Trim Levels, is it worth it?

[CJ5w4wdSmokyOnMyTail]

I have been doing nearly 2 months of research at this point on which trim to buy on a Gladiator I plan on getting as soon as I move in a few weeks.

I am up between the Overland trim and the Mojave trim. My end game build with this is to be able to run 35's with a modest 2.5-3.5" lift, and do some weekend warrior overlanding with a rooftop tent or maybe pull a small camper eventually but still daily drive it to work.

If I go with the overland I'll obviously feel more pressured to lift and put 35's on it ASAP, plus I'll likely opt for the leather seats + 8.5" radio package.

With the Mojave, the stock 33's and small 1" lift might hold me over since it's more "off-road capable" right out the gate, and lead me to getting a tent earlier and some lights. But it'll be the cloth interior and probably not the upgraded radio.

It seems the Sport S Max Tow is in general the option for people wanting to do their own mods/lift/etc, but that option isn't available in all the dealerships near me and I'd prefer to drive something off the lot. So ultimately, people who have bought less "loaded" Rubicons/Mojave/etc, if you could redo it, would you have gone with a nicer interior/creature comfort options package and just done the bigger tires/lift yourself? Note: I know people end up probably going Rubicon for the gears, but outside of that...

Gears MATTER! If you want to run 35s, the 4:10 gears are better. I struggled with trim options, too. The gears (and the suspension system for over landing) led me to the Mojave. Then I ordered leather seats from leatherseats.com to customize the interior (along with matching leather center console cover and arm rests). It is way easier (for me, anyway) to add those creature comforts than to change the gears. What you get out-of-the-box on the Mojave is hard to add later. Awesome suspension, stronger frame and axles, etc. Good luck on your decision.

Sponsored

 

[49Gramps]

Had an '06 LJ that I did the rock crawling thing in for almost 15 years, so this time I was looking for more creature comforts. I went for the Overland. And yes, it won't stay stock for long. In the next month or two I'll be doing the 1 1/2" front spacer, Rock Slide step sliders and Artec skids. I know at some point I'll probably go bigger tires (wheels, re-gear, air locker RCVs, who knows?), bumper and winch. Not in a rush, just looking to make it a bit more capable when I wander off the beaten path....

 

[DocMike]

It's a weird thing for sure. I have the JKS Disconnects. Working out the bugs on them. I know a wrench does the same thing...but that switch seems too easy.

I wish I had done that - I thought about it and then talked myself out of it trying to save money. Then later my wife asks "well, why didn't you get that if you want it?" I should know by now......... Always take her vehicle shopping and you'll get more than you would have otherwise.

 

[aldo98229]

It seems it would be a shame to buy a Mojave since you would get rid of the stock suspension when you give it a lift.

 

[Sekgunnut]

There is no need for a lift on Mojave with 35” tires. Tons of people have done it.

 

[eternus]

I have been doing nearly 2 months of research at this point on which trim to buy on a Gladiator I plan on getting as soon as I move in a few weeks.

I am up between the Overland trim and the Mojave trim. My end game build with this is to be able to run 35's with a modest 2.5-3.5" lift, and do some weekend warrior overlanding with a rooftop tent or maybe pull a small camper eventually but still daily drive it to work.

If I go with the overland I'll obviously feel more pressured to lift and put 35's on it ASAP, plus I'll likely opt for the leather seats + 8.5" radio package.

With the Mojave, the stock 33's and small 1" lift might hold me over since it's more "off-road capable" right out the gate, and lead me to getting a tent earlier and some lights. But it'll be the cloth interior and probably not the upgraded radio.

It seems the Sport S Max Tow is in general the option for people wanting to do their own mods/lift/etc, but that option isn't available in all the dealerships near me and I'd prefer to drive something off the lot. So ultimately, people who have bought less "loaded" Rubicons/Mojave/etc, if you could redo it, would you have gone with a nicer interior/creature comfort options package and just done the bigger tires/lift yourself? Note: I know people end up probably going Rubicon for the gears, but outside of that...

Lets be clear, the Overland is still very off-road capable. The trick that Jeep has done is create this illusion that one truck is vastly superior to another. You could get the Overland, find some Rubicon/Mojave take off wheels and that'll get you as close as you need for a while. If you buy the Mojave with a plan to put a 2.5"+ lift on it then you'll be spending plenty of money needlessly. The Overland for your weekend overlanding is actually just fine... don't let marketing and the upgrade lust from seeing everyone's built rigs change your vision.

For me (i know, you didn't ask) I went with a Sport (yah, Max Tow... everyone likes to hate when you call that out) and put Rubicon parts on it from Craigslist. It took me 2 hours and now I have as much of a Rubicon as I'd ever want anyway. I thought about the Mojave, but for the $5k difference I plan to add the Teraflex piggyback shocks and Synergy springs up front. I only plan to add 1.5" of lift so I don't have to worry about changing out factory geometry. I'll still be $2500 ahead of the game with my Rubicon wheels/tires. The Teraflex Piggyback shocks are actually better than the Mojave anyway. The only thing I'd like from the Mojave at this point is the reinforced frame, but that's just because I live in the modern Internet age where we think everything needs to be over-built

 

[UtahJeepGuy]

It seems it would be a shame to buy a Mojave since you would get rid of the stock suspension when you give it a lift.

It seems I can fit 35's with the stock suspension, so I'm not sure I would need it. That was my main reason for wanting to change out the suspension.

On the contrary, the whole squatting with any kind of weight in the bed is a little worrying. Considering I would like to add a decent amount of payload with overlanding it.

 

[UtahJeepGuy]

Lets be clear, the Overland is still very off-road capable. The trick that Jeep has done is create this illusion that one truck is vastly superior to another. You could get the Overland, find some Rubicon/Mojave take off wheels and that'll get you as close as you need for a while. If you buy the Mojave with a plan to put a 2.5"+ lift on it then you'll be spending plenty of money needlessly. The Overland for your weekend overlanding is actually just fine... don't let marketing and the upgrade lust from seeing everyone's built rigs change your vision.

For me (i know, you didn't ask) I went with a Sport (yah, Max Tow... everyone likes to hate when you call that out) and put Rubicon parts on it from Craigslist. It took me 2 hours and now I have as much of a Rubicon as I'd ever want anyway. I thought about the Mojave, but for the $5k difference I plan to add the Teraflex piggyback shocks and Synergy springs up front. I only plan to add 1.5" of lift so I don't have to worry about changing out factory geometry. I'll still be $2500 ahead of the game with my Rubicon wheels/tires and the shocks are actually better than the Mojave anyway. The only thing I'd like from the Mojave at this point is the reinforced frame, but that's just because I live in the modern Internet age where we think everything needs to be over-built

If I had a dealer near me with a max tow I would probably go that route...unfortunately it seems to be more of an ordering thing and I don't have the time to wait on it.

I'm leaning towards the mojave, but as someone else said it has a squatting problem (albeit can be fixed with cheap air lifts)...idk if that's a permanent solution. I guess I could always change out the rear springs if it became a huge issue...but then again if I'm going to do that I might as well get the overland lol. It's an endless circle of pros and cons, hopefully when I go to buy I can figure out what is going to be best for me.

 

[RE383209]

I did a sport s eco diesel, with the 8.4, I have kids and the plug ins in the back also come with the 8.4 package so if your traveling with passengers that’s was super important to me plus my wife has that screen in here Pacifica and it’s tough to get use to the 7 once you have a bigger screen

 

[CJ5w4wdSmokyOnMyTail]

Rubicon wheels/tires and the shocks are actually better than the Mojave anyway.

Hmmm...why are the Rubi shocks better than the Mojave shocks?

 

[eternus]

Hmmm...why are the Rubi shocks better than the Mojave shocks?

I don't think that, i must have typed that wrong. I don't like the rubicon shocks... they're "meh" at best and I'm moving from them to the Teraflex... which I do think are better. I think Mojave shocks are better than Rubicon, I think that Teraflex SP2.2 Piggyback are better than Mojave. (I thought I wrote Teraflex, maybe I didn't... i'll go fix.)

 

[Sekgunnut]

Owned both and not nickels worth of difference. Mojave rides better, rubicon will most likely get over a bigger obstacle. Tires are the same exact tires and wheels on Mojave look ? better.?

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I don't think that, i must have typed that wrong. I don't like the rubicon shocks... they're "meh" at best and I'm moving from them to the Teraflex... which I do think are better. I think Mojave shocks are better than Rubicon, I think that Teraflex SP2.2 Piggyback are better than Mojave. (I thought I wrote Teraflex, maybe I didn't... i'll go fix.)

I put Rubicon Fox "take-off" shocks on my Overland late last summer - now they resemble the Overland shocks in how they behave. In other words, there's a certain amount of bounce to them. If a customer brought a car to me to check out the suspension and shocks, I'd advise them that their shocks were getting weak. They should go down and come back up and then settle, mine give at least one extra bounce now.

After several months, I'd rate the Fox Rubicon shocks marginally better than the stock Overland shocks. When I first put them on it was a night and day difference. Now, not so much.

 

[eternus]

I put Rubicon Fox "take-off" shocks on my Overland late last summer - now they resemble the Overland shocks in how they behave. In other words, there's a certain amount of bounce to them. If a customer brought a car to me to check out the suspension and shocks, I'd advise them that their shocks were getting weak. They should go down and come back up and then settle, mine give at least one extra bounce now.

After several months, I'd rate the Fox Rubicon shocks marginally better than the stock Overland shocks. When I first put them on it was a night and day difference. Now, not so much.

I'm having the same results. I am disgruntled with Jeep at this point that I have to go spend all this money aftermarket to make the thing drive worth a damn. A $40k+ vehicle really should have top notch suspension for the primary use case (roads/highways) and it should last longer than a year.

 

[CJ5w4wdSmokyOnMyTail]

I'm having the same results. I am disgruntled with Jeep at this point that I have to go spend all this money aftermarket to make the thing drive worth a damn. A $40k+ vehicle really should have top notch suspension for the primary use case (roads/highways) and it should last longer than a year.

Before I bought my JT, I knew nothing about shocks. When I started reading up a bit on shocks, it seemed that Fox has a great reputation in the industry and in the off road community. So is Fox a company that has always been vastly overrated? Or did Fox cheapen their normal shock quality to meet a price point for Jeep?

Sponsored