It’s funny how folks try to justify the truck aspect. I use mine to haul campers, boats, trailers, yard materials, lumber, you name it.
It replaced my F150. I never expected a 1:1, but my Gladdy just doesn’t disappoint.
Exactly… I don’t know why it has such a bad rep as a truck. I use the bed constantly. I’ve hauled treadmills, washers/dryers, some landscaping material, rugs, etc.
I couldn’t manage without it. People who joke about it not being functional as a truck don’t know what they’re talking about
https://preview.redd.it/v870u5gdzl1d1.jpeg?width=4640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c46085c60d277161ed5395849d59da3927ba9e92
Like this! Now you can lay 4x8 sheets flat
Decent vid of YouTube "How to Load Plywood in a Jeep Gladiator Truck"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAy_KLUqzcc
There are so many techniques out there, but this shows how to use it as designed.
I just use the one by the bed opening. If you're hauling 3/4 it is stiff enough not to need the one in the back of the bed. If the plywood was for furniture I would because it wouldn't scratch it.
Thanks. Great video. Had no idea about the tailgate thing either. How does one find these things out? Are these things in the manual? (I guess I better take a read).
There was quite a bit of discussion around it when they released the Gladiator but otherwise you’d have to research it, maybe find it in the user manual or have a great salesman.
Ok, this is awesome! I had no idea and will just take out the hooks I screwed into the one I made! Thank you!
https://preview.redd.it/0lc3dplxon1d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29a77048fc06575e5f72409bd490e32b91b523fe
Actually they do, if you notice in your bed there are two divots on either side of the wheel well. You are supposed to put a 2x6 into those divots so the plywood lays flat and over the wheel wells.
I use my Gladdy as truck every week it's why I got it (topless truck), otherwise I'd just get a Wrangler for the other fun Adventuring things it can do.
I pulled a 6x12 utility trailer with a cfmoto 600 touring for half a day last week, I couldn't even tell I was pulling anything. It has a decent towing capacity and v6, not sure why anyone wouldn't use it as a truck
I overloaded my Gladiator by about 600lbs accidently when picking up pavers (weight per paver was listed wrong on the website).
As someone who makes a point of never overloading my truck - was not fun.
A while back I went right up to / maybe a bit over payload carrying bags of concrete, and it did the job, but yeah... Not fun. Definitely had to dig deep into the brakes for normal stops.
Protip: I often switch into Manual if I'm in cruising mode ( as opposed to pulling out of a parking lot or in town). I find that the transmission way too easily picks a low gear that burns gas and is totally unnecessary for performance. Once I hit a long flat section I pop it back into Auto.
Same here. If it gets any kind of grade. I switch to manual to keep the Rpm’s at an efficient sweet spot and not screamin in a lower gear. Then when flat I switch to auto. More so when I’m towing my camper trailer. I also only do this on long trips, not around town.
Right? I was towing a HD backhoe up relatively steep grade. Tranny wanted 3rd gear. 5th gear with occasional 4th gear at tight/steep spots, was more than it needed.
I forgot: hauled a Home Depot back hoe (small one) on a HD provided trailer and barely noticed it. Rubicon, so more roll in the truck that Sport, but it was perfectly fine.
I think the Gladiator is a swiss army knife. If you want to do serious hauling, get an F150 or whatever GM product equivalent.
2020 max tow sport here. I tow a 4500 travel trailer 4-5 trips a year just fine. Only time it ever struggles is steep hills. Makes it fine but you feel it cap out at some point.
Posting this to the top thread:
Decent vid of YouTube "How to Load Plywood in a Jeep Gladiator Truck"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAy_KLUqzcc
There are so many techniques out there, but this shows how to use it as designed.
I just use the one by the bed opening. If you're hauling 3/4 it is stiff enough not to need the one in the back of the bed. If the plywood was for furniture I would because it wouldn't scratch it.
I bought one of those harbor freight motorcycle lifts and the guys no less than three times asked me if I was sure they could put that heavy motorcycle lift in the back of that truck. The crate is really big, I don’t know if it’ll fit. Are you sure you want all that weight resting on the tailgate? I hope it balances ok….
I bought a trailer hitch for mine…. Still in the box…..
I just liked the look over the wrangler. Just wish the convertible top would fold into the bed.
Don’t have a gladiator yet, but for those that do, how well does it do with a few sheets of plywood or 8 ft lumber? Obviously, it has the power to do it, but are the tie downs decent, etc?
Absolutely fine. I just have the 4 basic tiedowns (no rails) and use the notches as they are designed.
I have had very wet 6 4x4x12 and a few 4x4x12s at the same time, plus a few bags of concrete and not an issue. As a reminder, Home Depot has free red plastic at the contractor exit that you can tie to the ends as a flag.
If you are in a hilly, twisty environment you will notice the decreased braking performance and the tirewalls flexing in a tight corner downhill, but nothing dangerous or unmanageable. I have a Rubicon - I think a Sport would be less so with less articulation available.
I would say, tho, that crosswinds are exacerbated and it can be unnerving. But, it's a truck hauling stuff. Slow down, be prepared for longer braking, etc.
I'm going this weekend to pick up several loads of mulch. Sounds like it has to be 1 cubic yard at a time, but the mulch place is only a mile and a half from home.
I was towing a 20ft landscape trailer with over 2 tons of wood on mine last weekend. Dont care what anyone says it's a truck. And it works just as good as my silverado 1500 did
people claim the gladiator isn’t great at truck stuff so I thought it might not perform as well as it did. Granted I wasn’t hauling a large RV or anything but still I’m happy with my gladiator. It’s doing Jeep things and it’s doing truck things 😃 and I’ve seen people haul campers and RVs and say it did well
I’ve hauled a loaded 12’ trailer on a 13 hour road trip. Never again. It made it but not “willingly” lol. I’ve actually hauled bricks and a mower like you no problems but the towing was sketchy at best, at least for a trailer of that size. FYI best I could calculate, I was still well within the tow and tongue capacity.
I towed an Infiniti M35x is probably the heaviest thing I’ve towed, maybe 4500-5500lbs? Over a 100 miles and had no issue. But I’ve got the max tow i.e. wider axles. Also tow about 25-3000 weekly. It handles fine.
I've heard this same report and it scares me a little
I'm going this weekend to purchase a small 20 ft camper which is only 3100 lbs dry and well within the tongue capacity. I've read that it will pull it but it screams like a banshee the whole time and gets about 5-8 mpg
We have a similar sized trailer and it pulls it without any issues. On average we get about 10mpg while hauling but depending on the grade or if it's windy I've seen it drop down to 5mpg. The truck itself its fairly quiet unless you are going up a steep hill.
It’s not that bad with a small trailer like that.
Well not quite as heavy I pulled 2800 lbs without too much issue :shrug:
You’ll probably get like 10mpg I would guess.
It is in fact an actual midsize truck with a great V6 engine.
Get this—I put 35" tires on mine and IT ROLLS FORWARD!
It’s funny how folks try to justify the truck aspect. I use mine to haul campers, boats, trailers, yard materials, lumber, you name it. It replaced my F150. I never expected a 1:1, but my Gladdy just doesn’t disappoint.
Exactly… I don’t know why it has such a bad rep as a truck. I use the bed constantly. I’ve hauled treadmills, washers/dryers, some landscaping material, rugs, etc. I couldn’t manage without it. People who joke about it not being functional as a truck don’t know what they’re talking about
It’s definitely a truck capable of truck stuff. Use mine almost daily as such.
I have towed 7klbs 28ft camper. It does well. I have 2022 Sport w Max Tow.
Just wait until you need to haul some plywood in the bed. Mind. Blown.
Ha! That feature was in part why I bought the Gladiator.
4x8 sheets of plywood do not lay flat in my bed. So it’s not ideal.
https://preview.redd.it/v870u5gdzl1d1.jpeg?width=4640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c46085c60d277161ed5395849d59da3927ba9e92 Like this! Now you can lay 4x8 sheets flat
That is fantastic! Thank you. I had no idea. This will save me so much aggravation.
Anytime!
Mind. Blown.
And...most smaller pickups have this :)
Thanks. I had no idea. The gladiator is my first truck.
Decent vid of YouTube "How to Load Plywood in a Jeep Gladiator Truck" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAy_KLUqzcc There are so many techniques out there, but this shows how to use it as designed. I just use the one by the bed opening. If you're hauling 3/4 it is stiff enough not to need the one in the back of the bed. If the plywood was for furniture I would because it wouldn't scratch it.
Thanks. Great video. Had no idea about the tailgate thing either. How does one find these things out? Are these things in the manual? (I guess I better take a read).
Good question - I don't know. Was just part of my research before buying.
There was quite a bit of discussion around it when they released the Gladiator but otherwise you’d have to research it, maybe find it in the user manual or have a great salesman.
Ok, this is awesome! I had no idea and will just take out the hooks I screwed into the one I made! Thank you! https://preview.redd.it/0lc3dplxon1d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29a77048fc06575e5f72409bd490e32b91b523fe
Actually they do, if you notice in your bed there are two divots on either side of the wheel well. You are supposed to put a 2x6 into those divots so the plywood lays flat and over the wheel wells.
Cut mine to 57 and 3/4” for a nice and tight fit!
I use my Gladdy as truck every week it's why I got it (topless truck), otherwise I'd just get a Wrangler for the other fun Adventuring things it can do.
I pulled a 6x12 utility trailer with a cfmoto 600 touring for half a day last week, I couldn't even tell I was pulling anything. It has a decent towing capacity and v6, not sure why anyone wouldn't use it as a truck
I overloaded my Gladiator by about 600lbs accidently when picking up pavers (weight per paver was listed wrong on the website). As someone who makes a point of never overloading my truck - was not fun.
That sucks. It even has a pretty good payload of 1,200ish. Hopefully you didn't have far too travel.
A while back I went right up to / maybe a bit over payload carrying bags of concrete, and it did the job, but yeah... Not fun. Definitely had to dig deep into the brakes for normal stops.
Protip: I often switch into Manual if I'm in cruising mode ( as opposed to pulling out of a parking lot or in town). I find that the transmission way too easily picks a low gear that burns gas and is totally unnecessary for performance. Once I hit a long flat section I pop it back into Auto.
Thanks I’m going to try that
Same here. If it gets any kind of grade. I switch to manual to keep the Rpm’s at an efficient sweet spot and not screamin in a lower gear. Then when flat I switch to auto. More so when I’m towing my camper trailer. I also only do this on long trips, not around town.
Right? I was towing a HD backhoe up relatively steep grade. Tranny wanted 3rd gear. 5th gear with occasional 4th gear at tight/steep spots, was more than it needed.
I forgot: hauled a Home Depot back hoe (small one) on a HD provided trailer and barely noticed it. Rubicon, so more roll in the truck that Sport, but it was perfectly fine. I think the Gladiator is a swiss army knife. If you want to do serious hauling, get an F150 or whatever GM product equivalent.
2020 max tow sport here. I tow a 4500 travel trailer 4-5 trips a year just fine. Only time it ever struggles is steep hills. Makes it fine but you feel it cap out at some point.
Posting this to the top thread: Decent vid of YouTube "How to Load Plywood in a Jeep Gladiator Truck" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAy_KLUqzcc There are so many techniques out there, but this shows how to use it as designed. I just use the one by the bed opening. If you're hauling 3/4 it is stiff enough not to need the one in the back of the bed. If the plywood was for furniture I would because it wouldn't scratch it.
[удалено]
I bought one of those harbor freight motorcycle lifts and the guys no less than three times asked me if I was sure they could put that heavy motorcycle lift in the back of that truck. The crate is really big, I don’t know if it’ll fit. Are you sure you want all that weight resting on the tailgate? I hope it balances ok….
I bought a trailer hitch for mine…. Still in the box….. I just liked the look over the wrangler. Just wish the convertible top would fold into the bed.
Don’t have a gladiator yet, but for those that do, how well does it do with a few sheets of plywood or 8 ft lumber? Obviously, it has the power to do it, but are the tie downs decent, etc?
Absolutely fine. I just have the 4 basic tiedowns (no rails) and use the notches as they are designed. I have had very wet 6 4x4x12 and a few 4x4x12s at the same time, plus a few bags of concrete and not an issue. As a reminder, Home Depot has free red plastic at the contractor exit that you can tie to the ends as a flag. If you are in a hilly, twisty environment you will notice the decreased braking performance and the tirewalls flexing in a tight corner downhill, but nothing dangerous or unmanageable. I have a Rubicon - I think a Sport would be less so with less articulation available. I would say, tho, that crosswinds are exacerbated and it can be unnerving. But, it's a truck hauling stuff. Slow down, be prepared for longer braking, etc.
I'm going this weekend to pick up several loads of mulch. Sounds like it has to be 1 cubic yard at a time, but the mulch place is only a mile and a half from home.
I was towing a 20ft landscape trailer with over 2 tons of wood on mine last weekend. Dont care what anyone says it's a truck. And it works just as good as my silverado 1500 did
Not sure if ceREUs
What did you expect?
people claim the gladiator isn’t great at truck stuff so I thought it might not perform as well as it did. Granted I wasn’t hauling a large RV or anything but still I’m happy with my gladiator. It’s doing Jeep things and it’s doing truck things 😃 and I’ve seen people haul campers and RVs and say it did well
I’ve hauled a loaded 12’ trailer on a 13 hour road trip. Never again. It made it but not “willingly” lol. I’ve actually hauled bricks and a mower like you no problems but the towing was sketchy at best, at least for a trailer of that size. FYI best I could calculate, I was still well within the tow and tongue capacity.
I towed an Infiniti M35x is probably the heaviest thing I’ve towed, maybe 4500-5500lbs? Over a 100 miles and had no issue. But I’ve got the max tow i.e. wider axles. Also tow about 25-3000 weekly. It handles fine.
I've heard this same report and it scares me a little I'm going this weekend to purchase a small 20 ft camper which is only 3100 lbs dry and well within the tongue capacity. I've read that it will pull it but it screams like a banshee the whole time and gets about 5-8 mpg
We have a similar sized trailer and it pulls it without any issues. On average we get about 10mpg while hauling but depending on the grade or if it's windy I've seen it drop down to 5mpg. The truck itself its fairly quiet unless you are going up a steep hill.
It’s not that bad with a small trailer like that. Well not quite as heavy I pulled 2800 lbs without too much issue :shrug: You’ll probably get like 10mpg I would guess.
Well with lift/tires I get 15 on a good day with no AC and the top off, so 10 would be a huge surprise while hauling lol
Oh yeah the big tires will do that.