Ordered a Jeep Gladiator

[lucky7t]

Totally off topic

I知 a Jeep guy and have always had to bring our Escalade to haul our 210. Ordered a limited edition gladiator called the launch in early April. I知 so pumped. Get it in May.


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[hal2814]

Congrats! Probably not going to get a first year model but definitely looking at getting a Gladiator to replace my Wrangler. Very excited about being able to tow something bigger with my Jeep.

[Shawn Henderson]

I always liked the Brute conversion just not sure what took jeep
so long to listen to its fans and come out with the Gladiator.

[Mermag]

How you liking it now that you've had it a while. I've always like the look of the Gladiator. (And the name!)

[bturner]

I'd be interested to know as well. I was looking to downsize and after doing quit a bit of research narrowed my options to either the Ranger or the Gladiator. I test drove both and came away less than impressed with the performance of either as a possible tow machine for anything past about 4000 lbs. Both say they'll do 7000 lbs plus but you really need to drive one for yourself then tell me if you think either would be a good idea for anything past a local or occasional towing past that weight.

The Ranger to me seemed very Escape like. It had what I felt to be a much better power package of the 2 with HP and more importantly better torque numbers in the RPM range (1K - 3K RPM) where you would need it most but it's size bothered me for higher tow weights. I also like that you could gain another 70HP and 50 ft lb of torque with a simple tune so as far as power went I was comfortable. Price on the one I looked at for a loaded (most every option) was $46K out the door with vendor pricing and rebates. Other items that I would have had to add on for my personal preferences would have been a tonneau cover ($500), bed liner ($500) and the tune ($600).

The Gladiator was a different story. Having owned a CJ5 when I was young the look and feel of the Jeep was very comforting and something that really appealed to me. What didn't was the requirement to either buy a base or Rubicon model to get the max tow package if you wanted to tow anything past 5K. This really bummed me out as the Overland was the sweet spot for price versus options. The test drive was also a bit of a shocker. Taking an optioned up Rubicon out with the off road tires was a bit of an awakening for me coming from an F150. The truck is what it is and that's an off road machine. Aside for realizing that you're not going to be speeding much on the freeway with the Gladiator I was far from being impressed with the power output of the V6. Horsepower and torque output on this V6 are similar to the Colorado/Canyon. While the HP and torque are there on paper the chances of you seeing it are slim unless you have your foot into it as both are created past 4K RPM. This is far from ideal for a towing machine. The cost of the Rubicon also set me back on my heels. Granted this was a loaded Rubicon but at $52K out the door with employee pricing and rebates it was a hard pill to swallow. Other items not included on the truck that I would have added would have been tonneau cover ($500), bed liner ($500) and insulation for the roof top panels ($500 and yeah that's a thing). As much as I like the Gladiator the engine really lets this vehicle down. The Chrysler V6 while a very good engine in a car for it's day is a dinosaur left over from the Daimler days and is in a serious need of an update. No turbo or direct injection here as it's an engine that was designed some 10+ years ago with few if any changes.

In the end the "garage-able" solution I decided to go with was very much more traditional. As much as I wanted one of these smaller mid size trucks I personally couldn't see the value or towing capability that matched the Tahoe LT that I bought with more options, power and comfort for $49K out the door with vendor pricing and rebates. The big downside here was the lack of a bed which I will miss and may even drive me back to the market in a couple years should that need be more than I've given weight to.

It would be very interesting to hear from others if I got all this completely wrong and my comfort with size and a V8 just left me biased in my quest for a new tow vehicle.

[Evening Shade]

You have to really want a Jeep (Wrangler/Gladiator) for nothing more than appearance and off road prowess, because they aren't good at anything else. They don't tow well, they're noisy, inefficient, and have no room inside. The rear doors on a 4 door are a tight squeeze for anyone over the age of 5.

[bturner]

Hmmmm very interesting as that's was pretty much my wife's review of the truck. We drove the Gladiator one day then the Tahoe the next. Guess which one she wanted?

Like I said in the review of my test drive the truck just didn't seem stable to me at higher speeds but I get that with big off road tires suspension. The truck is also on the small side but it's rare for me to have any more than two people in my ride at any time so that I could deal with. Being from the north it was interesting to note that people on the forums were recommending the insulation panels for the roof which should tell you something there as well. But the killer was the total mismatch power package. They really need to get with the 21st century with their engines. Putting a car engine in a jeep just seems wrong. My CJ5 had the straight 6, 232 CI that updated with fuel injection I believe would have been a better engine for any of these jeeps over the Chrysler V6. As it is now I can't see this as a full time driver. Maybe a nice hobby vehicle though if you have that kind of money.

[Evening Shade]

Hmmmm very interesting as that's was pretty much my wife's review of the truck. We drove the Gladiator one day then the Tahoe the next. Guess which one she wanted?

Like I said in the review of my test drive the truck just didn't seem stable to me at higher speeds but I get that with big off road tires suspension. The truck is also on the small side but it's rare for me to have any more than two people in my ride at any time so that I could deal with. Being from the north it was interesting to note that people on the forums were recommending the insulation panels for the roof which should tell you something there as well. But the killer was the total mismatch power package. They really need to get with the 21st century with their engines. Putting a car engine in a jeep just seems wrong. My CJ5 had the straight 6, 232 CI that updated with fuel injection I believe would have been a better engine for any of these jeeps over the Chrysler V6. As it is now I can't see this as a full time driver. Maybe a nice hobby vehicle though if you have that kind of money.

Its the kind of vehicle that you buy so you can take the doors off in the summer and drive around with your left foot hanging out the door. At least that's what I see people doing around here. In the southeast, I think Wrangler's have taken the place of convertible sports cars with females. i.e. a nice hobby vehicle as you say.

[Wake.BC]

Hellcat swap the Jeep and you will be good to go!


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