First Real World Gladiator Towing Impressions & Results (7000 lbs)

[overland_chariot]

What's the link to the video, I don't see one.

sorry, this one is at the 30 sec mark. i went out of town and just saw your reply.

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[Skyler7381]

sorry, this one is at the 30 sec mark. i went out of town and just saw your reply.

Does it come with a locking gas cap?

 

[jeepit]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for having me! My name is Tommy, I am a videographer/editor at a publication called The Fast Lane Truck (TFLtruck). We do new truck testing from off-road to max towing. Big fan of this forum btw!

Maybe you guys care, maybe not but we just got done with our towing tests with the new JT. We've got full videos coming soon but as I think this is a pretty cool community thought I'd share some thoughts ahead of publishing.

First thing we did was hook up roughly 4000 pounds to the truck and run it through our MPG loop. This is a standard test we do for most all trucks to find out their real world towing fuel economy. Keep in mind we are in Colorado at elevation, but hey! It's the real world.

Here's an example of what the test looks like:



The gladiator towing proved to be a bit of a mixed bag. On the plus side our resident towing expert Andre felt the truck to be confident dynamically with decent road holding and good brakes. However...

At roughly 4000 lbs (exact numbers to come in the vid) the truck did under 9 MPG on the highway towing loop. I find this fairly disappointing given the relatively flat terrain and constant highway speed.

Okay now for the fun stuff. We do a test called the "Ike Gauntlet." Essentially we tow heavy uphill on i-70 in Colorado and see how the truck performs. For the Gladiator, we noticed many users on this forum wanted to see how it would do maxed out so that's what we did! This is what the test looks like for reference:



So. Jeep says our tester (loaded rubicon with tow group) will tow 7,000 pounds. We hooked up 7000 lbs (once again, exact weights in the video). Again, I believe it's performance is acceptable towing, but not great. On the plus side the truck made it the through the test without mechanical failure or overheat.

However... By the top of the run it struggled to maintain 35-40 MPH. Granted this is an extreme test, far beyond what many of you will end up using it for. That's ultimately the point. And while it made, slowly but surely, I am still not convinced I would want to tow above 5000 consistently. MPG up the hill was sub 5. The biggest issue is the 3.6 makes it power high in the RPM range so it spends a lot of time screaming at you up hill. Here's the rub (again, in my opinion):

With driver and fuel the truck came in at over 5000 lbs empty. If you are used to a JL and its performance, I would adjust your expectations. Of course we are at elevation which has a big impact, but in my personal opinion the truck is, well, a little poky. The 3.6 is a well made and durable engine. But I personally think the truck is crying out for the 2.0L turbo, especially at elevation.

Anyways, Thanks for letting me rant, and hope this was somewhat useful. Full videos coming soon. The rest of the team's opinion will certainly be in the video!

High price tag JT with low mileage and low powered v6, really makes me rethink my wait for Gator JT.
JT with hemi would be great.

https://www.motor1.com/news/349357/jeep-gladiator-two-door-hellcat/

 

[relapsekg]

Is the mythical Ike Gauntlet video ever going to be posted....

 

[WXman]

Is the mythical Ike Gauntlet video ever going to be posted....

Doesn't seem like it.

 

[DesertDog]

Yeah. Weird. I’m sure they put a ton of work into that.

 

[megamucho]

Here we go!

 

[smlobx]

I find this discussion about the Gladiator towing and the TFL videos interesting.

Here are a few of my comments;

1. The Gladiator, and all recent truck tow ratings, are now done to exacting SAE specifications which include a specific grade (I can’t remember the road used) at over 100 degrees ambient temps with 2 people onboard and the AC set on max. I believe it has to maintain a specific speed in order to get this rating. This is to keep manufacturers from “playing games” with their ratings. That the Gladiator was able to tow 7000 pounds and meet these specifications is a testament to how tough this truck actually is.

2. My biggest complaint with the TFL videos (and I’m a fan Tommy) is that they never use the same trailer and weight when they are comparing trucks in the same class. Have you seen a Tacoma, Colorado or other midsize going up the Ike Gauntlet towing 7K in that trailer?? Why not TFL?

3. In reality NO midsize should be towing 7K regularly. This is coming from someone who has a Class A CDL and routinely tows up to about 40K.
IMHO a midsize should not tow more than 5K. If your over that you should get a half ton or larger.

4. Why did TFL use a Rubicon to tow this weight? A Sport S with Max tow would have been a better option..

5. A good video would be to compare each of the midsize trucks (in their max towing configuration and as close as possible to each other) towing the same trailer grossing at 5,000 pounds up the Ike ....TFL are you listening?

 

[lrtexasman]

The "Super Ike" is a tough test for sure, would like to have seen the Gladiator on just an "Ike" run with 5k as they did with the Taco and Ranger. I could have gotten a better idea comparatively speaking.

 

[WXman]

I asked them, and they said that they DO have plans to test all mid-size trucks with the SAME trailer this time, and it'll hopefully happen this summer.

That will make for a good video. And I expect it to vindicate the Pentastar.

 

[TommyTFL]

I find this discussion about the Gladiator towing and the TFL videos interesting.

Here are a few of my comments;

1. The Gladiator, and all recent truck tow ratings, are now done to exacting SAE specifications which include a specific grade (I can’t remember the road used) at over 100 degrees ambient temps with 2 people onboard and the AC set on max. I believe it has to maintain a specific speed in order to get this rating. This is to keep manufacturers from “playing games” with their ratings. That the Gladiator was able to tow 7000 pounds and meet these specifications is a testament to how tough this truck actually is.

2. My biggest complaint with the TFL videos (and I’m a fan Tommy) is that they never use the same trailer and weight when they are comparing trucks in the same class. Have you seen a Tacoma, Colorado or other midsize going up the Ike Gauntlet towing 7K in that trailer?? Why not TFL?

3. In reality NO midsize should be towing 7K regularly. This is coming from someone who has a Class A CDL and routinely tows up to about 40K.
IMHO a midsize should not tow more than 5K. If your over that you should get a half ton or larger.

4. Why did TFL use a Rubicon to tow this weight? A Sport S with Max tow would have been a better option..

5. A good video would be to compare each of the midsize trucks (in their max towing configuration and as close as possible to each other) towing the same trailer grossing at 5,000 pounds up the Ike ....TFL are you listening?

Good questions. In response to #2, the reason we towed 7K with the gladiator is because this is a "super Ike", meaning we max the truck completely. It's a great way to see if that max number is actually doable and put the truck through its most extreme possible towing scenario. We will hopefully have a 5-6K test against all the other midsizers soon when (and that's a big when) we can get all the competition lined up at the same time. In response to #4 we don't choose the truck FCA provides us. In this case, as usual, it was a rubi so that's what we ran. Typically we do like to run in that range (5-6K) for midsizers cause that is typical to what most people tow. HOWEVER, we got such an overwhelming number of requests to max the truck out at 7K that's what we did.

 

[WXman]

HOWEVER, we got such an overwhelming number of requests to max the truck out at 7K that's what we did.

That's all fine and dandy, but you should make a big DISCLAIMER in the video that this is at maximum capacity and you've NOT done this with any other trucks in this class.

The problem I'm seeing is that everyone is taking the Super Ike results with the Gladiator and using that to compare to the regular Ike results from the other trucks, which clearly stacks the odds against the Gladiator.

The Pentastar engine doesn't deserve the negativity it's been getting. It's got a torque curve as flat as a pancake and gets stellar fuel economy without all the direct injection and other junk that the competitors' are using.

 

[homerun]

Good questions. In response to #2, the reason we towed 7K with the gladiator is because this is a "super Ike", meaning we max the truck completely. It's a great way to see if that max number is actually doable and put the truck through its most extreme possible towing scenario. We will hopefully have a 5-6K test against all the other midsizers soon when (and that's a big when) we can get all the competition lined up at the same time. In response to #4 we don't choose the truck FCA provides us. In this case, as usual, it was a rubi so that's what we ran. Typically we do like to run in that range (5-6K) for midsizers cause that is typical to what most people tow. HOWEVER, we got such an overwhelming number of requests to max the truck out at 7K that's what we did.

Thanks Tommy, cool of you to jump in with the wolves and explain/elaborate on the thought process behind your tests. Can't wait to see the the midsize head to head comparison video!

 

[Tortooga Custom Works]

Good questions. In response to #2, the reason we towed 7K with the gladiator is because this is a "super Ike", meaning we max the truck completely. It's a great way to see if that max number is actually doable and put the truck through its most extreme possible towing scenario. We will hopefully have a 5-6K test against all the other midsizers soon when (and that's a big when) we can get all the competition lined up at the same time. In response to #4 we don't choose the truck FCA provides us. In this case, as usual, it was a rubi so that's what we ran. Typically we do like to run in that range (5-6K) for midsizers cause that is typical to what most people tow. HOWEVER, we got such an overwhelming number of requests to max the truck out at 7K that's what we did.

Thanks for the explanation @TommyTFL
I'm with @WXman tho - it would be good to put some kind of note, or even a disclaimer that explains that this particular test is stacked to the extreme. Andre's summary feels like it has a negative tone to it - when in fact there is nothing to actually compare the results to. Maybe I'm going too far with that... but here are some other things I wrote about this in another thread that maybe helps make the point.

I posted there - but i'll post here too. I'm with you @steffen707
I think the gladiator did superb, given the criteria.

Actually, it is the BEST mid-size, topless, off-road, truck, that's ever done a Super IKE...

I was thinking of this last night as I fell asleep...
95% of us don't buy cars based on their Nürburgring results. Those results are fun to watch. But they are far from reality for the great majority.

This new test, the Super IKE is definitely like lapping a car at the Nürburgring, or the Top Gear/Grand Tour test track. Fun to watch, very fun to watch - and frankly a lot more scientific than the Clarkson/Hammond/May usual line of testing...
But just because Clarkson complains that the car won't go sideways, or doesn't reach it's alleged top speed, doesn't necessarily mean it's not right for me.

So, while this was super exciting to watch, and definitely a nice, new test for TFL. The results are really based on the test - not real life use for the statistical majority.

The only two negatives, that I see, are:

1. Current lack of availability of an integrated brake controller. Solution: aftermarket, or wait for the mopar one, which is coming.
2. Current lack of availability of towing mirrors. Solution: aftermarket.

So if you want a multi-purpose vehicle, off-road and better towing than the current off-road vehicles, this is an extremely good option.

 

[DesertDog]

Thanks Tommy,

Your TFL work is awesome.

I don’t guess your sources can track down any estimates on the availability of the trailer brake controller? If it’s close, I’m thinking about going ahead and putting in my order in hopes that they might both ( the truck and controller ) become available around the same time.

The word “soon” is losing it’s luster since we are now seven months since it was promised at the Los Angeles unveiling.

So far I hear two things from FCA:

1.
CONTROL YOUR TOW
The available integrated Trailer Brake controller provides adjustable braking power to your trailer’s electric brakes, if equipped, so you can slow down and stop with confidence.

2.
FCA does not offer a trailer brake controller. Please consult a reputable outfitter… ?!

If one of the above statements is true then the other is false.

Maybe some think this is nitpicky but I am not drilling holes in a brand new $60,000 vehicle if it is unnecessary.

Anymore information would be so welcome.

You guys seem so good at digging up information other journalists can’t .

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