Jeep Gladiator, does it suck?

[Sccritterkiller]

Agree. I believe VW owns Audi, Porsche, and a couple other brands now, and parts should be decent to find and replace in the EU. My brother has an Audi SUV and his wife had a flat on the interstate last summer. From the sound of it they had quite the rodeo trying to get the spare extracted and changed.

If its like the one in my wife's Q5 where a shitty compressor is included in the roadside kit and you have to blow the tire up before you put it on, 15 mins with the shitty compressor, after you take all the shit out of the back to get to it, add in wheel locks and a key to get the lug bolt covers off..yep it's a rodeo. Oh yeah and the tire you take off won't fit back in the spare spot...

 

[BigNate]

First, if going to Europe just wait until you can buy a hilux.

Second, if the Gladiator is of the same construction and pedigree as the Unlimited Rubicon I think I'd recommend something else.
We've owned all kinds of Jeeps, the last two were the four door mom mobiles.(08 & 16) The '16 was definitely better power, but I spent money to get a decent ride out of it. It goes through snow great, etc. However, the radiator cracked , and the 4x4 shift cable is held on with a plastic clip. This rig was only driven on pavement and Gravel roads, never ohv trails. The lockers work great.
It feels narrow to me, and wouldn't be my or the wife's choice anytime soon. We only got about 15 mpg.

 

[whoami-72]

For reference, I have an 03 wrangler straight piped project rig not a gladiator. However I've driven some and have rode in a few. I struggle to understand where they fit in personally. It's like all Wranglers..... they are the worst of all the world's but do a bit of everything lol. Towing capacity - like half a normal truck. Ride quality - typical jeep, it was fun when I was young and cruising for chick's with no top or doors but now it kinda sucks to daily. The one thing I actually got excited about when they first came out was the offloading ability in comparison to a normal truck. However, most of the angles aren't even as good as normal trucks which was super disappointing. I'd give the Rubicon points for having lockers. But then again, how often do normal daily rigs really need lockers. Not to mention Chrysler reliability. Ever since Chrysler started stuffing mini van drive trains in Jeep they started going down hill. Hence why I got an 03 so I could stick with the 4.0 tractor engine lol. Anyway, they at least have two really good things going for them..... they may not be able to do anything well but they can do a bit of everything. Andddd they have fantastic resell.

 

[seww]

Saw and rode in a few Hilux in Costa Rica years ago and I've never understood why they didn't sell them in the US. Direct competition to the Colorado and GMC baby diesel trucks.

Obviously they're too great for the industry here . Never breaks, good mpg's etc. When I had mine, I constantly got letters for sketchy buyers wanting it. Many of the Toyota's get sent to MENA countries.

But Nissan and Mitsubishi has their versions of the Hilux. Also Mercedes as I mentioned. Nissan and Mistubishi are cheaper of course.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Obviously they're too great for the industry here . Never breaks, good mpg's etc. When I had mine, I constantly got letters for sketchy buyers wanting it. Many of the Toyota's get sent to MENA countries.

But Nissan and Mitsubishi has their versions of the Hilux. Also Mercedes as I mentioned. Nissan and Mistubishi are cheaper of course.

Roger that and if folks weren't in a Hilux, they were in the Mitsubishi rival.

 

[seww]

Depending on what country, I know Germany and even the UK has plenty of Jeep parts available on their eBay sites. Always ordered parts from there when I had my XJ's, much cheaper than domestic (Sweden).
So Jeeps are not too uncommon over there, but with the gas prices I'd re-think it.

We owned a '98 Land Cruiser too, but got way expensive to drive even with the V6.

 

[seww]

Roger that and if folks weren't in a Hilux, they were in the Mitsubishi rival.

Sounds about right.
Hilux is the way to go most of the time, I worked in the mining industry and we only had Hilux or Toyotas. There was one Land Cruiser that had way over 600k kilometers and had been fed coolant as fuel at one point. Never stopped... It traveled at least 250 kms per day for decades.

 

[Mojave]

Other than actual location what is the difference between a Hilux and a Tacoma.

 

[BigNate]

The Hilux commonly has a little turbo diesel, & manual 5 speed.

 

[seww]

The Hilux commonly has a little turbo diesel, & manual 5 speed.

Not sure how many manuals are out there today. Mine was an automatic and I believe most of them are moving this direction.
The Hilux is also a tad bit smaller.

 

[TxLite]

My dad’s Diesel Gladiator Rubicon needed warranty work for a CEL before he even got it home from the dealership and was purchased brand new. Don’t remember what the issue ended up being but I seem to recall it being related to the diesel motor. Since then it’s been in 1 one time for a recall on the suspension that evidently wasn’t designed to support the additional weight of the diesel motor, and the paint on the hood was flaking off and needed to be repainted (covered under warranty). It has also chopped the OEM Wildpeak tires really bad. I believe it has roughly 20k miles on it now.

I also agree with the other comments regarding fitting a family of 5 in that truck. It is very small inside.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

My dad’s Diesel Gladiator Rubicon needed warranty work for a CEL before he even got it home from the dealership and was purchased brand new. Don’t remember what the issue ended up being but I seem to recall it being related to the diesel motor. Since then it’s been in 1 one time for a recall on the suspension that evidently wasn’t designed to support the additional weight of the diesel motor, and the paint on the hood was flaking off and needed to be repainted (covered under warranty). It has also chopped the OEM Wildpeak tires really bad. I believe it has roughly 20k miles on it now.

I also agree with the other comments regarding fitting a family of 5 in that truck. It is very small inside.

Those diesels are known for throwing CEL for "electronic throttle control" that can be caused by dozens of reasons. In the early days with the gen 4 RAMs, you were better off getting your own scanning tool and wrenching on them, because the techs didn't have a clue.

 

[Thinkingman]

Other than actual location what is the difference between a Hilux and a Tacoma.

Hilux is built on a completely different platform.
Different frame, suspension, drive train.
People here desperately want to believe their Tacoma is comparable to a Hilux but they're not.
Someone on here called Tacomas 'a tall Subaru' which is pretty accurate.

 

[Svo95black]

I bought one brand new, drove it a year and sold it. It fit my family of 4 ok and I loved the thing. Gas mileage sucked I was getting 16mpg combined. The one thing that finally made me get rid of it was… taking a trip with the family and about an hour away from home doing 70 on th highway and attempting to negotiate a left bend in the road and it took all my strength to turn it. Now it was very cold winter day with a mix on the road in spots. I pulled over to see if something froze underneath the vehicle, no ice build up or anything. That was the moment I said “nope” I never experienced anything like it before or for the two weeks after till I traded it.

 

[Weldor]

Drive and have owned more the my share of willy's cj5, CJ7 YJ, TJ, JK 2 and 4 dr models . currently have a Oscar Mike 4 dr. Jeep (Just exchange every part). That is the best acronym. I love em and cuss em . I agree with the Hilux that would be Bad___ if they sold them here.

 

[Szwampdonkey]

Like driving a small, narrow and grossly overpriced tin can imo. We hated my wifes to the point its gone and we are only a family of 3 and a dog.

 

[doc holiday13]

Not even going to read all responses..
Does it suck? Probably , Jeep has poor QC and reliability

Does it look cool? Yes
I would probably drive one if I could afford a 3rd vehicle

 

[Mumbly-Peg]

I have one in the Mojave trim. Jeeps have gotten far more accessible to the general public, so a lot of normal people are buying them and hating them because they’re loud inside and have solid front axles. Meanwhile, having owned a CJ-7 and spent long drives in my sister’s 1997 TJ, today’s Jeeps seen whisper quiet and ride like Cadillacs to me.

I have 10k miles on mine so I can’t comment on reliability. Nothing’s gone wrong, but nothing should go wrong at this point. I agree with a lot of the commenters here that they ask too much for these trucks, but the roof comes off, so they can ask what they want I guess. I disagree with the sentiment that they aren’t a real truck, they’re more capable of doing truck things than the venerable Tacoma, and despite the shared Wrangler body panels, they sit on truck frames designed by the RAM group.

If you’ve had experience with the “Jeep thing,” and want a Jeep that has a small truck bed, you’ll like it. If you want a truck and just think Jeeps look pretty cool, then a Hilux would probably be a better choice.

 

[Mojave]

Hilux is built on a completely different platform.
Different frame, suspension, drive train.
People here desperately want to believe their Tacoma is comparable to a Hilux but they're not.
Someone on here called Tacomas 'a tall Subaru' which is pretty accurate.

Toyota Hilux vs. Tacoma 2023 Comparison: Which One’s Best for Me? | House Grail

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In a lot of ways a HI-Lux is not the truck a Tacoma is.

The next gen Toyota mid sized trucks are supposed to be the same other than drive train and power train, though the American truck will come with a nicer interior.

I have noticed that the newest FJ79 and new Tundra are sharing design nods that have some similarity.

We will see if the FJ and Tundra come closer toghether on the next generation. Now that FJ 200's are shutdown.

 

[fmyth]

Hilux is built on a completely different platform.
Different frame, suspension, drive train.
People here desperately want to believe their Tacoma is comparable to a Hilux but they're not.
Someone on here called Tacomas 'a tall Subaru' which is pretty accurate.

Please tell us what a Subaru has in common with a Tacoma? The Tacoma is a body on frame truck with a solid rear axle, a 2 speed transfer case, an optional locking rear differential and can tow up to 6,800 lbs.

Subaru does not make a truck. Which model Subaru car/wagon is body on frame? Which Subaru has a 2 speed transfer case or an optional locking rear differential? Which Subaru can tow 6,800 lbs? I don't own a Tacoma but comparing one to a Subaru (any model) is completely laughable.