The Compass’ pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The HR-V doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.
In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Compass are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The HR-V doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Jeep Compass has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The HR-V doesn’t offer knee airbags.
The Compass has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The HR-V doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Compass. But it costs extra on the HR-V.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Compass Trailhawk’s standard Hill-descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The HR-V doesn’t offer Hill-descent Control.
The Compass Latitude/Trailhawk/Limited offers an optional Surround View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The HR-V only offers a rear monitor.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Compass’ standard rear cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The HR-V doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.
The Compass’ driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The HR-V doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
The Compass Trailhawk/Limited offers optional SiriusXM Guardian, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The HR-V doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.
Both the Compass and the HR-V have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights and rearview cameras.
The Jeep Compass weighs 478 to 714 pounds more than the Honda HR-V. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts. Crosswinds also affect lighter cars more.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Jeep Compass is safer than the Honda HR-V:
|
Compass |
HR-V |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
172 |
205 |
Neck Injury Risk |
36% |
41% |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
299/387 lbs. |
574/500 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Jeep Compass is safer than the Honda HR-V:
|
Compass |
HR-V |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
102 |
148 |
Chest Movement |
.8 inches |
.8 inches |
Abdominal Force |
134 lbs. |
158 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
101 |
357 |
Spine Acceleration |
56 G’s |
59 G’s |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
12 inches |
12 inches |
Spine Acceleration |
39 G’s |
48 G’s |
Hip Force |
663 lbs. |
799 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Compass the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 169 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The HR-V has not been fully tested, yet.