I’ve owned 6 Jeep’s and rebuilt three of them in my time. No stranger to them. Got some thoughts about trading in my ‘15 Toyota 4Runner on a newer model Jeep Gladiator. It’ll be my truck for general around the town use - range trips, 2x4 for home projects, loan it to the kids if they need a longer open bed for transport. From Anyone who owns a Gladiator, or drives one, I would like to hear your thoughts and experiences with the model. Good , bad, are they worth the price?
Thanks in advance.

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"Your other right........."

I'd keep the Toyota. A great vehicle and paid for to boot. Especially in this market. I need to buy a couple of vehicles but am holding off simply because the market is so crazy right now. I'm looking at 2 year old Suburbans with 75,000 miles with asking prices of north of 50k and I just ain't gonna bite

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Forum consigliere

Jeep’s seem to be the only brand with vehicles on dealer lots around here.

I was out the other day looking for an RDX. Not a new one anywhere at the two Acura dealers I visited.

One dealer, on the showroom floor, had a used Ford Expedition and used Jeep. Weird times when a new car dealer has other brands of used cars in its showroom.

The Jeep dealer down the road had a bunch ready to go in the lot.

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Sure you did

Stay with the Toyota, paid for and the milage is probably better. One of our range officers needed a new car for his wife. He traded in his Gladiator and was able to get two new sedans. The payments for both new cars were less than the payment for the Jeep.

I keep my 2002 F-150 for "working" and range details.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

Keep the Toy for sure. I live in an area that has always been well populated with trucks. I have seen exactly one Gladiator on the road since their release. Even before the current covid car/truck shortage Gladiators were way too expensive for what you get.
Remember the "get rid of the clunker" program a few years back? We could sure use a few of them now.

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SOS USA

I'd stay with the Toyota. My neighbor has a Galdiator that has given him trouble from day one - mostly electrical issues. As much as I love the (older) Jeep brand, I'd not want to depend on one as my only truck.

First, no vehicle can compete with the Toyota's dependability, period.
However, the Jeep is an iconic vehicle and isn't bought for it's dependability, you know what I mean since you're a fellow Jeep owner.
I have a friend that has a Gladiator and loves it!
fwiw, I have a 97 TJ that's been completely restored by me and's my daily driver.
Get the Jeep!

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

After owning 3 Grand Cherokee Jeeps I can say with experience the following:

They are costly to run as they get terrible gas milage.
They were troublesome and breakdowns did occur shortly after purchase
They did not ride as well as comparable vehicles of other brands
They were a bit too narrow for my liking
Storage in the rear was less than I would have liked


While I have not owned one in 10 years and they might have improved in certain areas, they still have a terrible repair record, still get horrible gas milage and friends tell me they still are not that reliable.

My current SUV is a 2016 GMC Yukon SLT and it has been spectacular for the 5 + years I've owned it. The only issue I've ever had with it was the GPS antenna failed - repaired under warranty. To me, it is way better than any of the Jeeps I've owned. All that said - I have never owned a Gladiator model - but still a Jeep.

Hideously ugly with all the standard jeep drawbacks (except cargo space I guess). My GF rented one when she was thinking of replacing her wrangler, thankfully she wound up wising up about the price and all. Keep the 4runner.

The last Jeep that I owned was a full sized Jeep Wagoneer. I liked it as it road better than my old slab-sided Bronco. The gas mileage was 10 MPG on the highway. It could go most anywhere, but when you got it stuck you were screwed. I did once and needed a 4 wheel drive farm tractor to get it out. Loved it as it was a beast, nothing like the little Cherokees they sell and have sold for years. When I sold it, I was glad.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

For us poor folk, all new cars/trucks are about double in price over what
they should be. The best vehicle on the road is, one that is paid for and
will get you from point A to point B.

Jeeps are very popular in OK. It seems like every tenth car you see is a Jeep Wrangler 4 door and I'm seeing a lot of Gladiators and its very popular to trick them out with lift kits and big wheels and fancy add-ons. Very few look like they ever go off road. When I bought my Ram pickup in 2018 I was looking at the Gladiators and they were a little small for my needs and they had starting prices of around 60 grand. I bought my Ram Quad Cab for less than half that because they had a big sale and it was 10 grand under sticker price.

I would keep the Toyota over buying a Jeep. That's just me. I own two 4Runner's. A 2011 and a 2018

Anything that says “ JEEP “ is poor quality.
Look up the repair histories in Consumer Reports.
Black circles all over the place.

Ugliest truck on 4 tires.

My current go into town ride is a 1998 Jeep Wrangler. The most recent of many Jeep’s I’ve owned. I’m a fan. I would but the new pickup from Jeep except for the extremely high price. Last year we shopped for a new pickup, checked out the offerings from Jeep, Ford, GM and ended up replacing our Old Toyota Tacoma with a new model. Our choice was driven by price and the pure reliability we’ve experienced with our Tacoma’s. But again, I’d try one if I could afford it.

The old Willys jeeps were good, the AMC jeeps got great V-8 power and the Chrysler jeeps get all the worst reviews. I have gun club friends that can't get rid of theirs because the dealers can't sell them and won't take them on trade without scalping and raping. Keep the Toyota and buy an old Jeep pickup, You know, like 1960.

Cajunlawyer:

Our newest vehicle is a 1999 Suburban K2500. It is a 3/4 ton vehicle with 254,000 miles. I'll let you have it for half the price those Suburbans you've been looking at. It has a 454 Vortex engine, and other than the fron seats upholstery ( leather) it looks and runs like new (at least most of the time - there is an intermittent miss I have been tracking down for months) Think about it - King of the Road for only $25,000.00.

OOPs - Jeep content: We bought hew a 1986 Jeep Cherokee with the "big" engine. It was the last year of the V-6 and after trying to pull a travel trailer up the Canajo grade in California, I understood why they dumped that engine. Cosmetically, there were no problems, and it was a good go to the market car. We sold it in 1993 to a guy who lived in Romayer, Texas, and was I glad to see it go. Pretty car, but an underpowered pig. We only had 3 incidents requiring a tow. The first was about a week after we ought it. I was driving to work on the 405 Freeway, and just about the Irvine "Y". the alternator just fell off. enormous clatter and banging, but no real damage. Dealer picked it up, and fixed it ok. Next time, I was just starting home, and a loud clatter came fropm the engine. This time the harmonic balancer came apart. Limped in to our favorite service place, and they fixed it in about 3 days - delay in getting parts. Next failure - the intake manifold started leaking very seriously. It was aluminum against cast iron cylinder heads so it could have been used as a battery-galvani9c corrosion. This one took almost 3 weeks because he supply of manifolds had been used up and the fix-it shop resorter to welding it up and then machining the surfaces. They added a gasket where the manifold came to the heads and block rather than rely on gasket seal to do the job. No further problems, but I wish we had waited another model year to get the 4 liter inline engin. Oh well, live and learn

JEEP. Just Empty Every Pocket.

I think that the value vs. cost on the Gladiator is not worth it.

And that's not even considering the questionable reliability.

Keep your cash and your Toyota.

JMHO YMMV

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BTDT, Got The T-Shirt

We have had 3 Toyota 4 Runners in our family. They were/are all great vehicles, dependable, reliable and only needing routine maintenance. I would not trade a 4 Runner for any kind of Jeep.

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Can my S&W Mdl 10 shoot +P

One of the big motoring mags, Car and Driver or Motortrend, had a Gladiator as a long-term vehicle. It was an unmitigated disaster. Stick with your Toyota or go see the new Nissan Frontier.

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Release the Kraken

I had my share of Jeeps, my first new car for my use was a 1995 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I liked the 4.0 straight six, nice and smooth, it seemed to have good ground clearance and the quadra track worked better than the earlier chain driven stuff. It got terrible fuel mileage, had enough power to tow a fishing boat at freeway speeds, etc. I got my first Toyota Highlander in 2005, never looked back or wished for the Jeep. Better mileage, more power and far superior off road capability with a slight edge to the Jeep for ground clearance, Four Runners are on a truck chassis and have better ground clearance than Highlanders. I bought my second Highlander in 2019, its even better than the first and actually gets better mileage with more power, I could sell these things...they sell themselves, great road manners and more room than the earlier models. I will say that my 1967 Toyota Land Cruiser was hands down the very best off road vehicle I ever owned, comfortable, great ground clearance, tons of torque, great drive train that was basically older G.M. stuff converted to metric, heater in the rear for the kids. Sucked on the highway and didn't have much highway towing power, better than a 1985 Jeep Cherokee with the anemic GM 2.8 V-6. That was the worst four wheel drive vehicle I ever owned, you couldn't catch me with the title for one if you were chasing me with it.

I'll have to agree with most of the sentiment here on Jeeps.
JEEP = Just Empty Every Pocket is the old saying, but...
How can you NOT get excited when you hop into something like this and take off down the road?
Some time's, it just doesn't matter how much it costs.

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

Looks like them Duke boys are at it again...oh wait.

The 4Runner is likely superior in every sense; other then, the fun factor when you go off roading. I'm middle aged now and don't do that too often these days...other then deer hunting. Perhaps pick a price point and work from there. I looked at new Jeeps a few years ago and thought they were basic, unless you pony up a lot for modifications. Being closer to 40 then 25, not for me anymore.

I suppose it is a bit of good timing and luck. Try to find something that's comfortable and be open to brand (prior advice, kindly disregard...). I was sure I was going to get an Audi Q7...started reading up on it, test drove, and ended up buying a different SUV. GMC Sierra was the last new truck around 2016 (?), was nothing but headaches...but other people have had good luck. Who knows.

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Rather be outdoors

03hemi, that's a Jeep. Although it's missing some important details, like rust, dents, deep scratches and mis-fit tires, it would do in a crunch. That would be my holy grail Wrangler.
Jeep lost my dedication when they refused to listen to Jeep owner's request to bring back the Scrambler. If they brought back the Scrambler today, I still wouldn't want a Fiat product.

I've owned two Jeeps, a J-20 and a full-size Cherokee. Both sucked up more money than a boat called Titanic. Never again will that brand park in my driveway.

Member at the deer lease has a new Jeep Gladiator.
Drove it to go fetch some ice....kinda small for me
@ 6'3" & 235lbs.

Sold this one to the kid across the street this year.
He is doing about everything you can do to one.
Lift kit, new hides etc...

When I would drive this puppy from the Island to the Piney Woods
I was plum stove-up for two hours.

Hmmm. Let's see if I'm understanding this. You're debating about whether or not to get rid of a perfectly reliable, paid-off vehicle that has had superior reviews and replace it with a new vehicle that will put you in debt and has a history of being a proverbial money pit. Did I get that right?

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Pack light and cinch tight.

I'd never give up a 4Runner for a Gladiator.

If ya just want/need a truck look at the Tacoma's. All the inside controls and stuff are just like the 4Runners. No learning curve.

Plus 4Runners are most CooL!

Plus real Jeeps don't have power windows and seats.

Thanks all for your inputs. After 30+ replies to my OP, I am getting the picture. Think I’ll stay with what I got……..

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"Your other right........."

Well old blue is a 1999 but she is only a half ton. Got 447,000 miles on her and she can tow the 19' Whaler os I'm good. I get 17 mpg on E10 what do you get with the 454???
My criteria for a vehicle is fairly simple-must be able to tow the Whaler, must have working airconditioner, working radio and must start when key is turned. Anything more is gravy

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Forum consigliere

Gladiator $60,000!! I'd run to a Mercedes dealer.

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John. SWCA #1586

Even with our kid's cousin being the GM at a Mercedes dealership, they couldn't get what they wanted, so today, they bought a new Subaru Outback Wilderness.
They've owned Jeeps, still have a late model Audi SUV and the Jeeps were not well loved.
They live in Colorado now.

I drive a 2003 E150 that is the main family fishing vehicle and was my last work van for my Marine Electronics business before retiring.
It's a keeper.
Just get some rest in the back and wait for the right tide.
Plus it transports the live bait and catch of the day between Broward/Miami and the house & boat in Key Largo... don't want to stink up the high end SUVs.

Toyota trucks always worked well for us.

The family GM, my nephew, said he would be a Admiralty Attorney when he was 12 and learning to sail on our little Herreshoff sloop. I guess ruthlessness is required for both.

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Have Fun/Stay Safe

My experience with a Gladiator was four days and about 800 miles.

I reserved a F-150 crewcab 4×4, it's not ready and the lot jockey isn't here BUT we have a brand new Gladiator for you instead.

It was a terrible experience in an under powered, noisy *** kind of way. Honestly for the same money I'd much rather have the F-150. After all, which part makes you think quality, the Fiat or the Chrysler?

Sent from my SM-G781U using Tapatalk

While I am a Jeep fan and not a Toyota fan by any means, I have to go with the majority on this one and say keep the Toyota over buying the very ugly, Jeep Gladiator.

If you need a real pickup for hauling stuff I would look at a Ram or other brand of your choice, especially if you are willing to spend the money, rather than investing those funds in a Gladiator.

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"In God We Trust"

The only thing my RAM will haul is ***! Wife really hates my lowered truck. I tell her I didn't buy it for her to like. lol

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

Does any truck manufacturer make just a work truck ? By work truck I mean a truck with just the basics - no frills, just something that doesn't mind getting dirty .

@MRB1, you basically have to factory order yourself one or try to find it in a used fleet from a corporation.

@the OP, I think most of us here have strong opinions on vehicle buying, as has been shown over the years. I hope it wasn't interpreted as piling on. When someone gets burned on a purchase / money pit of a vehicle...the memory can live rent free upstairs for a long time. Good luck whatever you decide.

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Rather be outdoors

My friend has a Gladiator
Large and expensive for around town
But he likes it

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Buy American
Vote Responsibly

I loved my full sized Wagoneer too. But was glad to see it go. At 10 MPG (on the highway) it was expensive to drive. In town I never figured out the gas mileage as I was afraid to see what it was.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

I'm not a fan of Jeep Gladiators, but I do like movies about gladiators.
You know, the Russell Crow, Kirk Douglas non-jeep kind..

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OGCA Member.

Muddy, now that was funny……. Almost choked on my tea and bourbon…….

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"Your other right........."

Usually the stuff that falls off a Jeep isn't really that important anyway.

I kept a 2018 Wrangler 4 door Sahara JK for a couple of problem free years but sold it at a handsome profit this spring in the buyers frenzy. Was not sorry to see it go and I did enjoy getting paid to drive it.

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God spelled backwards is dog.

I only glanced at a Gladiator at the local Jeep dealer. I'm old enough to . remember the original Gladiator and I'd had hopes. If you stand in the lot, the strange noise you hear in the back ground is the old, discontinued Gladiator (real pickup with an 8 foot bed) spinning in it's grave.

To my eyes they're kinda ugly, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Lots of them running around on the streets down here, so they are popular - not as many as F150s or Silverados, mind you, but lots nonetheless.

I've been seriously thinking about one of those little Ford Maverick pickups. When you do 40 miles round trip to work every day 40mpg in a truck(let) sounds nice.

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Or something like that . . .

I'm not crazy about the Gladiator in any way, and IMHO, the price is just insane. The profit must be huge on it. If it had even the 5.7 hemi, and was priced differently, I might feel different. Of all the Jeeps, the only one I would be interested in is a Grand Cherokee, as I had one back in '93, and other than repeated A/C issues, it was great. They fixed it for free many times, so I really had no complaints. One friend of mine has had at least one GC since 1995, his current ones are a 2014 that has over 200,000 miles on it, and a 2020, which just turned over 15,000. Both have been nearly trouble free. The older one needed some shocks and another brake job, and the radio died in it, but the new one has been perfect, as has my 2018 Challenger. People complain about FCA/Stellantis quality issues, but I know a lot of people who drive GC's, Chargers and Challengers, and none have had serious issues since the 2016 model year, when most were bought. I will say, my best long term vehicles, so far, were an '82 K5 Blazer, which had a little piece of trim fall off inside, and not a single other problem, and an '88 S10 Blazer, which I sold after 4 years of almost zero issues to a friend who drove it until it was mostly rust, over 450,000 miles and three sons learned to drive in it. It still had the original 4.3 short block in it. Hard to kill 3/4 of a Chevy 350.

For my money - no.

I think this is the best 4WD pickup truck ever made. It has body on frame construction, live axles, and the model that I purchased allows you to lock the rear axle in 4WD high range, as well as low range. Mine has 410:1 axle ratios and a 2.72:1 low range transfer case. This combination allows for better maneuvering at speed (think sand) than the Rubicon package which has a 410:1 low range transfer case. The Gladiator is at its best in an off road environment, but runs very well on the highway.

2021 Jeep Gladiator Mojave Edition.

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Dave Brown
SWCA #3279