Why I'm picking the Gladiator.

[DailyMoparGuy]

I’ve always loved Xterra's. I’ve only ever driven one once when I was a teenager and I fell in love with it. It was too expensive for me though. Such a solid, well built vehicle.

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[Killroy Was Here]

Is the 4H Auto transfer case available with the manual? I don’t know, but that transfer case is worth its weight in gold in my opinion.

Pretty sure the Selec-Trac 4H Auto transfer case is only available with the automatic transmission.

 

[AstroZombie]

BECAUSE IT'S AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and a Nissan, Tacoma, Colorado will all look funny with the top off. I think the Sports look goofy with the baby fender flares though.

 

[J-GriffsGlad]

Excellent synopsis. I will note your intuition on the 4:10 gears is correct. I drove about 10 Gladiators before I purchased and my God, the difference between the 3.73 and the 4.10 is stunning IMO. I thought the 3.73 gearing was dogshit. 4.10 just hums along, no racecar but plenty of oomph!

 

[Iamstubb]

The pentastar is a good engine. The cracked head issue was in the early year production back in 2011-2012. It was tracked to a manufacturing error as I recall. I have a 2012 Charger Pentastar A8 that is still rolling at 270k. Engine and tranny have been solid. These are the first HP trannys. The rest of the car will fall apart around it. It is developing the rocker tick. I am debating fixing it or swapping out a new long block, because, as you said, there are millions of those around and they can be had for cheap. I like it so much I bought a '21 with same powertrain. I have a JTR M6 and I really enjoy rowing gears. I don't tow (yet) so I can't comment on that. The motor runs higher RPM than the Pent/A8 I but this has a ton of headroom and you don't have to fear stepping on it. 1.5 years in and I still love it. Towing capacity would be the only point to consider, otherwise its a great overall package.

 

[chesafreak]

My list:

- Removable top

End List

But curious on your thoughts of the new transmission in the Nissans as I'm currently in the Midsize three row hunt. Really like the redesign of the Pathfinder as all the others look like minivans to my wife. Had hopes of the switch from the CVT to the ZF trans and have not got out to test drive it yet.

 

[Jteakus]

My list was a little longer with solid axles, 4:1, and a diesel engine.
JT really is in a class by itself.

 

[Aught-6]

Excellent write up, thanks for the time you put into that. Mine is shorter:

Honda: Minivan with a bed. pass

Ranger: Feels 10 years past due for a major update. I share your feelings on the turbo.

Tacoma TRD Pro: Unicorn. They don't exist or at least you can't find one to buy. Love my OR but it's also feeling due for an update and likely will get a small turbo motor in 2024.

Nissan: Sat in one but didn't drive it. Seems competitive at least but overall felt like it was trying too hard. Too similar to the Toyota.

Chevy: No thanks. I swore never again after my 98 K1500

Jeep: My current front runner. A little worried about reliability (stop/start issues, electronic gremlins), bad headlights, The thing that kills the JT is the price. It was expensive three years ago when I bought the Toyota but prices are skyrocketing. It's hard to justify $62 for a midsize pickup with no safety tech. Waiting to see what changes the 2024 has.

F150: I'll add that both the length, and price put the JT in competition with the F!50 for me. This is probably not the place to say that but it's hard to pass up the comfort, power, size, towing, size, safety tech, etc. of the F150. I still want a Gladiator, that's why I'm here, but it's overpriced in my opinion and it will take the right deal to get me into one.

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

Excellent write up, thanks for the time you put into that. Mine is shorter:

Honda: Minivan with a bed. pass

Ranger: Feels 10 years past due for a major update. I share your feelings on the turbo.

Tacoma TRD Pro: Unicorn. They don't exist or at least you can't find one to buy. Love my OR but it's also feeling due for an update and likely will get a small turbo motor in 2024.

Nissan: Sat in one but didn't drive it. Seems competitive at least but overall felt like it was trying too hard. Too similar to the Toyota.

Chevy: No thanks. I swore never again after my 98 K1500

Jeep: My current front runner. A little worried about reliability (stop/start issues, electronic gremlins), bad headlights, The thing that kills the JT is the price. It was expensive three years ago when I bought the Toyota but prices are skyrocketing. It's hard to justify $62 for a midsize pickup with no safety tech. Waiting to see what changes the 2024 has.

F150: I'll add that both the length, and price put the JT in competition with the F!50 for me. This is probably not the place to say that but it's hard to pass up the comfort, power, size, towing, size, safety tech, etc. of the F150. I still want a Gladiator, that's why I'm here, but it's overpriced in my opinion and it will take the right deal to get me into one.

Overpriced, maybe. But if it is, then so is every other midsize truck. The Gladiator is the only midsize with a solid front axle, removable top, and removable doors. Whether or not that warrants a premium price I guess is up for debate, but exclusive features are definitely worth something.

Im just over two years into owning my Sport S JT, and I can tell you there isn’t a single midsize truck on the market that I’d even think about trading in for. I’m sure the feeling would only intensify if I had a Rubicon model. I’m not a Ranger or Tacoma hater, I actually really like those vehicles, but they are not the same experience.

The Ram Rebel is the only half ton I could see myself trading in for…even then, that’s if my fiancé pops out kids soon. It’s more likely that I’d go straight to a Power Wagon or HD Tremor…again that’s IF I had a strong itch to trade up. Half tons have lost their allure almost entirely to me.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Overpriced, maybe. But if it is, then so is every other midsize truck. The Gladiator is the only midsize with a solid front axle, removable top, and removable doors. Whether or not that warrants a premium price I guess is up for debate, but exclusive features are definitely worth something.

Im just over two years into owning my Sport S JT, and I can tell you there isn’t a single midsize truck on the market that I’d even think about trading in for. I’m sure feeling would only intensify if I had a Rubicon model. I’m not a Ranger or Tacoma hater, I actually really like those vehicles, but they are not the same experience.

The Ram Rebel is the only half ton I could see myself trading in for…even then, that’s if my fiancé pops out kids soon. It’s more likely that I’d go straight to a Power Wagon or HD Tremor…again that’s IF I had a strong itch to trade up. Half tons have lost their allure almost entirely to me.

Very well said. I don’t even consider other mid sized trucks to be in the same market. To me, this is a wrangler with a bed, that tows 7,000lbs in the case of my ‘21 rubicon. It’s in a class all its own. Mine will never be traded. It will someday not be my daily I’d guess, but a Jeep of some kind always will be.

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

Very well said. I don’t even consider other mid sized trucks to be in the same market. To me, this is a wrangler with a bed, that tows 7,000lbs in the case of my ‘21 rubicon. It’s in a class all its own. Mine will never be traded. It will someday not be my daily I’d guess, but a Jeep of some kind always will be.

Yup that’s my thought as well - class of its own. It would take a lot for me to get rid of my JT. I’m almost 100% sure I’d regret it in some way too.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Yup that’s my thought as well - class of its own. It would take a lot for me to get rid of my JT. I’m almost 100% sure I’d regret it in some way too.

No question. I’ve sold vehicles I shouldn’t have, not again.

 

[Chaos Theory]

Coming from a Chevy Colorado Z71 diesel... The Mojave manual drives just as nice (Mmm... that suspension...) on the highway, the Mojave seat hugs you better (sorry Rubicon, it's true) and you have a damn capable off-road monster. I miss the torque of the 2.8 diesel, though. Everything else is an improvement.

Looks? It's amazing how your own tastes change. 6 years ago, my Colorado was sexy. Now, big clunky Jeeps look sexy. Ultimate bug-out vehicle. Or the mall. I guess whatever.

 

[JeepCode4]

I'm new to the forum and currently looking for a JT to replace my 17 year old 204,000+ mile Nissan Xterra. I thought I might share my assessment of the Midsize truck segment and why I've decided to buy a JT.

The competitors:

Honda Ridgeline: I mean, it's a Honda. It also has best-in-class payload and good towing; unfortunately, it's lightly built and not intended for anything harder than a gravel road, so it's out. I never drove this because it was never in the running.

Ford Ranger FX4: I have a friend with a Ranger, the interior is decent on the surface and it's comfortable. The engine pulls hard and the transmission is fine. I'm not a fan of turbos since I tend to keep my vehicles for a long time and a lot of miles, it's an extra point of failure. I would prefer an understressed NA motor than a high compression small displacement motor being pushed to the limit all the time. I also have concerns about the transmission, having had problems with Ford transmissions in the past. Both the engine and transmission have been having reliability issues. I'm also not convinced the interior is going to hold up to abuse as well as my old Nissan, which after nearly 20 years of hard off road abuse and countless miles of washboard roads still is free of squeaks and rattles. Our Taurus was already rattling inside with a quarter of those miles on smooth pavement.

Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro: There are some actual problems with the Toyota, but the biggest issue is I physically don't fit in the driver's seat. Well, I can, but not comfortably and not for very long. It also has a miserable payload of only 900 lb and the frame is flexy as hell and riveted rather than welded together. It is available with a manual transmission, which is a big plus. Worst seating position in the class for me. Comes from the factory with a rear locker. Seating position aside, my main issues with the Toyota are the chassis. The back half of the truck is c-channel rather than being fully boxed like every other truck on the market; the Tacoma has notable frame flex (you can actually see it if you fully articulate the truck). I think this will be a problem down the road because the back end of the frame is riveted to the front boxed section. This will allow for play, but if (when) the sealant they goop on there breaks down, water, salt, and dirt will get in and start sanding that joint to bare metal. That will mean frame rust and eventual failure.

Nissan Frontier Pro-4X: The new Nissan Frontier has the looks. I mean, dayum it's a good looking truck. It also has the most power in the class at 310 bhp; unfortunately that sweetheart of an engine is mated to a disappointing 9-speed automatic that never seems to know where it wants to be. The manu-matic mode is more of a suggestion to the transmission that it might please consider, when convenient, swapping some cogs around. The infotainment is also frustrating and not intuitive. I've been pretty opposed to screens in my vehicles, preferring physical switches - but if I have to interact with a screen I don't want it to be infuriating. No manual option on the transmission, unfortunately. Seating position was comfortable and the seats were above average - but Nissan removed some of the height adjustment on the driver's seat, I had less thigh support than my current Nissan. Rear locker is standard. The interior quality also seems lacking, Nissan is having financial problems and I can feel it when using switches and buttons, they felt cheaper and less solid than my Xterra. They also use those printed switches where the black wears off after 30,000 miles and starts to show the base translucent white underneath.

Chevrolet Colorado ZR2: Best ride in the class, hands down. The chassis is solid, the power is there and it will easily spin the rear on dry pavement if you aren't careful with the throttle. The engine, however, is notorious for timing chain tensioner and guide issues (usually $3,000+ to repair and the problem will come back), the fancy-ass shocks are proprietary and connected to the computer, so who knows what a shock rebuild or replacement would cost and the interior quality is what I would have expected in the 1990s. The 50k truck we tried out already had switches with notable wear through the markings to the white plastic below. The back seat is nearly unusable for a human with my seat in the right position and the seating position was not comfortable. No manual, but dual lockers.

Jeep Gladiator Rubicon: Comfortable seating position and excellent seats, but the dash feels closer and higher than other trucks. The rear seat could actually fit a second Sasquatch with my driver's seat set where I liked it. The engine delivered adequate power, the Butt Dyno says it had more power than my Xterra - and it does by about 15 BHP; not a road-burner, but no slouch either. The Jeep interior was the best of the contenders with superior fit and finish (that may be a brand new sentence). All the switchgear felt solid without any wobbles, the wheel was meaty and felt very nice to hold - pretty much every "interface point" was better than the competition. The Infotainment system, a consistent sore-spot in the reviews, was intuitive, easy to navigate, and had great functionality for off road use. The Rubicon has locking front and rear diffs, and a front swaybar remote-disconnect. The ride was surprisingly good, but I can see the complaints of it being sprung too soft for load carrying and towing. Also, it's long. Like really long. Nearly full-size truck levels of "long" here and still with a 5" bed. On the up side, you can get one in a manual, although they are hard to find. Finally, the cost. Holy shit on a stick, the Gladiator is expensive - $60,000+ for a midsize truck! But hey, you can take the roof and doors off.

Why the Gladiator?

The smart money should be on the Frontier, but I got into it and felt very "meh" - just an overwhelming sense of "sameness" despite it being a new truck. The transmission just killed it for me. I hated it, even my wife in the passenger seat hated it and she got frustrated with navigating the screen almost immediately.

The Jeep is not without flaws, the long wheelbase and overall length are detriments, but I really liked being in it. I liked looking at it. Say what you will about Jeep, they know how to make emotional and fun cars. The Jeep's 8-speed automatic was the best of the ones I drove and it's a common transmission used in a ton of vehicles; but it also has a 6-speed manual option. Although the manual is maligned in the press for being a bad fit with the Pentastar 3.6, I just didn't get that impression. Maybe it's the 4.10 diff gearing in the Rubicon that made the difference, but the shifting was light, quick, and felt very nice once I got used to not having the X-terra's heavy clutch underfoot.

The Pentastar 3.6 has been criticized for cracked heads, roller bearing failures, and cooling issues. You can also wreck the oil filter housing if you're a ham-fisted ape with the socket wrench. The engine's failure rate is actually quite low, 0.5% to 1% at the peak of the cylinder head crack issues - but when you have made over 10 million of those engines, that 0.5% ends up being a higher number. From what I've read, the engine has had several revisions and retrofit roller bearings have been available for some time - which of course were also used in production to address the problem. The cracking heads doesn't seem to be an issue in later-production engines either.

The comfort, interior quality, overall design, and the emotional X-factor sold me on the Gladiator. It's a truck that feels fun above all else.

Hopefully I can post soon with a new-to-me JT Rubicon.

im pretty sure I agree with you 100% on just about everything. Love my gladiator

 

[Sweetums]

I guess I missed the post with the competition. Which one of those others has a solid front axle? ?

?

I used to be a solid-front purist until I bought the Xterra. They are two different tools for two different jobs, I don't think one is better or worse than the other; they just have different strengths and weaknesses.

The way I built my Xterra I can blast across the open Utah desert at freeway-speeds and cruise over washboard in quiet comfort while feeling in total control. Solid axle setups struggle with that type of driving, but excel at articulation in the hard technical stuff.

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