Gladiators vs Wranglers

[Byrds8]

I know some of you have or do own both. My current Wrangler is a High Tide so its a 3.6L on "35's" with 4:56 gearing. How much of a noticeable difference would there be if I went with a Mojave and had a 2" lift with 35s on it but with the stock 4:10 gearing? Any advice is appreciated as If I chose to swap, Id like to know how different it would really be. I know I could go test drive it but that 5-10min is not the same as weeks and months worth of experience. Thank you.

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[Shadow Creek]

Well.. I have a High Tide, and my dad has a Mojave with the AEV lift and narrow 35’s but still 4.10’s. It’s a noticeable difference as far as the seat of the pants dyno, especially if going directly from one to the other, but I wouldn’t really call the Mojave sluggish.

 

[Byrds8]

Well.. I have a High Tide, and my dad has a Mojave with the AEV lift and narrow 35’s but still 4.10’s. It’s a noticeable difference as far as the seat of the pants dyno, especially if going directly from one to the other, but I wouldn’t really call the Mojave sluggish.

When you say narrow 35s, you mean about like our tires now?

I mean I got it, Jeeps are not known to be fast but it sure doesnt need to be any slower lol.

How about the turn radius due to the longer wheel base? I would assume its pretty noticeable too?

 

[Bleda2002]

It will be noticeable on 0-20 but it wont be a huge difference. Bigger difference is just in that the gladiator is heavier so its a bit slower than a wrangler anyways.

 

[Byrds8]

It will be noticeable on 0-20 but it wont be a huge difference. Bigger difference is just in that the gladiator is heavier so its a bit slower than a wrangler anyways.

Yeah that is what I was figuring on top of the gearing. Wife just mentioned she wished we had a truck sometimes. So it got me looking.

 

[Shadow Creek]

When you say narrow 35s, you mean about like our tires now?

I mean I got it, Jeeps are not known to be fast but it sure doesnt need to be any slower lol.

How about the turn radius due to the longer wheel base? I would assume its pretty noticeable too?

He’s got 285/75-18 duratracs on it, which he has been extremely happy with.

And yeah the turn radius is a little noticeable but not horrible, as you could imagine the rear overhang makes the most difference in maneuvering it around, at least that’s my opinion.

I looked at a Gladiator before I ordered my Jeep, but I’ve got my 2011 3/4 ton truck for truck stuff, plus it’s paid for.

 

[Byrds8]

He’s got 285/75-18 duratracs on it, which he has been extremely happy with.

And yeah the turn radius is a little noticeable but not horrible, as you could imagine the rear overhang makes the most difference in maneuvering it around, at least that’s my opinion.

I looked at a Gladiator before I ordered my Jeep, but I’ve got my 2011 3/4 ton truck for truck stuff, plus it’s paid for.

Yeah I think I’m gonna have to pass. She says she’s not pushing me cause she knows I love my jeep like she loves hers lol.

 

[rohdawg]

Man… came to this thread hoping to see a fight.
So disappointed.

 

[txj2go]

I had a brief discussion of Wrangler vs Gladiator with a Gladiator owner. He managed to buy a diesel Gladiator and his comments were that he got good mileage on long highway trips and the longer wheelbase of the Gladiator was more stable on the highway at highway speeds and above.
Also I suspect the ride would be a bit smoother due to the longer wheelbase. My wife objected to riding in the back seat on long trips due to feeling any bumps from the rear tires. With the Gladiator the rear seat passengers would be farther from the rear axle, maybe the ride would be smoother for the front seat passengers too.

 

[Byrds8]

I had a brief discussion of Wrangler vs Gladiator with a Gladiator owner. He managed to buy a diesel Gladiator and his comments were that he got good mileage on long highway trips and the longer wheelbase of the Gladiator was more stable on the highway at highway speeds and above.
Also I suspect the ride would be a bit smoother due to the longer wheelbase. My wife objected to riding in the back seat on long trips due to feeling any bumps from the rear tires. With the Gladiator the rear seat passengers would be farther from the rear axle, maybe the ride would be smoother for the front seat passengers too.

It may be smoother etc but I can’t drive slower. Most of my life were in muscle cars etc lol. The wrangler is about as slow as I can go lol. That and I do love my wrangler.

 

[3TV]

I don't think there is that much difference between a 3.6 Wrangler and a 3.6 Gladiator, with the same size tires and same gearing. I've owned both, and I prefer the gladiator platform over the Wrangler platform. They don't put the 392 in a Gladiator, so we own a 392 XR as my daily driver and a Gladiator Mojave as my wife's daily driver. Yes, the 392 is a lot faster, but I don't think there is a noticeable difference between two 3.6 powered Jeeps with the same gearing and tire size.

The Gladiator Mojave with a 2" Mopar lift and the Fox 2.5" internal bypass shocks that it comes with is going to ride MUCH better than a typical Wrangler. Our Mojave with a Mopar lift, stock internal bypass shocks and 285/75R17 Nitto Trail Grapplers rides better than my 392 XR with a 2.5" MetalCloak lift, AccuTune Fox 2.5" DSC shocks, and 37" Cooper STT Pros.

 

[RudeJeepin]

Here you go, 21JLURD and 22JTRD...

Both are the EcoDiesel, Wrangler has BFGs, Gladiator has Falkens. Both have stock 285/70/17 sized tires.
As far as acceleration goes, I've never put a stop watch to it, but I don't notice a difference by the seat of my pants.
As far as ride goes, the extra wheelbase and probably even the extra weight makes the Gladiator ride smoother and handle better all the time. Except maybe offroad when the extra wheelbase and rear overhang could cause issues.
I also prefer towing with the Gladiator. We have a 7x12 cargo trailer that I haul a 2 seat RZR in, goes down the road at roughly 3500 pounds.
I loved my Wrangler before my wife decided she loved it more, so I gave it to her and traded her car for my Gladiator. I still love her Wrangler, but I love my Gladiator more, and wouldn't swap back to the Wrangler.
Each has their pluses and minuses, each are great in my opinion.

 

[Byrds8]

Here you go, 21JLURD and 22JTRD...

Both are the EcoDiesel, Wrangler has BFGs, Gladiator has Falkens. Both have stock 285/70/17 sized tires.
As far as acceleration goes, I've never put a stop watch to it, but I don't notice a difference by the seat of my pants.
As far as ride goes, the extra wheelbase and probably even the extra weight makes the Gladiator ride smoother and handle better all the time. Except maybe offroad when the extra wheelbase and rear overhang could cause issues.
I also prefer towing with the Gladiator. We have a 7x12 cargo trailer that I haul a 2 seat RZR in, goes down the road at roughly 3500 pounds.
I loved my Wrangler before my wife decided she loved it more, so I gave it to her and traded her car for my Gladiator. I still love her Wrangler, but I love my Gladiator more, and wouldn't swap back to the Wrangler.
Each has their pluses and minuses, each are great in my opinion.

Thanks for the comparison. The issue comes in at my Wrangler is stock with 35s with 4:56 gearing. Id want the Gladiator to have a slight lift with 35s on it also but it only comes with 4:10 gearing. I do not want to have to regear as that would be a long time coming. Im sure if I left it with 33" tires and 4:10s it would be close to the Wrangler. My guess was and folks kinda said it here, it would be even slower with the 35s and stock gears.

 

[Norvak]

It will be noticeable on 0-20 but it wont be a huge difference. Bigger difference is just in that the gladiator is heavier so its a bit slower than a wrangler anyways.

When I was test driving gladiators, I was unimpressed by how slow they accelerated with the 3.6. I drive many different flavors from Overland, Rubicon, and Willys. The first time I sat in my Wrangler I was shocked at how peppy it was. I never really thought about the weight until then and it made perfect sense.

 

[RudeJeepin]

Thanks for the comparison. The issue comes in at my Wrangler is stock with 35s with 4:56 gearing. Id want the Gladiator to have a slight lift with 35s on it also but it only comes with 4:10 gearing. I do not want to have to regear as that would be a long time coming. Im sure if I left it with 33" tires and 4:10s it would be close to the Wrangler. My guess was and folks kinda said it here, it would be even slower with the 35s and stock gears.

Yes, of course, 4:56 vs 4:10, the 4:10 will be slower off the line, then add 500ish pounds and it's gonna get even slower.
Depending on usage, if you ordered a '23 with the ecodiesel, while you'd end up with 3.73 gears, it would with 35s it would pull on your 3.6 gasser with 35s and 4.56 gears
Just saying.

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