I am trying to work my way toward retirement. Over the past few years, my role within my company has me traveling quite a bit. Fortunately, technology enables me to manage things pretty well from the road these days. So, my lovely bride and I are contemplating some motor home/"glamping" expeditions over the next few months. We've spent the last few months test driving and contemplating the purchase of a, "tow behind the motor home", vehicle. I've owned Land Cruisers for years, but as nice as many of them have been, something with a few more creature comforts is needed for this old man. An (easily removable) hardtop is a must. A (reasonably) quite ride with the top installed is a must. Air bags, disc brakes, a backup camera, 4-doors and 4-wheel-drive capability are all a must. We rented a 4-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon recently in Key West to tool around in. Wow! Jeeps have come a long way! It looks like camper-shell toppers are now readily available for the Gladiator's 5-ft. bed, so I rented one of those this week to see how I'd like the longer wheelbase. I'm pretty doggone impressed.
Do any of you own this truck? What are your takeaways? Our intended uses for the truck will be for joyriding at destination areas. We like the ability to pop the top(s) off/out and video my Fabio-like hair as the flowing locks cast a trance of lovesickness on all who witness. 🤣😎😂
The longer wheelbase (for towing) and the ability to swap out a camper shell for a bed rack makes this a no-brainer over the Wrangler, to me at least. But I haven't owned a Jeep in years. Any customer satisfaction opinions is appreciated.
Thanks!
Rick
Toyota Tacoma Off Road is very capable, and the TRD-Pro, in the Tundra, 4Runner, and Tacoma were used to drive the length of Viet Nam including a long section without any roads. I am looking at the Tacoma Off Road. You should find a Youtube for the vehicle of your choice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBrk2PriTIc
I don’t have one but have eyeballed them a lot…. Looking at replacing my current daily driver soon and that shell makes for an awesome looking ride!!!
Wish I could help you more but we’ve only had ours for about 6 weeks. Loving it so far. I traded in a Chevy Silverado on it. We also were looking for something to flat tow behind our motor home. I was tired of the dolly tow we had been using. The wheelbase makes a big difference over the standard 4 door jeep as far as ride goes. We got the overland model. Had to travel to another state to purchase ours as every dealer around put lift kits and oversized tires on them as soon as they came in the lot. I did want that in a tow vehicle. The lower they are, the less air they catch. We plan on putting a blue ox base plate on ours before spring for towing.
Rick
This site is pretty informative by Gladiator owners.
Have fun
Deno
Any reviews or thoughts from one-year (or longer) owners of the Gladiator is appreciated. I'm looking for the bad and the ugly, as well as the good. Any experiences you can share is helpful.
Rick
And 470 ft. lbs. of torque, too, Darren!
Hemi power. Because we can!!!! 🚀🤗
The last Jeep I owned was a hardtop CJ-7 (Laredo). Straight six-cylinder. Great vehicle. I got into Land Cruisers after that. They're tanks, but too unrefined for my intentions.
Rick, I had an 05’ Jeep Wrangler that I took hunting. It was a lot of fun taking off road. My son had a 15’ when he was living in Indiana and studying for his graduate degree.
About a month ago, my son bought the new Rubicon with the 492 Hemi engine that has 470 HP. His new Jeep is a beast!! It’s vetu powerful and has so many more features than the one I had.
I say go for it if that’s what you want.
Looks neat
but think would rather a camper shell on my Silverado