@Hourless Life
Eric, since you are always so open for questions....now that you have many miles in Dauntless, would you do a Gladiator build again? Any regrets? Any other platform or camper you would consider or wish you went with? What would you recommend to someone like us who is literally about to pull the trigger on an almost identical build? Stay safe! Best wishes from Canada 🇨🇦
So sorry I didn't respond faster! Right after I posted, we flew to Seattle from Mexico to meet our first granddaughter!
Still in Seattle as of this writing but flying back to Mexico in a couple days.
So the short answer is, I'm very happy with the Gladiator as a platform for what we've done so far. No regrets. But there may be "qualifications" to that statement.
Here are some things for your consideration. I hope they are helpful. If you need clarification on anything please don't hesitate to ask:
Off-Road Capability:
As I've often said, overlanding does not equal off roading (as it seems to be marketed specifically in the USA). But off-roading IS often a part of overlanding. The Gladiator is an extremely capable platform. But let's be honest, in a drive to the tip of South America, the amount of "required" off roading has been less than 1%. The amount of optional off-roading (for us) maybe increases that to about 10-15%. As you mentioned, we have covered a LOT of miles. All that to say. that while it is amazing to have a 4x4, high clearance vehicle, it is not a requirement to see vast parts of the world, and go on the adventure of a lifetime.
Size Matters:
Height, width, length are ALL very important considerations for many reasons. Parking being the most common, but also driving through colonial era towns with narrow streets, avoiding low hanging wires and branches, narrow shelf roads in the mountains, and arguably most important: the ability to fit INSIDE a container for shipping across oceans, and across the Darien Gap. This can mean the difference of tens of thousands of dollars for an extended journey. For these reasons as you are selecting a vehicle for your journey size is an important aspect worthy of time spent in your sincere consideration. Our Gladiator was designed to fit snugly inside a shipping container, it allows us to park practically anywhere, we don't have to worry too much about low clearance issues, and colonial era towns are navigable without too much issue.
Living Space:
Interior living space is a premium and a luxury. We spent 7 months of straight rain in Central America. That can get pretty miserable pretty fast. Having an interior living space to retreat to is definitely a luxury. The Gladiator does not excel in this area. But the trade off is the capability of the rig, and the ability to fit it inside a container. It has worked for us so far, but Caspian isn't getting any smaller. Eventually we'll likely need to switch platforms for this reason alone. We still hope to do Africa, and Europe in DAUNTLESS, but by the time we decide to tackle Asia, we may switch to another platform with more living space for the 3 of us. Maybe even sooner, but Europe has some REALLY narrow drivable cities, where DAUNTLESS would already be seen as an oversized vehicle. So we'll see. Only time will tell. The truth is that at the end of the day, your rig is just a means to an end. You are the overlanders, the vehicle is just that.. the tool that you are using.
Cost:
Don't take debt on your journey. One of the reasons we went with the Gladiator is that we could afford to buy it outright and build it. So many people put so much into their rigs that they then can't afford to do the things they want to do once they get somewhere. Also never take anything internationally that you aren't willing to walk away from. Insuring a vehicle outside of the USA with the type of coverage we enjoy in the States is not fiscally prudent. I'd set some money aside for self-insurance. But if DAUNTLESS gets totaled, stolen, etc we'd have to start with a new platform. Just know this going in depending on where you plan to travel.
Availability of Parts and Mechanics:
The Gladiator is not well known in Latin America as a whole. It is still too new of a platform. We have the luxury of being fairly well connected (sponsored) with global companies that have made our life relatively easy by comparison to most who would run the Gladiator internationally. Land Rovers and Toyota are much more common in Latin America and as a result it is easier to find both parts for the rig, and mechanics familiar with it. With that said it has not really been an issue for us, so no regrets there on our part. But our situation may be different than most.
Payload Capacity/Storage:
Do not ignore this. Know the payload of your rig, and the roof load, etc. The engineers designed the rig to spec. You violate that spec you put yourself and others at risk. When you live in a vehicle, space and weight are always at a premium. Not only do you need to be mindful of what you are adding to your rig, but also where will it live in the vehicle, and how does that piece of equipment's location impact your daily living? For example, if you have a fridge that you access 3-5 times a day, do you have to move things off of it, or from around it to access it? What about your chairs, heater, outlets, clothing, etc. Your build should be thought through with accessibility to items you use daily in mind.
Setup and Teardown:
Whatever rig you get, consider how long it takes you to set it up once you get to camp, and how long to tear it down and get back on the road. If you are truly overlanding, you'll be doing this 5-7 times a week. That is a LOT of setup and teardown. If it takes you 2 hours to set up camp and an hour to tear it down that is 15-21 HOURS a week in this process. If you are only car camping.. meaning you are leaving your home, going to a site to camp for 3 days and returning home, this is not an issue. But if you are going to be constantly moving and traversing long distances for an extended period, then really take this into consideration. In the Gladiator, we can easily set up, awning and chairs included in 15 minutes or less. Tear down usually takes about 30 minutes to properly stow everything but in an emergency could be done in 10.
I could go on for pages on tips and thoughts. But these are the first that come to mind. Also I'm only half awake and getting ready to head to the zoo with my granddaughter #priorities so I hope you'll forgive me cutting this short for now. But feel free to ask any specific questions if you have them.
Bottom line the Gladiator has been a great platform for us, but for a family of 3 it is going to get tight really fast as Caspian continues to grow. We've been considering a flatbed truck with a Four Wheel Camper build, also looking at Class B RVs, but only in the exploratory stages at this point. All of this has to do with having 3 of us on the journey and the desire for more interior living space. With that said, we'd have to trade off many things as I've outlined above. So we'll see!
Let me know if this helps or if you have follow up questions. If you'd like to discuss what you are looking to pull the trigger on specifically and get my thoughts, happy to do that too! ~ Eric
