The Jeep Gladiator is Struggling

[Timmyjoe]

The day we picked up our Wrangler late last summer, my 15 year old daughter (who longs for a Ford Ranger some day) seemed to hit the nail on the head. The Gladiators were just arriving at dealerships in our area, and she took one look at a new one on the dealer lot and said, "That's the dumbest thing I've ever seen, who would buy that when you could get a Ford Ranger for cheaper?"

No disrespect to new Gladiator owners.

Best,
-Tim

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[wv18jl]

They marketed the JT to the small truck market, not to their Jeep market.

Unfortunately that market is already saturated with other brands that have already established a loyal base.

They should have made a shorter more balanced truck that Jeep enthusiasts could relate to.

Instead they got into a crowded market and made their entry similar in measurements and statistics to all the other, larger, more established brands and then tried to charge a premium.

How did that approach work for you in the 80's and 90's dumbass.

 

[twisty]

The ford ranger cant touch a JT in offroad prowess. Aftermarket support is crazy, nothing compares. Also, all the clammer on looks of the vehicle strikes me as funny too. Dont get me wrong no one wants ugly but capability trumps looks any day, though a setup JT is SWEET. I'm not dating my jeep. lol

BTW I think stock JL's look pretty crappy too until you mod them. Even my stock ruby with 33s wasnt the greatest. Looked like a limo of sorts. lol

 

[OnlyOne]

The ford ranger cant touch a JT in offroad prowess. Aftermarket support is crazy, nothing compares. Also, all the clammer on looks of the vehicle strikes me as funny too. Dont get me wrong no one wants ugly but capability trumps looks any day, though a setup JT is SWEET. I'm not dating my jeep. lol

BTW I think stock JL's look pretty crappy too until you mod them. Even my stock ruby with 33s wasnt the greatest. Looked like a limo of sorts. lol

As much as I hate to say it, I bought a Ranger XLT FX4 with rear locker over the JT because it’s more comfortable, quiet, powerful and cheaper. I have a JL on 37s so I had no need for off-road use but if I did, stock for stock the JT might be marginally better, but I doubt it.

I would’ve had to buy a Rubicon, with nav and heat and all the bells and whistles, to match what I got out of my Ranger. I paid 29k for it over Black Friday. For 25k more, Jeep needs to step it up.

 

[TrailTorque]

I hated the gladiator until i saw it lifted on 37s .. I'm in love now but I don't think I could afford the Rubicon.

^THIS

I plan on keeping my JLU and getting one in the next 2-3 years. I’ll have to budget around investments but it’s going to happen. The Rubicon model for my locality (Florida) doesn’t concern me much so I’ll likely try and find that Mojave model depending on its options. Haven’t read much on it yet though so I may not need what it offers either.

 

[aldo98229]

They marketed the JT to the small truck market, not to their Jeep market.

Unfortunately that market is already saturated with other brands that have already established a loyal base.

They should have made a shorter more balanced truck that Jeep enthusiasts could relate to.

Instead they got into a crowded market and made their entry similar in measurements and statistics to all the other, larger, more established brands and then tried to charge a premium.

How did that approach work for you in the 80's and 90's dumbass.

FCA marketed JT properly. Marketing JT to the Jeep crowd would have resulted in 100% sales cannibalization, given the close association of JL and JT. A high degree of cannibalization was inevitable, but for FCA to grow sales, it had to get them from the competition.

Also, “lifestyle” pickups come and go; real pickups stick around. FCA had no choice but market JT as a through and through midsize pickup. That’s why it gave JT a 7,000 lb tow rating. Otherwise Gladiator would have looked like little more than an expensive toy.

If there’s anything FCA should have done different was price JT more competitively, and launch with the Mojave Edition. The original Gladiator Launch Edition was a gimmick; nothing but a bunch of stickers. There are a few out there still sitting on dealer lots with a $10,000 discount on them. Mojave, on the other hand, is a big deal: it expands the Jeep brand beyond “rock crawling,” and brings the fight right to the competition.

Because marketing budgets are their largest at launch, Mojave is unlikely to get a marketing budget anything close to that Gladiator got 10 months ago.

Better late than never, for sure. But Jeep missed the boat by not having Mojave ready for the JT launch or the Super Bowl.

Mojave should have been Gladiator’s Launch Edition

 

[Dash68]

I suspect Jeep anticipated sales of the JT Gladiator 4 door with 5 foot bed might fall short of sales projections because of how it was introduced as a so called "lifestyle" vehicle and that they have intentionally set the price high. I felt they were making excuses right from the start. Then they followed up the introduction with all way cool Gladiator concept's at Easter Jeep in Moab, one stole the show, that being the J6. When asked why a concept single cab pickup, Jeep replied that they built and brought the J6 to the show to gain customer feedback. It seemed like it might be a backup plan to me. An easily produced variant of the wrangler and gladiator. Jeep might want to consider offering two or three configurations of the gladiator to fill production capacity.

 

[Dash68]

Yeah, don’t get one. It sucks. LOL

No one can say that your gladiator is ugly. It looks awesome and I bet it suits your needs very well. I like it alot but It would be way to big of a truck for where I would use it. It would be a struggle for me to even change one of the tires, ha ha.

 

[TPadden]

I'm not much of a drinker, what's a beer goggle?

 

[ODDs]

I'm looking forward to Monday's most popular topics email and this thread likely being #1.

 

[Strommen95]

The JT like the JL is in it's own segment. The same reasons why you'd pick a JL over a Grand Cherokee, 4Runner, Landrover, etc are the same reasons why a JT owner will pick the JT over a Taco, Colorado, Ranger, etc. I'm not sure why people struggle to understand this.

 

[EZMFE]

When purchasing a Wrangler you know that you're buying one of the most off-road capable vehicles made. You're looking for a niche (small, go anywhere) vehicle where direct competition is limited. You are most likely not buying the wrangler for the same reason you would buy a Gladiator.

When purchasing a Gladiator you have limited options as to the motor and tow ratings when compared to other trucks. There are many others in the market that beat the Gladiator at being..well.. a truck. Cargo area, tow rating, HP/Torque just to name a few.

Plus... and this is a real thing among us humans... there are no real bragging rights when it comes to the JT other than the convertible top and that is not something that everyone cares about. You have to remember that you're competing against other truck specs here. That means you are looking at it from a different perspective than you would look at the wrangler. Even if you're not bragging... we are looking for the most capable vehicle in that specific class or genre.

Yeah, she has a v6 with 285hp/260 foot pounds of torque... lmfao. The neighbors 2002 GMC Envoy can match those specs... along with every other SUV at the mall.

They give it a 7000lb tow rating yet one should really not go over 3500lbs and that is on a flat road in ideal conditions. A small 1500lb travel trailer that sits higher than the cab would limit this vehicle to 50-60mph with a heavy head wind... yet they give it a 7000lb tow rating... Now we see Jeep putting fake hood scoops and crap like that on them. You can get the v6, diesel, or a V8 hemi in the Grand Cherokee but not the Gladiator.

If I am in the market for a serious truck that can carry a heavy payload and can tow a decent size travel trailer "safely" and without struggling, I am not going to buy the JT. There is a market for this vehicle but it's limited and not everyone is going to steer towards a first year model that has limited specs to the trucks that have been out on the market and are tried and true.

What they should of done is offered a V8 hemi as an option and there would be far more interest... They could of made a higher performance option (special models) to compete with vehicles like the Raptor. This would also open the wrangler up to mopar branded V8 conversion kits... crate motor sales... accessories and give the whole Jeep truck persona a big boost and many more eyes on the brand.

These off-road vehicles are now competing with side-by-sides, buggies, etc and to keep up with the speeds on the trail they are going to have to innovate and make them far more capable than they are or loose more and more market share to them.

 

[JLCITY]

I bought my JL a couple days ago and was casually discussing with salesman about this. He said customers are cross shopping against RAM and he can get them in more truck for the same money. He said Gladiator was a niche buy for a Jeep lover but a pure truck buyer struggled to find value.

Of course this is one guy at a dealer and just his opinion, just passing along.

 

[aldo98229]

...

 

[aldo98229]

If I am in the market for a serious truck that can carry a heavy payload and can tow a decent size travel trailer "safely" and without struggling, I am not going to buy the JT. There is a market for this vehicle but it's limited and not everyone is going to steer towards a first year model that has limited specs to the trucks that have been out on the market and are tried and true.

^^^ This!

To make it worse, Jeep has priced JT so close to full-size pickups that comparisons are inevitable.

For a similar amount of money, a full-size pickup offers much greater towing capacity, a bigger bed, greater overall refinement, room for six adults in total comfort, power everything, full-time 4WD, the respect of a V8 motor, etc., etc. Often times, the full-size pickup is more efficient, too.

Sure, JT looks “cool” and you can take the roof off. But, realistically, how many pickup buyers actually care?

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