Needing some suggestions/recommendations.

[Coldjensens]

We finally found our Gladiator! (Probably). We should close the deal tomorrow and pick it up then or Monday.

It is a 2021 (of course because we only wanted Snazzberry - or maybe Earl, but Earl is too hard to find and too new/expensive). Mojave. 37500 miles. $35400. This is a good price for the year and mileage from what we have found. Also it is only 25 miles from our house which is nice. It is at a ford dealership and Blue Certified used vehicle, which gives us a short warranty. (90 days 4000 miles).

It has every option imaginable including everything we even remotely wanted and lots of things we did not necessarily want, but do not mind. Some important options, plus a few little things that I kind of wanted even though it may be silly or at least does not seem very popular (front trail camera, inverter outlet in the bed, locking storage box under the back seat, LED lights).

It has a clean carfax with records of regular maintenance. It drives the same as any other gladiator that I have driven (5 test drives). Tires are in good shape. No inappropriate noises.

It does not have a winch/winch bumper which I will want to add and no rack. Several of the other Gladiators we were watching/looking at did have. But in both cases that will allow me to select exactly what we want instead of what is already there.

Funny thing (to me): They had the same thought I did which was that it might be nice to have both the hard top and a soft top. However I came here and learned that it is not real practical to switch them back and forth, and with the removable T tops in the hard top, it is not hugely different from a convertible. The original owner apparently had the same thought as me, but figured out that it is impractical after they bought it. The soft top is still in the box in its original packaging sitting in the bed of the truck. I will have to decide ether to try installing the soft top for summer use, or just trade it, or sell it, for other items I want to add (like a winch/bumper and a rack). I am not sure whether it will still fit having been in a box for over three years. Does an untouched in the box mopar soft top have any market value?

Ford also offers a Ford Premium Care warranty. Normally used car warranties are a complete rip off. The exception sometimes is for manufacturer provided warranties (not from an insurance company). This would be $3000 for 3 years 18000 miles. It seems a bit steep, especially since 3 months 4000 miles is already covered by the Certified Blue warranty that comes with the Jeep. Supposedly, the average repair cost for a 2021 gladiator is $789 per year. Of course an average means some people had to replace an engine, and some only needed a new headlight. But taking that average for three years is a likely cost of $2367 over 3 years - less than the cost of the warranty. Does the $789 per year figure make sense to you long term gladiator owners?

In the list of options is a "wireless bluetooth speaker." Is that something that is loose so it can be moved around outside or is it attached? If it is loose, it is gone. If it is still there, where would it be?Not a big deal, just curious.

It has a mopar tri fold hard tonneau cover. I have only ever had soft roll up covers. if you open the cover one or two folds, can you sit on the folded part (eg to sit in the bed and watch fireworks, a sunset, or look at the stars?)

We will want a rack that goes over the roof and bed to hold a kayak. Does anyone know of such a rack that will work with the Mopar tonneau cover?

This Gladiator had about $20K in options. (68,000 sticker when new). This shows something important for car buyers. Jeeps generally hold their value very well. Options do not. $20K in options really adds very little resale value to this gladiator compared to less optioned gladiators.

Also we noticed in the months of search for a used Snazzberry Mojave - although they hold value pretty well generally, they sell very very slowly. Most of the ones we have been watching at various dealerships have been in the market for 45 - 90 days. One even 8 months. I think only one of the ones we have been watching has sold. And we have been looking since November. Most of them were already long on the market when we found them.

So anyway, now we can start learning to actually fit into your Forum and the jeep subculture. I am going to take an off road driving class at a (sort of) nearby track/course. I have gone on fire roads in the natioanl forests and through some mud and snow in my RAM pick up, but not serious off roading adventure. I want to learn how to get unstuck, before I go get stuck. I guess I should also get some ducks. Plus now I can get in on our towns annual Jeep Christmas parade with Santa. We are pretty excited.

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[Thunderspud]

Snazzberry was on the extremely short list of colors (two to be exact, Gobi was the other) I had decided were mandatory when I bought the current truck. Historically, I always seemed to end up with some various shade of red with all the other Chrysler/Dodge/FCA products I have had.

Congratz

 

[Gvsukids]

Is that something that is loose so it can be moved around outside or is it attached?

Loose. Might not have been left behind passenger rear seat.

 

[Gvsukids]

Does anyone know of such a rack that will work with the Mopar tonneau cover?

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...works-with-mopar-roll-up-tonneau-cover.64600/

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...ions-that-work-with-hard-tonneau-cover.53496/

 

[Hunter#1]

When I bought my 2012 Jeep Liberty , it was a lease turn in the Ford dealer bought. It was clean as a pin and had all the service records. But I still wanted an extended warranty, I bought one at cost. It was the f Ford warranty. It was worth it . I didn't have many problems with the Liberty, but water pump, and door locks were replaced at just my 100 buck deductable. The nice thing is that the Ford dealer didn't want to work on Jeeps ao the sent me to the Jeep dealer , and Ford always paid for any repairs. Always buy the extended warranty from a car manufacturer, never off the T.V.adds. Good luck with your Glad, she sounds nice.

 

[Coldjensens]

I found the speaker, thank you all. I was surprised that it does not work with the radio, only with my phone. Still it has decent sound quality.

After studying the sticker that was in the glove box I am amused by this original purchase. They simply checked every box for every option. Must have been a kid and daddy said get anything you want. They bought it in an upper class DC suburb. They chose things like an engine block heater (gas engine and Virginia does not get cold anyway). They chose every 4x4 option, but it clearly has never been off road. They chose the dual top option and never took the soft top out of the box. They paid for things like the windshield strap, locking lug nuts and slush mats and never used them (the first two are still in their packaging). there are some other things still in their package inthe under-seat boxes that I have not figured out what they are for. I wish that they would have selected fabric seats - I like them a lot better, but the leather trimmed vinyl seats are ok.

Now i am looking for the button to turn off the stop start system. Also I am amused by the camera washer for the front trail camera. It is a good idea conceptually, but I wonder how long it will last.

Like every Gladiator we looked at, the bag for the tops is gone. Any suggestions for an alternate or where to get a replacement bag that works? For now we will just buy a moving blanket at Harbor freight and use that.

I am still on the fence about whether to install the soft top for the summer or sell it if we can. It looks really ugly when it is open, but I have always been a convertible freak. Also the back panel and window remaining up is kind of dumb. At least you can roll the window up and let air through.

Does anyone have the dual top option? Do you switch back and forth?

I think we will experiment with just opening the panels and occasionally removing the hard top entirely and see if that meets the "convertible truck" desire. I guess you need to stay near your base if you remove the hard top entirely. If it rains or snows when you have the top off, things could get ruined if the top is far away.

 

[Dhstec]

My 2021 Rubicon has been extremely reliable other than the paint bubbling on the hood edge, which is a common issue on almost all Gladiators. It also has been driven on multiple long trips and I find it as comfortable if not more comfortable than my 17 GC Trailhawk was. It now has 30K miles on it.

The critical aritcles rely on bad press for clicks, they almost never research in depth and CR's ratings are flawed from the start as they only sample their subscribers.

You can get the hood fixed by jeep. They have a 10 year corrosion warranty. It is a hassale and they make you jump through hoops. However I just got a new hood and tailgate on their dime.

 

[Stan H]

HI;

After looking at and then for a Gladiator for years, we are getting ready to buy one, possibly this week. We will be new to Jeeping and Gladiators. Our experience is limited to having ridden in Jeeps a dozen times and driving one off road four or five times.

Yes we already understand they are not real comfortable or proficient at street driving and not really long distance freeway vehicles. We are mostly getting a Gladiator for exploring, wilderness, cruising topless, and short local sightseeing trips or errands.

We are looking at a 2021 Gladiator Mojave. Salvage title, but we are comfortable with its condition and history assuming it is a very good price. Looking at prices for 2021 Mojaves, they seem to range from $36,000 to $45,000 with no discernable reason for the price difference. The one we are looking at has very low miles but a lot of them have low miles. Is there a "Normal" more defined price range for an unmodified 2021 Mojave? Is "normal" closer to one end of that scale or the other?

I did find the 2021 Gladiator listed as the worst year Gladiator to buy on a website. This was apparently based on statistics for repairs. It makes sense because it would have been built during 2020 when everything in the USA was in shambles and workers were spread really thin, parts were hard to come by etc. Statistical reporting is not always the most accurate way to evaluate things, but it is a starting point. Anyone know whether the 2021 models are generally worse than other years? Reputation? Experience? Worked in the factory? IN the RV community it is a well known maxim - "Never ever buy any RV made during 2020" Did jeeps experience the same massive quality decline dur to Covid?

The tops of the doors and the window surrounds are black to match the hard top. It looks nice, but I have never seen this before. Was this an option? Is it a common mod?

We will eventually tow the Gladiator behind an RV where we will live full time or nearly full time. We plan to get a rack for two Kayaks on top of the Gladiator and put two E-bikes in the back. Any recommendations for a type of rack that can support two kayaks while traveling at speed? Is there any kind of stand or rack to put in the bed to make it easier to carry bicycles in the bed? We would prefer the kayak rack to be removable, or at least low so we do not have clearnce issues with trees when not carrying the kayaks.

Is anyone familiar with the Blue Ox towing system? Will we need to replace the front bumper to use it? I plan to get a winch and I may as well replace the bumper while installing the winch, if I am going to have to do it anyway.

I have done a little off roading in my 4x4 pick up recently, and long ago with a friend in his jeep, but I am certainly not experienced or knowledgeable, other than I know that is is really fun. Is there a good place to learn how to do things properly, avoiding getting stuck, getting over trees or rocks properly, the right way to winch, how to help other people get unstuck, etc? Is there like a jeep school or something?

My insurance company quoted the gladiator at $272 per month. Our five other cars only cost $500 per month and two are full coverage plus one is valued higher than the gladiator. I expected the Gladiator to cost a little more than other cars, but this is a huge difference. Is that a normal cost for insurance on these?

My wife is the director at a library. The have small rubber ducks that they give away at various municipal events. Whenever I see a Jeep it seems to have dozens of those small rubber ducks on the dash. How many Rubber ducks do we need for proper Jeeping?

Any other suggestions or comments, things we may want to know?

Thank you.

Dont buy a savage title you will regret it go buy certified used .
The Rubber Duck thing only started in 2021 by some woman who was trying to be nice and you must be joking . Good grief

 

[Coldjensens]

Dont buy a savage title you will regret it go buy certified used .
The Rubber Duck thing only started in 2021 by some woman who was trying to be nice and you must be joking . Good grief

We did not buy the salvage title due to the insurance issue. Also they said their was no damage due to the theft, but the Mojave decal is gone from the hood. We found one at a Ford Dealer near us for about $3K more than the salvage title one and with more options. This one is funny, because they chose every available option including an engine block hear (gas engine and the car was purchased in an upscale Virginia suburb of Washington DC.)

We are really happy with it so far, and my wife has a nice collection of ducks. I just got her a Beetlejuice duck and she has a Donald Trump, a Roman soldier bath duck from the Roman bath in bath (England), and some other usual ducks from a collection that i bought for her so she can leave them on other jeeps. Right now my wife drives the jeep daily because her car is down (and the mechanic who is the only person who can fix it under the warranty he gave us, is also down). She has yet to get a duck or leave one, but she was excited to get a couple of waves. I think the ducks and the waves are cute, but I am really more interest in driving the jeep. We went on a middling length trip (about 3.5 hours each way) and drove on some roads that you would not drive on in a sedan). It was more comfortable and handled considerably better than I expected and the difference in how it handles really nasty roads is striking. Even compared to my RAM. The ride is nowhere near as smooth as the RAM (it uses airbags) and not even close on acceleration, but the Jeep is really fun to drive, especially over rough terrain. I am excited to get it off road.

We are planning a trip to silver lake dunes and eventually Jeep adventure academy. I am working on selecting a front bumper to hold a winch. Choosing a winch was easy, but the bumper is harder. I really like the aluminum Rock Hard 4x4 bumper but it does not accommodate the front skid plate and the built in skid place does not wrap the shock reservoir like the stock one does. I am trying to find out how difficult it is to modify the factory skid plate to make it work with the rock hard 4x4 bumper, or to find an equivalent aluminum bumper that will accommodate the existing skid plate.

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