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So disappointed in this Diesel platform; wish there was a return policy.

MOPAR Boy

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Read https://jalopnik.com/the-engineering-behind-the-jeep-gladiators-tow-rating-1833657453 and you will see Jeep imposed limitations to what the cooling engineers could do. There are plenty of ways Jeep could have cooled things down, starting with redesigning/upgrading radiators, transmission and inter-coolers. But, with the self-imposed restrictions placed on the engineers, along with reusing cooling components from the JL, there was not much they could do.

I think it's funny they talk so much about all the effort that went into maximizing cooling utilizing such a small part of the grill, and yet, they placed the horns and front trail cam so it blocks the majority of airflow to the transmission cooler (if you look inside the grill, at the very top, you will see the bottom few inches of the transmission cooler). It's like the engineers worked in silos.

I'm not as mad as I was a few days ago, so I plan on doing everything I can to improve the cooling as I really, really want to keep this truck. Maybe jeep will come out with improvements for later model gladiators we can have installed.
I've only had it happen to me on really hot days (95+ degrees), when towing ~4500 lbs, and going up and down hills and/or stop and go traffic.

But when it does derate, and you are going up a big hill on I-10 (80 MPH speed limit), and the best you can do is 45mph with your hazard lights on hoping nobody plows into your rear, it kinda sucks.
Read https://jalopnik.com/the-engineering-behind-the-jeep-gladiators-tow-rating-1833657453 and you will see Jeep imposed limitations to what the cooling engineers could do. There are plenty of ways Jeep could have cooled things down, starting with redesigning/upgrading radiators, transmission and inter-coolers. But, with the self-imposed restrictions placed on the engineers, along with reusing cooling components from the JL, there was not much they could do.

I think it's funny they talk so much about all the effort that went into maximizing cooling utilizing such a small part of the grill, and yet, they placed the horns and front trail cam so it blocks the majority of airflow to the transmission cooler (if you look inside the grill, at the very top, you will see the bottom few inches of the transmission cooler). It's like the engineers worked in silos.

I'm not as mad as I was a few days ago, so I plan on doing everything I can to improve the cooling as I really, really want to keep this truck. Maybe jeep will come out with improvements for later model gladiators we can have installed.
OP, if you do wind up ultimately deciding to throw-in the towel on your JT diesel due to its towing limitations, my advice (FWIW) is don’t do something incremental. Go straight to the king of towing, an F450. But, I freely admit that I’m very biased, as I held-off like just before ordering a diesel Gladiator, and thought, “Screw it, I’m going for the big F450.” Definitely impossible to park in underground lots, and the like, but unmatched in terms of no worries about towing light loads like you’re talking about, and experiencing over heating issues, etc. I made my mind up when I test drove a diesel Gladiator. It just felt so darn gutless going up a long and very steep hill. Horrible turbo lag, too, but more that it just felt so weak. Not so test driving the same exact route an hour later with a 2021 F450!
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rpres62

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Doesn't the gas engine have a higher tow rating? Sounds like you should have gotten a max tow or a gas Rubicon. You can probably still trade it in for one, and make money, the way trade-ins are right now!
The diesel will tow circles aroubd the minivan motor
 

jsalbre

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The diesel will tow circles aroubd the minivan motor
If you’re talking the 3.6, it’s no minivan motor. It may have ended up in some vans after it was in Jeeps, but it’s a far cry from the old 3.8 in early JKs that everyone refers to as a “minivan motor”.

Also, you’re just plain wrong. The gas JT has a higher tow rating than the diesel, and will happily run all day long with the throttle to the floor. The diesel just can’t in this platform unless you redesign the entire front end and cooling system.
 

NachoRuby

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The diesel will tow circles aroubd the minivan motor
I'm not touting either, and my truck is manual so only tows 4500 lbs. I hope I wasn't coming off as a fanboy of either. My intention was just simply to state that the gasser has a higher tow rating, and less cooling issues, since it's not turbocharged, if that's what the op is looking for. Trade in values are insane right now, so it could be doable and maybe profitable if done soon, and the op actually wanted to do that. And the "minivan engine" is mostly used in Rams, Challengers, and Wranglers anyway. How many Pacificas are sold vs those I just listed?
 

john#21

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The fact is if Jeep could make the diesel tow more in the JT they damn sure would… It is rated lower for a reason- there is simply no place ***to compromise for adequate cooling at the cost of the jeep image aka aesthetic, aerodynamics, MPG fleet standards, standardized parts, for a engine design*** that by nature runs hot.

Agree fully, the JT is a wrangler with a stretched frame, classic jeep recipe first, truck second.

New buyers are fooling themselves if they think otherwise.

Like I said you buy a jeep to play in the dirt, you buy a truck to pull things, you buy a JT to play in the dirt and carry a little extra crap a JK can't.

If Jeep really wanted to make a truck they wouldn't have used the wrangler as basis of design, to many limiting factors.

I don't care how much you spend on a JT, price doesn't qualify it to be a truck. The inflated cost is paying for 4x4 system, big axles, stronger parts for off-road use, removable door ability, removable roof ability, big hard bumpers, folding windshield, brand name.

When you start throwing "I paid blah blah blah and it's not towing my trailer", think of it this way. Spending the same money on a Lotus sports car, would you expect that to tow a 5k trailer up a hill? That money is going to other things it was design primarily for.

^^ This^^.


This is just my speculation after considering this scenario:

To me the diesel option isn’t really focused for towing, it is akin to a “Rubicon”. It is for the enthusiast that wants to idle over obstacles.

The Max tow is for your towing prowess.

If you really need to tow… you buy a full-size if the max tow isn’t enough.

And before you mention gas mileage, you don’t buy trucks or jeep’s for gas mileage, it’s just a perk.
 

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NachoRuby

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^^ This^^.


This is just my speculation after considering this scenario:

To me the diesel option isn’t really focused for towing, it is akin to a “Rubicon”. It is for the enthusiast that wants to idle over obstacles.
One thing to note, as someone without a dog in this fight (again, because mine is a low tow rating manual), the gas automatic Rubicons have the second highest tow ratings of all Gladiators, next to the Sport ( or Sport S) Max Tow, at 7000 lbs vs 7650. So gas auto Rubicons make pretty decent tow vehicles as well.
 
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CreepyJeepy

CreepyJeepy

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Hey all what is the tow rating for a 2021 Jeep gladiator rubicon 3.0 eco diesel, I’m seeing conflicting reports. Is it 6000? Or 3500?
 

yolo

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OP, if you do wind up ultimately deciding to throw-in the towel on your JT diesel due to its towing limitations, my advice (FWIW) is don’t do something incremental. Go straight to the king of towing, an F450. But, I freely admit that I’m very biased, as I held-off like just before ordering a diesel Gladiator, and thought, “Screw it, I’m going for the big F450.” Definitely impossible to park in underground lots, and the like, but unmatched in terms of no worries about towing light loads like you’re talking about, and experiencing over heating issues, etc. I made my mind up when I test drove a diesel Gladiator. It just felt so darn gutless going up a long and very steep hill. Horrible turbo lag, too, but more that it just felt so weak. Not so test driving the same exact route an hour later with a 2021 F450!
Not the op, but for me, I did not buy the jeep just for towing. Heck, even a Ford F150 would be better at that. I bought it because it can tow a decent amount of weight and go off-roading. And not just gravel roads off-roading.. I mean rated trails rock crawling and all.

And before we bought the gladiator, my wife and I were looking to buy a class b or c van that could tow my FJ. Almost bought one too, but covid hit and drove the prices through the roof. So instead of spending 90k on a new van and modifying the FJ to flat tow, we decided to sell the FJ, buy the Gladiator, and buy a more "off-road" focused travel trailer instead.

Tow the trailer to BLM land, unhook, and hit the trails! Best of both worlds right?

Well, derating/heat issues aside, it still is the closest to "the best of both worlds", at least for what I intend to do with it. The truck is awesome. Period. Just wish Jeep would have sorted through the cooling issues before releasing the diesel to the public. You cannot tell me they did not discover these issues when testing. They likely decided that it would only impact a very small percentage of their customers and was not worth the money it would take to reengineer and make right.

Funny part is, if they would have put an asterisk next to the tow rating warning everyone about the overheating issues when towing in summer.. I still would have bought it! What pisses me (and probably others) off is finding out the hard way that your super expensive truck can't take the heat.
 

yolo

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Hey all what is the tow rating for a 2021 Jeep gladiator rubicon 3.0 eco diesel, I’m seeing conflicting reports. Is it 6000? Or 3500?
Not sure about other trims, but for the Rubicon diesel it's 6500 lbs. I believe the Mojave diesel is the same.
 

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Not sure about other trims, but for the Rubicon diesel it's 6500 lbs. I believe the Mojave diesel is the same.
So just 500 over Overland?
 

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ThatStinging_Jeep

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SO reguards to the cooling ive found a radiator from this brand "Cold Case" and it says its for the jl's but i dont think it would matter as much since ive seen on the mopar parts store that the oem radiator is shared on the 4 cyl,6cy and the 3.0 turbo diesel motors,im thinking about pulling the trigger on it but my new diesel JTR isnt here in about 2 months or so but yeah and plus i wanna buy other mods :LOL:
 

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My experience with diesel engines is more related to tractors, so forgive me if some of my questions appear stupid or novice - they may well be.
So these are turbo engines - and that generates heat, am I correct?
Am I also correct in that the tow ratings of these are based on several tests - including maintaining a certain speed up a certain grade with a certain load?
What is that speed in the test? 40? 50? 60? More?
Am correct so far or even close?
So if towing a load that is 80% of rating or more up a sustained grade - if you exceed their speed used in rating the truck you are running the engine full load, turbo in all the time and it's going to run hot?
If my truck is rated to tow 6,000 pounds and part of the test is a 5% grade at 50 mph and I try to maintain a speed of 65 up a similar grade - am I not exceeding their testing used to achieve the rating?
Am I so far off based even someone with an IQ of 180 can't figure out my questions or thinking?
How many are laughing so far?
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