Is the Gladiator selling very well?

[KrampusTJ]

I went from a JKU to a JT last year and it was a big step up in drivability, creature comforts, and utility. I use the bed to carry stuff from fire wood, to furniture, to camping gear, mountain bike, etc that was a real pain in the buns with the JKU. Even my Texas Edition comes factory with a Dana 44 front so running 35's isn't a concern like I had on the JKU sport (trussed it). Also, the JT plain rides better on fire service or forest roads as slower speeds.

I also use it to tow the TJ as needed, which the JKU was not rated for. So, overall, it is a much more user friendly, daily utility vehicle than a Wrangler with a massive aftermarket following.

 

[tworley]

I've always had a truck, until I sold one and bought my TJ. The TJ is a blast, but there were countless times where a truck bed would have been helpful. My F150 has the 5.5 foot bed with a tool box, space is still limited but its nice and convenient to be able to toss whatever bulky item I have in the bed and drive off without having to tumble seats forward, strap a window open, etc...

 

[joe98tj]

See a bunch on the roads. Not seeing too many making it off road up here in the northeast. Although, some of the tougher trails aren't built around the longer wheelbase rigs. One concern I would have is the latest settlement notice everyone got letters about regarding death wobble issues. My buddy is the service manager at a local Jeep/Dodge/Ram dealer and they have gotten in a ton of folks looking to get their jeeps fixed yet the causes aren't obvious and they've received zero direction from Jeep on what the issue is. So they've been doing everything they can but still can't find the issue.

 

[Alex01]

See a bunch on the roads. Not seeing too many making it off road up here in the northeast. Although, some of the tougher trails aren't built around the longer wheelbase rigs. One concern I would have is the latest settlement notice everyone got letters about regarding death wobble issues. My buddy is the service manager at a local Jeep/Dodge/Ram dealer and they have gotten in a ton of folks looking to get their jeeps fixed yet the causes aren't obvious and they've received zero direction from Jeep on what the issue is. So they've been doing everything they can but still can't find the issue.

Jeep did a recall on the JL's, I'm assuming the JT as well. They took the easy way out and will replace the steering dampener each time it happens. At 33k miles on our JL, with a 2.5" lift and 37s, we started getting a minor case of DW. The JL hasn't been on too many trails but it has seen use on slickrock in CA, top of the world in sand hollow, most of the big names in Sedona, and forest roads so it wasn't necessarily a highway princess and I'm not shocked parts wore out. After talking to a bunch of people/companies most agree that it is a ball joint issue. They claim the Mopar ball joints aren't great and even if they appear to be tight they've replaced them on multiple vehicles and fixed the issue.

It's dead of winter here so I just replaced the steering dampener on ours and figure I'll replace the ball joints when it warms up a bit.

While annoying changing the ball joints every 30k isn't enough to push me into something else.

 

[LJBean]

The closest thing to a truck that I ever owned was an '83 Scrambler. Father to the J6. Man, I miss that Jeep.

 

[sideproject]

The gladiators sell well in Indiana. I see them pretty frequently

 

[ColoJeep]

Part of the reason that trucks keep getting bigger is the CAFE mandates that were put in place during the Obama administration.

Government at it's finest .....with a Capital D

 

[steelhd]

I don't understand why the Gladiator is as popular as it is. Not very good as a wheeler, not very good as a truck, not very good as a daily driver, and front suspension wear and maintenance will eventuality baffle and enrage most casual owners. The only guess I have is people really eat up that silly "its a Jeep thing" and giving out toy ducks shit.

 

[ColoJeep]

I don't understand why the Gladiator is as popular as it is. Not very good as a wheeler, not very good as a truck, not very good as a daily driver, and front suspension wear and maintenance will eventuality baffle and enrage most casual owners. The only guess I have is people really eat up that silly "its a Jeep thing" and giving out toy ducks shit.

A couple of thoughts , JT 's do look good with a lift and larger tires , people want to be a part of something , ( think Jeep thing vs. Tacoma ) , they would ride better then any other solid front axle Jeep , how many people actually use their 3/4 or 1tons for trucks , and of course the f'n duck thing , some folks are really into this , and some Alabamians have almost started a secret duck cult......

 

[Stinkbug]

Pricing for the 2022 Jeep Gladiator starts at $35,315 MSRP and goes up to $47,260 fully loaded.

Year	Sales
2022	77,855
2021	89,712
2020	77,542
2019	40,037
Total	285,146

[URL][URL]https://carfigures.com/us-market-brand/jeep/gladiator[/URL][/URL]


Pricing for the 2022 Jeep Wrangler starts at $29,725 MSRP and goes up to $40,500 fully loaded.

Year	Sales
2022	181,410
2021	204,609
2020	201,311
2019	228,042
2018	240,032
2017	190,522
2016	191,788
2015	202,702

[URL][URL]https://carfigures.com/us-market-brand/jeep/wrangler[/URL][/URL]

​

Pricing for the 2022 Ford Ranger starts at $25,500 MSRP and goes up to $39,465 fully loaded.

Year	Sales
2022	56,987
2021	94,755
2020	101,486
2019	89,571

[URL][URL]https://carfigures.com/us-market-brand/ford/ranger[/URL][/URL]

Those “fully loaded” prices are about 1/2 of what fully loaded costs…

 

[Bigmac]

I would contend that there are a lot of people driving pickups, including Gladiators, that don't "need" one at all. It's a common male status symbol in these parts to the point that it seems they make up 50% of vehicles on the road, but I doubt significantly more people need trucks in 2023 than did in 1980 when the roads were dominated by large sedans, or 1995 when it was all minivans.

I for one, don't "need" a truck with a bed that doesn't support an 8' piece of lumber with the tailgate down. And I don't need the fact that it's a Jeep tempt me into lifting it and making it harder to get in and out of the back as I use it for truck things.

View attachment 405510

I was probably right around the max payload for the Silverado with (64) 3cf bags of cedar bark mulch.

There's several really really tricked out gladiators in the parking lot of my gym on base. I mean these things have probably got 3k worth of rigid lights, warn winch, 37inch mudders, roof racks, anything you can imagine.

Im walking in one day trying to decide if it would be worth wheeling with folks like that just to have people local, then I see the owner.

Little Filipino gal mid 40s in yoga pants and a halter top carrying a versace bag. Now I don't want to be called some asshole stereotypist, but I don't think we're going to end up on the trail together...

I rolled accross a scale the other day in my dually and I was over for payload by 200 lbs... again. Trucks are for truck things Jeeps are for Jeep things.

I would have a oldschool gladiator or comanche in a heartbeat though for the cool factor.

 

[RangerTJ]

There's several really really tricked out gladiators in the parking lot of my gym on base. I mean these things have probably got 3k worth of rigid lights, warn winch, 37inch mudders, roof racks, anything you can imagine.

...

You just described the vast majority of Gladiators and 4 door JL Wranglers in this area.

 

[cliffish]

I don't understand why the Gladiator is as popular as it is. Not very good as a wheeler, not very good as a truck, not very good as a daily driver, and front suspension wear and maintenance will eventuality baffle and enrage most casual owners. The only guess I have is people really eat up that silly "its a Jeep thing" and giving out toy ducks shit.

It is called a lease, around here 80% of the new drivers are leasing and turning back in before any of the issues start (OK some of the issues anyway).

 

[PCO6]

I don't understand why the Gladiator is as popular as it is. Not very good as a wheeler, not very good as a truck, not very good as a daily driver, and front suspension wear and maintenance will eventuality baffle and enrage most casual owners. The only guess I have is people really eat up that silly "its a Jeep thing" and giving out toy ducks shit.

I can see why they're popular with the overlanding crowd. Meets their wheeling needs, don't use them as a truck, don't necessarily use them as their daily driver and are happy to maintain and modify their rigs. They are probably as well served as most and better than other vehicles by after market suppliers.

We see plenty of JTs around here, stock and modified. They're just another Jeep that suits someone's need.

 

[cliffish]

All mall crawlers around here most have more $$$ than brains. The only mods typically done are purely cosmetic.

 

[PCO6]

Regarding the name "Gladiator" ... Comanches haven't been available new since 1992. Can you imagine trying to resurrect that name today? If Cherokees ever stopped for a while it would be tough to bring that one back too. Gladiator was a good choice.

 

[KrampusTJ]

I don't understand why the Gladiator is as popular as it is. Not very good as a wheeler, not very good as a truck, not very good as a daily driver, and front suspension wear and maintenance will eventuality baffle and enrage most casual owners. The only guess I have is people really eat up that silly "its a Jeep thing" and giving out toy ducks shit.

As a wheeler, it is actually pretty good as long as you are not pushing hard trails that need a lot of clearance. I spent a week with my stock JT (other than skid plates) in the Colorado mountains and was pleasantly surprised and how well it did. These were not tough trails, but more like forest service roads, some with a foot of snow, it did great, and rode better than the short wheel base Wrangler by a good bit. I cut a bed load of firewood for whiskey and campfire time which also would not have happened with the JK.

 

[jeepguy03]

Not the biggest fan of the looks but I think they are kinda neat. Not too many trucks you can get in manual these days, and no others you can take the doors/roof off of. They do ride well. I just wouldn't be able to justify the price, but then again that is pretty much any new vehicle these days.

I've wanted a Comanche or full-size Gladiator for years, but they are basically nonexistent here. The last comanche I saw for sale was a rot box and the seller wanted $12,000.

 

[DavidBT]

I bought a '22' Gladiator Max Tow when we were finally able to downsize from our 36' 5th wheel travel trailer. We bought a 2022 26' travel trailer that weighs around 5,500 lbs loaded up for camping. I thought I did my homework and the Gladiator should have handled it great. My plan was when we did go camping, I had the perfect exploring rig for doing forest and desert trails in and around Arizona. We live in South East Arizona and every direction from here is up and down hills. Long story, since I have my 05 TJR, I found a '21' Ram 1500 Bighorn with 3.92 gears and non e-torq that's honestly much more comfortable all the way around. I think the Gladiator has a place, and just like any Jeep, you can build it up to how it works for you.

 

[bluescapegoat]

I bought a JT last year to replace the TJ as my daily driver. And I sold my '87 Comanche and an '82 Waggy to make room.

I'm not sure I understand people saying it's not a good truck. To me it's just as solid of a "mid size" truck as the competition but it really depends on what you want out of it, I suppose.

My reasoning for my purchase was:
I wanted something more comfortable than my TJ for a daily.
I wanted to keep the TJ out of the salt in the winter.
I wanted better mpg and power (ecodiesel)
I wanted something easy to work on (aside from maybe that ecodiesel part)
I wanted something I could do low-medium duty towing with (mostly just moving cars around, towing the TJ)
Solid front Axle. Lockers.
They can be made to look pretty cool and look pretty dumb in stock form, imo. That just makes it more fun to me. I like the controversy. I also like the people that say they're ugly then see mine and reluctantly go well they're not that bad.

Resale value, like the TJ/JK/JL, is great. I built mine to order for 7% below invoice last year when they were selling on lots for a MSRP +$10k mark up. So even if I decided right away I didn't like it or regretted my decision, a quick flip would yield an easy $15k profit. Turns out I love it.

I had been on the fence about getting one since they came out but couldn't convince myself to spend that much money on something with an NA gasser v6 in it. Then when they finally started stuffing the ecodiesel into it I was back on board but they didn't have any colors I wanted. Then they did a short run of Gobi in early 2022 and came across that 7% deal and I jumped on it.

Would I buy one if I didn't still have the TJ? No. I always need a stick shift 2 door Jeep in my life. But having both is pretty excellent. The ecodiesel even on 37s and stock gearing does not give a shit about towing the TJ. And for longer trips into the rockies the JT makes a really comfortable long distance cruiser that can still tackle those basic scenic mountain trails with zero worry. Fitting 37s is stupid cheap on the Rubicon platform and still drives like stock, it's a very comfortable cruiser. And I appreciate the creature comforts way more than even I thought I would. Proximity keyless is dope.

I've also got an 04 Ram SRT10 regular cab 6 speed in the stable, along with some other toys. So if I want to row gears and haul ass in a pickup truck that's an option as well. And you can justifiably argue that is truly an awful truck. But it puts a smile on my face.