Jeep Gladiator Diesel

[beaujlarson]

I know some people have taken delivery of there ECODiesel Gladiator. Just wanted to start this thread regarding anything relating.

1.) Anyone with the ECOD Gladiator, can provide a 1st drive review.
2.) Anything Surprising or different from expected upon delivery?
3.) When was your Exact Order Date & Day of Delivery?

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[beaujlarson]

I know some people have taken delivery of there ECODiesel Gladiator. Just wanted to start this thread regarding anything relating.

1.) Anyone with the ECOD Gladiator, can provide a 1st drive review.
2.) Anything Surprising or different from expected upon delivery?
3.) When was your Exact Order Date & Day of Delivery?

kclendaniel

 

[TheSolarWizard]

This should be moved to the diesel section

 

[Schreconjeep]

Well as far as I can tell @kclendaniel and I got the first 2. In one week I’ve put about 150 miles of mixed driving. Ave mpg is around 25 but that’s a lot of running around and little actual highway.
It is a lot quieter than I expected. Exhaust at idle is nearly silent. It holds gears well under load and loves 1500-1700rpm.
Order went thru on 7/14 and delivery on 9/29. I
So far I’ve put a 1.5” leveling kit on the front and should get tires and wheels delivered tomorrow. Debating on whether to put them straight on or drive for a while more to get a better baseline for comparison.

 

[kclendaniel]

Well as far as I can tell @kclendaniel and I got the first 2. In one week I’ve put about 150 miles of mixed driving. Ave mpg is around 25 but that’s a lot of running around and little actual highway.
It is a lot quieter than I expected. Exhaust at idle is nearly silent. It holds gears well under load and loves 1500-1700rpm.
Order went thru on 7/14 and delivery on 9/29. I
So far I’ve put a 1.5” leveling kit on the front and should get tires and wheels delivered tomorrow. Debating on whether to put them straight on or drive for a while more to get a better baseline for comparison.

Mine was ordered on 7/8 but missed the truck so I didn't get it until 9/30. It had to sit and watch as @Schreconjeep picked his up. I have about 400 miles on it so far, mostly highway but I did have to drive into the swamp (DC) last week. Here are my first impressions:

Default on for Auto start stop needs to go. It is the worst thing in traffic. It is on my list to look into with AlfaOBD (along with integrated trailer TPMS from Ram HDs [and brake controller if the hardware ever releases], more to come...).

I find it is actually a bit louder than my Grand Cherokee was (gen2 ecoDiesel) with a bit more of an intake growl. There are some new noises with the gen3 engine I did notice (coolant re-circulation pump for the turbo on shutdown?). I have no doubt the diesel clatter will become more apparent as the miles go up. My gen2 had a pretty good diesel clatter at 110k and was dead silent when new. They do loosen up over time (and the MPG seemed to improve).

Since I was coming from another 3.0 ecoDiesel the power/dynamics of that engine/transmission pair were very familiar. Less turbo lag on this one. GDE tune will make this even better. Power was bit surprising on a 'wrangler' platform to get that kind of torque. Gearing seems to be well matched holding well at highway speeds even under load. Shifts are so smooth though you really have to pay attention to monitor it particularly with windows down/top off. I have not put enough miles on in consistent conditions to really get a good number on MPG but it appears to be solidly in the mid 20s for my daily use.

First thing I did to mine was to put air bags on the rear to tow. I have a leveling kit but have not had the time to get that in. That will have to happen this weekend to get the 35s on Monday.

Yesterday I towed my trailer for the first time to relocate it (about 5800-5900lb at the time) with the bags at 30psi and a blue ox hitch. I had zero movement in the rear suspension when the weight was let off the trailer jack. It was a very windy day (25-30mph gusts) yet it towed great over about 70 miles of mostly flat terrain but I did take it across the Chesapeake Bay bridge which is around a 4% grade for a couple miles up to the center of the span. Plenty of power, no strain on the engine and temps didn't budge although it was only 75 out (off-road gauges page is really handy for towing). It will be better once I get my E rated 35s and I don't think there will be any problems holding gears on the highway with them. I did not track the MPG on that run but it did go down a bit.

One thing to note. At least on the Rubicon it appears that the front axles include the Mojave cast iron steering knuckles and not the standard aluminum which explains the increased GAWR listed for the front. I have not compared the frame to check where the Mojave has strengthening yet though to see if they share a frame as well.

 

[Schreconjeep]

Mine was ordered on 7/8 but missed the truck so I didn't get it until 9/30. It had to sit and watch as @Schreconjeep picked his up. I have about 400 miles on it so far, mostly highway but I did have to drive into the swamp (DC) last week. Here are my first impressions:

Default on for Auto start stop needs to go. It is the worst thing in traffic. It is on my list to look into with AlfaOBD (along with integrated trailer TPMS from Ram HDs [and brake controller if the hardware ever releases], more to come...).

I find it is actually a bit louder than my Grand Cherokee was (gen2 ecoDiesel) with a bit more of an intake growl. There are some new noises with the gen3 engine I did notice (coolant re-circulation pump for the turbo on shutdown?). I have no doubt the diesel clatter will become more apparent as the miles go up. My gen2 had a pretty good diesel clatter at 110k and was dead silent when new. They do loosen up over time (and the MPG seemed to improve).

Since I was coming from another 3.0 ecoDiesel the power/dynamics of that engine/transmission pair were very familiar. Less turbo lag on this one. GDE tune will make this even better. Power was bit surprising on a 'wrangler' platform to get that kind of torque. Gearing seems to be well matched holding well at highway speeds even under load. Shifts are so smooth though you really have to pay attention to monitor it particularly with windows down/top off. I have not put enough miles on in consistent conditions to really get a good number on MPG but it appears to be solidly in the mid 20s for my daily use.

First thing I did to mine was to put air bags on the rear to tow. I have a leveling kit but have not had the time to get that in. That will have to happen this weekend to get the 35s on Monday.

Yesterday I towed my trailer for the first time to relocate it (about 5800-5900lb at the time) with the bags at 30psi and a blue ox hitch. I had zero movement in the rear suspension when the weight was let off the trailer jack. It was a very windy day (25-30mph gusts) yet it towed great over about 70 miles of mostly flat terrain but I did take it across the Chesapeake Bay bridge which is around a 4% grade for a couple miles up to the center of the span. Plenty of power, no strain on the engine and temps didn't budge although it was only 75 out (off-road gauges page is really handy for towing). It will be better once I get my E rated 35s and I don't think there will be any problems holding gears on the highway with them. I did not track the MPG on that run but it did go down a bit.

One thing to note. At least on the Rubicon it appears that the front axles include the Mojave cast iron steering knuckles and not the standard aluminum which explains the increased GAWR listed for the front. I have not compared the frame to check where the Mojave has strengthening yet though to see if they share a frame as well.

HAHAHA! Glad that you are familiar with the EcoDiesel. Coming from a 1997 12v Cummins, this is the quietest thing in the world. HA!
The auto tart/Stop does have to go!! Getting a Tazer Mini so that I can turn that off, recalibrate for 37s and a bunch of other things. One thing I wish I had was an indicator of which gear I am in. Will be mostly important after transitioning to 37s to see if it holds 8th gear and when towing to monitor trans performance. Again my old truck was a 5spd so this is different and will help me determine if regearing is necessary. I will likely wait until after I get GDE engine/trans tune before considering regearing anyway.

Currently just using coil spacers for lift and will include highline fenders to fit the 37s. But down the road i will put on a 3" lift. Considering the @RockKrawler X-factor or Pro-X depending on which is more stable for towing. I tow very infrequently but do not want it to be a white knuckle experience with the family in the truck.

 

[adbeck]

HAHAHA! Glad that you are familiar with the EcoDiesel. Coming from a 1997 12v Cummins, this is the quietest thing in the world. HA!
The auto tart/Stop does have to go!! Getting a Tazer Mini so that I can turn that off, recalibrate for 37s and a bunch of other things. One thing I wish I had was an indicator of which gear I am in. Will be mostly important after transitioning to 37s to see if it holds 8th gear and when towing to monitor trans performance. Again my old truck was a 5spd so this is different and will help me determine if regearing is necessary. I will likely wait until after I get GDE engine/trans tune before considering regearing anyway.

Currently just using coil spacers for lift and will include highline fenders to fit the 37s. But down the road i will put on a 3" lift. Considering the @RockKrawler X-factor or Pro-X depending on which is more stable for towing. I tow very infrequently but do not want it to be a white knuckle experience with the family in the truck.

There should be an option to add gear indicator to the dash. If you go into screen settings and enable it it shows up next to the “D”

 

[Odubi]

Mine was ordered on 7/8 but missed the truck so I didn't get it until 9/30. It had to sit and watch as @Schreconjeep picked his up. I have about 400 miles on it so far, mostly highway but I did have to drive into the swamp (DC) last week. Here are my first impressions:

Default on for Auto start stop needs to go. It is the worst thing in traffic. It is on my list to look into with AlfaOBD (along with integrated trailer TPMS from Ram HDs [and brake controller if the hardware ever releases], more to come...).

I find it is actually a bit louder than my Grand Cherokee was (gen2 ecoDiesel) with a bit more of an intake growl. There are some new noises with the gen3 engine I did notice (coolant re-circulation pump for the turbo on shutdown?). I have no doubt the diesel clatter will become more apparent as the miles go up. My gen2 had a pretty good diesel clatter at 110k and was dead silent when new. They do loosen up over time (and the MPG seemed to improve).

Since I was coming from another 3.0 ecoDiesel the power/dynamics of that engine/transmission pair were very familiar. Less turbo lag on this one. GDE tune will make this even better. Power was bit surprising on a 'wrangler' platform to get that kind of torque. Gearing seems to be well matched holding well at highway speeds even under load. Shifts are so smooth though you really have to pay attention to monitor it particularly with windows down/top off. I have not put enough miles on in consistent conditions to really get a good number on MPG but it appears to be solidly in the mid 20s for my daily use.

First thing I did to mine was to put air bags on the rear to tow. I have a leveling kit but have not had the time to get that in. That will have to happen this weekend to get the 35s on Monday.

Yesterday I towed my trailer for the first time to relocate it (about 5800-5900lb at the time) with the bags at 30psi and a blue ox hitch. I had zero movement in the rear suspension when the weight was let off the trailer jack. It was a very windy day (25-30mph gusts) yet it towed great over about 70 miles of mostly flat terrain but I did take it across the Chesapeake Bay bridge which is around a 4% grade for a couple miles up to the center of the span. Plenty of power, no strain on the engine and temps didn't budge although it was only 75 out (off-road gauges page is really handy for towing). It will be better once I get my E rated 35s and I don't think there will be any problems holding gears on the highway with them. I did not track the MPG on that run but it did go down a bit.

One thing to note. At least on the Rubicon it appears that the front axles include the Mojave cast iron steering knuckles and not the standard aluminum which explains the increased GAWR listed for the front. I have not compared the frame to check where the Mojave has strengthening yet though to see if they share a frame as well.

Have you noticed if the steering box is aluminum and if this maybe an issue where we need to chase the dealer on the tsb?

 

[Schreconjeep]

Not aluminum. I believe this is the same as the Mojave setup.

 

[Odubi]

Not aluminum. I believe this is the same as the Mojave setup.

That is great news

 

[Advguy]

Picked up mine today! Overland model (highway tires).
Drove about 110 miles on country and highway. Ride is quiet. 70 mph under 2000 rpm's. I averaged over 25 mpg. Did not struggle on hills, didn't lose momentum. Just powered through easily. Can't say the same for my '20 Tacoma or '20 Ridgeline (yes, this is my 3rd truck this year). I mostly listen to audiobooks and could hear the narration fine. Uconnect works better than Toyota, Audi, Volvo, and Honda.

I agree the engine will be noisier as it breaks in but the Audi Q5 diesel I had got noisier but the cabin stayed quiet. I expect the Jeep to be similar.

Steering is soft. Seats are okay (wish I could put my wife's Volvo seats in it!). It was 80 degrees today, i found i had to raise the temp from my usual 67 degrees to 72 and lower the fan.. it had no problem keeping the cabin cool. I have the hard top headliner and they improved the rear ceiling (now 1-piece all the way across).

I want to do a 2" lift, larger tires, spacers, and track bar. My offroad driving is mainly getting into trailheads on gravel & washed out roads so i don't need the heavy duty offroad gear.

I can see the auto start/stop being a pain in the butt. It really has no need to default on. Rear slider window should be electric too. Forward trail cam is cool.

 

[beaujlarson]

Mine was ordered on 7/8 but missed the truck so I didn't get it until 9/30. It had to sit and watch as @Schreconjeep picked his up. I have about 400 miles on it so far, mostly highway but I did have to drive into the swamp (DC) last week. Here are my first impressions:

Default on for Auto start stop needs to go. It is the worst thing in traffic. It is on my list to look into with AlfaOBD (along with integrated trailer TPMS from Ram HDs [and brake controller if the hardware ever releases], more to come...).

I find it is actually a bit louder than my Grand Cherokee was (gen2 ecoDiesel) with a bit more of an intake growl. There are some new noises with the gen3 engine I did notice (coolant re-circulation pump for the turbo on shutdown?). I have no doubt the diesel clatter will become more apparent as the miles go up. My gen2 had a pretty good diesel clatter at 110k and was dead silent when new. They do loosen up over time (and the MPG seemed to improve).

Since I was coming from another 3.0 ecoDiesel the power/dynamics of that engine/transmission pair were very familiar. Less turbo lag on this one. GDE tune will make this even better. Power was bit surprising on a 'wrangler' platform to get that kind of torque. Gearing seems to be well matched holding well at highway speeds even under load. Shifts are so smooth though you really have to pay attention to monitor it particularly with windows down/top off. I have not put enough miles on in consistent conditions to really get a good number on MPG but it appears to be solidly in the mid 20s for my daily use.

First thing I did to mine was to put air bags on the rear to tow. I have a leveling kit but have not had the time to get that in. That will have to happen this weekend to get the 35s on Monday.

Yesterday I towed my trailer for the first time to relocate it (about 5800-5900lb at the time) with the bags at 30psi and a blue ox hitch. I had zero movement in the rear suspension when the weight was let off the trailer jack. It was a very windy day (25-30mph gusts) yet it towed great over about 70 miles of mostly flat terrain but I did take it across the Chesapeake Bay bridge which is around a 4% grade for a couple miles up to the center of the span. Plenty of power, no strain on the engine and temps didn't budge although it was only 75 out (off-road gauges page is really handy for towing). It will be better once I get my E rated 35s and I don't think there will be any problems holding gears on the highway with them. I did not track the MPG on that run but it did go down a bit.

One thing to note. At least on the Rubicon it appears that the front axles include the Mojave cast iron steering knuckles and not the standard aluminum which explains the increased GAWR listed for the front. I have not compared the frame to check where the Mojave has strengthening yet though to see if they share a frame as well.

Awesome! FIrst review for me! really appreciate it! I ordered mine back in 07/17 and am still waiting for delivery Estimated dates are 10/09-10/23, so as of today anyday now. They pushed back a few times, so im hoping its not pushed back any longer. Rubicon ECO D Gladiator Sting Gray. Already bought Pro Comp 17' Prodigy Rims Flat Black and Nerf Side Steps. The only thing im concerned about is the ESS System. They arent terrible for Gas, but have not driven one for diesel - I feel like they would lag more than gas in traffic. That is definitely going to have to be shut off. Does anyone know if Disabling that with a TAZER mini going to void a warranty? thats the only thing throwing me worried.

 

[kclendaniel]

You shouldn’t have any issues changing things with the Tazer. Worst case is they re-flash your BCM back to factory settings and you have to make your changes yourself. I know everybody on these forums seems to like Tazer products but personally I would go with AlfaOBD because you can work on pretty much any FCA product with no limitations and can be used for general OBD diagnostics as well.

 

[kclendaniel]

One more thing I discovered today. There must be a difference in the bump stop on these diesel axels because the bolt provided by terraflex for the bump stop extension is too long. Had to swap it with a 1/2 inch shorter bolt but otherwise the kit installed just fine. 35x12.5 BFGs on Method Roost wheels. Now on to the winch.

 

[Schreconjeep]

One more thing I discovered today. There must be a difference in the bump stop on these diesel axels because the bolt provided by terraflex for the bump stop extension is too long. Had to swap it with a 1/2 inch shorter bolt but otherwise the kit installed just fine. 35x12.5 BFGs on Method Roost wheels. Now on to the winch.

Same here. I know it has the cast iron knuckles instead of aluminum. I emailed @TeraFlex and @Quadratec but haven’t heard back.

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