The 2023 Gladiator Is the Worst Pickup Truck on Consumer Reports, Again

[3TV]

Their choice for top trucks pretty much shows that what they want in a truck is the complete opposite of what I want in a truck. I would never own any of their top choices. I currently own a Ram TRX and a Ram 3500, which are both great trucks. And I have owned a 2020 Gladiator Mojave, and actually liked it quite a lot. The Mojave suspension was a big letdown for a supposed Raptor competitor. It was sprung too soft and had limited up travel, so at higher speeds it would blow through its suspension travel instantly, even on smallish bumps. It rode really nice on road, and off road at slower speeds though. Its towing ability also sucked. The weak engine performance caused the transmission to downshift excessively, and then it would stay at 4500 RPM all day long, while pulling a tiny little utility trailer with a UTV on it and getting horrendous gas mileage while doing this. But for a daily driver, and for off-roading I really enjoyed that truck. We did 1600 off road miles of the Trans America Trail one summer in that truck, and it worked great. It was especially nice to have the bed space to throw items into that you didn't want to keep inside a Jeep (like fuel cans, a big ice chest, etc).

Here was our Gladiator

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[aldo98229]

Why do we keep reposting Consumer Reports crap?

With few exceptions almost everyone on here agrees CR is garbage, yet their useless articles keep being linked on this forum.

That’s exactly what CR wants.

 

[Obi Wan]

People that buy a vehicle (or anything for thay matter) based on what Consumer Reports says are the same people that need an electrician to change a light bulb.

Do your own research people.

 

[Brandonhgt]

Tacoma is tied for 6th of 8 compact pickup trucks in Consumer Reports' ratings with the Nissan Frontier. The Gladiator is immediately behind them. 1-5 in order are Ford Maverick Hybrid, Ford Maverick, Honda Ridgeline, Hyundai Santa Cruz, and Ford Ranger.

So CR recommends the trucks that are not actually trucks at all, but fwd cars with fake truck bodies. My goodness I cannot stand them.

 

[MesaAZGuy]

The maverick is built with off the shelf parts, stamped chassis panels, and no paint or corrosion resistance on the suspension bits. It's built to the lowest dollar so they can sell more. In the rust belts, these trucks will be trash after 7 years. Maybe less. CR just values the new stuff to help push these to mass market. Jeep has been around a long time. Seems they cater to yuppies and those who need a nicer looking grocery getter/kid transport/ do it all around good vehicle that's IFS and comfy with screens everywhere.

 

[Albertaktm]

The first mistake is calling the Gladiator a truck. It is NOT a truck. It is a Jeep with a little square box on the back. It is like calling the Subaru Brat a truck. They are fun, a hoot to drive. Different. But NOT a truck.

 

[Kyanche]

All these platitudes said, I think the biggest problem with Jeep Wranglers isn't the quality. I mean, the steering box issues are FUCKING RIDICULOUS and the issues with bad paint and hinge corrosion are also insane.

But no, it's not that. The biggest problem with Jeep Wranglers is the dealership network. Lousy service, straight up lies, bad scheduling, no loaner cars, sketchy dealership sales practices. I mean, they aren't the worst... but they certainly aren't the best.

 

[pablo_max3045]

We were visiting family in NV over Christmas and our rental was a 4dr Tacoma with the TRD package.
It was fine. It got a flat, so the rental company replaced it with a Gladiator.
It drove a bit better than my Wrangler, I am sure due to the longer WB, but certainly far, far worse than the Tacoma. Wind noise and road noise were also significantly worse in the Jeep.
I did notice the Toyota was a major pain ass to get 4lo to engage. (I definitely did not offroad both trucks in the BLM land next door to my family's house.)

At being a "Truck", I would agree that the Jeep is not as good as it's competition. Though, as many people mentioned, it's not for "normal" truck stuff.
I personally would not buy one, but not because I think it's worse.
I just happen to think that it's the ugliest damn truck that has ever existed. It looks "ok" if you lift it and put on 37s, but stock? Jesus that truck is fugly.

 

[jdavis106]

Why do we keep reposting Consumer Reports crap?

With few exceptions almost everyone on here agrees CR is garbage, yet their useless articles keep being linked on this forum.

That’s exactly what CR wants.

Except no one is posting CR articles here, they are posting click-bait third party articles that cherry pick all the negative parts of the CR reviews so Jeep fanatics will look at the article so they can hate on the magazine and in the process generate ad revenue for the third party website. If you read the actual CR reviews on the Wrangler and Gladiator they write about the strengths and weaknesses pretty accurately. Their score is indicative of the suitability of a vehicle to be a transportation appliance. If you are buying a vehicle based on its suitability to be a transportation appliance then a Wrangler or Gladiator are poor choices.

https://www.consumerreports.org/vid...53150001/jeep-wrangler-2018-2022-quick-drive/
The jist of their initial JL Wrangler video is if you want a refined SUV don't get this but if you want a Jeep you'll like it.

 

[CreepyCrepe]

I enjoyed my Gladiator while I had it. The wife wanted a convertible and I wanted a truck so the Gladiator made the most sense as a compromise. It did truck things well enough for me. The hard top was a bit of a pain, especially with a child seat in the back. I basically had to take out the child seat every time I wanted to take off the top and then I had to store it somewhere. In the end, the payment was way more than what we wanted to spend so we got rid of it and saved up for the JL.

 

[Sazabi19]

Here Ye! Here Ye! Another wonderful, biased, and ridiculous review article on the JL Gladiator.

The Gladiator is a JT :P

 

[wchevron]

Why do we keep reposting Consumer Reports crap?

With few exceptions almost everyone on here agrees CR is garbage, yet their useless articles keep being linked on this forum.

That’s exactly what CR wants.

At least it wasn't another Bronco thread.

 

[Shibadog]

Unless I’m badly mistaken, CR has NEVER met a Jeep they liked. My old TJ’s were consistently at the “ bottom of the list”. My last one was one of the best vehicles I’ve ever owned (and I’ve owned a bunch).. I give Consumer Reportsthe same credibility I give the Easter bunny. A few years ago we purchased a new washer dryer set, the CR’s “top rated” unit (and Very expensive). It has been an absolute pos, with numerous failures and issues. BIL bought a set the same year that was WAY down on the list and 1/2 the cost. His has been trouble free…go figure.

 

[Traktor31]

If I were ever to get a pickup truck I would either get a Gladiator or a Maverick. Without doing any test driving or anything, those two seem to fit what I'd be looking for.

 

[aldo98229]

Except no one is posting CR articles here, they are posting click-bait third party articles that cherry pick all the negative parts of the CR reviews so Jeep fanatics will look at the article so they can hate on the magazine and in the process generate ad revenue for the third party website. If you read the actual CR reviews on the Wrangler and Gladiator they write about the strengths and weaknesses pretty accurately. Their score is indicative of the suitability of a vehicle to be a transportation appliance. If you are buying a vehicle based on its suitability to be a transportation appliance then a Wrangler or Gladiator are poor choices.

https://www.consumerreports.org/vid...53150001/jeep-wrangler-2018-2022-quick-drive/
The jist of their initial JL Wrangler video is if you want a refined SUV don't get this but if you want a Jeep you'll like it.

Sure, Forbes and a few other mindless publications repeat CR’s trash year in and year out.

Garbage in, garbage out. It’s all the same garbage.

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