FCA Reports Q3 2023 US Sales, Including Jeep Gladiator Sales

[Mad Mac]

The Gladiator is a lifestyle choice,
like a Harley Davidson.

It is not about need or practicality.
It's about being stylish.
But fashion passes through the economy
like a goat through a Boa Constrictor.

To paraphrase the great Yogi Berra,
"No one buys a Gladiator any more.
Too many people have them."

Then why did I buy one you ask.
I'm having a mid-life crisis.

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[Juiced]

Im hoping fca sees the consistent volume drop as a direct result of the inflated prices.

Except they are seeing stupid high profits and selling less units.

I think the corporate world calls that "winning!"

I believe Stellantis first half of 2023 is seeing profits up 30 something percent over 2022.
I bought a TRX level 1 in 2021 for 77k. Same truck (exact same except now it has digital gauge cluster) is over 104k!!!! And that is if they even make level 1s for 2024 (rumor is they will all be loaded level 2s).

Less units mean that more overhead will be charged per unit but thats a drop in the bucket when they are adding thousands to 10 thousand more onto the price tag. And my dealer GM buddy said that Stellantis is really eating into their profits per vehicle.

It all sucks until someone decides they want market share again.


Go look at what the Chevy Trax is doing for GM. Those cars are flying out of showrooms because they are 25k fully loaded appliances that regular people want. But i doubt it has the margins these manufacturers got so used to with the COVID/Chip nonsense.

 

[jav_eee]

Why bother comparing to a Corvette or BMW or Porsche?
Those are cars - totally different audience. Why would I buy a car when I want a small truck?
I don't see the constant "I could buy a xxxxxx" when it's comparing apples to rocks. It's not even a fruit to fruit comparison when it's a truck compared to a car - a 4x4 truck compared to a sports car or luxury brand.

If I wanted a full size truck, I would have bought one. Again, "could buy a Ram with a hemi" or Chevy 2500 - those are different. At least in that case it's comparing apples to grapefruit.

Compare like to like, at least. Same size to same size. "I could buy a Ridgeline" or "I could buy a Tacoma" or a Colorado is at least a fair comparison.

Some of the comparisons are more like "I could have bought a tablet for less than he paid for his laptop". Uh, yeah - different reasons for each.

Jeep has to keep expanding into other markets - that means business men and women, doctors, attorneys, heck, people like my brother who buys Jeeps just because he likes them and the style and what they represent. He'll never take his jeeps even onto gravel if I know him like I think I do. He likes the ruggedness of a Jeep, but with some of the refinements. Jeep is hitting his type perfectly, spot-on to capture buyers like him.

I think people looking to judge what's up with Jeep are the wrong people doing the judging - the wrong group. It's the few who have niche expectations and are older buyers. Ask some of the younger folks.

It's a world-wide market and the audience has broadened a lot.

But to say to me "you could have bought a Ram with a hemi for less" is way off because I didn't want another full size truck and certainly didn't care for or need a V8. Time to downsize. The other offerings just were not attractive to me - even though cheaper, they didn't appeal to me.

You’re looking at it wrong. It’s much more simpler than that. It’s “why should I buy a gladiator when I can get MORE vehicle by buying a similarly priced ram or bmw or..” whatever other rock you want to choose.

of course that “more” is subjective to each individual. Yeah I can’t take the doors or roof off of that Ram 1500 but I can COMFORTABLY carry more passengers and cargo but not everyone who owns a JL/JT removes their doors/top. So more room, more engine, more comfort might equal “more better!” to a lot of people.

 

[ZoMojave]

Why is a loaded Grand Cherokee so much cheaper than a Gladiator?

It is? Not so much...


PRICING DETAILS
Your 2024 GRAND CHEROKEE L SUMMIT RESERVE 4X4
NET PRICE ($86,860)
FINANCE ($1,592/MO)
LEASE ($982/MO)
NET PRICING
Base Price
$71,840
Added Options
$13,225
Destination Charges
$1,795

ESTIMATED NET SELLING PRICE
$86,860

















































































CALCULATE PAYMENTGET A QUOTE

 

[Deleted member 57233]

Jeep requires a roll cage - the others don't have that.

All vehicles have to pass the same rollover tests. All vehicles have a "rollcage", it's just part of the structure in a normal vehicle. It's actually cheaper to implement a tube style cage than it is to hide it inside the pillars along with the airbags and everything else.

 

[jmdwifi]

Tell that to the dozens of JT owners around here on stock springs and tires. Apparently MOST buyers think they look fine. Majority don't get lifts. Bet on it.

I'm sorry, I was joking about it effecting numbers, I stand by the goofy statement. Having to run high octane is annoying as well.

 

[jmdwifi]

A 392 gladiator would help,
stupid expensive ! Lol
but I’ll work O.T. For it .
really want one

2nd this

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

Anecdotally, people on the Ford side of overpriced bricks are starting to notice that the WIldTrak (the highest trim that's not a Raptor) is seemingly very overrepresented on used lots. The supposition being that people with WildTrak money bought into the hype surrounding the vehicle, only to realize it's a pricey car with a cheap interior and a noisy, truck-like ride.

The Bronco feels to me like a money grab. I didn’t feel that way about it at first. It just seemed like a new, and really good looking, Jeep competitor. I wasn’t interested in one but competition is good and it would drive Jeep to innovate and add capabilities. It seems to have done that with Jeep offering the Recon package. I’ve watched a ton of reviews and videos and read lot of articles on it. It’s got massive quality issues. Cheap interior, terribly designed tops, plastic oil pan, chintzy bumpers, failing tie rods, constant mechanical and electrical problems leading to recalls. The alternator is mounted to the bottom of the engine. I’ve never owned a 4x4 of any make with the alternator not mounted at or near the top of the engine. When you drive through water or mud it gets flooded with debris and kills it. The electronic transfer case selector dies and leaves you stuck in whatever range you’re in. No thought was put into these basic 4x4 requirements. This is all way beyond first model year gremlins. There’s a cynicism baked into how they made this thing and rolled it out as evidenced by the manufacturers hype and its dichotomy with the utter cheapness of the build quality and lack of engineering. It’s like a cheap simulacrum of the 1966 model and little more.

 

[ShrimpHappens]

The alternator is mounted to the bottom of the engine. I’ve never owned a 4x4 of any make with the alternator not mounted at or near the top of the engine.

The alternator is low/at the bottom on the 4.0L I6 in the XJ Cherokee.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

The Bronco feels to me like a money grab. I didn’t feel that way about it at first. It just seemed like a new, and really good looking, Jeep competitor. I wasn’t interested in one but competition is good and it would drive Jeep to innovate and add capabilities. It seems to have done that with Jeep offering the Recon package. I’ve watched a ton of reviews and videos and read lot of articles on it. It’s got massive quality issues. Cheap interior, terribly designed tops, plastic oil pan, chintzy bumpers, failing tie rods, constant mechanical and electrical problems leading to recalls. The alternator is mounted to the bottom of the engine. I’ve never owned a 4x4 of any make with the alternator not mounted at or near the top of the engine. When you drive through water or mud it gets flooded with debris and kills it. The electronic transfer case selector dies and leaves you stuck in whatever range you’re in. No thought was put into these basic 4x4 requirements. This is all way beyond first model year gremlins. There’s a cynicism baked into how they made this thing and rolled it out as evidenced by the manufacturers hype and its dichotomy with the utter cheapness of the build quality and lack of engineering. It’s like a cheap simulacrum of the 1966 model and little more.

I think my neighbor's Bronco interior is nicer than my Gladiator interior. Sasquatch package on the Bronco and High Altitude package on my Gladiator.

My girlfriend, who drives my Gladiator very often, said "let's get a Bronco!" after looking at the interior.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

The alternator is low/at the bottom on the 4.0L I6 in the XJ Cherokee.

It’s also a unit body. I would argue it was also a cynical money grab. The first of the Jeeplets. Lots of XJ owners, to their credit, turn them into off road beasts but they weren’t designed for that. The fact that they mount the alternator low is more good old 1980s Chrysler bs.

 

[redriderjf87]

Daily reminder that it was a mistake for FCA not to design the JT for a 5.7 v8 from the start.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

I think my neighbor's Bronco interior is nicer than my Gladiator interior. Sasquatch package on the Bronco and High Altitude package on my Gladiator.

My girlfriend, who drives my Gladiator very often, said "let's get a Bronco!" after looking at the interior.

The sea of cheap plastic? The wobbly grab handles? The lack of mid vehicle speakers? The travesty that is the tops? I have the exact opposite impression, once I look past the big screen and attractive industrial design. The Jeep is maybe a bit boring but it’s tidy, functional and the materials are better. The whole Bronco seems like a meeting of very talented industrial designers and very untalented engineers, or more likely engineers that were constrained by a target margin.

 

[PDXsarge]

“dude you could have bought a C8 Corvette.”


Well said!

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

I will say, to its credit, and despite the insane prices, Jeep still seems dedicated to checking basic off road vehicle requirements, like a manual transfer case selector, properly mounted alternator, solid axles and resisting the urge to make the trucks wider, slab sided, high waisted and bulgy/blocky, even if it chases away some potential buyers who apparently want that now. I don’t know when this trend of making trucks look like giant monoliths started. The Bronco Raptor looks like a late stage steroid addict. Toyota keeps pushing the grills farther out and making everything boxier. The first thing you hit on a 4Runner are its headlights. The Colorado’s nose is totally squared off like modern full size trucks. How do you see over these hoods? Jeeps look down right subdued in comparison. They still actually fit down trails (not as well as a TJ, but hey). You can still see over the hood or have an idea of where the front wheels are. You can open the hood and reach the engine without a stool. The doors aren’t absurdly massive. You can reach over the bed rails. What a concept. Jeep seems to be the only manufacturer where form still follows function. For an off road vehicle that’s what you want.

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