The Jeep Gladiator is one of the newest pickup trucks to hit the market and has been a hit with American customers. The Gladiator isn’t perfect and has had its fair share of critics and criticisms, especially from sites like Consumer Reports. Despite its flaws, Consumer Reports actually liked three things about the 2022 Jeep Gladiator.
The 2022 Jeep Gladiator has some nice engine options
2022 Jeep Gladiator | Getty Images
According to Consumer Reports, the Gladiator has a low overall score of 38 out of 100, but it does have two good engine options. The first is the standard 3.6-liter V6 engine, which gets 285 hp and 260 lb-ft of torque. This engine provides a good amount of power for a truck of the Gladiator’s size, but it’s not going to be a sports car by any means. It’ll take this Jeep truck 7.8 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph with the V6 engine.
One of the recent additions to the Gladiator happened in the 2021 model year. Jeep gave the Gladiator a second engine, and it’s a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 diesel engine. This diesel option gets 260 hp and 442 lb-ft of torque, bringing a better fuel economy than the V6 gas-powered engine.
The Gladiator’s standard V6 gets 13 mpg in the city and 23 mpg on highways, for 18 mpg combined. In comparison, the diesel engine gets 22 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on highways, for 25 mpg combined. When equipped with the diesel option, those fuel economy numbers make the Gladiator the most fuel-efficient midsize truck on the market right now.
Jeep made a competent pickup truck with the Gladiator
Another thing that Consumer Reports liked about the Gladiator had to do with its towing capacity. The two V6 engine options are very powerful and will allow the Jeep to tow quite a bit of stuff for a truck of its size. On top of that, Jeep offers some options and upgrades that will improve the Gladiator’s towing capabilities.
The Gladiator’s towing capacity will vary based on the options and engines a customer chooses for it. However, a standard Gladiator should be able to tow about 4,000 pounds of stuff. The Jeep pickup truck can tow a max of just over 7,600 pounds when appropriately equipped. Additionally, its payload capacity is pretty good, as it can carry about 1,700 pounds of stuff in its truck bed when it’s adequately equipped.
The 2022 Jeep Gladiator isn’t like the other trucks
The last thing Consumer Reports liked about the Gladiator was its character. After all, the Gladiator is a Jeep, so its designers and engineers made sure it looked like a Jeep and felt like one. This means that Jeep fans who love cars like the Wrangler will feel at home with the Gladiator.
According to Consumer Reports, like many of those classic American cars, the Gladiator has the option between a soft top or a removable hardtop. The doors are also removable, and the windshield can be folded down. This will allow folks to drive around their Gladiator like it’s any other truck, or like it’s a more powerful and spacious Wrangler.
The Gladiator offers something few, if any, trucks in the segment offer. It may not be the most capable truck, but its unique character, combined with its other good traits, make it a compelling option, especially for Jeep fans.
Keyword: 3 Things Consumer Reports Likes About the 2022 Jeep Gladiator