Why not buy a full size truck for the same price?

[ArmyMP]

I have a 2018 F-250 Super Duty and continue to use to haul the fifth wheel. The gladiator was an exchange of toys for me. 25 years on Harleys and it just got to crazy around the Baltimore area. Was able to deal on trading the HD for the Gladiator. So no regrets (well may be some on these early nice spring days) buy mostly none, same deal when as with HD’s in endless customizing and money spent.

I have a 99 7.3 F350 dually as well.

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[JoeInOh]

Love Jeeps ...

Want a convertible...

Need a truck...

Way over-priced...

YOLO...

 

[Orangecrush03]

I traded my 2020 Gladiator because I was having electrical issues on a 2019 Raptor. I absolutely loved the Raptor.

Having said that, I traded the Raptor a year later in on a 2021 Gladiator. You know why? Because I can take the doors off. May seem stupid but come summer, my doors are off... can't do that with the Raptor.

 

[cdyoung9799]

I traded my 2020 Gladiator because I was having electrical issues on a 2019 Raptor. I absolutely loved the Raptor.

Having said that, I traded the Raptor a year later in on a 2021 Gladiator. You know why? Because I can take the doors off. May seem stupid but come summer, my doors are off... can't do that with the Raptor.

I know a couple of guys that can get those Raptor doors off. Just sayin'..............

 

[ZoMojave]

I am still trying to figure this out. I am on my 5th Wrangler and I get the fun of top off and doors off and wheeling. I live in Colorado, one of the best off road places around! My last truck was a JLU Rubicon. I was very interested in the JT, particularly when I heard about the towing capacity. But as I do my price shopping I have hit the wall. Basing pricing assumptions on the JL gets us pretty close to guess what this truck will sell for. Optioned well it just isn't gonna be less than 50k, and probably several thousand more. A Sahara optioned well is north of $52,000.

And yet, the new redesigned half ton full size trucks with much more capability from the big three are all about the same price, or even cheaper, including the off road equipped with factory 2" suspension lift trucks like the 2019 Silverado which I just "build and priced" at around $56k MSRP. I am not thrilled about a full size truck as a daily driver, its hard to park, costly to insure, poor visibility etc. But after looking around I am fast losing interest in the JT. Maybe I will buy a used JL for the DD and the full size truck for towing. much as I hated the idea of buying two new vehicles. (I have an '01 Silverado 2500HD with the 8.1L (yes, 8.1!) that gets around 7 mpg towing a 5000 lb trailer).

Help me out boys and girls, I just don't get Jeep's justifying the pricing of these. They are mid-sized trucks priced like full size in my view.

When someone lays out their hard earned cash on a vehicle like this, practicality and "get more for the money" attitude goes by the wayside.

At least for me it did. I had a wonderful two and a half year old Ram Laramie 1500 but decided a mid-size truck is all I need. I traded UP to a 2022 Mojo.

More than just another mid-size truck. An experience. (and I didn't get paid to say that!)

 

[MikeyK]

Traded 12 JK Rubicon with 60k miles, got a fantastic trade ($4500 more than first offer two years ago), got another Jeep with 0 miles, and I now have way more room for way more completely unnecessary fly fishing equipment!

Win win if you ask me ??

 

[Rahkmalla]

If I was picking purely off price I'd have a TRD off road loaded with the Toyota lift. It'd be almost 10k cheaper than my mojave with cloth seats that I gotta lift and put leather in myself. Better resale too.

But I'm buying for fun. Fun costs money.

As for full size... The gladiator and the taco are the only manual trucks. And I don't haul often and never tow. My choices before deciding were wrangler, bronco, Tacoma, and gladiator.

Another 10 years and I won't be able to find a manual anywhere. Gotta get one while I still can.

 

[JoeInOh]

If I was picking purely off price I'd have a TRD off road loaded with the Toyota lift. It'd be almost 10k cheaper than my mojave with cloth seats that I gotta lift and put leather in myself. Better resale too.

But I'm buying for fun. Fun costs money.

As for full size... The gladiator and the taco are the only manual trucks. And I don't haul often and never tow. My choices before deciding were wrangler, bronco, Tacoma, and gladiator.

Another 10 years and I won't be able to find a manual anywhere. Gotta get one while I still can.

I'm not certain the Taco has better resale than a Gladiator. I'm winding down the the lease on my Tacoma and planing to buy it out to re-sell in this crazy market. The Gladiator used market is crazy. (Of course this may be regional).

I can tell you one thing, I'll be happy getting my kids into a usable backseat. My 12 y o daughter cannot sit behind me in our double cab. And I look forward to not whacking my head when getting in it.

 

[endurojeep]

I'm not certain the Taco has better resale than a Gladiator. I'm winding down the the lease on my Tacoma and planing to buy it out to re-sell in this crazy market. The Gladiator used market is crazy. (Of course this may be regional).

I can tell you one thing, I'll be happy getting my kids into a usable backseat. My 12 y o daughter cannot sit behind me in our double cab. And I look forward to not whacking my head when getting in it.

I have to agree with you here. When I traded my 2020 Gladiator I got 2000 less than original sticker on trade with 30k miles and some trail pinstriping a small dent and the fenders gutted

 

[Wyojeep]

To answer your question: My Jeep Gladiator makes me happy.

 

[endurojeep]

And now it is listed at sticker price $51888

 

[chorky]

They are mid-sized trucks priced like full size in my view.

midsize is exactly what I wanted. I honestly have no true need to tow more than 5K on a regular basis, and in honesty even 3K on a regular basis is not likely. I do have a need for a physically smaller and lighter vehicle. Sure the price is obnoxious, but so is everything else these days, especially houses. In the first half of my driving life I have had big trucks, fast cars, economy cars, plush cars, small trucks, etc... My old '90 Ranger was the best vehicle that met all my needs while not going overboard on any particular aspect. I see my JTR now as the same thing but many steps above. It will do anything and everything I actually 'need' for the next half of my driving life until I am old enough to require some type of comfy 4 door sedan to get groceries and go to the park.

I think a lot of people get caught up in assumed need for either super fast cars or super big and bold trucks when the reality is both of those extremes are rarely ever truly needed. The older I get and the more broken down my body becomes the more I enjoy and relish a small pickup that is still SUPER capable.

 

[Pedal Metal]

The best answer I have is an abstract one. In fact, this conversation somewhat reminds me of when I bought my first Leatherman AND learned about the Leatherman story. At that time, Leatherman still held the primary patent on the knife / pliers multi-tool market, and they were pricy compared to a regular knife, pliers, screwdriver, scissors, Swiss Army knife, etc. However, I can’t tell you how many times I found a need for that handy, compact and transformable tool. Oh, and did I mention that it was a handy, compact and transformable tool? Anyways, I never understood why they were seeming so much more expensive until I learned the inventor’s story and the cost associated with small scale production. As I recall, the inventor was inspired to create a compact pliers multi-tool after having had his bicycle break down on a trail and being stranded without tools. Once he fabricated a prototype, he tried bring his tool to market for likeminded outdoor enthusiast, but all the manufacturers slammed the door in his face because ’there wasn’t a need for a tool with collapsible pliers, a knife, screwdriver, etc.; and oh btw, it seemed too similar to the Swiss Army knife‘. So, the guy supposedly built his company from the ground up and even though people knew that they could buy a cheaper pair of pliers, scissors, knife, etc.; the convenience of having them all in one tool was worth the extra cost. As for cost, well typically lower batch sizes have fewer economies of scale, so it would stand to reason that a company that makes 10 times the pliers as compared to a Leatherman would likely be ably to make them at a lower comparable unit cost. Likewise, it‘s easy to understand that a larger truck production batch could streamline cost compared to a more limited production batch such as the Gladiator truck which is really a speciality vehicle that fits within a unique market segment.

Fast forward to today, Leatherman‘s initial patent has expired and now cheap as well as quality copies and some improvements have flooded the market. So, I could have waited the maybe 25+ years to have gotten a cheaper model, but looking back on all the times that I enjoyed having the right tool for the job I’d have to say that I got a great value for my purchase.

That’s all.

 

[1996XJ]

Im so stupid i went ahead and ordered my second gladiator a week ago.

 

[WhyNotJeep]

I bought a new JTR loaded and I will be doing some mods to it,,,, BECAUSE,,, I am going to run out of time before I run out of money. No wife, no kids, don't drink or gamble. It's not like I am blowing money I don't have.

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