Ivan Drury, chief information officer at Edmunds, doesn’t think Jeep will settle for “average performance” in the sales race.

One way to make an upward move, Drury said, is to expand the portfolio with an electrified compass.

Drury highlighted the success of the best-selling RAV4, which has a diverse range of offerings, ranging from a conventional hybrid to the RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid. On top of that, he said, there are the mainstream gasoline models that include the TRD version for those looking for off-road capability.

The RAV4 Hybrid had its best first half ever, with 86,673 sales, up 65.5 percent from the year-ago period, Toyota said. RAV4 Prime sales through June rose 5% to 10,153.

Drury said the segment demands electrified powertrains.

“Whether it’s a plug-in hybrid, a full electric vehicle, or just a standard hybrid, it’s something that definitely gives a head start,” Drury said.

“It’s going to add parity because we’re already seeing so many plug-in hybrids and hybrids in this area.”

Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com, said a plug-in hybrid variant would work in the US

“We’ve seen really positive reactions to every [Jeep] The 4xe version that has come so far,” Brauer said. “If they wanted to add this component to the Compass, it would only make it more competitive in this class and extend the period the car should be able to strong sales. “