Gladiator vs. Colorado ZR2 Bison

[DanW]

ZR2/AT4X have 33" tires so does the Rubicon, 8", 4" both sides hate to see one with 35" or bigger on the trail, I watch Ozark Adventures he runs a 38" guess he's trails are wider

Lol, they are. I´ve not seen him run Turkey Bay in KY, Jericho Mt. in NH, or a few trails with narrow rock passes in Utah, among others. I have seen him go through Daniel Boone (KAT) in Kentucky, though. But if he had a TRX, he´d put something on it that would make it wider than stock, for sure.

Love his videos, btw.

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['51WillysCJ3a]

You’ve missed the two most important points of consideration in this one vs other…

1) will the Bison get as many waves
2) will the Bison get as many ducks

Really doesn't matter, it's about the ride! I have a Harley and I wave to other bikes, not just Harley's!

 

[Okie Gladiator]

LOL!!!! Noooooo!

I’m glad you recognized I was just kidding.

seriously though - my father-in-law has a white Bison and it is sweet. Ya’ll are gonna have a blast with it.

 

[Janster]

I just looked at the width of a AT4X it's only 8" wider as a Gladiator Rubicon

The comparison between the midsize trucks is minimal (on the trails)…. I was mostly referring to fullsize trucks and the ‘length’.

 

[Janster]

Really doesn't matter, it's about the ride! I have a Harley and I wave to other bikes, not just Harley's!

And that’s because it’s a *motorcycle wave* ….. all motorcycles. It’s always been that way.

 

[Janster]

Back in 1994, I went wheeling in Spring Creek area near Houston, TX with a Hummer club. (Real Hummers, not modified Tahoes) with my stock 1993 YJ. I ran rings around those guys except in the deepest mud holes. But I was able to go around them through the trees. They didn´t have a prayer to follow me. They came away very impressed with that little Jeep and what it could do.

That’s priceless!! I mean….it doesn’t matter what you’re wheelin with as long as you **know your rig** and adapt accordingly. I’d love to be in your shoes!

We were on a private offroad trip with a few rigs. Our neighbor had a Ford F450 Duallie Double Cab with the fullsize bed (BEAST!!). He was so damn excited to take it out with us. We kept to easier & open trails. He got high centered a few times. He had a hydraulic winch on the front & back of that thing.

He earned his spot with us anytime…. On our 2 hour trip to the trail location, another friend of ours in a really old F150 rust bucket. The passenger side (Thank God) rear axle shaft went flying into the woods while at 60mph and his whole axle tube & brakes blew apart hitting the pavement. So, we gathered up the parts and Mom-Dad-Kid piled into the backseat of the F450. We continued on to the trails ….
But yea….. that was something I’ll never forget.

 

[Bonanza]

I could never purchase a vehicle that big with a turbo 4 cylinder motor. I remember test driving a wrangler unlimited with a 4 cylinder turbo motor and cringing when I started it up from when it had been sitting on the lot. Now that motor would be cool in my 96 geo tracker that I lifted in my 20's but not in a vehicle that is almost 5000 pounds.

The pentastar is laughably underpowered in 2025. Let's get a little dose of reality here. That Chevy powerplant is much, MUCH better than the current offerings. Oddly GM's choice of gearing makes it seems slow, as I test drove one with every intention of getting one. The only reason I didn't is the in-the-toilet resale of my paid off gladiator.

If my gladiator was totaled today I'd replace it with a ZR2 without thinking twice.

 

[AmosMoses]

The pentastar is laughably underpowered in 2025. Let's get a little dose of reality here. That Chevy powerplant is much, MUCH better than the current offerings. Oddly GM's choice of gearing makes it seems slow, as I test drove one with every intention of getting one. The only reason I didn't is the in-the-toilet resale of my paid off gladiator.

If my gladiator was totaled today I'd replace it with a ZR2 without thinking twice.

Nobody with any sense wants a 5000 pound vehicle with a 4 cylinder turbo motor. Tacoma owners are not happy by and large with what toyota has had to do to the tacoma. The fuel savings are miniscule by and large to the modern 6 cylinder powerplant, proving yet again, regulators should resign and go serve coffee somewhere because they are making auto manufacturers jump through excessive hoops to continue producing vehicles. The only people who want these vehicles live in states with fuel prices that are 2x the national average.

I look at vehicles like the new tacoma and zr2 bison the same way I look at muscle cars that were built between 1974 to 1980-something. Just an era of vehicles with no heart and regulated into mediocrity. I'll hold on to me pentastar gladiator. It will probably last longer than a general motors interior.

 

[AustyPosty]

Both are cool trucks. I'm am interested to see what kind of gas mileage he gets from the zr2. My buddy only get 13mpg on the stock sized tires on his zr2. Just seems surprisingly low.

 

[biodiesel]

GM did a good job on the ZR2 Bison. My hope is that Ram's 2027 midsize truck, although late to the party, will be worthy of comparison. The midsize success seen by Ford and GM will give Ram a lot of competition, and that's a good thing.

I love the Gladiator, especially with the 3.0L EcoDiesel, but I feel like Ram will be best suited to compete with the Colorado/Canyon, Ranger, Tacoma, etc. when the time comes. The Gladiator is its own animal. It's hard to say what Jeep plans to do with the Gladiator once Ram releases their midsize truck, but I hope the Gladiator stays pure to the Wrangler platform.

 

[jcarbs]

As someone who traded their Gladiator for a ZR2, I can honestly say they're night and day. Please keep the hate away, it was done for medical reasons. Both are great vehicles and I loved my Gladiator but the ZR2 rides and handles way better than my '21 WIlly's. When it comes to get up and go along with mileage, I'll take the ZR2. Hopefully if we ever encounter one another on a trail, we'll enjoy one another's company.

So I no longer will get ducked, I can live with that. And as for the wave, I would say less than 25% of the Jeeps I encountered actually waved back.

 

[Gvsukids]

As someone who traded their Gladiator for a ZR2, I can honestly say they're night and day. Please keep the hate away, it was done for medical reasons. Both are great vehicles and I loved my Gladiator but the ZR2 rides and handles way better than my '21 WIlly's.

Would have found a closer ride with the Mojave.

 

[Bjeepz]

You’ve missed the two most important points of consideration in this one vs other…

1) will the Bison get as many waves
2) will the Bison get as many ducks

The pentastar is laughably underpowered in 2025. Let's get a little dose of reality here. That Chevy powerplant is much, MUCH better than the current offerings. Oddly GM's choice of gearing makes it seems slow, as I test drove one with every intention of getting one. The only reason I didn't is the in-the-toilet resale of my paid off gladiator.

If my gladiator was totaled today I'd replace it with a ZR2 without thinking twice.

Yup, toilet trade value in my region of Canada on the Mojave. Tried last week to trade for a 2024 ZR2 (not a Bison). Not having my payment go up $100/month to make a trade on that, maybe next year!

 

[jcarbs]

Would have found a closer ride with the Mojave.

I needed all the nanny crap like surround vision etc., that I can't really get in a Jeep unless I go to a Grand Cherokee. I did look at Gladiators with Jeeps accident avoidance features and the only vehicles in my area were well over 60K with the supposed discounts. Was able to get into the ZR2 for a whole lot less than that.

 

[jcarbs]

Yup, toilet trade value in my region of Canada on the Mojave. Tried last week to trade for a 2024 ZR2 (not a Bison). Not having my payment go up $100/month to make a trade on that, maybe next year!

Yeah the trade in on my Willy's drastically changed from one week to the next. Carvana dropped their purchase price by four grand in one week. CarMax wanted to by my Jeep for less than the dealer. I figured out what the difference was based on selling it and paying the extra taxes or trading it in. Asked the dealer to work with me on the difference and they did. Understand your situation.

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