The Jeep Gladiator enters the hotly-contested LCV arena with offerings that are bound to appeal to the free-spirited individual that is looking to make their presence known. Whether you're a weekend warrior or a hard-core enthusiast, the Jeep Gladiator has you covered.
2021 saw Jeep celebrate 80-years of production. What started as a humble war-time solution to mobility has morphed into a cult-like brand with a following across the globe. Synonymous with adventure and off-road exploits, Jeep is remaining true to its core values of Freedom, Authenticity, Adventure, and Community. Their latest offering, the Gladiator, enters a market that the South African public is yet to see them venture into.
Jeep now enters the double cab playground with the new (to South Africa) Gladiator and while the model name has been seen in the USA previously, it’s a first for the local market. It offers a body-on-frame construction and bespoke 4×4 drivetrain to ensure the best off-road capabilities. The decision to introduce the Gladiator in the local market comes as last year, 1 in every 8 vehicles sold was a double cab, showing that South Africans are most certainly migrating to SUVs and light commercial vehicles as their daily drives.
Style
The Gladiator offers more than just a double cab with Wrangler styling. It has the unique feature of being the only convertible double cab on the market. Whether this will in fact be a selling point or not, remains to be seen but the ability to remove the roof, the doors and drop the windscreen will open up a new dimension for off-road and adventure enthusiasts who may have been grappling between buying a Wrangler or a double cab for their needs. Gladiators are sold with both a soft top and removable three-piece hard top, allowing for a variety of configurations.
The load bin measures in at 1.5-metres long and offers a payload of 693 kg, allowing all manner of equipment and leisure vehicles to be loaded into the rear. The designers knew that dirt bikes would be a favourite and even included the imprint of a dirt bike’s tyre tread into the moulding of the bin, a clear indication they wanted you to place your bike there. It will also comfortably tow 2712 kg when equipped with the Max Towing package.
From the front, it’s easy to mistake the Gladiator for a Wrangler. Jeep’s designers have remained true to the design language both inside and out and the Gladiator wears its 7-slat verticle grille and round headlights with pride. The large, box arches and externally secured bonnet all echo the design cues that have been carried over from previous Jeep offerings, dating as far back as 1947 when the first Jeep pick-up was created.
Interior
The interior of the Jeep Gladiator is a little busy, if I’m honest. A wash of buttons and switchgear often has you hunting for a simple control. While the trend has been to simplify affairs in the cabin, Jeep seems determined to swim against this current. That being said, I was unable to fault the overall fit and finish of the interior. Trapezoidal design cues and wide horizontal lines once again pay homage to the models preceding and elements such as the brightwork on the steering wheel are genuine metal. A heavy gear selector and drive selector lever rest just below the electronic controls that allow for locking of the diffs, disconnection of the sway bars to improve articulation or activation of the Off Road + driving mode that will see nearly any obstacle cleared with consummate ease.
Keeping with the utilitarian design approach, the Gladiator features a flexible back seat that can fold forward or lift up to reveal lockable storage boxes with a modular internal structure so that you can transport equipment and supplies in an orderly fashion. You will even get a Bluetooth speaker that detaches from the rear shelf and recharges when placed back in its slot.
This is not the only entertainment for the cabin though and the Gladiator has an 8.4-inch uConnect touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality. It plays its audio through a 9-speaker Alpine audio system and also hosts a range of off-road apps, relaying critical information about the drivetrain and engine parameters.
The oily bits
The Gladiator offers a single trim level and only one engine and gearbox combination. The 3.6-litre V6 petrol Pentastar engine is used, a tried and trusted unit that develops 209 kW and 347 Nm torque. It sends its power to an 8-speed automatic gearbox and on to a 4×4 drivetrain with locking differentials front and rear. A low range with a crawl ratio of 77.2:1. In each corner, you will find 2-inch aluminium body Fox shock absorbers that do a great job f handling the rough stuff, even if the Gladiator rides a little firm on the tarmac.
True to its off-road, Trail Rated, nature, the Gladiator offers 43.4-degrees of approach angle, 26-degrees departure angle but because of the longer wheelbase, only 20.3-degrees of breakover. The tough obstacles of the Hennops Off-Road park allowed us to test this out and a myriad of axle-busters, inclines and declines saw the Gladiator revel in the challenge. The low-down torque of the Pentastar V6 and low-range crawl feature allowed the rather large Gladiator to tuck its wheels and rumble up and over all the obstacles on our route.
Price
This sort of flexibility and cool factor comes at a price though and the Gladiator will cost you R1 259 900 before you go crazy with the accessories, of which there are hundreds. The popular past time of modifying Jeeps has not gone unnoticed by Jeep themselves and they’ve even included four accessory switches for you to connect light bars and spotlights to. It’s backed by a 5-year/100 000 km warranty and a 3-year/100 000 km maintenance plan for peace of mind.
Yes, R1.2-million is a substantial amount of money but the Jeep Gladiator is not for those that are interested in buying with their heads. It’s not the sensible buy, it’s the emotive one. It will most certainly sell, targeting style-conscious buyers who are looking to make a statement and who endeavour to live life to the fullest every single day.
Keyword: Jeep Gladiator (2022) - First drive review