Report: 2024 Gladiator Reveal @ NAIAS in Sept | Production Begins November | Gladiator 4xe PHEV Replacing Diesel

[The Duck of Earl]

I really have no idea how anyone can arrive at that conclusion when the 4xe powertrain is years old at this point, and has MUCH more horesepower, torque, and efficiency than anything the Gladiator currently has. If people want to stick with the older ICE's, enjoy them For me personally, I'll go with the stronger / faster / more efficient offering as soon as it's available.

It is clear you are a fan boy for the 4xE, but a Wrangler is a different vehicle than a Gladiator. Truck people expect trucks to be able to do truck things (i.e. towing and hauling). You want a 'truck' that will impress your neighbors going from stoplight to stoplight, get a Rivian. The 4xE in the Gladiator may be fine for people who want a truck for the looks, but are really using it like a CUV. The details will matter when looking beyond the HP/TQ stats in ideal scenarios and what the true capability translates to in the real world. The 2.0t was not rolled out to the Gladiator b/c it could not handle the demands of towing. The 4xE may do fine towing a small trailer / boat just across town, but I am skeptical that it would be worth a crap towing even 5k pounds (which is now the current max in the Wrangler with the full float axel - and seriously doubt the Gladiator would retain the 7,650 max capacity of the auto v6) or even just hauling 1,200 lbs in the bed/cab over a few hundred or more miles - in which case you would now also be carrying the extra weight of depleted batteries and a very taxed turbo 4.

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[The Duck of Earl]

Like the Gladiator.

I can't argue the statement. But pairing a niche vehicle like the Gladiator with a niche powertrain like the 4xE and I'm not certain it would be able to retain the Jack of all trades moniker.

 

[Thumbszilla]

It is clear you are a fan boy for the 4xE, but a Wrangler is a different vehicle than a Gladiator. Truck people expect trucks to be able to do truck things (i.e. towing and hauling). You want a 'truck' that will impress your neighbors going from stoplight to stoplight, get a Rivian. The 4xE in the Gladiator may be fine for people who want a truck for the looks, but are really using it like a CUV. The details will matter when looking beyond the HP/TQ stats in ideal scenarios and what the true capability translates to in the real world. The 2.0t was not rolled out to the Gladiator b/c it could not handle the demands of towing. The 4xE may do fine towing a small trailer / boat just across town, but I am skeptical that it would be worth a crap towing even 5k pounds (which is now the current max in the Wrangler with the full float axel - and seriously doubt the Gladiator would retain the 7,650 max capacity of the auto v6) or even just hauling 1,200 lbs in the bed/cab over a few hundred or more miles - in which case you would now also be carrying the extra weight of depleted batteries and a very taxed turbo 4.

Thank you for the clarification... now I see where you're confused. If I understand you correctly your assumption is that the 4xe battery completely dies at some point making the 4xe powertrain much less powerful. That's incorrect. When the 4xe battery hits "0%" it's not really 0%. It means there is no longer any "electric only" range. There's still battery charge for default mode hybrid operation, which means the 2.0L is never truly operating "on its own"... it still has enough charge to always be able to support the 2.0L engine when needed (just like a regular non-plug in hybrid vehicle) to achieve the combined 375 horsepower / 470 pound feet of torque. How do I know this? I drive a Wrangler 4xe everyday. Side note: I wouldn't want an all electric vehicle like a Rivian... I like to be able to gas up my Jeep when I need more instant energy. I'd have range anxiety with an all electric vehicle... the charging infrastructure isn't there yet.

 

[Deleted member 57233]

Truck people expect trucks to be able to do truck things (i.e. towing and hauling). You want a 'truck' that will impress your neighbors going from stoplight to stoplight, get a Rivian. The 4xE in the Gladiator may be fine for people who want a truck for the looks, but are really using it like a CUV.

Truck people that do truck things, like towing and hauling, buy full size trucks that can actually tow and haul stuff. Not Gladiators and Tacomas. I also don't really understand the comments about buying a vehicle for the looks since the Jeep crowd is the reason for the term "Mall Crawler" lol

 

[bleda2002]

... The 2.0t was not rolled out to the Gladiator b/c it could not handle the demands of towing...

The 2.0 ran hot towing in the gladiator due to grille design limiting cooling (hence the 2024 refresh being a substantial increase in open area). This is also why the diesel is derated to 6k towing despite being more stout. No one actually knows what the 2.0 could tow in the gladiator, just that heat limits allowed the 3.6 in the max tow to tow more with it.

For 2024 the 4xe wrangler is up to 5k towing, so saying it can't do "truck stuff" is pure speculation.

 

[staying_tuned]

For 2024 the 4xe wrangler is up to 5k towing, so saying it can't do "truck stuff" is pure speculation

Only in 2023.

 

[The Duck of Earl]

Thank you for the clarification... now I see where you're confused. If I understand you correctly your assumption is that the 4xe battery completely dies at some point making the 4xe powertrain much less powerful. That's incorrect. When the 4xe battery hits "0%" it's not really 0%. It means there is no longer any "electric only" range. There's still battery charge for default mode hybrid operation, which means the 2.0L is never truly operating "on its own"... it still has enough charge to always be able to support the 2.0L engine when needed (just like a regular non-plug in hybrid vehicle) to achieve the combined 375 horsepower / 470 pound feet of torque. How do I know this? I drive a Wrangler 4xe everyday. Side note: I wouldn't want an all electric vehicle like a Rivian... I like to be able to gas up my Jeep when I need more instant energy. I'd have range anxiety with an all electric vehicle... the charging infrastructure isn't there yet.

I am aware of how hybrids work. They perform best unloaded in urban environments. When loaded up / towing over long continual distances they will not provide a meaningful benefit and you will basically be operating with just the 2.0t and also hauling around the extra weight from the battery. They are not magical and cannot perpetually spit out energy it cannot regen.

 

[Thumbszilla]

I am aware of how hybrids work. They perform best unloaded in urban environments. When loaded up / towing over long continual distances they will not provide a meaningful benefit and you will basically be operating with just the 2.0t and also hauling around the extra weight from the battery. They are not magical and cannot perpetually spit out energy it cannot regen.

But... it does regen that energy... that's how hybrids work. Also... the new Toyota Tacoma is coming with a hybrid powertrain, so I'm assuming they've got a reliable system worked out as well.

 

[Oilburner]

As I recall, the problem w/ the 4xe JT wasn’t getting enough air into the engine bay, it was getting the hot air out.
With the whole carb fiasco, Jeep will likely just detune it & reduce tow capacity so they will at least have something carb-compliant to sell.

 

[jpjpjp]

But... it does regen that energy... that's how hybrids work. Also... the new Toyota Tacoma is coming with a hybrid powertrain, so I'm assuming they've got a reliable system worked out as well.

We have a toyota rav4 prime, which is great when it is charged, but it is definitely different when the charge is gone. Having driven it on a six hour trip, it doesn't have an endless pot of gold hybrid energy source. Maybe there is some wizardry that allows for some reserve power, but that reserve is calculated in offsetting power at other times. Saying a hybrid power source is endless is akin to saying a gas engine has an endless power supply, too. If we were towing a 2500 pound trailer during that 6 hour trip, there is no way the toyota rav4 prime would have performed at hour five, the same way it would have performed in the first thirty minutes.

I don't need to tow using the gladiator for long distances. More like 50 miles tops, so it wouldn't affect my use. But if I was towing a boat, utility trailer, etc. for long distances, I would opt for a standard ICE engine instead. I have 'free' electricity so it is really difficult to pass up the 4xe, but the premium and complexity probably won't make sense. Particularly with the new tax incentives out of reach unless we leased it. A recon type gladiator would be more efficient for my usage, but I doubt that will be available. A 6 cylinder PHEV would be preferred, but that probably won't happen either. Town dump errands, small trailer towing, building/garden supplies, beach drives, forest roads, and light duty offroading are my use cases. Maybe towing a small sailboat in the future. Sport Max Tow is probably what I am targeting, but I presume that 4xe and the sport max tow aren't compatible at all. I'm so interested in the 2024 gladiator release, I might check out the detroit auto show in person.

 

[UM_Ftown]

Some people should really read up on the 4xe GC and Wrangler before they come in here all silly sounding.

The reason I’m on this forum is the wait for an eventual 4xe JT. The diesel was a close second but the whole stop sale thing is kind of a bummer. I could always pick up a used one as their values don’t seem to be holding but I think a 4xe would be more fun and benefits would be greater than the other engine choices.

 

[Tom C]

Some people should really read up on the 4xe GC and Wrangler before they come in here all silly sounding.

The reason I’m on this forum is the wait for an eventual 4xe JT. The diesel was a close second but the whole stop sale thing is kind of a bummer. I could always pick up a used one as their values don’t seem to be holding but I think a 4xe would be more fun and benefits would be greater than the other engine choices.

What we read online is where our thinking comes into play. Here's a Motor Trend article on the Ford Lightning towing.

https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/ford-f150-lightning-electric-truck-towing-test/

"We had been warned to expect the range to be cut in half when towing, but the effect of towing these travel trailers proved even more significant. With the smallest and lightest trailer, we measured a range of just 115 miles. That figure fell to 100 miles with the middleweight camper and sank to a mere 90 miles with the 7,218-pound Grand Design trailer."

Many would like to tow a camper/boat/etc. I personally will be towing classic cars. Not every day, but enough where the 4xe doesn't make sense.

 

[ian.miller]

Does anyone have info on if the 2024 will feature the 6 piece hardtop? I have just seen the patent diagrams floating around but nothing else

 

[ShrimpHappens]

With the whole carb fiasco, Jeep will likely just detune it & reduce tow capacity so they will at least have something carb-compliant to sell.

You're the first person I've seen suggest this, and I bet you're exactly right. Crap. That'll be lame.

 

[bleda2002]

What we read online is where our thinking comes into play. Here's a Motor Trend article on the Ford Lightning towing.

https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/ford-f150-lightning-electric-truck-towing-test/

"We had been warned to expect the range to be cut in half when towing, but the effect of towing these travel trailers proved even more significant. With the smallest and lightest trailer, we measured a range of just 115 miles. That figure fell to 100 miles with the middleweight camper and sank to a mere 90 miles with the 7,218-pound Grand Design trailer."

Many would like to tow a camper/boat/etc. I personally will be towing classic cars. Not every day, but enough where the 4xe doesn't make sense.

Why doesnt the 4xe make sense? Its not a pure electric its a gas car with an electric power adder. The gas engine is just as strong as the 3.6 (just pumps out more heat) and the 4xe keeps its batteries at 15% charge at all times for on demand acceleration/power so that it will tow the same at hour 1 as hour 5 as hour 15. The only place where a decrease in power would be possible would be on very long mountain climbs where the engine is screaming at max power already and you continue that until the juice runs out (much like a derate on the diesel when the temps tap out). Other than that, the batteries are charging off the engine or the brakes for the next time you need the extra power.

The article you linked is for an ALL electric truck. It has absolutely 0 bearing on how a hybrid works. Even comparing different hybrids dont work since the way they're tuned is different. Thats why comparing it to a wrangler 4xe (which people on the jl forum are routinely towing 3500+ pounds with) or a 4xe GC (6K pounds. towing) is the only valid comparison.

Here is an article on the GC towing:
https://www.cars.com/articles/jeep-grand-cherokee-4xe-how-well-can-this-plug-in-hybrid-tow-456193/

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