May Give the Gladiator Another Go

[WambliSka]

If I knew then what I know now...
I'd have bought a low mileage '22 - '23 JT non-diesel. Or I'd have bought a different brand vehicle. The '24 up JT's are a poor representation of what Jeep is capable of.

Good luck with your choice. Hope you get an excellent truck you can really enjoy.
Congratulations to your son. A Phd is a lot of hard work.

That is a HIGHLY subjective statement and assuming just a personal experience since I'm not aware of any facts that would back that up. On ALL aspects that cover my needs my '26 is a better vehicle than my '22 was. Actually my '26 JT is a better Jeep than the last 4 I've owned. Bu I will not represent this as anything but a personal opinion from a sample of 1 owner.

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[ChrisNLA]

That is a HIGHLY subjective statement and assuming just a personal experience since I'm not aware of any facts that would back that up. On ALL aspects that cover my needs my '26 is a better vehicle than my '22 was. Actually my '26 JT is a better Jeep than the last 4 I've owned. Bu I will not represent this as anything but a personal opinion from a sample of 1 owner.

I want a '26 some kinda bad for power seats and the big ole screen but I want to be done with payments even more

 

[WambliSka]

I want a '26 some kinda bad for power seats and the big ole screen but I want to be done with payments even more

:enablermodeON:

The power leather seats and big screen are NICE!!! I hated running OnX Offroad on the old setup so I usually had a iPad mini on a Bulletpoint holder just to do that. It's AWESOME on the new one so now my wife watches Hulu on the iPad mini while I drive. The front facing camera and Fox suspension were worth the price of admission by themselves.

 

[ChrisNLA]

:enablermodeON:

The power leather seats and big screen are NICE!!! I hated running OnX Offroad on the old setup so I usually had a iPad mini on a Bulletpoint holder just to do that. It's AWESOME on the new one so now my wife watches Hulu on the iPad mini while I drive. The front facing camera and Fox suspension were worth the price of admission by themselves.

For sure. The 'X' models are a little out of my price range but the regular loaded out Rubi's and Mojave's are perfect for me. About the only thing stopping me is not wanting to start over on payments, and I haven't seen on in the perfect color for sale locally. I want something eye popping. Hydro Blue, Reign, Joose, etc.

 

[WambliSka]

For sure. The 'X' models are a little out of my price range but the regular loaded out Rubi's and Mojave's are perfect for me. About the only thing stopping me is not wanting to start over on payments, and I haven't seen on in the perfect color for sale locally. I want something eye popping. Hydro Blue, Reign, Joose, etc.

I ran all my numbers and at the end of the day the difference in payments for an X over others was not that much if you negotiate a good deal with the dealer. And trade ins bring a premium because of the steady demand for JTs in good shape in the used car market. I don't even bother trying to sell on my own anymore. Even Carvana will give you good money, deal with your bank/loans/lease etc. and just hand you a check and take the car away.

 

[ChrisNLA]

I ran all my numbers and at the end of the day the difference in payments for an X over others was not that much if you negotiate a good deal with the dealer. And trade ins bring a premium because of the steady demand for JTs in good shape in the used car market. I don't even bother trying to sell on my own anymore. Even Carvana will give you good money, deal with your bank/loans/lease etc. and just hand you a check and take the car away.

I think the other problem is if I'm gonna buy another truck, I'm gonna go hunt for a Colorado ZR2 to look at.

So I'm just avoiding all sorts of things. My truck is fine

 

[sheath]

That is a HIGHLY subjective statement and assuming just a personal experience since I'm not aware of any facts that would back that up. On ALL aspects that cover my needs my '26 is a better vehicle than my '22 was. Actually my '26 JT is a better Jeep than the last 4 I've owned. Bu I will not represent this as anything but a personal opinion from a sample of 1 owner.

And that is a HIGHLY subjective opinion from someone who is justifying their purchase rather than doing actual research on issues.

 

[DickensCPA]

I believe he is referencing JK's, as the original post he has a JK Wrangler currently. Those came with Dana 30s and 3.21 gears in Sport form - and how on those stepping up to a Rubicon made significant differences in the axle for example, whereas on Gladiators I think the difference narrows slightly as they all came with Dana 44s, and if you get something like a Max Tow, you step into the wide axles, 4.10 gears and an LSD.

I specifically asked my dealer to get me a Sahara. Since it was also going to be a daily driver I wanted leather wrapped steering wheel, auto windows and heated seats/steering wheel and buying used that was the easiest way to find the doo dads I wanted in a non Rubicon.

Although I've had Jeeps since the late 90s I somehow got my wires crossed. I thought they started putting D44 in the front after 2015 in Wranglers and I thought everything but the Sport got 3.73 gears and the Sport got 3.42 gears. I was wrong and that part's on me.

My problem now is I found 2 Gladiators I wanted. Both were Willys but with the rear locker and I'm fine with that. I'll just know in the future if I add an Aussie up front I'll do it myself. Both were in Mojito which is my favorite color on earth. I figured if I was buying new I'd get exactly what I want. My appointment was 4:30 this evening and he called me this morning and said both sold last night.

A little bummed about that and they have one in silver, but I really wanted that Mojito.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

If I knew then what I know now...
I'd have bought a low mileage '22 - '23 JT non-diesel. Or I'd have bought a different brand vehicle. The '24 up JT's are a poor representation of what Jeep is capable of.

Good luck with your choice. Hope you get an excellent truck you can really enjoy.
Congratulations to your son. A Phd is a lot of hard work.

And that is a HIGHLY subjective opinion from someone who is justifying their purchase rather than doing actual research on issues.

What are the issues with 2024+ that make you prefer the 22-23 models?

 

[rbroncotx]

Same math almost pushed me to a Mojave too. Ended up keeping the JTR for the lockers, but the regear cost stings whichever way you go.

 

[DickensCPA]

If I knew then what I know now...
I'd have bought a low mileage '22 - '23 JT non-diesel. Or I'd have bought a different brand vehicle. The '24 up JT's are a poor representation of what Jeep is capable of.

Good luck with your choice. Hope you get an excellent truck you can really enjoy.
Congratulations to your son. A Phd is a lot of hard work.

He's brilliant and wants to be a college prof. He double majored in History and Geography. He and I both have photographic memories and he won the national history bee 5 times and world geography 4 times. So many colleges wanted him there we didn't pay for tuition, room/board, books or anything. I had money put away for his college and literally didn't spend a dime. I would've bought him any vehicle he wanted. He wanted my old Jeep. LOL!

We made a deal - I spent nothing on his college and basically nothing on a vehicle. Like me he's CHEAP. LOL! So when he finishes the Phd I'm making the down pmt on his first house. He's still young though, he graduated high school a month before turning 16. He had his Masters before 21.

He's such a good kid and so fun to be with. His bday is mid June which is close to Father's Day. He loves the Mets and I love the Yankees and mid June they play the subway series. We fly up father and son and catch the series each year. In 2023 my wife bought us "field" tickets. We got to tour the stadium and I got to shag fly balls during batting practice. My Dad played pro ball until Viet Nam and I played in college so that was a HUGE deal for he & I.

My wife, me and our son and daughter are trying to hit every major ballpark in the country. Only three left - San Franciso, Colorado and St Louis.

BTW - what's bad about '24 and up? I can get a fantastic deal on a '23 Rubicon, lifetime warranty and only 28k miles for a song. It's not Mojito it's black which is a CLOSE 2nd favorite color. Every Jeep I've ever owned has been black and my last two trucks.

 

[ChrisNLA]

BTW - what's bad about '24 and up? I can get a fantastic deal on a '23 Rubicon, lifetime warranty and only 28k miles for a song. It's not Mojito it's black which is a CLOSE 2nd favorite color. Every Jeep I've ever owned has been black and my last two trucks.

Only bad thing about a '24+ is that my truck isn't one of them

I want the grille, the screen, the power seats. Gimme.

 

[sheath]

He's brilliant and wants to be a college prof. He double majored in History and Geography. He and I both have photographic memories and he won the national history bee 5 times and world geography 4 times. So many colleges wanted him there we didn't pay for tuition, room/board, books or anything. I had money put away for his college and literally didn't spend a dime. I would've bought him any vehicle he wanted. He wanted my old Jeep. LOL!

We made a deal - I spent nothing on his college and basically nothing on a vehicle. Like me he's CHEAP. LOL! So when he finishes the Phd I'm making the down pmt on his first house. He's still young though, he graduated high school a month before turning 16. He had his Masters before 21.

He's such a good kid and so fun to be with. His bday is mid June which is close to Father's Day. He loves the Mets and I love the Yankees and mid June they play the subway series. We fly up father and son and catch the series each year. In 2023 my wife bought us "field" tickets. We got to tour the stadium and I got to shag fly balls during batting practice. My Dad played pro ball until Viet Nam and I played in college so that was a HUGE deal for he & I.

My wife, me and our son and daughter are trying to hit every major ballpark in the country. Only three left - San Franciso, Colorado and St Louis.

BTW - what's bad about '24 and up? I can get a fantastic deal on a '23 Rubicon, lifetime warranty and only 28k miles for a song. It's not Mojito it's black which is a CLOSE 2nd favorite color. Every Jeep I've ever owned has been black and my last two trucks.

That is awesome! Congratulations to the three of you. Big accomplishment in this day and age.

The two big things (imo) that we don't have a resolution to yet on the '24 and up are:
- The new 12.3" UConnect. Did a bunch of forum reading on this to make sure it wasn't just me. So many issues with it makes for a pretty poor overall experience.
+ '23 and older the head unit can be replaced with a reliable aftermarket solution. Kenwood, Alpine, JVC, etc..

- The way Jeep packaged the options on the '24 and up I can't find a way to get options like leather power seats w/o the big Collision Avoidance box on the windshield. It's a bugger to look around on trails and even the city. Makes an already small windshield smaller.
+ Pre '24 can be purchased with leather seats and a standard mirror. That mirror is easy to remove, and a small LED Camera mirror mounted higher on the roll bar. So you get the whole window to look through. Can also mount the front camera lower so a Bolt Hood Lock kit can be installed.

I'm slowly working through 24 enhancements on this '25.
Hoping eventually there will be a resolution to the Infotainment system, and big box on the windshield.
Had I done my research ahead of time, I'd have started with a '22-'23 Rubicon, and spent the extra money to build a really great rig.
I'm very happy with how this thing drives and tows. On and off road it has been great.

Side note: The power seats really limit what can go in the mesh door panels. I keep a pair of gloves in the door mesh. More than once I've come back to the Jeep to find the seat out of position because I didn't put the gloves in just the right spot.
Slowly but surely the Jeep is training me. lol
I've found the seat to be very comfortable. Enough so I wouldn't change for manual seats just to get more room in the door mesh.

Good luck with your choice.

 

[sheath]

What are the issues with 2024+ that make you prefer the 22-23 models?

Great question!
Post 43 explains the two biggest issues for me.
Would have saved about $5K or so buying a good used version.
$5K that would have gone into enhancements rather than fixes, which may or may not ever materialize.
Making a good vehicle better is fun. Fixing a mfgs failures isn't. Hence my preference for the '22-'23.

 

[JmattNYC]

For sure. The 'X' models are a little out of my price range but the regular loaded out Rubi's and Mojave's are perfect for me. About the only thing stopping me is not wanting to start over on payments, and I haven't seen on in the perfect color for sale locally. I want something eye popping. Hydro Blue, Reign, Joose, etc.

I recently test drove a few x models and willy/s xtreme rubicon with new euro steel hood. I was very impress with all. X models are more then i would like to pay for however i believe we can get some really great deals very soon on them. Am a Maxtow type of guy however i feel in love what that Gold Mojave X- Loaded up but funny thing it had one of those factory mistake wrangler sport steering wheel lol

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