2021 Gladiator makes a good list: 10 Reliable Jeeps That Are Known For Their Low Running Costs

[Sweetums]

Seriously, you use the Bronco as a pillar of quality?
Forgetting all the of them that their engines ate valves, as well as the fiasco with the removable tops that were total junk are we?

Did I say that? I said it's typical to benchmark against other vehicles in the class, not across classes but within a brand..

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[Stan H]

10 Reliable Jeeps That Are Known For Their Low Running Costs (msn.com)

2021 Jeep Gladiator – $617 In Annual Maintenance Costs

If you're seeking an off-road pick-up that'll take you on those outdoor adventures with minimal fuss, the Jeep Gladiator is right up your alley. Much more versatile than the Wrangler, the 2021 Jeep Gladiator packs a punch with a unique 3.0-liter V6 EcoDiesel engine that generates a whopping 260 horses alongside 442 lb-ft of torque. With a maximum towing capacity of 7,650 pounds, towing trailers featuring those heavy kayak boats and tents on that weekend getaway is 100% achievable.

With all these stellar add-ons, it's only normal that the 2021 Jeep Gladiator earns a great reliability score from JD Power (85%). These reliability levels are also evident in the car's day-to-day operations. According to CarEdge, you'll spend approximately $3,088 on maintenance in the first five years of ownership. This value translates into a budget-friendly $617 in annual maintenance costs on the 2021 Jeep Gladiator.

Well ,I have the 3.6Liter (Gas version obviously) at about 34,000 I was forced to have to start using my 21' for work in the oil and Gas fields. Mud a foot deep on several occasions , standing water a foot deep at times Gravel, potholes galore, no roads Rae earth climbing uneven terrain and coupled with 60-100 mile one ways just to get there an curvy pothole ridden blacktop windy roads in rural areas with plenty of hills, driving on access roads mostly Gravel that vary from 9% to 18%. Needless to say after the next 48,000 miles my suspension was shot. 3 out of 4 shocks were blown front end saying. I was like a bobblehead in it.
I then decided it had to be done. I purchased a teraflex lift new tires and rims and shocks and track bar and all the proper stuff. I even had to get a new front bumper thanks to some dunce who stopped on one of these small one lane roads didn't look behind him and backed into my front bumper. I am currently trying to figure out what kind of winch I want all I really know I'd synthetic line as of now.
Okay which it now has 87,450 + and runs like a top. Transmission is smooth engine is smooth. My 67 yr.old mechanic uncle who has worked on engines since the 70's says it sounds really good . Holds great oil pressure . I have drove this thing it all sorts of bad places . Been hing up so bad it has taken me an hour to get out . I can't say enough about my 21' If Jeep ask me tomorrow to do a commercial for them I would do it in a heartbeat. I do have one complaint. The seat cushion is wore out. . I wonder if Jeep would do me a solid and give me a new seat cushion. FYI Jeep. It's a 21' Rubicon. Next month makes 2 yrs. I have been driving it for work. Total cost of Upgrades 4,800 to round off. Divided by month's I've owned it..(38) its $126.31 a month. By the year that's 1,600 a year. Still I dont think that's to bad. Come on Jeep I'm waiting just send me a PM ..

 

[seven30]

Well ,I have the 3.6Liter (Gas version obviously) at about 34,000 I was forced to have to start using my 21' for work in the oil and Gas fields. Mud a foot deep on several occasions , standing water a foot deep at times Gravel, potholes galore, no roads Rae earth climbing uneven terrain and coupled with 60-100 mile one ways just to get there an curvy pothole ridden blacktop windy roads in rural areas with plenty of hills, driving on access roads mostly Gravel that vary from 9% to 18%. Needless to say after the next 48,000 miles my suspension was shot. 3 out of 4 shocks were blown front end saying. I was like a bobblehead in it.
I then decided it had to be done. I purchased a teraflex lift new tires and rims and shocks and track bar and all the proper stuff. I even had to get a new front bumper thanks to some dunce who stopped on one of these small one lane roads didn't look behind him and backed into my front bumper. I am currently trying to figure out what kind of winch I want all I really know I'd synthetic line as of now.
Okay which it now has 87,450 + and runs like a top. Transmission is smooth engine is smooth. My 67 yr.old mechanic uncle who has worked on engines since the 70's says it sounds really good . Holds great oil pressure . I have drove this thing it all sorts of bad places . Been hing up so bad it has taken me an hour to get out . I can't say enough about my 21' If Jeep ask me tomorrow to do a commercial for them I would do it in a heartbeat. I do have one complaint. The seat cushion is wore out. . I wonder if Jeep would do me a solid and give me a new seat cushion. FYI Jeep. It's a 21' Rubicon. Next month makes 2 yrs. I have been driving it for work. Total cost of Upgrades 4,800 to round off. Divided by month's I've owned it..(38) its $126.31 a month. By the year that's 1,600 a year. Still I dont think that's to bad. Come on Jeep I'm waiting just send me a PM ..

I mentioned my 2021(late) Mojave with 6spd manual. Zero issues until right bank cam failed at 71K. But I live at 8000 feet and with a manual your going to spin it up past 4k rpm all the time. I suspect the engine design is on the edge in those conditions and would not be surprised to learn the manuals have more than their fair share of cam issues.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I mentioned my 2021(late) Mojave with 6spd manual. Zero issues until right bank cam failed at 71K. But I live at 8000 feet and with a manual your going to spin it up past 4k rpm all the time. I suspect the engine design is on the edge in those conditions and would not be surprised to learn the manuals have more than their fair share of cam issues.

You lose a certain amount of HP and torque at elevation on a naturally aspirated engine - makes sense of they don't do quite as well up there..................
Heck, with my automatic, mine sees 4,000 RPM or so pretty frequently as I have to get onto the highways, going up the entrance ramp UP HILL, trying to get up to speed - then the next 2 miles, up hill - it doesn't shift up and drop RPM for ways. Mine routinely sees over 3,000 RPM and over 4,000 isn't out of the norm for that matter.

 

[seven30]

You lose a certain amount of HP and torque at elevation on a naturally aspirated engine - makes sense of they don't do quite as well up there..................
Heck, with my automatic, mine sees 4,000 RPM or so pretty frequently as I have to get onto the highways, going up the entrance ramp UP HILL, trying to get up to speed - then the next 2 miles, up hill - it doesn't shift up and drop RPM for ways. Mine routinely sees over 3,000 RPM and over 4,000 isn't out of the norm for that matter.

Right. This engine behind an auto driving normally should be bullet proof. But at 8000 with lots of elevation changes and only 6sp I see 5k all the time. What I found perplexing about the cam failure was only the right bank intake failed. The other three cams were in great shape. Seems to me its either an outright defective cam or a marginal design combined with normal manufacturing tolerances that got pushed past its capabilities. FCA should have retuned that engine for the 6sp but mkt folks undoubtedly did not want to advertise less peak hp.
I wonder how the turbo 4 is holding up.....

 

[Stan H]

I wonder how the turbo 4 is holding up.....

Very Good question for which I am curious also.
Okay probably gonna take a hit for this but when you take a small engine and turbo charge it I dont expect alot

 

[seven30]

Very Good question for which I am curious also.
Okay probably gonna take a hit for this but when you take a small engine and turbo charge it I dont expect alot

Unless your at 8000 feet! Neighbours Honda CRV thing with tubo four moves out.

 

[PuddleJumper]

Actually, some of those oils have made it to 20k without serious degradation, even in a DI turbo application. So, yeah.

My brother´s 2020 was trouble free the entire time he owned it (3 years) and he did the Jeep wave oil changes and a couple with Walmart oil/filters. The only other things he did were air and cabin filters (once, each) and tire rotations. He had it for 40k miles before selling it. So I would bet that he paid less than the $617 per year. He did buy tires just before selling it, but the old ones still had life left in them. I´d bet he was well below that amount, in reality. Of course he kicks himself every day for selling that truck. He is talking about a new 2024 in the spring.

diesel's usually stretch their oil for longer. My buddies 7.3 turbo does 10k but its designed to do that. Gladiator states in the owner's manual 4k intervals for extreme duty. qualifiers being towing, off-roading, excessive idling/ESS off, dusty/wet environment, etc. just because an oil can do 20k in a car doesn't mean it isn't causing damage. i wonder how many 20k changes you get before something lets go to gunk, buildup, etc. maybe 2. i could see 20k out of prius, or a semi, or literally any application designed for that. But an offroad enthusiast truck, no just no. I only use the Jeep wave program changes as well, that have me on 4k intervals, not 8, not 10, not 5. now if you know your gladiator, and your usage of it allows for the stretching to 20k. by all means go ahead. but 20k guarantee is like saying one size fits all. it really doesn't.

 

[JeepJunky]

Speaking for me only, My 2020 Mojave right out of the lot had a bad valve body that took close to two months of nagging the dealer, (Who is awesome) Jeep cares (Who is a bit out of touch IMHO) trying to get a new one, when these weren't in the spare parts bins yet. Once It was fixed, I have had no problems other than the TSB on steering, which was applied as soon as I asked for it. I've modded the poor thing myself (I'm not a mechanic), put about 90-100 trail hours at level 5-7 on Jamboree, Towed a RZR to the mountains and back several times, and some long trips to get to the mountains and back. I forgot about batteries only lasting about 3 years, and after letting it sit for 2 weeks while on a deployment, my wife mentioned it doesn't start. Thats four years on a 3 year factory battery. That's on me. If ANY car can take the stuff I've put this thing through and just 'always be there' for me, I'll buy another. (Regardless of anything Consumer Reports /J.D. Powers or anyone else has to say. I need a truck, and I want a Jeep. Check and Check. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

 

[Sweetums]

True, but I’m still always skeptical about one vehicle being more “reliable” than another unless you have owned them and even then, there may be a bias.

For example, every Xterra and Frontier from 2005-2010 were susceptible to a radiator failure that would cause antifreeze to mix with ATF, causing the famous SMOD (strawberry milkshake of death). This would make people want to sway away from these by all means. Guess what? I owned an Xterra for 6 years and 89,000 miles. I had 0 issues, ever. All I did was replace the radiator with one that wouldn’t fail. According to these magazines and articles, my Xterra was a turd with transmission issues that never end.

Now other vehicles in the lower spectrum of the Jeep? I wouldn’t touch with a 5 foot pole.

I had a 2006 Xterra before the Gladiator. It's not every Frontier and Xterra, it's also the Pathfinder with the VQ40 engine and it's only the automatics. There's also a free fix that just involves swapping two hoses on the radiator to isolate it from the transmission, or you can install an aftermarket stand-alone transmission cooler.

? The other option is to sack up and buy a manual (as a bonus you get to watch the tech fail to find Reverse about 8 times before giving up and asking you to come back your truck out of his bay).

 

[Jefe1018]

I had a 2006 Xterra before the Gladiator. It's not every Frontier and Xterra, it's also the Pathfinder with the VQ40 engine and it's only the automatics. There's also a free fix that just involves swapping two hoses on the radiator to isolate it from the transmission, or you can install an aftermarket stand-alone transmission cooler.

? The other option is to sack up and buy a manual (as a bonus you get to watch the tech fail to find Reverse about 8 times before giving up and asking you to come back your truck out of his bay).

C’mon, no one bought manuals ?. I wanted one but couldn’t find it!

Nostalgia and hindsight are 20/20, boy did I love that truck.

 

[Gvsukids]

I understand that, I was more wondering if there was a reason they chose 2021 vs 2020 model. It would be interesting to see if there is any difference between those 2 years as far as reliability/maintenance costs. I doubt there would be a difference (but who knows) maybe it is as simple as that is the model year they got the most response for.

Love it. I’m pretty sure I spent that on maintenance in the last 20 days. ?

72K miles right cam total failure all high lift lobes. Left bank perfect.

My 2020 3.6 automatic hasn't been so bulletproof.
My Jeep is back in the shop for throwing the multi misfire codes. I think it's on the passenger side bank. Driving over 6k in fourth gear does that.
Last week it had front crankshaft seal repriced as it had lost two and a half quarts of oil. The Jeep is also had oil pan gasket replaced and rear main seal replaced. Without any aftermarket extended warranty, and 77,000 miles, these repairs would be expensive.

 

[DanW]

diesel's usually stretch their oil for longer. My buddies 7.3 turbo does 10k but its designed to do that. Gladiator states in the owner's manual 4k intervals for extreme duty. qualifiers being towing, off-roading, excessive idling/ESS off, dusty/wet environment, etc. just because an oil can do 20k in a car doesn't mean it isn't causing damage. i wonder how many 20k changes you get before something lets go to gunk, buildup, etc. maybe 2. i could see 20k out of prius, or a semi, or literally any application designed for that. But an offroad enthusiast truck, no just no. I only use the Jeep wave program changes as well, that have me on 4k intervals, not 8, not 10, not 5. now if you know your gladiator, and your usage of it allows for the stretching to 20k. by all means go ahead. but 20k guarantee is like saying one size fits all. it really doesn't.

I know we all feel an oil can't do 20k, but Mobil 1 showed data from testing in turbo DI engines that showed it, in fact, can.

And define damage? An oil with 1,000 miles on it can be categorized that way, too. Engines wear.

I'm not going to go run 20k on my expensive engines, but my point was not to do that. It was to reassure that a 20k rated oil in a non-DI, normally asperated engine that is inherently "easy" on oil going only 7k to 9k should not cause anyone to lose sleep. I've run my JL as far out as 8500k on Mobil 1 EP 0w20, a 20k rated oil, and the UOA came back great. In fact, it came back as good as some of the 5k runs I have done.

So I typically do 5k. Why? Because it makes me feel good. In the 6 or 8 UOA's I did on my JL, there was hardly a difference in the condition of the oil between 5k and 8500k. Just more wear metals, but they were in suspension, so they cause no more issue at 8500 than they did at 5000.

 

[PuddleJumper]

I know we all feel an oil can't do 20k, but Mobil 1 showed data from testing in turbo DI engines that showed it, in fact, can.

And define damage? An oil with 1,000 miles on it can be categorized that way, too. Engines wear.

I'm not going to go run 20k on my expensive engines, but my point was not to do that. It was to reassure that a 20k rated oil in a non-DI, normally asperated engine that is inherently "easy" on oil going only 7k to 9k should not cause anyone to lose sleep. I've run my JL as far out as 8500k on Mobil 1 EP 0w20, a 20k rated oil, and the UOA came back great. In fact, it came back as good as some of the 5k runs I have done.

So I typically do 5k. Why? Because it makes me feel good. In the 6 or 8 UOA's I did on my JL, there was hardly a difference in the condition of the oil between 5k and 8500k. Just more wear metals, but they were in suspension, so they cause no more issue at 8500 than they did at 5000.

i hear what your saying. i think we are in the bushes on can vs should. ages before synthetic you couldn't get 20k out of conventional or mix. It would just gunk up and destroy the motor. Now they 20k guarantee is probably that it still meets the bear min requirements after being run for that mileage. The difference being that all engines are different and therefore will start developing unnecessary wear after a certain amount of mile due to its intended use and therefore how it breaks down oil. I'd trust a 10k interval on a toyota motor with any synthetic. But with Jeep stating that under certain circumstances that 4k is the max you can safely get out of a full synthetic. That tells me i shouldn't trust any 20k promise. Mobil 1 hasn't done anywhere near the testing the engine builder has. so default to the manufacturer would be logical. BTW Mopar synthetic is manufactured by EXXONMobil. Its just Mobil 1 in a different bottle. I'm not saying your wrong, but i will stand by my statement that trusting 20k on bottle vs manufacturer listed is asking for trouble. just cus a different motor in a different application swung 20k with no issue. doesn't mean every motor on the market will. And to clarify, yes you probably could get 20k on a penstar, its not impossible. but its definitely not gonna be in the same condition as a motor designed to do 20k on that oil. can vs should.

 

[Sweetums]

C’mon, no one bought manuals ?. I wanted one but couldn’t find it!

Nostalgia and hindsight are 20/20, boy did I love that truck.

I had your Grail - 6 speed manual with the factory locker. It was one of two in the country for sale used at the time and it was 10 minutes away. I drove over there within 20 minutes of it being posted for sale, by the time I arrived he had three other calls on it.

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