It’s no secret that most SUV owners will rarely, if ever, venture off-road and that’s reflected in the very nature of appropriately named softroaders that, while they might look the part with a raised ride height and strategically-placed sections of plastic cladding, are barely more adept at tackling the rough stuff than the family hatch upon which many of them are based.

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Enter the Jeep Compass. Its maker has more than 70 years’ experience in the business of manufacturing some seriously capable off-roading machines so it makes sense that they would want to inject their latest entry in the lucrative compact SUV market with some of that know-how.

That’s why the Compass has a stylish, sleek design – for an SUV – wrapped around a transmission with a switchable GKN-built all-terrain four-wheel drive and suspension hardware designed to offer proper wheel articulation. That gearbox is also equipped with a crawl ratio that’s capable of sending maximum torque to either axle.

The previous generation’s competitiveness was hampered by coarse, unrefined engines and a chassis that struggled to impose itself on British roads and, unfortunately for a company that prides itself on building some of the finest off-roaders, on our roads is precisely where the latest model will be judged.

So, with that in mind, let’s start by looking at the ride and handling which, I’m sure Jeep will be pleased to hear, is much improved compared to the previous model.

Anything other than a smooth surface – so every road in the UK – reveals a restlessness in the ride that impacts on comfort levels just a fraction. There’s a dearth of initial body control that allows the Compass to pitch and wallow far more than any landlubber will appreciate on faster roads.

The blame could lie with Jeep’s decision to use frequency selective dampers that switch to a firmer setting when quicker inputs force the oil reserves above a pre-determined pressure. In practice that means the early suppleness that you feel is quickly replaced with greater control as the car’s mass is shifted around more rapidly.

The Compass displays a surprising amount of both composure and grip in corners. It’s lack of close body control doesn’t impact hugely on its road-holding but the vague steering means that making smooth progress relies more on forward-planning than intuition.

Under the bonnet sits a 2.0-litre MultiJet II diesel that has been in service for about a decade. Unfortunately those years have not been kind to the oil burner, particularly when starting the engine from cold or pulling hard from low speeds when it sounds and feels every bit the decade old power unit that it is.

It isn’t the most flexible unit – there’s very little urgency from a standing start – but once it finds its legs in the middle of the range it starts to pull strongly, with impressive in-gear acceleration that makes motorway driving relaxing.

The cabin is comfortable and reasonably pleasant. Certainly there’s nothing to offend or dislike and that, in essence, is one of its shortcomings. While there has obviously been some effort to create a passenger space with a refined and luxurious feel – with varying degrees of success – there’s very little going on that’s likely to leave a lasting impression.

Material quality is slightly behind many of its rivals too, though it should be said that there seems to be little wrong with the everything’s screwed together, and you don’t have to look too hard to find examples of cost savings.

You wouldn’t describe the Compass as spacious but there’s room for four above average height adults to travel in reasonable comfort. The front seats could do with being a little more supportive but the driving position is decent and, ergonomically at least, the cabin layout is worthy of note.

My test car – a Limited spec auto – was fitted with the premium infotainment system that has an 8.4in touchscreen with smartphone mirroring in the shape of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It isn’t often that I find the built-in sat nav more appealing than Google’s offering and that proved the case again in the Compass, with its average display and an interface that could be more intuitive.

There are steering wheel-mounted controls for the multi-media system but, if you’re like me and never read instruction manuals, then it’ll come as a surprise when you find them on the back of the wheel. It turns out that’s quite a handy place to have them.

There’s little doubt that the new Compass is a significant improvement over the model that it replaces. The big question is, does it do enough?

Dynamically its performance is middle-of-the-road; it’s missing that final application of polish. That’s also true of its cabin, where there are just a few too many fixture of fittings that feel a little cheap, and under the bonnet, with a diesel engine that the passage of time has not been kind to.

Overall, then, it’s easy to dismiss the Compass as a serious contender in a market where it faces some serious competition. The thing is, I’m pretty certain that a great number of buyers will not be discouraged by the Compass’s shortcomings because it’s a Jeep and because it’s actually rather good-looking.

It might seem a bit ridiculous to imagine that looks and reputation alone might be enough to ensure at least some success but I suspect that might very well be the case.

Jeep Compass 2.0 Multijet-2 170hp 4WD Auto Limited

Price: £34,295

As tested: £38, 845

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder diesel

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Max power: 170hp

Max torque: 380Nm @ 1,750rpm

Max speed: 122mph

Acceleration (0-62mph): 9.5sec

Urban: 42.8mpg

Extra urban: 55.4mpg

Combined: 49.6mpg

Emissions (CO2): 148g/km

For more information visit www.jeep.co.uk