plainjaneFJC
Deplorable
That’s a nice looking jeep!
Gladiator - Good/Bad?
- Thread starter D45
- Start date
vintageracer
To Infinity and Beyond!
I remember all the hype and anticipation for the debut of the new Jeep Gladiator on this forum and many others.
Given all the gushing comments about what a game changer the Gladiator will be and all the can't wait to get mine comments I find it rather interesting that less than 3 years later new Gladiators are the most discounted Jeeps out there on new car lots with discounts up to $20K off MSRP in some areas of the country.
My how times and perceptions change!!!
Given all the gushing comments about what a game changer the Gladiator will be and all the can't wait to get mine comments I find it rather interesting that less than 3 years later new Gladiators are the most discounted Jeeps out there on new car lots with discounts up to $20K off MSRP in some areas of the country.
My how times and perceptions change!!!
SSF556
SE Expedition Society
There will be some on the road in 20 years running free and wild!. I have a 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee with the OM642 diesel and it is 16 years old. Just drove it from SC to MI Roundtrip. It got 24 mpgs. Cruised in 5th gear the whole way running around 75mph. "They" are going to have remove it from my cold dead hands!
smbisig
Adventurer
Everything is discounted right now because of interest rates, making up revenue due to the automobile strikes, and all brands want to move 2023 models. The 2024 Gladiator has received a few updates, so dealers and Jeep need to incentivize potential buyers with discounts instead of waiting for the new model. Plus, a lot of dealerships were charging more than that sticker price in the past few years because people were willing to pay, especially for models like the EcoDiesel.
Just for the heck of it, I just searched Jeep's inventory with the exact build as mine but 2023 (mine is 2021) and everything is $10-15k over what I paid for. So not much of a discount on my Sport S Gladiator.
vintageracer
To Infinity and Beyond!
All I know is I now see new $52K MSRP Gladiators ADVERTISED for $32K.
I imagine you probably need a trailer to overwhelm the cooling system. My 2006 Jeep Liberty CRD was the same way. It would be fine unloaded and would pull up Parley's Canyon here in UT on 100+F days without downshifting but when you hooked a trailer to it it would basically live with the coolant gauge at 3/4 going up any hill.
My Max Tow F150 will get pretty warm when I pull big grades here in Utah with my 5500 lb trailer if its over 85F outside. I've seen up near 250F coolant temps before and have hit the engine protection mode a couple of times. Problem is the F150 has so much power I could pull my trailer at 80mph up any grade, but the cooling system wont keep up. If I drop to 60mph it stays pretty good.
There was one day I was coming back from Pinedale WY where I was fighting a 30mph headwind and it was almost 100F outside. I couldn't drive faster than 55mph without my coolant temps getting up near 230F on flat ground.
I think they saturated their market. Not many people(at least the ones who are realistic with themselves) need a mid-sized truck that is as capable offroad as a Gladiator.
Im seeing $15k plus on JTR's with the Ecodiesel. Trucks with MSRP's up near 65-70k are being listed for ~$50k.
Thats why I have taken a sudden interest in them. A JTR Ecobdiesel for $50k seems to be a decent bang for the buck.
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Dang, I've been spending some time on the Gladiator forum and groups and the overheating issue is rampant with the EcoD. Worse than my 2014 F150 it seems like.
They have been trying a lot of the same things that a lot of the Ecoboost people have done. Supplemental oil coolers, Mishimoto radiators, a secondary prius drive unit radiator after the oil cooler. I have one of those prius coolers in my garage that I intended to do the exact same thing with on my F150
They have been trying a lot of the same things that a lot of the Ecoboost people have done. Supplemental oil coolers, Mishimoto radiators, a secondary prius drive unit radiator after the oil cooler. I have one of those prius coolers in my garage that I intended to do the exact same thing with on my F150
Just throwing out my $.02 on my almost 1.5 years with my 2021 Rubicon deezel Gladiator. I'm wary of the deezel but it's been very solid. I'm still waiting for the fuel pump recall parts to get in. I've put 27k miles on it in 18 months. I live very near Salt Lake City and have 28 trail days on it since I bought it. I'm having a blast in the JT vs hauling my one ton YJ/K30 jeep around on a trailer with a Super Duty or Ram. I sold my Super Duty to get into the JTRD. So I do have some truck things the JT needs to do. I've only sworn at the the 1/4 ton truck a few times. It punches above it's weight class in my opinion. I'd call it a 3/8 ton truck
It tows my car on a trailer pretty well EXCEPT for on long hills (4300' elevation to a pass at about 8200' or so). It tows my daughter's XJ without much issue at all even though it's heavier than the Buick on the trailer. It DOES not tow my 4500 Jeep trail rig very well at all. I've been running 37" Mickey Thompson MTZ until about a week ago. I'm now running 38" Nitto Trail Grappler or Ridge Grappler or something? My JT still has the 3.73 gears (maybe not for long with the 38" tires) and is setup exactly how I bought it (Skyjacker 4" lift, cheap Amazon bumpers, etc)
With the current incentives, I kind of wish I'd waited until now to buy the Gladiator. However, I would have missed out on the past 18 months of fun I've had. I hope anyone that buys a Gladiator has the same experience I've had so far. I also hope I continue to have the same experience I have had.
I've tried to buy a Tacoma the past 3 trucks I've bought. I just don't like them. The seating position is not at all my favorite. You might as well put a switch in for the throttle rather than the pedal in my opinion. I REALLY want to like them, but just haven't hit on the Toyota combination that works for me. With the new styling, I'll be waiting for that to change as well. Not my cup of tea. (but then again, there are Jeep guys with angry grilles and grumper stuff.... again, not my cup of tea). I've really grown to like the cheerleader truck and wave my pom poms as often as I can for the truck these days.
Some where in this thread I read someone describing the Gladiator as a Swiss Army knife. I've been calling it that for the past 12 months or so. It's not the best tool for the job at anything I've thrown at it. It does DO most jobs better than expected.
It tows my car on a trailer pretty well EXCEPT for on long hills (4300' elevation to a pass at about 8200' or so). It tows my daughter's XJ without much issue at all even though it's heavier than the Buick on the trailer. It DOES not tow my 4500 Jeep trail rig very well at all. I've been running 37" Mickey Thompson MTZ until about a week ago. I'm now running 38" Nitto Trail Grappler or Ridge Grappler or something? My JT still has the 3.73 gears (maybe not for long with the 38" tires) and is setup exactly how I bought it (Skyjacker 4" lift, cheap Amazon bumpers, etc)
With the current incentives, I kind of wish I'd waited until now to buy the Gladiator. However, I would have missed out on the past 18 months of fun I've had. I hope anyone that buys a Gladiator has the same experience I've had so far. I also hope I continue to have the same experience I have had.
I've tried to buy a Tacoma the past 3 trucks I've bought. I just don't like them. The seating position is not at all my favorite. You might as well put a switch in for the throttle rather than the pedal in my opinion. I REALLY want to like them, but just haven't hit on the Toyota combination that works for me. With the new styling, I'll be waiting for that to change as well. Not my cup of tea. (but then again, there are Jeep guys with angry grilles and grumper stuff.... again, not my cup of tea). I've really grown to like the cheerleader truck and wave my pom poms as often as I can for the truck these days.
Some where in this thread I read someone describing the Gladiator as a Swiss Army knife. I've been calling it that for the past 12 months or so. It's not the best tool for the job at anything I've thrown at it. It does DO most jobs better than expected.
Attachments
Just throwing out my $.02 on my almost 1.5 years with my 2021 Rubicon deezel Gladiator. I'm wary of the deezel but it's been very solid. I'm still waiting for the fuel pump recall parts to get in. I've put 27k miles on it in 18 months. I live very near Salt Lake City and have 28 trail days on it since I bought it. I'm having a blast in the JT vs hauling my one ton YJ/K30 jeep around on a trailer with a Super Duty or Ram. I sold my Super Duty to get into the JTRD. So I do have some truck things the JT needs to do. I've only sworn at the the 1/4 ton truck a few times. It punches above it's weight class in my opinion. I'd call it a 3/8 ton truck
It tows my car on a trailer pretty well EXCEPT for on long hills (4300' elevation to a pass at about 8200' or so). It tows my daughter's XJ without much issue at all even though it's heavier than the Buick on the trailer. It DOES not tow my 4500 Jeep trail rig very well at all. I've been running 37" Mickey Thompson MTZ until about a week ago. I'm now running 38" Nitto Trail Grappler or Ridge Grappler or something? My JT still has the 3.73 gears (maybe not for long with the 38" tires) and is setup exactly how I bought it (Skyjacker 4" lift, cheap Amazon bumpers, etc)
With the current incentives, I kind of wish I'd waited until now to buy the Gladiator. However, I would have missed out on the past 18 months of fun I've had. I hope anyone that buys a Gladiator has the same experience I've had so far. I also hope I continue to have the same experience I have had.
I've tried to buy a Tacoma the past 3 trucks I've bought. I just don't like them. The seating position is not at all my favorite. You might as well put a switch in for the throttle rather than the pedal in my opinion. I REALLY want to like them, but just haven't hit on the Toyota combination that works for me. With the new styling, I'll be waiting for that to change as well. Not my cup of tea. (but then again, there are Jeep guys with angry grilles and grumper stuff.... again, not my cup of tea). I've really grown to like the cheerleader truck and wave my pom poms as often as I can for the truck these days.
Some where in this thread I read someone describing the Gladiator as a Swiss Army knife. I've been calling it that for the past 12 months or so. It's not the best tool for the job at anything I've thrown at it. It does DO most jobs better than expected.
Nice.
I am looking hard at them still. I test drove two JT Diesels this weekend and they were nice. I was mainly worried about the interior space with the kids in car seats but they actually had some decent room, more than the Raptor Supercab I test drove. I've gotten the sign off from the wife, so I just need to decide.
Its def a nice truck and checks a lot of boxes but the overheating does worry me a bit. I am also in UT and I already fought that battle with my 2014 F150 Ecoboost so I know how much it can suck. The thing is, I already fight the battle. My F150 has to slow down on climbs because it overheats and my Lexus GX slows down on climbs because it doesn't have enough power. Short of getting an F250, I think I will always kinda fight that battle.
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I have three friends with EcoDiesel Jeeps. Three Gladiators and one Wrangler and all of us running 3.73 and 37" tires. I would estimate that we collectively have about 140-170k on our powertrains. The Wrangler tows a single axle RV camp trailer with his unit pretty regularly. Trailer can't weigh less than 3500-4000 lbs and has the profile of a sail. I believe his trailer is 20-22'. All of us with JT have towed and do tow pretty regularly (maybe 10-15% of use --- it is a mid size truck, towing not really it's forte but does work in a pinch especially within it's envelope. 2 of us have this as our only truck in the household. One of the trucks regularly tows a 4500 lb camp trailer that I think is about 24') up to about 6000 lbs. We live in Utah (4300') and to go anywhere we'll need to go over 8000'-8500 passes while towing. I wouldn't say the JT is "good" at towing 5500 lbs over those passes but it does surprisingly better than expected. Utah sees winter temps as low as -20*F at times (likely not whan any of us would be towing) but I tow things (this is my only "truck" at the moment) from about 25*F- 110*F and have not had any actual overheating issues (assuming you're talking cooling system here). When towing on a hill, I DO watch the oil temp in the display like I would watch the EGT temp on a deezel pickup. I watch for 260* temps on the oil. I haven't gotten over 255* but have backed out of the throttle to keep temps as low as I can. That slows me down to about 50-55 mph crossing some passes.
Overheating sucks. I have a Buick musclecar that is well known for overheating (455 can do that) if your cooling system is lacking at all. I have not been overly concerned with overheating on the JT.
Obviously we're just "friends" on the internet. In your shoes, I'd take my opinion with a grain of salt. Maybe the overheating is dominant in Texas heat? Maybe it's fine there and it sucks in east coast states? For Utah/Colorado/Idaho/Wyoming/Nevada, I'm pretty confident the JT will take the loads without to much issue as long as you're within the design parameters?
I gotta admit, with the topper I have on my F150, and the various mods I've done(intercooler, air bags, rear hellwig sway bar, etc), I probably have no more payload than the Gladiator. I would guess I am over once I have 4 people and two dogs and a trailer hooked up, but I have never actually scaled it with the trailer.
phsycle
Adventurer
Bro, kids in car seats? Towing 5500lbs? Skip the midsize and get the HD. Guaranteed you’ll regret it on your first trip out with the Gladiator.
Todd n Natalie
OverCamper
What's your payload rating om the F150?
Even maxed out, my Ecoboost / 10 spd combo does a great job towing. Much better than my old 5.0L with 6 speed and 3:73's.
