New Guy With Gladiator Questions

[Rascal01]

First post. Early Boomer, bona fide geezer status, with a 2023 Gladiator Freedom and a few questions for you enthusiasts. Have had 4WDs before but the Gladiator is a first.

The truck came with 35X11.5R17 AT tires and a 2 or 2.5” lift kit the dealer installed. The original tires are gone and the original wheels were used for the new tires. Axle ratio is 4.10, trans 8 speed auto. Mileage on first tank of gas was 15.4.

So:

Do I need a wheel alignment?

And is my speedometer reading going to be off & by how much?

Last but not least, do the headlights need to be reaimed/adjusted?

I bought it on a whim when my Ram 3500 Cummins 4WD was down for a water pump. I’d rather it was stock but so far I’m liking it. Hope the chicks dig it.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank you.

Sponsored

 

[vicsvx]

1.Won't hurt to get alignment checked

2. Get a tazor (or similar) to calibrate your speedo... Too many factors to tell you exactly how much it's off (I do think there's a speedo calculator online you can use tho

3. Yes you should aim your headlights... YouTube has many videos on how to

 

[Badunit]

Your dealer should have done the speedo adjustment and an alignment when they did the lift. Get the alignment checked if you are worried about it.

You can check the speedometer to see if it is accurate. What I do is get on an interstate and compare the mile markers to how far my trip meter says I've gone. If it is off, the speedometer is off by the same percentage. The more miles you drive the more accurate your calculations will be. If it is off by a lot, I'd get the dealer to reprogram it for free, assuming you put on the same size tires. They shouldn't be selling a vehicle with an innacurate speedometer. It is probably not legal for them to do so and it would be a warranty "repair" in my opinion. Or get a Tazer and an extension cable for it and do it yourself.

Unless the rake with the lift is different from stock, the headlights are probably fine. If you are getting flashed a lot, probably not fine. As far as I know we in the US only have vertical adjustment on the headlights. The adjustment for the halogens is easy to find and access under the hood. The LED lights appear to be roughly the same way. My non-scientific and non-standard way of adjusting my lights is to park somewhere long and flat at night. Measure from the ground to the center of the headlight. Walk as far away as you can, at least 50 ft, farther is better. Kneel down to where you start getting blinded (i.e., where the light first starts to get really bright). It should be 2" down for every 25 feet away. Adjust both headlights so you get blinded at the same point. If it is already close to that, just leave them alone. I usually aim them a little high but not so much I get flashed. Other people use the procedure from the service manual or take it to a shop.

 

[Viper501]

1. Do I need a wheel alignment?

2. And is my speedometer reading going to be off & by how much?

3. Last but not least, do the headlights need to be reaimed/adjusted?

1. - As said already, it won’t hurt and you’ll have a baseline to ensure it is driving as well as it can. The type of lift, including the manufacturer, may determine what needs to be adjusted / checked. You said the dealer installed it but you don’t say whether it was installed by a Jeep dealer or another. It also isn’t clear when it, and the tires, were installed.

2. - Yes. The speedometer will be off. There are calculators out there you can get a good idea. When I went from 33s to 315’s (sort of 35s) I remember seeing about a 3-5 mph variance lower reading than what I was actually going. You can easily reset this calculation in the computer using a few different devices including a Tazer, JScan, or the AEV module. A Jeep dealer *can* do it but I’d buy the JScan or Tazer since you’re going to be ahead with additional capabilities for likely the same, or possibly less, money.

3. - As said already, YouTube should have a few options for you to do it yourself. Otherwise, a Jeep dealer can do it easily.

 

[nethellum777]

As far as your speedo being off. Just use google maps and compare how fast you are going to the google app. The app shows your speed now.

 

[Viper501]

Waze will show you actual speed though I learned that if you plug it into CarPlay it will sometimes port over the speed from the truck‘s input rather than its independent GPS. I can’t remember the sequence that I found that would happen but I realized something was amiss during a road trip when I was reading a certain speed and passing others like they were sitting still.

 

[Bbannongmu]

1.Won't hurt to get alignment checked

2. Get a tazor (or similar) to calibrate your speedo... Too many factors to tell you exactly how much it's off (I do think there's a speedo calculator online you can use tho

3. Yes you should aim your headlights... YouTube has many videos on how to

First post. Early Boomer, bona fide geezer status, with a 2023 Gladiator Freedom and a few questions for you enthusiasts. Have had 4WDs before but the Gladiator is a first.

The truck came with 35X11.5R17 AT tires and a 2 or 2.5” lift kit the dealer installed. The original tires are gone and the original wheels were used for the new tires. Axle ratio is 4.10, trans 8 speed auto. Mileage on first tank of gas was 15.4.

So:

Do I need a wheel alignment?

And is my speedometer reading going to be off & by how much?

Last but not least, do the headlights need to be reaimed/adjusted?

I bought it on a whim when my Ram 3500 Cummins 4WD was down for a water pump. I’d rather it was stock but so far I’m liking it. Hope the chicks dig it.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank you.

Congrats and welcome to the obsession !!!! OIIIIIIIO
Alignment is a good idea

Tazer can fix the speedo

Headlight alignment here. Pretty easy.

 

[Jteakus]

Speed Box app for your phone, I use mine all the time,
Dealer should be able to answer most, if not all, of the questions you have,
Congrats on your new truck, you will love it,

 

[MudderNuker]

Not mentioned above or perhaps I missed it, but if they lifted the JT 2" or more, your front axle shifted to one side (need adjustable track bar to correct). Your caster may be out of spec if they didn't use longer lower control arms. You should be able to tell if the vehicle steering feels darty or road imperfections make it hard to drive straight. Longer LCAs or geo brackets will bring caster to spec. And of course, everything else stated by others.

 

[Sandman 4x4]

First post. Early Boomer, bona fide geezer status, with a 2023 Gladiator Freedom and a few questions for you enthusiasts. Have had 4WDs before but the Gladiator is a first.

The truck came with 35X11.5R17 AT tires and a 2 or 2.5” lift kit the dealer installed. The original tires are gone and the original wheels were used for the new tires. Axle ratio is 4.10, trans 8 speed auto. Mileage on first tank of gas was 15.4.

So:

Do I need a wheel alignment?

And is my speedometer reading going to be off & by how much?

Last but not least, do the headlights need to be reaimed/adjusted?

I bought it on a whim when my Ram 3500 Cummins 4WD was down for a water pump. I’d rather it was stock but so far I’m liking it. Hope the chicks dig it.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank you.

First it would be nice to know how many miles it took to wear out the tires. Also look up the code on the tire for tread wear, some are softer that others for better grip at the expense of a shorter tread life. Also the dealer is responsible for the vehicle to operate in a legal fashion as from the factory. With 35” heavy tires and wheels the mileage will suffer. My stock Gladiator Sport has a lifetime average mileage of 18. But on trips I get as high as 21-22, at 65 mph. That’s with stock 245/75-17 Bridgestone Dueler HT tires at 35 psi.

 

[Rascal01]

First post. Early Boomer, bona fide geezer status, with a 2023 Gladiator Freedom and a few questions for you enthusiasts. Have had 4WDs before but the Gladiator is a first.

The truck came with 35X11.5R17 AT tires and a 2 or 2.5” lift kit the dealer installed. The original tires are gone and the original wheels were used for the new tires. Axle ratio is 4.10, trans 8 speed auto. Mileage on first tank of gas was 15.4.

So:

Do I need a wheel alignment?

And is my speedometer reading going to be off & by how much?

Last but not least, do the headlights need to be reaimed/adjusted?

I bought it on a whim when my Ram 3500 Cummins 4WD was down for a water pump. I’d rather it was stock but so far I’m liking it. Hope the chicks dig it.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank you.

Thanks, guys. I’m kind of blown away with the speedy and great responses. I do indeed appreciate them.

More info:

The truck is used with 19K miles. It appears to be in excellent condition and was owned by a 56 year old man. I doubt it was ever used off road, though back roads or trails are a possibility.

The truck came from a Honda truck center that seemed to specialize in Jeeps. The stock tires were swapped out by the dealer for new 35s to get curb appeal and a quick sale. The lift kit was installed at that time. There is very little, if any, rake remaining. The kit did what it was intended to do.

The steering does seem sensitive. A little movement of the steering wheel really shows within the travel lane.

No plans to modify the truck or go 4 wheeling. This is just reliable standby transportation with a 5 ft. bed.

 

[Viper501]

May be worthwhile to take a photo of the lift so we can see what it actually looks like. I’m guessing a spacer since it was done by a Honda dealer.

 

[ross neill]

1.Won't hurt to get alignment checked

2. Get a tazor (or similar) to calibrate your speedo... Too many factors to tell you exactly how much it's off (I do think there's a speedo calculator online you can use tho

3. Yes you should aim your headlights... YouTube has many videos on how to

Install Waze on your phone to check speed against speedo plug phone cord to Jeep it should show on car play

 

[Gvsukids]

This is just reliable standby transportation with a 5 ft. bed.

Not everyone has had that luck.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

Install Waze on your phone to check speed against speedo plug phone cord to Jeep it should show on car play

If you have an iPhone, it needs to be unplugged. And also not connected to Bluetooth.

If an iPhone is plugged in or connected to Bluetooth, it will show whatever the Jeep speedo is showing.

Sponsored