I want a Gladiator but I’m concerned it’s not safe enough for a family vehicle

[ScottBeach]

I would argue the gladiator is situationally the best and worst truck. The head on. 15% offset being the bad. I can say from a near miss the auto braking system works amazingly well.

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[ShadowsPapa]

I constantly am amazed that I'm driving inside a full blown roll cage....it feels pretty safe to me.

I wish I could find the pictures of the ZJ donor I got my 4.0 from. It had been flipped and landed on the roof. (the guy missed a T intersection)
The windshield was intact, the roof was flat on the outside but sitting on the inside you'd hardly know it was damaged. The A pillars were fine. I bet he walked out unhurt.

I believe the insurance for my wife's Grand Cherokee and my JT are pretty close in price.
I've always seen the Grand Cherokee as one of the safest things I could travel in. Seeing how the Gladiator is made makes me feel secure in it.

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

The Gladiator has decent crash ratings for a truck. Additionally, most accidents are SUPER avoidable by just being a defensive driver….drive the speed limit, stay out of the left lane, 4+ second following distance (8+ sec when towing), look left-right-left even when the light is green, etc etc….you catch my drift.

I definitely get your concern on the subject matter though, your kids are your life. The Gladiator isn’t the SAFEST vehicle on the market, but it’s far from unsafe if driven appropriately.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Also the 1 star ncap score was because it sucked at pedestrian hits, was not "easy" to install car seats (they should use Britax clicktite) and no lane keep assist.

The actual crash ratings were fine but they didn't like the lack of the ancillaries. Personally I think they had a bit of an axe to grind on it.

Try installing car seats in a 75 Gremlin or a 77 AMX.............. these things are a piece of cake. My son visited with his family and it was sooo easy having 5 of us in there, one of them a kid.

 

[Capricorn]

When I switched my Wrangler JL to a Gladiator Mohave, my auto insurance premium actually went down a little bit. I don't know what algorithm the insurance companies use, but I am thinking safety maybe one of the factors?

 

[dcmdon]

I think a lot of people think modern Jeeps are unsafe because they look similar to old CJs, which were vilified by the old 60 minutes story. Since new jeeps look like CJs, they've never gotten over that rap by many in the general public. But in reality, the wrangler came about to improve upon the safety of the CJ and to make it more civilized. Wranglers and Gladiators still look and function like old CJs and Scramblers, but that's where the similarly ends.

He's not talking about history. He's taking about recent crash test ratings. Jeeps generally don't do as well as crossovers or cars.

 

[jbehrn]

When I switched my Wrangler JL to a Gladiator Mohave, my auto insurance premium actually went down a little bit. I don't know what algorithm the insurance companies use, but I am thinking safety maybe one of the factors?

I went from an Overland to Rubicon and my insurance went down $16/month! The Rubicon has active cruise control and blind spot monitoring - I’m pretty sure those features are responsible.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I went from an Overland to Rubicon and my insurance went down $16/month! The Rubicon has active cruise control and blind spot monitoring - I’m pretty sure those features are responsible.

My Overland has all of those things, it's "loaded", so to speak - but as my agent told me, they go by the VIN which tells them exactly what the vehicle has (of course they have the vin, they plug that in and get the complete build sheet with all of the equipment)

 

[NachoRuby]

He's not talking about history. He's taking about recent crash test ratings. Jeeps generally don't do as well as crossovers or cars.

Gladiators have a good crash rating though.
Also, car crash ratings and suv/truck crash ratings can't be directly compared. According to the nhtsa, it's only valid for vehicles in the same class. At least that's what the window sticker says. What I was saying is that recent jeeps DO have good crash ratings. But in my experience, people still think they're the same as the old ones. You've never come across anyone who just assumed your jeep is going to flip if you look at it wrong? Or crumple into your knees? I've come across that several times. I would not have bought the gladiator if it didn't have a good crash rating. The only one that's marginal (3 stars) is rollover, and unlike the other tests, that's the likelihood to rollover, and not the likelihood of getting hurt if it does rollover. 5 star passenger, 4 star driver is our official NHTSA crash rating. That's comparable in the class, and about as good as you can get.
As others have mentioned, it's why my insurance went way down compared to the 2019 Jetta I traded in (which also has a good crash rating), despite this vehicle being a lot more expensive. It's less likely to be damaged, and despite similar "stars," you're less likely to be hurt. Because 5 stars on a car or crossover is not the same as 5 stars on a truck.

 

[centra28]

This is the safest vehicle I have ever had. I say this because the one I found came with safety features I have never had and would have done without (to save money) had I did my own.

High speed forward collision warning
Blind spot/cross path monitoring system
adaptive cruise control (which will take you to a complete stop!)
reverse backing warning system
automatic high beam headlight control

it’s all about avoiding the crash. the technology available in new vehicles astounds me sometimes. I have already avoided backing into a car with the reverse sensor alert and I am pretty sure I avoided what could have been a high speed rear end by my collision warning going off. Messing with the radio when traffic suddenly stops ahead, not looking, BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEEP, Breaks. wow, what technology!

I tell you, I don’t know that I would ever go without this safety technology again now that I have experienced the benefit. To think, I would have forgone the safety packages to save money… yikes.

 

[johnparjr]

What vehicle is safe enough you can’t plan for everything and these trucks are built like a tank. My kids all love it and I have better things to worry about than staged crashes. Drive defensively and wear seatbelts your good to go

 

[SelfmodJT]

Just dont get a manual transmission or tow with it and you'll be ok!!!!

 

[Chestnut]

They seem pretty good. This is from another section of the forum.

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/just-ordered-check-in-here.24980/post-768361

 

[869 KPH]

And thank you everyone for your input, I think I’m convinced. I’ll sleep on it. If all goes well I’ll place a build order for a Nacho Jeep Gladiator Rubicon tomorrow afteroon and this 2 1/2 year long car shopping nightmare can finally come to an end.

It’s still available in the builder. I’ll be extremely disappointed if it’s no longer available but Billet Silver looks amazing too.

 

[No Quarter]

This is long, sorry! Feel free to skip to the TLDR.

I’ve been in the market to replace my very boring 2011 Honda CR-V for 2 1/2 years now. I’m getting older and want to treat myself to a vehicle that makes me smile every time I see it. The Wrangler and Gladiator are the only vehicles that do so. Every time I pass one on the road I get excited to an extent that’s pretty ridiculous.

I’d have bought a Jeep when I first started looking 2 1/2 years ago but there’s one thing that held me back. For most of my life when anyone would ask me what I looked for in a car I said I want something that’s safe, has a good sound system, and a lot of cargo space. As you can probably guess the middling safety ratings for the Jeep is what’s held me back.

Not a big deal for me. I’m a safe driver and have never been in an accident. And a questionable safety rating compared to the alternatives wouldn’t be a big deal if I was just talking about my life. But now I have a young kid and I don’t know how to square this in my head. I’d feel personally responsible if my kid was injured or worse in an accident that was made worse because there’s no side curtain airbags in the rear or because there’s a substantial chance of rollover, even in a front offset crash.

So I spent over 2 years looking for some other kind of car, suv, or truck that I could drum up a similar amount of passion for. I checked out the Land Rover Defender, Ford Bronco, and RAM Rebel. I also went in a different direction and looked at some cool new EVs and other crossover to midsize SUVs like the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Tesla Model Y, Honda Element (lol), and others. At the end of the day, though, I don’t want a ‘nice’ car. I want a ‘fun’ car. And I don’t think there’s anything else that strikes a chord in me like a Jeep does.

Note that my wife has a newer Honda CR-V as well (lol) that we’d be keeping so it would always be available as a safe family car alternative except for when I need to take my kid someone, like daycare.

How does everyone look at this? How do you weigh your pros and cons? Am I overthinking or exaggerating the Wrangler and Gladiator’s safety issues?

And are there any recommended builds that prioritize on-road? Such as steel or plastic bumper: which is safer in a high-speed accident? Any significant difference in on-road between a Sport, Overland, and Rubicon?

And what about improving upon the Jeep’s safety with aftermarket customization. Such as lowering the center of gravity, adding some kind of thick padding around the roll bar and Hard Top where a rear passenger’s head could hit?

Thanks for reading.

TLDR: I’m obsessed with getting a Jeep Wrangler or Gladiator but feel guilty using it as a family car due to its poor crash rating. What should I do?

As a Marine Veteran and somebody that has lived a life filled with aggressively pursuing opportunities, here is what I think:

If God wants you dead, ain't nothing going to keep you alive. If God wants you to live, ain't nothing going to kill you.

The skein of your life was wound long ago. Worry won't lengthen it one bit.

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