Lemberg Law is investigating complaints that there are serious issues with the dashboard display of the 2022 Jeep Compass. Vehicle owners are complaining that the auto-dim night feature doesn’t work and they can’t adjust it manually. They say the malfunction results in the dash display being stuck in night mode during the day. Generally, this makes the dash screen too dim to read in daylight and much too bright to see at night. Some say it’s also too dim at night.
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There is a huge problem with the 2022 Jeep Compass dashboard display. Owners are complaining that the auto-dim feature doesn’t work at night and they are unable to adjust the settings manually. Most complaints say this makes the panel too dim to read. A few say it is too bright. Either way, it’s causing major visibility problems inside the Jeep.
There are several complaints lodged with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), either filed in the Electrical System, Exterior or Interior Lighting, or Unknown or Other categories. A conversation launched on the My Jeep Compass forum in August 2022 was still searching for answers in February 2023.
While there is no indication that Jeep has any intention of announcing a recall any time soon, Steph from Jeep Cares has been active in the forum discussion. At first, she would respond by saying, “We’re sorry to hear this is happening … Feel welcome to PM us your VIN and we’d be happy to have a further look into this for you.” By mid-November 2022, her Jeep Cares’ response was that the company was “aware of the problem.” On February 9, 2023, Steph messaged a member on the forum saying, “Engineering is aware and working to develop a fix for this symptom soon!” But, it turns out that Jeep’s engineering team has been working on a fix since at least September 2022.
There is an official manufacturer communication to dealerships, S2208000157, that was issued on September 9, 2022. On file with the NHTSA, it acknowledges the problem and warns that there is currently no fix. It also states that “Engineering is investigating a service solution.”
The document states that the cluster digital display on the 2022 Jeep Compass appears dim in full sunlight and during the day when there is “minimum backlighting.” At the same time, the speedometer and tachometer brightness is at normal illumination levels.
The explanation is that some Sport models have a Cluster 7.0” TFT color display instead of the more common 3.5” display clusters. The standard cluster has a built-in ambient light sensor, while the 7.0” cluster “relies on an external ambient light sensor input to control IPC display backlighting.” This input is supposed to “tell” the cluster to switch the backlighting levels from day and night modes. But, the Sport model vehicles aren’t equipped with an external ambient light sensor. “This missing input causes the IPC digital display to default to nighttime illumination levels.” In turn, this “does not allow the display to reach its maximum brightness in direct sunlight and daylight hours.”
The bottom line, literally, is that “part replacement will not remedy this concern.”
Most 2022 Jeep Compass owners say that the display on their dashboard gets stuck in night mode during the day. Typically, they say that they can’t read what’s on the digital dashboard display in daylight. Some say that they can’t dim the dash lights for safe night driving. A few say it works okay at night, and then there are some who say it’s too dim at night!
Some dealerships have told owners that it’s a software problem that they can’t fix until Jeep has parts available to repair vehicles or issues a recall with a solution.
After reporting to a dealer that the center instrument panel cannot be seen in daylight, an owner from Alabama was shown the manufacturer communication mentioned above. “So you are unable to see any warnings, gas, temp, menu, cruise control, etc.” Because there is no replacement part or remedy, “I am driving an unsafe, defective vehicle that cannot be repaired.”
When an owner from Pennsylvania complained to a dealership that the instrument panel was not visible when the headlights were in the dim setting, the response was that there weren’t parts available to repair the vehicle.
Another Pennsylvania owner states that the cluster panel dimmer toggle for the Compass doesn’t work correctly anymore. “It stays very bright even at night and I cannot adjust it.” The local Jeep dealership “said it’s a software problem and they cannot fix it until Jeep recalls it and fixes it themselves. The instrument panel is so bright that I cannot drive my car at night because it causes night blindness and I cannot see traffic. The toggle switch worked correctly for the first 6 months of having my SUV, but then one day it did not and now it cannot be fixed.”
An owner from Alaska reports not being able to dim the dash lights/touch panel or the rearview mirror from safe night driving. Because of this, “I now drive with an envelope covering my instrument panel with only the speedometer visible due to the brightness.” He resorted to this “after almost going off the road last week when I could not see a deer in front of me until the last minute due to the excessive brightness and glare. Other consumers have suggested unhooking batteries and hard resets but also report (that the) problem returns.”
The discussion starter in the forum states that the navigation screen and instrument panel/speedometer wouldn’t auto-dim at night and only allows him to adjust the daytime settings. “It doesn’t matter if my lights are on auto, or manual if the display is set to auto or manual, and even when I did a reset and reset the clock and the date. It is beyond frustrating as it worked fine until a few days ago when I was driving to work in the early morning (just after sunrise) and the screen and panel jumped into full daytime brightness. I live in a more rural town/area so when driving in the morning or late at night, the screen and panel are too bright.”
Several members suggested disconnecting the batteries as well as hard resets. In response, another member says, “I have tried doing a factory reset, doing the battery trick mentioned below, and just endless internet searches, and I have found nothing to work!”
Another member who owns a 2022 Compass Latitude describes how there is no visible hazard safety button to push when driving at night. This makes the dash too dim at night. He was advised by a salesman at the dealership to use the dimmer control to make the hazard/4-way flasher light button visible at night. This worked for a while… but the problem persists.
Experiencing too much light at night, yet another member is desperate for a fix. “I have a 2022 Jeep Compass Latitude LUX. It is doing the exact same thing… being stuck in Daytime mode. The dimmer switch does nothing. I can manually turn the display brightness on (the) navigation screen but the dash lights do not adjust so it is still too bright at night and makes it very hard to see.”
If you are experiencing visibility issues with your 2022 Jeep Compass dashboard don’t be tempted to think it’s normal. It isn’t. You need to be able to see your dashboard clearly during the day and at night. If you can’t, you may have bought a lemon. If you think this is the case, you might qualify for our class action investigation. All you need to do is call us at 844-928-4443 or complete our contact form. We will evaluate your case and see if you qualify.
Brian Jones spent more than 20 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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