How successful would my Gladiator Sport be on the Rubicon Trail?

[bd100]

As I mentioned, the Metalcloak plate did it's job, no problems with the end links mounting location on the frame. The end links stud bent as predicted, but, also the sway bar tabs were bent out.

Nice to see the brackets doing their job. Was the front sway bar disconnected?

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[Bonanza]

I just did it last weekend. Sport Max tow, no lockers no rear LSD and never spun a tire for more than a few seconds. 5.13 gearing on 37's with a 5" lift. Challenging trail, but I never needed pushed, pulled or winched. I did skip little sluice. I ran it in the traditional direction from the Loon Lake start to the Cadillac hill finish. We stayed 1 night at Buck Island Lake.

I thought all MTs come with LSD?

 

[hjdca]

Good trail reports. I’m doing it in august. I’ll be sure to report back with results. I have skids on both diffs, all LCA’s, rear shocks, hitch, and a full belly pan taking care of engine, trans, t-case, and fuel tank. I’m on 37’s with a 3” lift in front, 4” in rear, 5.13’s, lockers, RCV’s in front, and winch. The steel drive shaft goes in probably next week. And I’m adding armor to the slider steps. I expect cosmetic scratches, but am not expecting major damage. I don’t tend to send it though. I pick my lines carefully when possible. I’m certainly not in a tiny 2 door, so it will take some concentration. I’ll provide an honest recap when it’s over in a couple of months.

You are all set and your approach is correct. It's a "one of a kind" trail, and you will love it. From the Rubicon Sign to Buck island took us longer than we thought, over 6 hours. Buck Island to Rubicon Springs is about 4 hours, and Rubicon Springs to Tahoe is about 3 hours. If you run it with similar equipped vehicles, you can probably make Rubicon springs in one day, but, if you are winching less equipped vehicles like we were, you will run out of daylight. I liked staying two nights on the trail. It gave us more time to really enjoy the scenery. 4wheeling requires constant concentration, so, it is nice to let loose at night.
Regarding my Damage, I only scraped all my armor, and bent my rear end links. My aluminum tie rod lock nut came loose - I hit it pretty good.
Regarding other Gladiators in our group - one guy lost a rear tail light, we had one leaking bead lock rim that got bent, and one or two bent OEM tie rods.
Overall, great trip, no real damage, just fun.

 

[JeepGladBears22]

We just did the Rubicon trail last weekend during Father's day. It is by far the hardest trail I have done, and I have done all three "Big Bear Badge of honor trails". I ran the whole trail in first gear, low lock, and I have 5.13s and a 4:1 transfer case, my JTR is also a stick shift. You can walk the trail faster than driving it. With a Gladiator, you need 3.5" lift, 37 inch tires, and lots of armor --- plus lockers are a huge help. The boulders are so big, that you have to climb them with one side of the truck to get you high enough to keep from dragging underneath. One guy in our group had a Gladiator Sport with a 2.5 inch lift and 35 inch tries and we must have winched him 20 times. I personally turtled twice when I slipped off rocks and was not using a spotter. A spotter helps a lot, and a front camera is almost a game changer. The length of the gladiator is also challenging on obstacles like Cadillac hill. You have to use your sliders to swing the back end of the Gladiator around. I bought new 37s for the trip and ran them at 12-13 psi. I am super glad I bought new tires. You can also look at my build link in my signature. I went underneath the truck yesterday to paint my skids, and I can tell you that everyone got used -- all the control arm skids, the engine, tranny skids, gas tank skids, sway bar disconnect skid, fad skid, etc... Tie rods also take a beating. We had one bend in our group. My aluminum tie rod and drag link was much appreciated. Rims also take many scrapes. My wheels are flat black Methods, so, I just touch them up with satin black paint.

We stayed in Loon Lake thursday night. Drove to Buck Island and camped the one night. Drove to Rubicon Springs and camped one night, then drove out Sunday morning. I think that is a great way to run the Rubicon.

It is a bucket list trip for me, and it did not dissapoint. It is a wonderment and so unique, you have to do it. It was a great 3 days that required concentration while driving and it really honed my rock crawling skills. You will get lots of practice. It is challenging and fun, but, you should have the equipment and had good experience rock crawling before attempting it. Here are some pics from last weekend.

Note: The key to making it is to avoid breakage. So, do not "send it". If you get stuck, back up and try crawling a different line - even if you have to get winched backwards. Keep doing that until you get through. The Gladiator will not break in first gear crawling. "Sending it" with the wheels turned while stuck in rocks is how you break it.

Here is a link to "part 1" of the videos my girlfriend started making from the trip. This is all before we got to Buck Island.



Buck Island

Top of Cadillac Hill

Awesome video.

 

[WILDHOBO]

You are all set and your approach is correct. It's a "one of a kind" trail, and you will love it. From the Rubicon Sign to Buck island took us longer than we thought, over 6 hours. Buck Island to Rubicon Springs is about 4 hours, and Rubicon Springs to Tahoe is about 3 hours. If you run it with similar equipped vehicles, you can probably make Rubicon springs in one day, but, if you are winching less equipped vehicles like we were, you will run out of daylight. I liked staying two nights on the trail. It gave us more time to really enjoy the scenery. 4wheeling requires constant concentration, so, it is nice to let loose at night.
Regarding my Damage, I only scraped all my armor, and bent my rear end links. My aluminum tie rod lock nut came loose - I hit it pretty good.
Regarding other Gladiators in our group - one guy lost a rear tail light, we had one leaking bead lock rim that got bent, and one or two bent OEM tie rods.
Overall, great trip, no real damage, just fun.

That’s great info. Thanks. I have all upgraded track bars, tie rods, steering stabilizers, all Yeti Steersmarts. I’m thinking about adding the metal cloak rear sway bar link mount bracket as insurance. 7 Jeeps will be in this group, with no tires smaller than 37’s, but there might be some on 40’s. We’re doing it over three days with two camp nights. I replaced one tail light once and don’t look forward to a repeat, as they are $750 each. I’ll be watching them closely. And I’m choosing to leave the RTT home and use a lighter weight cot tent. I don’t want any unnecessary weight back there. With tools, recovery gear, and other camping stuff, I’ll be heavy enough as it is. And I’m sticking with stock wheels, so I can replace them next year after I tear them up, potentially.

 

[Gvsukids]

and with sliders, you can plant and slide the rear around on the Gladiator

Would the Tazer turn assist help? (Locks inside rear wheel to turn quicker)

I thought all MTs come with LSD?

For a while they weren't.

 

[hjdca]

Would the Tazer turn assist help? (Locks inside rear wheel to turn quicker)

For a while they weren't.

I have the Tazer also, I did not use the turn assist at all. I am not even sure it works in low lock with the traction control completely disabled. You definitely needs sliders. In specific turns, you will use them to pivot around rocks and swing you around. The Gladiator can maneuver through tight trails like that without having to backup -- it's actually fun to execute.

 

[hjdca]

Awesome video.

Thanks so much ! She will love to hear that. Part II is up on youtube today - going to Buck Island.... and she is working on part III now.

 

[hjdca]

That’s great info. Thanks. I have all upgraded track bars, tie rods, steering stabilizers, all Yeti Steersmarts. I’m thinking about adding the metal cloak rear sway bar link mount bracket as insurance. 7 Jeeps will be in this group, with no tires smaller than 37’s, but there might be some on 40’s. We’re doing it over three days with two camp nights. I replaced one tail light once and don’t look forward to a repeat, as they are $750 each. I’ll be watching them closely. And I’m choosing to leave the RTT home and use a lighter weight cot tent. I don’t want any unnecessary weight back there. With tools, recovery gear, and other camping stuff, I’ll be heavy enough as it is. And I’m sticking with stock wheels, so I can replace them next year after I tear them up, potentially.

Sounds like a great plan.

The wheels will get Rock rash. All 4 of them.

Weight wise, there are two consideration - Top Heavy and Spring Collapse...

For what it's worth, Regarding Spring Collapse, here is a pic of 3 of our Gladiators. All three were loaded down up to the Tonneau covers. Mine had every square inch used (refrigerator, battery for the fridge, tents, Lots of tools, 4 gallons of water, 5 gallons of gas, etc.... All have 3" to 3.5 inch lift kits... Mine is a Clayton Overland Plus lift, and you can see that the rear springs handle the weight very well. The Red Gladiator has added a 1" or 1.5" puck to his lift to raise it back up, ... and you can see the sagging rear of the white Gladiator. I have adjustable Falcon shocks and I chose to keep them at 2.3 in the front and 2.5 in the rear, much stiffer than normal for rock crawling. I liked the stiff settings with the weight because the truck did not bounce or sway - off camber bumps were also nice. In addition, the body would not bounce down and hit boulders as you get off them... -- basically canceling out the weight.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Sounds like a great plan.

The wheels will get Rock rash. All 4 of them.

Weight wise, there are two consideration - Top Heavy and Spring Collapse...

For what it's worth, Regarding Spring Collapse, here is a pic of 3 of our Gladiators. All three were loaded down up to the Tonneau covers. Mine had every square inch used (refrigerator, battery for the fridge, tents, Lots of tools, 4 gallons of water, 5 gallons of gas, etc.... All have 3" to 3.5 inch lift kits... Mine is a Clayton Overland Plus lift, and you can see that the rear springs handle the weight very well. The Red Gladiator has added a 1" or 1.5" puck to his lift to raise it back up, ... and you can see the sagging rear of the white Gladiator. I have adjustable Falcon shocks and I chose to keep them at 2.3 in the front and 2.5 in the rear, much stiffer than normal for rock crawling. I liked the stiff settings with the weight because the truck did not bounce or sway - off camber bumps were also nice. In addition, the body would not bounce down and hit boulders as you get off them... -- basically canceling out the weight.

For this reason, as we usually overland with a smittybilt scout off road trailer, and the bed loaded for a family of supplies, I have BDS ram 1500 springs for a 3” lift in the rear. It effectively gives me a very nice soft riding lift, but with over 4” of height increase. Loaded down, I’ve never seen it lower than level. I think since I’m loading for only me, I should retain a little rake for the trail. My front is JKS 3” lift springs. I’ve got simple Fox 2.0 all around, but longer ones will n the rear for the stronger springs.

 

[hjdca]

I just did it last weekend. Sport Max tow, no lockers no rear LSD and never spun a tire for more than a few seconds. 5.13 gearing on 37's with a 5" lift. Challenging trail, but I never needed pushed, pulled or winched. I did skip little sluice. I ran it in the traditional direction from the Loon Lake start to the Cadillac hill finish. We stayed 1 night at Buck Island Lake.

Cool ! Nice Pic. Looks lke we both just ran the trail with Yokohama Geolandars 37". Mine were brand new, I changed them for the trip. I thought they gripped on the boulders real well. Seems like you have the same impression. I ran mine at 12-13 PSI the whole trail. After the Rubicon, no cuts, no chunking, no real indication that the tires went through the Rubicon. I am super happy so far. My last set were Goodyear Kevlar MTRs which had a stiffer sidewall and I would get chunking in the rocks.

PS. Were you guys at Buck Island Lake Friday night, the 17th ? right next to the outhouse overlooking the lake ? I think I saw your camp while walking to the outhouse. We were camping at the next site over by the lake.

 

[Trippin01]

Cool ! Nice Pic. Looks lke we both just ran the trail with Yokohama Geolandars 37". Mine were brand new, I changed them for the trip. I thought they gripped on the boulders real well. Seems like you have the same impression. I ran mine at 12-13 PSI the whole trail. After the Rubicon, no cuts, no chunking, no real indication that the tires went through the Rubicon. I am super happy so far. My last set were Goodyear Kevlar MTRs which had a stiffer sidewall and I would get chunking in the rocks.

PS. Were you guys at Buck Island Lake Friday night, the 17th ? right next to the outhouse overlooking the lake ? I think I saw your camp while walking to the outhouse. We were camping at the next site over by the lake.

Yes we were at Buck Island on Friday night. Here is the photo of our camp (Blue tent lower right), unfortunately, my JT is behind the huge boulder on the left of our camp. You can barely see the top of my RTT. I think we rolled out about 10ish on Sat morning. Huge traffic jam on Big sluice for 2 hours. Stopped and spoke with all the JT owners in the JT group in Rubicon Springs. Here is a good photo of what my JT looks like, as we were camped at Loon Lake Thursday night. Yes the tires did excellent. It was a cold and windy trip.

 

[Trippin01]

I thought all MTs come with LSD?

When they 1st came out, they didn't. I think I tried to special order it as an add on, but it wouldn't let me. No big deal. I ordered it around 4-26-2019, or when ever the first day it let me custom order it, but it was around then.

 

[Josh903]

When they 1st came out, they didn't. I think I tried to special order it as an add on, but it wouldn't let me. No big deal. I ordered it around 4-26-2019, or when ever the first day it let me custom order it, but it was around then.

Mine is also the max tow but with the rear LSD. I bought it from the dealer lot that way, I got lucky that they had a max tow Sport S in the color I wanted. I bought it July of 2020 and even got it like $5k below MSRP before it all hit the fan with car prices.

 

[Trippin01]

IMO, the JT is just the wrong tool for that job!

It can obviously be done, but how much struggle and damage are you willing to take on? I wouldn't take a JT I cared about though Rubicon unless it had at least 40's and supporting mods.

Been through 9 times over the past 25 years using a KTM 525EXC, Samurai, CJ7, and YJ all with relative ease due to short wheelbase and narrow track......The JT is NONE of those!

I went slow through a couple places for sure, but it depends on how you built your JT. Mine is built to do these trails, yes the Rubicon is a beast of a trail for the JT. But it can do it with no body damage. I would not take one with Painted Fenders. In hindsight, I would have 40's and a 6" lift. But its done now. The JT can be built to be an off road beast, which in my opinion is really all its good for. I've said it before and I stand by this, the JT is a horrible DD, but if all you can afford is one vehicle, have fun driving it to the mall and work everyday. I will continue to build mine for off road use, and occasionally pulling my boondock trailer. Yes, 1 ton axels maybe on the horizon with 40's, but that opens up a whole new can of worms, and the Rubicon trail is done for me. Trail eudicot of the non-jeep crowd was the worst I've ever seen it of all the places I've been, and this observation was shared with me by other jeepers on the trail this weekend. Most of the "Buggies" hung out in gangs/packs and were driving the trail drunk, I witnessed several confrontations that were disrespectful instigated by the buggy drivers. It was extremely disappointing since there were so many families on the trail. Ouray and Moab have had a much more relaxed, and Jeep friendly atmosphere. IMO.

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