronic devices.
T he C o m p ass featu res Jeep 's
b o ld an d ru g g e d lo o k w ith a
s e v e n -s lo t
g rille ,
ro u n d
h e a d la m p s, tra p e z o id a l w h eel
o p en in g s and u n iquely scu lp ted
f e n d e r s . T h e w in d s h ie ld is
steep ly slo p ed fo r less w ind re
sis ta n c e .
The all new 2007 Jeep Com pass
Sport 4X 4 will appeal to budget-
minded buyers with a need for ur
ban m aneuverability and the repu
tation o f a Jeep.
Portland Beavers Keep Name
The fans have spoken, and the
P o rtlan d B eav ers listen ed , an
nouncing that the team will not
change its historic nickname.
In recen t m onths, the B eavers
began a form al ex p lo ratio n into
the p o ssib ility o f a nam e change
in an effo rt to cre ate a stro n g er
id en tity . T he team co n d u cted an
ex ten siv e series o f p olls and su r
veys, u ltim ately p resen tin g fans
w ith a list o f n am e-ch an g e o p
tio n s fo r input. In the end, the
m ajo rity o f fans ex p re ssed o p in
ions in fa v o ro f keeping the fam il
iar B eav ers m oniker.
“ W e said from the b eg in n in g
th is w as a d ecisio n that c o u ld n ’t
be m ade w ith o u t the in p u t o f the
co m m unity and o u r fan s,” M erritt
P au lso n , o w n er o f the B eavers,
said last w eek. “T h e re ’s no q u e s
tion that th ere is a g reat deal o f
h isto ry w ith the B e a v e rs’ nam e,
and w e are em b ra cin g th at h is
tory.
However, the team still plans to
explore changes to enhance the
team ’s identity, including a new
logo and color scheme.
P ortland H igh School F ootball L ineup
Tiger Woods holds the J.K. Wadley trophy after
winning the BMW Championship PGA g o lf tourna
ment, Sunday in Lemont, III.
Kick o ff the w eekend with Port
land high-school team s taking on
others from around the state.
T he action begins Friday at 4:30
p.m . as the G en e ra ls co n fro n t
N ew berg at G rant High School.
T he other local gam es start at 7
p.m. and include last-year state
cham pion Putnam at Franklin, L ib
e rty at J e ff e r s o n , C e n tu ry at
M arshall, W oodburn at M adison
and Southridge at Lincoln. Hit the
road for 7:30 p.m. gam es Friday as
Roosevelt travels to W ilsonville
and W ilson is at M cN ary; w hile
Benson plays Forest G rove at 7
p.m. Tickets are available at the
gate for $6, $2 for students.
WITHOUT FISH SCREENS, FISH END UP WHERE THEY SHOULDN’T BE.
Many of Oregon’s fish, like steelhead and rainbow trout, inadvertently swim down man-made irrigation channels.
When they do, they die. That’s why the Oregon Lottery’ provides funds to the Department of Fish and Wildlife to
build fish screens all over the state. These screens keep hundreds of thousands of fish out of irrigation channels
allowing them to remain where they belong, in our rivers and streams. Building fish screens, saving fish, it's just
one of the many ways the Oregon Lottery' does good things. For more information, visit itdoesgoodthings.org.
IT DOES GOOD T H IN G S