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Long road trips with JT

dickeldan

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Just wondering how comfortable the JT is for long drives. We generally go from KC back to Texas several times a year... About 10 hr drive. Just wife, myself and my 7yr old daughter. Currently have a 2013 f150 crew cab. Will be getting something new soon and trying to decide between Ram Rebel or Laramie vs JT Rubicon or Mojave.
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MR GRANITE

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Just wondering how comfortable the JT is for long drives. We generally go from KC back to Texas several times a year... About 10 hr drive. Just wife, myself and my 7yr old daughter. Currently have a 2013 f150 crew cab. Will be getting something new soon and trying to decide between Ram Rebel or Laramie vs JT Rubicon or Mojave.
I have a Mojave and a Ram 1500 Limited. 10 hour drive is going to be in the Ram.
 

Sparty

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It's all relative

I used to do 17.5 hours in a manual Chevy S10 without Cruise Control. My knee would swell a lot.

After that, I drove a Wrangler - night and day difference, but not nearly as nice as a sedan, or today's vehicles.

This Gladiator is leaps and bounds over the TJ Wrangler - but not as nice as a a Cadillac. It's all what you're used to and coming from.

I wouldn't think twice about driving 12hrs in this thing. I'd look forward to the trip.
 

Silvertruck

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My JT on 37 mud terrains with about 4 inches of lift is my daily and my tripper. Works great. Not gonna be in a hurry but it works good. We split time between it and our alfa romeo giulia ti and the truck gets the nod just as much.
 

ShadowsPapa

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Des Moines, Iowa to Fort Wayne, Indiana - easy trip, COMFORTABLE, roomy, my wife loves how our JT Overland rides.
I had Rubicon A/T tires and wheels on at the time (and it was still winter)
I personally feel it's more comfortable than my 2011 Silverado 1500 extended cab truck was. Had a small load in the back going to - car parts in the back coming home (only about 100 pounds)
Seats are comfortable and the truck rides great. It's among my favorite of all things I've owned for comfort. Only my Javelin seats beat how the JT sits for me.

I had planned on driving it Des Moines to Colorado Springs this summer but the event got cancelled due to the virus.
 

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Shackleton

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My longest trip so far has been 3 hours. I came from a 2013 Tundra and had the same concerns about long trip comfort. Based on the very small sample size I have so far I don’t think it will be an issue on a longer trip at all. In heavy wind it gets blown around a bit but that’s rare. I’ve found myself near 80mph without noticing. That’s a pretty good sign of a smooth ride. I’m single handed with my hand on the lower part of the wheel around 5 o’clock and it’s pretty comfortable with a casual grip on the wheel
 

Pescado

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Unless I need the JT I think I would choose my wife's CX-9 for a road trip. The JT isnt bad but its not the most comfortable IMO.
My last truck was a Hummer H2 and the front seats were probably the most comfortable I’ve ever sat in.
 

firehog

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I drive 2 1/2 hours to work and I’ve taken an 8 hour drive in my JT. While I thoroughly enjoy driving it, my 2020 Chevy Duramax 3500 is much more comfortable to drive. Buuuutttt.....the JT is way cooler and more fun to drive.
 

BAT

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Compared to my old Ram 1500 of course its not a close comparison for long drives but I have made multiple 6 hour one way and then 6 hours back drives with no problems and was perfectly comfortable. Plus with nice weather I put the soft top down and enjoy the outdoors . Mine is a bit squirrely when I get it up to higher highway speeds but will have them look at that when I bring it in for first oil change soon.
 

Gladiator Joe

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The JT is awesome. I drive it at every opportunity. Have already taken a couple trips from SC to TX (18 hrs) and it was fantastic. Kids comfortable in the back and me and my wife comfortable up front. Don’t sweat it.
 

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JCHGlad

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I’m a jeep guy, I’ve owned a ton of them...The Grand Cherokee is a very nice long distance cruiser, the wrangler/JT is a fun cruiser but if I was constantly covering long distances as you’ve described I’d look for something more suited imho.
 

Tapped_Out

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I think this conversation is much deeper than "how comfortable the interior of the Gladiator is for long distance trips?" A big area of focus needs to be how much energy and attention you're expanding to control the Gladiator on the highway vs. a vehicle made mostly just for that, like the pickups you're talking about. This is a you can't have your cake and eat it too conversation. Meaning, you can't make an off-road brute and expect it to behave in a civilized manner on the interstate. So in my opinion, the Gladiator, especially in the trim I have, the Mojave, is much more oriented/tilted to off-road use. In Wrangler language, if you want the city slicker with nicer manners, you get the Sahara, and if you want the noisy, off-road, aggressive brute that can climb rocks, you get the Rubicon. Or in my case, if you want to run desert roads at high speeds, you get the Mojave. The reviews says you'll literally destroy the suspension of a regular pickup if you even attempt to do what a Mojave can do.

Last, if you get a Gladiator that doesn't have the steering gear replaced yet (See TSB thread.), you're gonna be exhausted after a long road trip from fighting to control it at highway speeds. Even if you begin to do it, subconsciously, the mental effort going into constantly fighting the back and forth of the loose steering wheel play at center mass to keep the vehicle in your lane is freaking exhausting. I drive my new Mazda Miata at 60mph and I just rest my hand on the wheel it stays pointed in the direction I last pointed it in. On the other hand, our Gladiator requires constant steering corrections. Stupidity on Jeep's part, because I've driven Hummers in the military that are just as brutish and don't have the steering issues at all.

Oh, and you need to also compare how easy it is to climb in and out of the comparison vehicles. The Mojave is my 5' 4" wife's toy, but now she's expecting an elevator to be installed to get her in and out of it.

So that's my 7 am, two cents.
 

firehog

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“Tapped Out” is spot on. 100% agree. As far as steering goes, I can drive 90 mph with one finger on the wheel. I have the stock steering (no TSB upgrade), but I did install the Synergy sector brace. So, if your JT isn’t able to drive like mine then something is wrong and you need to make that change. I would start with the TSB upgrade. It sounds like it works and it’s free.
 

Twilightwheelin

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Its no question a ram is more comfortable, better seat, quieter, tracks better, more room.
Ive driven up to 8 hours in a JL and can say i was surprized how i was not fatigued .
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