Every Angle of the 2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
In Rubicon trim, with its big tires and lifted suspension, the Gladiator impresses in the rough.
The 2020 Jeep Gladiator looks and performs best in Rubicon trim, which lifts the truck's body and includes beefy 33-inch-tall all-terrain tires. Other highlights include locking front and rear differentials, an electronically disconnecting front anti-roll bar, and special terrain-specific drive modes that help the Gladiator slog through nearly anything. Read the full story here.
Even though the Gladiator might at first appear to be a Wrangler with a pickup bed, that isn't quite the case. The truck has a specific frame, and it is substantially larger than the four-door Wrangler Unlimited SUV.
Length isn't your friend when crawling around off-road trails, but thanks to the Jeep's 11.1 inches of ground clearance (more than on the Wrangler) and huge tires, it manages to nearly match the smaller Wrangler's off-road dexterity.
The only off-road-specific dimension that suffers on the Gladiator is its departure angle, or the steepness of the slope you can scamper from without dragging the rear bumper. Blame the truck's awkwardly long rear overhang, a concession to Jeep keeping the wheelbase as short as possible for a decent breakover angle.
Four-wheel drive is, of course, standard on the Gladiator. We barely needed to use the system's low-range gearing during an outing at our local off-road park. Our test truck also included the optional $2000 eight-speed automatic transmission; a six-speed manual is standard.
Jeep's clever onboard Off Road Pages app, built into the 8.4-inch touchscreen, allows drivers to monitor the current altitude in addition to the Gladiator's pitch and roll.
The Off Road Pages app is where you’ll find access to the Gladiator's optional front-facing TrailCam, a tiny fisheye lens atop the grille that gives you a view of the ground ahead of the truck that's blocked from the driver's actual line of sight by the hood.
Be careful with the options. Our test truck rang in at more than $60,000, including $15K in extras.
The Gladiator Rubicon's off-road abilities are unmatched in this segment (and in many others, for that matter). And where else would you find a truck so capable and with a removable roof, let alone removable doors?
We're not sorry for these dirty pictures. The Gladiator proportions may look slightly awkward for a Wrangler, thanks to its pickup-box-friendly rear-axle location, but covering it in mud helps, as does the Rubicon regalia.
Another bonus for opting for the Rubicon? A set of neat Fox dampers that smooth out the Jeep's ride and deliver stable on-road manners—shocking stuff for a heavy pickup with two stick axles.
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
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