Anyone considering trading their JL for a JT Gladiator?

[twisty]

I'm always surprised more people don't grasp this. Having driven nothing but trucks for the past ~10 years it's just SOOOO nice to remember I need a few sticks of steel, or a couple sheets of OSB or whatever and just go grab it while I'm passing through town.

That said, the Gladiator is just way too long for 'wheeling so if I ever did get one it would be in addition to -- not in place of -- my JL.

I know guys will be bobbing the Gladiator in spades (I'm sure there's several already) and that fixes the departure angle issue but that wheelbase is horrific and the JLU is already too long IMO

Still, I wouldn't refuse a Gladiator as a parts runner....I'm just not willing to pay what the new or used market will command when I can get a reliable used Ford or GM for $5k as a daily/parts runner

yup, you dont realize just how handy and easy pick ups are until you dont have one. I keep thinking about selling mine but know I'll end up getting another. I agree the JL is also too long for hard core stuff. Most enthusiasts believe the sweet spot is 110 inches with the JLU going 6 inches over that. My hard core days are over...at least searching for it. I'll do the rubicon and some stuff at moab but that is about the extent of it.

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[twisty]

My buddy, head mechanic at my dealership, texted me this picture so I stopped in to see it in person........ didn’t help, I still think they look funky....... maybe it’ll grow on me over time....but maybe not....

Really? I like it. Everyone is different. I dont like it better then my JLUR but for it's intended purpose I think they hit a home run. IF I were just going by looks there are other trucks that look better for sure. But I'm not boning my vehicle so looks are down the scale a bit. lol

 

[Roky]

Really? I like it. Everyone is different. I dont like it better then my JLUR but for it's intended purpose I think they hit a home run. IF I were just going by looks there are other trucks that look better for sure. But I'm not boning my vehicle so looks are down the scale a bit. lol

Yeah... we all different, hell, I threw a tantrum when they came out with 4 door Jeep, swore up and down, not me , no sir. Well.... you see how that turned out......

 

[8flat]

No problem man. We can agree to disagree. I've towed 20,000 lbs. with Cummins and Ford F-350 diesels, and they're slower than a jar of molasses on a January morning at that capacity. Really struggling up hills. I've also towed at the max capacity of my 3.6L JLU Wrangler and it performed admirably. The braking is actually the only part that's a little sketchy. Definitely need good trailer brakes to tackle 7,000 lbs. with the Gladiator, but the Pentastar V6, with it's torque curve as flat as a Kansas highway, does a fantastic job and actually gets good fuel economy too. Even TFL noted during their "Super Ike Gauntlet" test that the MPGs while towing at max were phenomenal.

Sure, we'd all love to have twice the torque, but the fact is the Pentastar is on par with every other V6 in the segment today, but it's cam profile and high compression actually makes it pretty darn good at towing.

I hear ya, but you were towing 3,500lbs with it, correct? (I think that's our max rating IIRC). I'm talking about how bad it'll be towing twice that weight. I think 7k will be horrid on hills behind a JT that's even bigger/heavier than a JLU to start with. Gads. I literally would have to use 4LO to get a 7k lb trailer going from a dead stop if I was on a slight incline because my first gear is so high. And I have a rubi, I can't imagine the 3.42s....eeeack.

When you towed 20k lbs with that cummins, was it a newer one? Nowadays they have as much torque as an actual semi did 40yrs ago. My buddy just bought one, it's night and day better than his last cummins when loaded up heavy.

 

[Sean L]

I hear ya, but you were towing 3,500lbs with it, correct? (I think that's our max rating IIRC). I'm talking about how bad it'll be towing twice that weight. I think 7k will be horrid on hills behind a JT that's even bigger/heavier than a JLU to start with. Gads. I literally would have to use 4LO to get a 7k lb trailer going from a dead stop if I was on a slight incline because my first gear is so high. And I have a rubi, I can't imagine the 3.42s....eeeack.

When you towed 20k lbs with that cummins, was it a newer one? Nowadays they have as much torque as an actual semi did 40yrs ago. My buddy just bought one, it's night and day better than his last cummins when loaded up heavy.

Doesn't do so bad for a V6 pulling 7000 lbs up the Eisenhower. And that's not even the Max towing Gladiator.

 

[8flat]

No problem man. We can agree to disagree. I've towed 20,000 lbs. with Cummins and Ford F-350 diesels, and they're slower than a jar of molasses on a January morning at that capacity. Really struggling up hills. I've also towed at the max capacity of my 3.6L JLU Wrangler and it performed admirably. The braking is actually the only part that's a little sketchy. Definitely need good trailer brakes to tackle 7,000 lbs. with the Gladiator, but the Pentastar V6, with it's torque curve as flat as a Kansas highway, does a fantastic job and actually gets good fuel economy too. Even TFL noted during their "Super Ike Gauntlet" test that the MPGs while towing at max were phenomenal.

Sure, we'd all love to have twice the torque, but the fact is the Pentastar is on par with every other V6 in the segment today, but it's cam profile and high compression actually makes it pretty darn good at towing.[/QUOTE

Doesn't do so bad for a V6 pulling 7000 lbs up the Eisenhower. And that's not even the Max towing Gladiator.

I would think the Rubi with 4:10s would pull that hill better than the max tow package with 3:42s? (even though the sport is lighter than the rubi)

They're quotes and the looks on their faces said a lot. "...not doing a great job". "we're down to 20mph" at 16:55 in the vid. Not a great look IMHO

 

[Sean L]

I would think the Rubi with 4:10s would pull that hill better than the max tow package with 3:42s? (even though the sport is lighter than the rubi)

They're quotes and the looks on their faces said a lot. "...not doing a great job". "we're down to 20mph" at 16:55 in the vid. Not a great look IMHO

Sport and Sport S with max towing has 4.10 axles as well, and the standard ratio is 3.73 on the Gladiator.

And 40 MPH not 20. Considering they're on a steep grade at the vehicles maximum rated towing of 7000 lbs at a high altitude and a naturally aspirated engine its doing well. Those guys are used to running this test with Diesels and V8s so their frame of reference is in the favor of the full size trucks.

As far as personal experience with my Ram 1500 that had the 5.7, 5 speed auto and 3.55 gears with a max tow rating of 7800 Lbs, I was pulling a trailer about that weight plus cargo in the bed cross country and it slowed the truck down dramatically. I'm actually surprised at how well The Gladiator did that run with a V6.

 

[8flat]

Time comparisons:
JT pulling 7,000lbs on the Ike gauntlet: 9:54
Chevy/ford/dodge diesel pickups pulling 29,000lbs on the Ike gauntlet: all in the low 8:00 range from what I'm seeing
Ford half ton ecoboost V6: 7:58 (now THAT is a respectable V6 engine)

So back to the original argument, all rigs pulling their max weight will struggle, yes.

JT happens to be 25% worse.

 

[8flat]

Sport and Sport S with max towing has 4.10 axles as well, and the standard ratio is 3.73 on the Gladiator.

And 40 MPH not 20. Considering they're on a steep grade at the vehicles maximum rated towing of 7000 lbs at a high altitude and a naturally aspirated engine its doing well. Those guys are used to running this test with Diesels and V8s so their frame of reference is in the favor of the full size trucks.

As far as personal experience with my Ram 1500 that had the 5.7, 5 speed auto and 3.55 gears with a max tow rating of 7800 Lbs, I was pulling a trailer about that weight plus cargo in the bed cross country and it slowed the truck down dramatically. I'm actually surprised at how well The Gladiator did that run with a V6.

Watch it again, at 16:55 the passenger clearly looks over at the speedo and says "and we're down to, what, 20 miles per hour"

 

[Sean L]

Chevy/ford/dodge diesel pickups pulling 29,000lbs on the Ike gauntlet: all in the low 8:00 range from what I'm seeing
Ford half ton ecoboost V6: 7:58 (now THAT is a respectable V6 engine)

On my previous post I pointed out the gladiator does well for naturally aspirated engine at altitude. All of the vehicles quoted above are turbocharged so of course they'll do better.

 

[Sean L]

Watch it again, at 16:55 the passenger clearly looks over at the speedo and says "and we're down to, what, 20 miles per hour"

I watched it. Roman says 40.

 

[8flat]

On my previous post I pointed out the gladiator does well for naturally aspirated engine at altitude. All of the vehicles quoted above are turbocharged so of course they'll do better.

How would you explain the NA V6 colorado with a time 8:18 ?
The more I look into this the worse the JT is looking.

 

[MedicalCowboy]

Time comparisons:
JT pulling 7,000lbs on the Ike gauntlet: 9:54
Chevy/ford/dodge diesel pickups pulling 29,000lbs on the Ike gauntlet: all in the low 8:00 range from what I'm seeing
Ford half ton ecoboost V6: 7:58 (now THAT is a respectable V6 engine)

So back to the original argument, all rigs pulling their max weight will struggle, yes.

JT happens to be 25% worse.

Why in the hell are you comparing a midsize truck to full size trucks?

 

[8flat]

I watched it. Roman says 40.

Yep you are right sorry

 

[8flat]

Why in the hell are you comparing a midsize truck to full size trucks?

Because the original disagreement was "all vehicles struggle with their max towing capacity, even diesels". My argument is the JT is going to be much worse than other vehicles.

The Ike Gauntlet test is good because they're using max tow ratings. So the JT is towing 7k lbs, those diesels are pulling 29,000lbs, etc. The JT does not fare well.

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