The Jeep Gladiator is a mid-size pickup truck manufactured by the Jeep division of Stellantis North America (formerly FCA US). It was introduced at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show on November 28, 2018, and went on sale in the spring of 2019 as a 2020 model. Based on the same platform as the Wrangler JL, the Gladiator is Jeep's first pickup truck since the Comanche was discontinued in 1992.
Jeep Gladiator is also being marketed in Australia, as the first market outside Americas.
History
The vehicle's name harkens back to the original Jeep Gladiator, made in 1962 until 1988 and known as the J-Series after 1971. Jeep considered reviving the Gladiator name alongside Comanche and most commonly Scrambler, as well as simply using a new name, before deciding on Gladiator, feeling it fits the truck the best.
A two-door version of a Jeep Scrambler pickup based on a lengthened Wrangler was shown in 2003 at the National Automobile Dealers Association meeting.
In late-2004 the Jeep Gladiator concept was introduced. The 2005 Gladiator Concept did not feature a removable roof, but had removable doors and a pickup bed. It also previewed the design of the upcoming Jeep Wrangler (JK). The Gladiator concept was powered by a 3.0 L Common-Rail Diesel (CRD) engine produced by VM Motori (similar to the one used in some models of the Jeep Grand Cherokee), mated to a manual transmission, and four-wheel-drive. It featured functional rear mini-doors, and rear seating. The Gladiator concept featured a green-on-gray color scheme for both the exterior and interior.
Exterior design
The four-door, five-passenger mid-size Gladiator features exterior and interior styling cues from the Wrangler JL. Taylor Langhals was the lead exterior designer on Gladiator. Because a truck is frequently used for both hauling and towing, the front grille slots were enlarged to allow for increased airflow and heavier-duty engine cooling. A full-sized spare tire, normally mounted on the Wrangler's rear tailgate, is mounted underneath the cargo bed of the Gladiator.
Four different roof options are available, similar to those on the Wrangler JL, including a black vinyl Sun-Rider soft top and a premium black fabric Sun-Rider soft top (both of which can be fully retracted), a black Freedom-Top three-piece hard top, and a color-keyed Freedom-Top three-piece hard top, both of which have removable aluminum roof panels.
The truck has front and rear doors that can be fully removed, as well as a windshield that can be lowered (like the Wrangler JL, Jeep includes a tool kit with the tools necessary to remove the doors and lower the windshield). The Gladiator is unique in that it is the only truck available with a convertible folding soft top.
A front-facing trail cam, mounted in one of the front grille slots, is also available that displays an image on the touchscreen of what is directly in front of the vehicle (this feature requires one of the two larger U Connect touchscreen displays), and will assist in off-road maneuverability, such as water fording, as well as climbing over objects like logs and rocks. The "Off Road Pages" application, displayed in the instrument cluster, allows a Gladiator driver to view approach and departure angles, steering angles, and more.
Trim levels
The Gladiator is available in base Sport, mid-level Sport S, luxurious Overland, desert racing ready Mojave, and off-road ready Rubicon (a limited-edition Rubicon Launch Edition model, limited to 4,190 units, is also available.) The Gladiator and Wrangler JL diverge when it comes to their luxury trim levels. The luxury Wrangler is named "Sahara", while the luxury trim on the Gladiator is known as the "Overland" model. When equipped with leather upholstery, the Overland receives a stitched soft-touch dashboard surface and hand-stitched dashboard, similar to that of the Wrangler Sahara.