How do Gladiators handle on the highway?

[ALT2870]

No, they won't. Think the first Grand Cherokees. ZERO wander, handled great. There's no reason at all for the difference on the highway.
The bigger difference is steering ratio and most vehicles people are used to today have faster ratios and rack and pinion steering vs. recirculating ball type steering sectors.
On an interstate that's not rough, there's no reason for wander unless you have poor alignment or loose parts.
But again - people keep comparing to rack and pinion or close ratio steering.
The WK and WL have rack and pinion and really fast steering and that makes the JT feel loose when you switch back and forth.
But my JT doesn't really do any worse than my cars with standard recirculating ball steering do.
The solid axle on a good road doesn't determine steering, it determines ride.

Our ZJ and WJ Grand Cherokees had solid axles and man those steered like a dream, even after 100,000 miles.

To each their own I suppose, we drive a fleet of solid axles of different trucks and they all have a wandering tendency even after alignments. Is it extreme? No, but if you are coming from a non-solid you will notice a difference. You can align it toe in and there you will find something more true steer but shops are silly and will go for 0 more often then not.

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[ShadowsPapa]

To each their own I suppose, we drive a fleet of solid axles of different trucks and they all have a wandering tendency even after alignments. Is it extreme? No, but if you are coming from a non-solid you will notice a difference. You can align it toe in and there you will find something more true steer but shops are silly and will go for 0 more often then not.

Alignment, and wheel backset, tire diameter, scrub radius - all that figures in and toe needs will vary if the thing has been modified in any way at all.
I've never had problems since they put the second replacement steering gear on my 2020.
I could drive it one-handed with ease and didn't have to do a lot of correcting.
Same for my 2022.
If my wife is ok with 'em, coming from a long line of Grand Cherokees with super-fast, tight steering, can't be too bad.
Seriously, the Jeep line survived in large part because of the expanding customer base - brought in by the first Grand Cherokees. Women, doctors, professionals of all types, younger people, all buying them and the ZJ and WJ had solid axles. I even recall a co-worker, a woman who was the HR person at CCC describe her Grand Cherokee as a "4 wheel drive Cadillac". (she and her husband liked nice things and luxury)

Many vehicles today do have tight rack and pinion steering, quicker ratios. People get used to driving those then hop in a Jeep.
I'm used to driving cars with standard recirculating ball steering sectors and standard SLA IFS and the JT really handles as well as them.
I find that the lower the vehicle sits, the better, too. My Javelins sit low and have always had that tight, sporty feel, the type you could autocross with. Any time you raise a vehicle up, you lose that tight firm feel.

 

[biplaneguy]

One of the reasons I sold my CJ5 (which was my daily driver) 20 years ago was its highway manners... we had just gotten a cabin 100 miles away and the weekly drive to it got to be a real drag, though I loved driving it around town (and on the rocks, of course!). When I test drove the Gladiator, the first thing I did was take it on the highway, found it no worse than my worn out Liberty. It drives like a Jeep, which is exactly what I wanted.

 

[RubiDukkie]

Cons: I had to correct my steering way more than I anticipated, but it did become better (more of a habit/getting used to) as I went on, still learning, this is also my first truck! There were a couple moments of high wind and other trucks passing where I white knuckled it.

My experience was similar when I took my first long road trip down I-95 from Virginia to Florida. The following things helped me:

Not wrapping my thumbs around the steering wheel helped keep my grip looser. Keeping a tight grip on the steering wheel made if feel worse.

Adding a Teraflex Falcon Adjustable Steering Stabilizer and setting it to the "Firmer" setting before taking highway road trips. It firmed up the steering and felt better to me.

Dropped my tire pressure in the rear a couple of PSI lower than the front tires. I think this created a slight understeer (push) feeling which I found preferrable on the highway. I later also found that I preferred higher than 37 PSI in the front, but that may be due to having a 12K winch and a steel bumper in the front. YMMV.

Finally, I think it did take time to simply adjust going from IFS to a solid front axle.

 

[High Alextude]

My experience was similar when I took my first long road trip down I-95 from Virginia to Florida. The following things helped me:

Not wrapping my thumbs around the steering wheel helped keep my grip looser. Keeping a tight grip on the steering wheel made if feel worse.

Adding a Teraflex Falcon Adjustable Steering Stabilizer and setting it to the "Firmer" setting before taking highway road trips. It firmed up the steering and felt better to me.

Dropped my tire pressure in the rear a couple of PSI lower than the front tires. I think this created a slight understeer (push) feeling which I found preferrable on the highway. I later also found that I preferred higher than 37 PSI in the front, but that may be due to having a 12K winch and a steel bumper in the front. YMMV.

Finally, I think it did take time to simply adjust going from IFS to a solid front axle.

I do have the Fox ATS stabilizer, but maybe I should get under there and change the falcon shocks to performance mode for the next long trip.

 

[Gizmo]

100% better after removing the MOPAR extended length LCAs and installing Rancho Geometry Correction bracket using middle hole and standard LCAs

 

[mjsargent58]

I have a 2023 Gladiator Mojave. I run the tire pressure at about 36 psi and have had nothing noticeable in terms of handling issues, though I generally do not exceed 70 mph as the truck does have a higher center of gravity than my previous F-150. It is not designed to be a freeway racer. Wind has not been an issue so far with me, but have not encountered any winds much in excess of 30 mph, but any truck is affected by wind more than a car. Besides, who the heck can afford the gas fill-ups needed for a Mojave when driven at speeds at or above 75 MPH? lol.

 

[Chunky White]

I drive the shit out of mine on the interstate and have no issues other than road noise from the mud tires and its lack of power. It drives like most mid sized trucks on the interstate at 80-90mph in my opinion. The GM twins drive like an SUV unliike the Tacomas I have owned which I think drive similar to the JTR. There is no comparison to a Grand Cherokee which I have owned almost every series of. I have not owned the newest one yet.

 

[Tom C]

I know that I’m new to JTs, but I’ve not noticed any handling issues at 70 to 75 mph on the highway. Maybe it’s because it’s a High Altitude with the sport suspension and all season radials (not all terrain or off road tires). For a midsized truck, I think it handles pretty well. The diesel also has plenty of pep.

 

[ttn333]

I know little about alignment but it seems like getting the perfect numbers is not working for me. Brought it back twice and it still drifts to the left. My long time alignment guy retired and moved to TN. He doesn't just go by the numbers and actually take a test drive and make whatever adjustments necessary before returning it to me. My gladiator ran perfectly straight, no wandering at all on the highway. At least not enough for me to notice. This new guy isn't working out lol.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

There is no comparison to a Grand Cherokee which I have owned almost every series of. I have not owned the newest one yet.

The ZJ and WJ were solid axle Grand Cherokees. Lower center of gravity and other factors gave them a heck of a nice ride and great handling, IMO. I've owned several.
There was never any ride or steering issues with any I had. In fact, bone stock they drove like almost any other vehicle I've had.

Then the WK series replaced the WJ and went to IFS and rack and pinion steering. The suspension was a Mercedes design. I discussed this at length a few years ago with a friend who is a master Mercedes tech in the Germantown area. We compared suspension parts and designs and so on.
They tightened up the steering ratio with the rack and pinion and IMO, it's hard to get used to that jerky steering where if you sneeze, and your hand moves 1/4" the thing wants to swerve. I swore if I had to drive a WK (or WK2) very far, I'd purposely find a way to loosen up that steering.

IMO, the WK2 is even worse. We've had those as well. Too quick of steering on the highway.

 

[MrClortho]

With the full Clayton 3.5" lift (around 5"), Apex 2.5 ton steering upgrades and booster pump on 37's at 80mph my JT drives better than it did stock. Theoretically, if one drove 90+ mph often, they "in theory" would rarely need two hands on the wheel with this setup...in theory...

 

[Badunit]

Not wrapping my thumbs around the steering wheel helped keep my grip looser. Keeping a tight grip on the steering wheel made if feel worse.

I have found that to be a big factor with all SFA vehicles I have owned. I use a very light grip on rough patches such as bridge expansion joints. The steering wheel jerks a little under my hand but the vehicle stays straight. With a tight grip, the steering wheel stays in one spot but the vehicle jerks sideways.

Mopar LCAs made a big difference in handling on my stock height Rubicon. It made it a lot less touchy and jerky on the road.

Recently I put Fox 2.0 shocks (not the Mopar ones) on it to get rid of some of the wallowy feeling from the stock red shocks. The stock handling was a little like when hauling a heavy load with a high center of gravity; it as not as controlled as I would like it to be. They made some difference but I think the rears still need more damping. I suspect Bilsteins would have been better for this purpose but I prefer progressive vs digressive shocks for being more compliant on chop and tightening up for the big hits, vs the other way around.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I have found that to be a big factor with all SFA vehicles I have owned. I use a very light grip on rough patches such as bridge expansion joints. The steering wheel jerks a little under my hand but the vehicle stays straight. With a tight grip, the steering wheel stays in one spot but the vehicle jerks sideways.

Mopar LCAs made a big difference in handling on my stock height Rubicon. It made it a lot less touchy and jerky on the road.

Recently I put Fox 2.0 shocks (not the Mopar ones) on it to get rid of some of the wallowy feeling from the stock red shocks. The stock handling was a little like when hauling a heavy load with a high center of gravity; it as not as controlled as I would like it to be. They made some difference but I think the rears still need more damping. I suspect Bilsteins would have been better for this purpose but I prefer progressive vs digressive shocks for being more compliant on chop and tightening up for the big hits, vs the other way around.

I put Eibach shocks on the rear of mine. They are "sharper" feeling over the small fast bumps at slow speeds but over-all a good ride. I put them on before my last towing trip and the control was fine.

 

[Chunky White]

The ZJ and WJ were solid axle Grand Cherokees. Lower center of gravity and other factors gave them a heck of a nice ride and great handling, IMO. I've owned several.
There was never any ride or steering issues with any I had. In fact, bone stock they drove like almost any other vehicle I've had.

Then the WK series replaced the WJ and went to IFS and rack and pinion steering. The suspension was a Mercedes design. I discussed this at length a few years ago with a friend who is a master Mercedes tech in the Germantown area. We compared suspension parts and designs and so on.
They tightened up the steering ratio with the rack and pinion and IMO, it's hard to get used to that jerky steering where if you sneeze, and your hand moves 1/4" the thing wants to swerve. I swore if I had to drive a WK (or WK2) very far, I'd purposely find a way to loosen up that steering.

IMO, the WK2 is even worse. We've had those as well. Too quick of steering on the highway.

I guess I have driven Grand Cherokees and sports cars so much that the steering in the WK2 didn't bother me. I have owned six grand cherokees. The 2001 WJ Limited with the 4.7 is a close favorite to the 2016 WK2 SRT. I have thought about trading my JTR for a new Grand Cherokee at some point because I don't use the Gladiator for anything other than transportation to and from work these days. I just thought the YJ i had was capable off road until I lifted a WJ with Quadradrive.

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