Older Guy Doing Research, With Questions

[Steamguy]

...I find it's easier to climb up into my vehicle, than climb up and out of it. I tend to use gravity a bit to help me fall out of my Jeep. I also use it to fall into my Outback and WRX. But when I have to climb, I much prefer climbing into a vehicle than out of it. So much easier to climb into a Jeep than out of a Subaru.

Thank you!
I found that the optimal "butt height" for easily getting into any truck is about 30-35" off the ground. For me. Getting out, hey, easy.

So that's the reason for asking about what the drivers seat height is off the ground. Yeah, I can manage a 2-step up, but it would be nice just to be able to plant a... 'cheek'... on the seat and slide in.

I liked my Subaru Legacy, but I couldn't drive it any more after one morning getting into it and getting a whiff of her scent. That brought back all those memories of trips to and from hospital. She didn't deserve the sickness that she had through her last few years, and I choose not to remember them. We had an epic love affair together, and I choose to remember all those wonderful moments together for our 46 1/2 years.

I'm an old sedan-racer at heart (had a '65 Barracuda), and the Subie would have been great, had it had about another 150 horsepower.

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[FloridaAussie]

Hey I am so sorry for your loss. I have only had 18 years with my lovely wife so far, and she had a cancer scare last year. It has made me think about mortality a lot and I am taking her to Italy in 2 weeks to make more memories.

Back to the Jeeps...I am 6' with a stock 2021 Rubicon. I did swap out the rock slider rail and installed budget side steps and it is as you say, I get my right cheek on the seat and swing/slide in. I picture the Dukes of Hazard sliding across the hood when I do this, so that adds to the excitement and thrill of driving the Jeep. Having the inbuilt grab handle on the A pillar is a huge assist too.

At the end of the day you'll get a lot of perspectives here to ponder, but the one that matters is yours when you go sliding your butt into those seats.

 

[Steamguy]

...At the end of the day you'll get a lot of perspectives here to ponder, but the one that matters is yours when you go sliding your butt into those seats.

Thank you!
(Laughing)

 

[bd100]

Hard to tell if you can get a low range transfer case, but if so you may want to look at a Dodge Durango, for step-in height. And look into whether you can get some LT tires for the wheels. Or some other SUV with a decent tow rating.

 

[professorkx]

I have more trouble getting into and out of my lower cars than our Jeeps with the steps.

100% true for me as well. I’m only 66 and still in pretty good shape, but I have artificial knees and one hip from racing National off-road on a motorcycle for several decades. I can get in and out of my lifted Gladiator so much easier than the corvette. I generally keep the top down on the corvette so it’s easier to get in and out, but still takes more effort than the Gladiator…but I’ll keep suffering through entry and exit.

 

[RHugg01]

Hi all. First, thanks for the warm welcomes.

I've been researching a Gladiator for my next vehicle (in a year or so), been scanning through the threads, and am asking for help with some questions.

My mobility isn't really great, but I am refusing to let this 'stuff' hold me back. Going to be doing more camping with my little Airstream, and the Gladiator is a good match, so far.

• I need to know what the seat height is for the driver's seating surface, as measured from the pavement (what we used to call step-in).
• I also need to know the distance is from the driver's seating surface to the inside of the door opening (head-banger or not kind of thing).
• And likely the most controversial - I need to know if anyone has successfully lowered a Gladiator (heresy, I know), and if you can add to the job with different wheels/tires.

I'm an old hotrodder, and one of the things we used to do is change sidewall height to lower the final-drive ratio., and change the width to turn up the handling -
I had a Grand Wagoneer ('Woody') with that 390 in it, and surprised a lot of people with how it would jump off the line with the wide 60-series tires on it. My late wife wasn't easy to scare, but I could get her yelling at me with the way 'Old Woody' could corner.

I had a (de-stickered) '90 Comanche 'Eliminator' with the 5-speed, and that was a great truck; I literally ran the wheels off it. Easy to embarrass a Ford Taurus SHO.

I won't talk much about the '72 Jeepster that I thought was a great buy, but turned out to be cursed...

Thanks so much for the help, folks!

SG

This doesn't solve your issue but It's great to see other people out there camping that are a bit older. I can't afford an Airstream but my little teardrop does just fine behind my Gladiator. At 78 am not too mobility restricted but I do have some heart and COPD issues that slow me down but, like you I refuse to quit. Keep going.

 

[professorkx]

This doesn't solve your issue but It's great to see other people out there camping that are a bit older. I can't afford an Airstream but my little teardrop does just fine behind my Gladiator. At 78 am not too mobility restricted but I do have some heart and COPD issues that slow me down but, like you I refuse to quit. Keep going.

I completely agree, it’s nice seeing folks that are a little older continuing to enjoy the great outdoors.

I just retired at 66, and my first big post-retirement trip is next week when I ride/camp on my KTM 690 adventure bike about 1,000 miles from the Arizona border to the Idaho border on the Utah Back Country Discovery Route. I’ve always had a tight schedule because of my profession, so these types of trips were hard to schedule.…not anymore now that I am retired. Lot’s more adventures on my list, a lot of which include doing all of the BDR routes in the Gladiator with my wife of 45 years.

 

[Grumpy_Guy]

Hi all. First, thanks for the warm welcomes.

I've been researching a Gladiator for my next vehicle (in a year or so), been scanning through the threads, and am asking for help with some questions.

My mobility isn't really great, but I am refusing to let this 'stuff' hold me back. Going to be doing more camping with my little Airstream, and the Gladiator is a good match, so far.

• I need to know what the seat height is for the driver's seating surface, as measured from the pavement (what we used to call step-in).
• I also need to know the distance is from the driver's seating surface to the inside of the door opening (head-banger or not kind of thing).
• And likely the most controversial - I need to know if anyone has successfully lowered a Gladiator (heresy, I know), and if you can add to the job with different wheels/tires.

I'm an old hotrodder, and one of the things we used to do is change sidewall height to lower the final-drive ratio., and change the width to turn up the handling -
I had a Grand Wagoneer ('Woody') with that 390 in it, and surprised a lot of people with how it would jump off the line with the wide 60-series tires on it. My late wife wasn't easy to scare, but I could get her yelling at me with the way 'Old Woody' could corner.

I had a (de-stickered) '90 Comanche 'Eliminator' with the 5-speed, and that was a great truck; I literally ran the wheels off it. Easy to embarrass a Ford Taurus SHO.

I won't talk much about the '72 Jeepster that I thought was a great buy, but turned out to be cursed...

Thanks so much for the help, folks!

SG

Steam

Hi all. First, thanks for the warm welcomes.

I've been researching a Gladiator for my next vehicle (in a year or so), been scanning through the threads, and am asking for help with some questions.

My mobility isn't really great, but I am refusing to let this 'stuff' hold me back. Going to be doing more camping with my little Airstream, and the Gladiator is a good match, so far.

• I need to know what the seat height is for the driver's seating surface, as measured from the pavement (what we used to call step-in).
• I also need to know the distance is from the driver's seating surface to the inside of the door opening (head-banger or not kind of thing).
• And likely the most controversial - I need to know if anyone has successfully lowered a Gladiator (heresy, I know), and if you can add to the job with different wheels/tires.

I'm an old hotrodder, and one of the things we used to do is change sidewall height to lower the final-drive ratio., and change the width to turn up the handling -
I had a Grand Wagoneer ('Woody') with that 390 in it, and surprised a lot of people with how it would jump off the line with the wide 60-series tires on it. My late wife wasn't easy to scare, but I could get her yelling at me with the way 'Old Woody' could corner.

I had a (de-stickered) '90 Comanche 'Eliminator' with the 5-speed, and that was a great truck; I literally ran the wheels off it. Easy to embarrass a Ford Taurus SHO.

I won't talk much about the '72 Jeepster that I thought was a great buy, but turned out to be cursed...

Thanks so much for the help, folks!

SG

Steamguy,
I’m on my second Gladiator (5th Jeep). My first was a ‘21 Willys with the diesel. I took it to Alaska with my rescued, mixed-breed, oversized, Chihuahua on a 14,000 mile journey. It had 58,000 miles when I traded it because of my concerns about delays to correct the HPFP failure issue. I towed a Casita that was 3000 lbs empty Using an Andersen WD hitch. The casita was narrow and not too high. It was a great tow and not a strain, I went through Arizona and Nevada in July without over heating and the fridge in my Casita performed great.
I got 17 mpg over the entire trip.
I now have a ‘23 sport with the 3.6 And 8 speed automatic.
Both my Gladiators had an ARE cap to cover my tools, spare parts, generator, extra fuel (5 gallon cans) fishing gear, etc.
I added step rails to get in but I generally swung one foot in and just stepped up to enter. I’ll be 80 in a few months. Both knees have had torn meniscus surgery and my left knee had total replacement 3 years ago. With the step rails and the factory hand grip I was able to get in/out with no major discomfort.
An Airstream Bambi 16RB is 3150 lbs empty with a hitch weight of 475 lbs. I prefer to tow a modest weight and not approach the upper limits. Pulling a larger Airsteam could be challenging.
good luck and best wishes for safe travel.

 

[NC_Overland]

You should see me getting in and out of my Nismo. Have to put my butt in first. Then my head after, and swing my feet in last. To get out. I basically fall out head first.

Our Z32 is so low. I sound like an old man getting in an out of it sometimes. Lol.

 

[WestwallNF104A]

I hear you there! Years ago, I had a 4WD Dodge 3500 dually with the long bed. Trying to load stuff into the bed made me feel like a little kid, because the tailgate was at my chest!
Although it was a great truck, it had a turning radius similar to the USS Saratoga...

HEY! The Sara was a sportscar compared to the Nimitz!!!!

 

[markh53]

I really enjoy my Rubicon, and (like most folks posting here) find that ingress/egress is easier than in a more "vertically challenged" vehicle. And that's after having both hips replaced and both knees replaced over the last few years. (I remain grateful that the hospitals back in Maryland, where I lived at the time, had really deep spare parts bins!)

As an aside. I found that leather seats -- as opposed to grippy cloth -- help quite a bit in the "ingress slide-in"...

My wife and I still do some relatively mild off-roading, which makes the Rubicon great. And we go camping frequently -- we have a 20' Airstream Bambi (single-axle trailer), use a decent weight-distributing hitch / anti-sway setup, and "Willy" handles the trailer fine. YMMV - we live in East Tennessee, and we like camping in the Blue Ridge and the Smokies, but the Gladiator never has to face anything like the long, steep grades in the Rockies. Willy wouldn't like that, for sure.

Enjoy!!!

This doesn't solve your issue but It's great to see other people out there camping that are a bit older. I can't afford an Airstream but my little teardrop does just fine behind my Gladiator. At 78 am not too mobility restricted but I do have some heart and COPD issues that slow me down but, like you I refuse to quit. Keep going.

 

[Flyboy2109]

Thank you!
I found that the optimal "butt height" for easily getting into any truck is about 30-35" off the ground. For me. Getting out, hey, easy.

So that's the reason for asking about what the drivers seat height is off the ground. Yeah, I can manage a 2-step up, but it would be nice just to be able to plant a... 'cheek'... on the seat and slide in.

I liked my Subaru Legacy, but I couldn't drive it any more after one morning getting into it and getting a whiff of her scent. That brought back all those memories of trips to and from hospital. She didn't deserve the sickness that she had through her last few years, and I choose not to remember them. We had an epic love affair together, and I choose to remember all those wonderful moments together for our 46 1/2 years.

I'm an old sedan-racer at heart (had a '65 Barracuda), and the Subie would have been great, had it had about another 150 horsepower.

Thumbs up! I had '65 Barracuda, slant six, offenhauser manifold, Carter 4 bbl carb, three on the tree. Great car, indestructible. Sold it with 279,000 ish miles on it. Had to tell that story!

Since I am here, I bought a Sport S. Well featured and without features I did not need. I'm 70 and my butt slides right in at seat level (I'm 6'1") Still, as the others say...go check one at the dealer for sure, Mine has running boards, I like them and they don't interfere with me getting in and out.

If you want a good stereo you are SOL. I was so disappointed that I couldn't get a CD player as stock equipment. Just a stupid AUX input for an after market "Walkman" or I could go to the car audio store and have one installed under the back seat with a remote. And a lot of car audio places just laugh that you still want a CD player. Guess that 'dates' me. Heck, I hated when I couldn't get the sound track to "Great Balls of Fire" on vinyl!

 

[Wags1965]

On my 2025 JTR stock

Step in height garage floor to seat middle of the seat base 35”
Head clearance to rollbar 31”

 

[Janster]

Late to the party……

I will say…I love our 2024 Mojave. ……..Exiting the jeep is tight.
I traded a 2016 GMC Canyon for the Mojave. Between the two…. The JT doors are shorter and (I think) the hinge is further forward of the steering wheel position.
Depending on how tall or short you are and where you’re seat & steering wheel positions are…..makes for an interesting exiting process. Again, compared to what I’m used to in the Canyon.

I’m 5’5” …. and what I thought was normal seating positions for me…..I’ve had to adjust (and get used to) having the seat fully down, the steering wheel fully away from me….in order to give myself more room to exit. My seat is probably further forward because of my height. When I exit, I have to slide perpendicular to the seat and get both legs out at once. My poor seat bolsters are gonna be shot after a while. .

You really need to go to the dealership and jump in a few of them to get a better feel for the seating / entering and exiting. That’s the only way you’re going to know. Don’t buy one site unseen…A Test drive is a must!!

 

[Steamguy]

On my 2025 JTR stock

Step in height garage floor to seat middle of the seat base 35”
Head clearance to rollbar 31”

Much appreciated!

I've always joked that "I musta been made from spare parts", because I have short legs and a really long back.

But when I'm ready, FOR-SURE I will do an extended test drive. I had to be super-sure before I bought my Hornet. The "kid" salesman who went with me on the test drive wasn't real sure what to think of this old sedan-racer guy.

Flyboy, those 'slam-sixes' always sounded wicked when wound up and surprised the heck out of a lot of people! My '65 had the 273 with the big Stromberg 2-barrel that meant no wait for secondaries, 4-speed, and the PO had swapped in a 3.91 Sure-Grip.

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