TheRealElGis
Active Member
- First Name
- El Gis
- Joined
- May 4, 2020
- Threads
- 4
- Messages
- 30
- Reaction score
- 10
- Location
- California
- Vehicle(s)
- Gladiator Overland
- Occupation
- Sales
- Thread starter
- #16
this is exactly the type of feedback i am looking for. thank you much. And i didn't take any offense to what you were saying before, i was actually agreeing with it. I don't want anyone to think i am just looking for someone to come out and confirm something i was already going to do.I hope you don't feel like I was being negative towards you as your reply seemed a bit defensive. I was only trying to say that if you want to go new and can afford it, then why not do it...
It might be helpful if you gave us a real "list of mods" that you want to do. I think you've given mostly generalities making it a challenge for anyone to help you make comparisons, i.e. "several overlanding gear" or "tow capabilities".
What you have called out is (I may have missed some but I think I got the lion's share):
- 5-6" lift
- 37" or 40" tires
- several overlanding gear
- tow capabilities
- ability to run more energy to external sources like a computer etc
- additional aux system
- bedliner
- new rims
- tires
- lift
- potentially a different rack
- overlanding kit
- maybe even a shell
- a wrap
- bumpers
- side rails
#1 - 5-6" lift - Why? That is more of a mall crawling or rock crawling height. Since you've called out overlanding gear a couple of times, I will tell you that is too high for overlanding. The picture I shared is 2-1/2" lift with 37" tires; I'm 5'10" and I have to have two folding stools in the back that I to use to access things in the bed because it's that tall. The reason to lift a vehicle is so that you can put bigger tires under it so that you can get more ground clearance (or for looks). With a 2-1/2" lift you can easily get 35's under any Gladiator and if you put the highline fenders (like the Rubi has) or an aftermarket flat fender on, you should be able to do 37's. Another issue with 5-6"lift/40" tires is that your gas mileage, which already $ucks, is going to really drop. I averaged 14 mpg on my last 2 trips to Moab & Colorado with my lift & tires. So figure you will be less than that for sure.
Honestly, if I had just gotten different rear springs for my JTR (I wound up having customs springs made to handle the weight) then the stock JTR suspension with 35's would have been the way I should have gone. Hindsight is 20/20.
#2 - 37" or 40" tires - Why? Are you going to be rock crawling? I have 37s because I actually do crawl with my JTR about as much as I overland. The 37's help to improve my breakover angle even with the mpg penalty, BUT 35's would give me plenty of clearance on the ground. If you plan on doing light trail/forest service roads/etc. then go to 35's. Your gas mileage will be better, your drive train won't be as hard pressed and your overall weight won't suffer.
**BRIEF WEIGHT DISCUSSION** depending on what model you pick, your usable payload is only going to be around 1100#. Subtract from that your weight, passenger weight, full tank of gas, food, cooler, rack, ad infinitum and there really isn't a lot to play with there. If you go to 37's or 40's, then you have to leave one of those passengers at home or put them in another vehicle. I recently scaled my rig and am 200# over GVWR with a full loadout other than me and my wife (they wouldn't let us be in the vehicle while it was on the scale). Be mindful of all the add-ons eating into your payload capacity.
So, if you only go to 35's, you reserve payload, don't hurt your mpg as much, can be accommodated by any model using a moderate lift, etc.
#3 - several overlanding gear - Not sure what all you would include in this but one thing I would recommend getting is the Mopar Trail Rail System. A lot of cap/canopies/shells actually attach to this. My JTR did not come with this but I ordered and installed myself. Definitely add this option if you plan to use the bed for anything. Another nice option from an overlanding perspective is the power outlet option for the bed. Mine didn't come with this and it would have been nice. I've had to run my own wiring for my canopy and scene lighting but I could have tapped into this. If you'll give more insight to overlanding related gear, there are a lot of us on this forum that could get down to the nitty gritty on it more.
#4 - tow capabilities - what are you planning to tow? Remember, if you start adding a lot of weight with tires, overlanding gear, etc. you are now biting into your ability to tow effectively. As someone already said, you probably don't want to be towing with a 5-6" lift either. However, get the towing package on whatever model you get. Both the Rubicon and the Max Tow come with the heavier and wider axles that will give you a little more advantage on this. But the Rubicon has less payload and towing capacity as it has heavier components spread throughout the truck.
#5 - ability to run more energy to external sources like a computer etc - it really depends on what you are trying to actually accomplish here. I believe any model can get the option group that has a 110V outlet in the console, multiple USB chargers and the bed outlet option mentioned above extends some of that to the bed. If you are thinking more about powering a fridge and using solar, etc., then no model really comes with any options to support that. That is all aftermarket.
#6 - additional aux system - Not sure what you mean by this. If you mean the AUX switches on the main console then YES! YES! YES! But I believe that can be had on any model.
#7 - Bedliner - I think this is a preference thing. Initially, I was glad it came with my rig but now I wish it wasn't. Since I have a canopy and other things mounted in my bed, the bedliner makes it really hard to clean the bed. If I could hit it with the power washer it would be okay, but the way my build is it would be easier for me to clean the bed if it wasn't bedlined. What are you going to be doing with the bed?
#8 - potentially a different rack - I live in Arizona. It's nothing but dust here. All Day. Every Day. I decided to go with an Alu-Cab Canopy for security, environmental control and load carrying capacity for my Roof Top Tent. To each his own here and I don't mean to open up a debate about what is the best rack/shell/etc. Simply stated, I didn't want everything in my bed covered with dirt all the time so that I have to clean it when I want to use it. But this is not dependent on which model you get. I would recommend making sure that whatever you do get has the plastic bed rail caps.
#9 - a wrap - I have no perspective on this. Never used one. Thought about it for protecting the paint but here in AZ, the trails would destroy a wrap. Do you know what is soft in the desert? Not a darn thing!!!
#10 - Bumpers - I have Poison Spider bumpers, front and rear, on both of my JKUR's. I LOVE aftermarket bumpers!!! Gotta say though that the Mopar steel bumpers that come on the Rubicon are pretty darn nice. I took the wings off the front, added a winch plate, and I'd put it up against most bumpers in the aftermarket for both look and functionality. One thing to note here, going back to the weight discussion, IF you do go aftermarket for bumpers, give aluminum bumpers a serious look because you might recover some payload.
#11 - Side Rails - Are you looking for steps too? A lot on the market but I bought and installed TNT Customs Gladiator Adventure Series sliders for my JTR. I have them on one of my JKUR's and they are pure beef, have a good styling and MOST IMPORTANTLY are frame mounted. I have ACE Sliders on the other JKUR and they are not frame mounted; I actually bent my tub because of them. Only go FRAME MOUNTED!
With my diatribe compete (for now) LOL, I would summarize like this: since it sounds like you want overlanding and towing capabilities, you should consider the Max Tow with about all the options you can get, like bed outlet, aux switches, bedliner, bed cargo management. Put a reasonable lift/wheel/tire combo on it and get wheeling. Close second might be the Rubicon or Mojave because of their beefier drivetrains (over the Sport S). I went with the Rubicon because the lockers and T-case were important to me and my use case.
i just got back from the overland expo on the east coast and saw quite a few modifications.
i kick myself now for not adding the aux, the trail rail system for cab, etc
i didn't get a bedliner and now the cab gets scratched easily and such.
and i'm not glued to the 40inch tire/5-6 inch lift part. But, since that's the most, i just wouldn't want to go down the route of getting something that wouldn't accomodate it if i wanted to.
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