Test drove a 2021 Gladiator and ...

So, they came out of the dealership shaking that bad? I find that very hard to believe, but hey, I didn't own one.

 

It wasn't long before it happened. They were still under warranty. It's a known issue with Jeep people, but the JK brought in a whole new crowd that was more interested in looking cool for the gram than actually understanding the history of Wranglers. I DD'd a TJ for 9yrs. I had 1 instant of what some would call "death wobble", but it was nothing like the video. It was just a tire out of balance. Typically death wobble hits b/t 45-55 and then you can let off the gas and it will correct itself. Like most things in society, people comment on things that they have no clue about, nor do they research it before bitching about it. You can search a Wrangler forum and find numerous threads about it. I was a Mod on Wrangler Forum and saw them pop up damn near every day

 

Got you. I have to say that the JK interior on the pic you posted looks pretty outdated/cheap. Not going to lie. And no offense to JK owners reading this, but it makes the 3rd Gen Tacoma's interior look upscale.

 

I think the JK may have gotten an updated interior around 12ish with the new motor. That is an early one 07-11. In my mind, a Wrangler should have always been a bare bones, utilitarian vehicle.

Google says this is a 2012 dash.

 

I know this may be the most anti-Jeep dashboard to date, but I like the most current one the best.

 

That's probably the JL dash. Interesting fact, you could get a JK and JL as a 2018 model.

Yeah, I lost that loving feeling once the JK came out. In my mind a Wrangler shouldn't have electric windows, leather seats, and all the other nanny shit they put on them. I do realize though that the Wrangler saved Chrysler/Fiat from bankruptcy. I just didn't like it

The plastic grill and smooth color matched hard tops are what really pissed me off though

 

I like Jeeps alot as I've owned a 47 CJ2 Flat Fender , 68 M38A1 , 1981 CJ5 and a 84 CJ7 and all were built Rock Crawlers

But this video cracks me up !!!


https://youtu.be/p7-ojGMimsA

 

A flatty

 

I'd be pissed if I saw this jackass driving around my truck and house like this... Not sure what you can REALLY do about it... but I'd be fuming.

 

This pic was from 1993 in Panamint springs in Death Valley on CA4WDC Panamint Valley days

47 CJ2A Flat Fender with very built 406sbc , turbo 400 Dana 44's with Detroit lockers and 5.38 gears riding on 35" BFG Mud terrains

 

I missed my chance a few years ago. One like this(except it had black vinyl seats) was listed for $7500 45 minutes away. It was in beautiful shape.

 

Mixing and matching a few things here.

But a gladiator is a full 10k more than an equally equipped Tacoma. Which is a huge difference imo.

Mpgs will be worse on the gladiator vs Tacoma also, especially in willys or rubicon trim.

reliability is a bit of wash, the 3.6 is fine and so is the 8AT.

Rest is personal preference.

 

All true.

On price: Tacomas get no discounts (around here anyway) neither via rebate nor negotiation. TRD Pros go for up to 10k above MSRP (if you can find one), and/or have a 6 month wait. The Gladiator gets at an automatic 1% below invoice cut with the Wave Program, plus rebates (total ~$3-$5K off during the chip shortage), plus negotiation. Or ~ 8% below invoice if you're wiling to custom order and then fly to Gupton Motors in Springfield TN to pick it up when it arrives (6-8 weeks). Jeep allows you to order exactly what you want and they will build it to your specs. Unlike Toyota, where the dealer has to find what you want from what's in the pipeline and put a hold on it, if\when they find it. I was not able to find a manual Tacoma to even test drive, ever, of any trim. I was able to find manual Rubicon on the first dealership I stopped by. Someone snatched it that afternoon, but the point is that with Toyota, I felt like I was always having to compromise on something, but not so with Jeep.

 

I can understand not liking the Tacoma’s transmission.
It’s poorly calibrated and a pain in the ass.
But it’s probably in the long run more reliable.
After all you’ve bought a transmission made by Chrysler.

 

You sure about that reliability?

 

Yes the pentastar should be fine until 200-300k miles and same goes for the trans. They have been around for a long time and are decent motors. No they are not as good as anything with a timing belt that goes a million miles but just about as reliable as they come.

 

Okay. I’ll take your word for it.

 

Actually, in the Gladiator, the 8-speed transmission (also found in some BMWs) is made by ZF, a German company. And the Gladiator's manual transmission is made by Aisin, a Japanese company. Aisin is owned by a company that you may recognize and are probably a big fan of: Toyota. BTW, Aisin also makes the Tacoma's transmissions.

 

The ZF 8 speed is used in all kinds of vehicles and is dead reliable.

 

I test drove a fully loaded black rubicon gladiator about 3 years ago just out of curiosity. Reminded me of the Hummer H1. I really liked it, but was not aware how expensive those things were relative to the Tacoma's. Of course with inflation and the vehicle price increases I'm sure they're not as far apart as they used to be. It rode super smooth, but was definitely underpowered. It would definitely be a fun truck to drive around, but I too questioned the reliability of a FCA product. I will say that the interior seemed nicer than the Tacoma.