Jeep Gifts Wrangler Updates to Gladiator

Matthew Guy
by Matthew Guy


In what’s likely the most obvious move this year other than the Blackhawks taking Connor Bedard in the NHL draft*, Jeep has announced they are applying to the Gladiator nearly all the same updates its close cousin, the Wrangler, earned a few months ago.


*Ed. note: Here come the Hawks, the miiiiiiiighty Blackhawks! Ahem. Anyway.


Given the similarities between the two both in the cabin and ahead of the C-pillar, it makes a boatload of sense for Jeep to align these fraternal twins. Playing spot-the-difference on yer local Interstate may be a challenge at a glance but there are numerous clues to identifying a 2024 model. While the seven-slot grille and round headlights remain, there is now a gap above the front bumper instead of body-colored plastic. Closer inspection will reveal the grille now permits airflow between those seven slats – as well as through them, of course – in a bid to improve underhood cooling.

Its interior has also been dragged in line with the Wrangler, showing up for duty with a new 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen on all trims. This change necessitated a rethink of the center ventilation registers, ports that now line the chin of the infotainment unit. Large, round vents remain in the outboard positions. Side curtain airbags are now onboard in case things go all pear-shaped, a feature scarcely believable in a Wrangler just a few short years ago. Power 12-way seats are also on the docket, and Jeep engineers insist they can weather the Gladiator’s nearly three feet of water fording capability without fritzing into oblivion.

Entertainingly, the crew at Jeep has taken a page from powersports manufacturers (and other online resources for gearheads) and baked a mapping feature called Trails Offroad into the Gladiator’s infotainment. This tech provides detailed information, wayfinding, and difficulty ratings about popular off-road trails – in other words, Jeep is encouraging customers to use their rigs in the manner for which they are designed. Roughly 60 trails are part of a no-cost standard pack (including the so-called Trails of Honor – think big guns like some in Moab and the Rubicon itself) but owners can get access to more than 3,000 trails if they pony up $40 a year. And yes, after the info is downloaded, it can be used in the sticks with no cell service.

For you lot who care about numbers, the 2024 Gladiator can bear 1,725 pounds of payload and tow a 7,700-pound trailer. Basic math teaches us that maxing out the trailer capacity leaves less than a thousand pounds for passengers and their gear, so do the math before inviting three linebacker buddies to the next camping trip.

Powertrains are essentially carried over from last year. There is no official word on a Gladiator 4xe (yet) but spox said while there is no announcement on 4xe today, the Jeep range will be electrified by 2025 and we can “read into that what you will.” Very good, then.

Jeep has continued tag teaming companies like AEV to create some over-the-topiary trims, such as a new kit imbuing the Glad with monstrous 37-inch tires and an angry front bumper. These additions are not made at the Jeep factory but rather at AEV headquarters; Jeeps spec’d this way by customers will be produced on the normal assembly line and then sent to AEV, so the buyer will take delivery of their new Jeep fully kitted.

Expect the 2024 Jeep Gladiators to be hitting dealerships before the end of this year.

[Images: Jeep]


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Matthew Guy
Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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  • El scotto El scotto on Sep 13, 2023

    Over the topiary trim??? Si Signore, said Comte di morte weight. These Jeeps are made in the Toledo of Ohio, not the Toledo of my Seat driving cousin the Duc of said city.


    Gentlemen of the press, please enjoy the buffet; it has gourmet food from all the countries where Stellantis operates. Please as much as you want to include the fine wines. The Belgian chocolate is as outstanding as our HQ staff.


    If you will excuse me, I'm taking a couple of sandwiches and a bottle of good red. Lunch and my mistress await. We'll meet again in about three hours. Hope you get a nap in too.

  • ToolGuy ToolGuy on Sep 13, 2023

    1st picture; 7th picture: Anyone who knows, how do they get a clean vehicle into a dirty environment for the photography? Do they trailer it under (and over) a tarp? Enclosed trailer? Drive it there and then detail it in situ? Some combination? Whose job is it to un-disturb the gravel around the vehicle? Genuinely curious.

    (If today's answer is "digital," then how did it used to be done?)

    • Lou_BC Lou_BC on Sep 14, 2023

      A crew truck with portable water tank and pressure washer. Detail crew does its job and voila, clean truck.


  • Wolfwagen The last couple of foreign vehicle manufacturers that tried breaking into the U.S. Mainstream Vehicle Market had a very hard time and 1. Couldn't get past the EPA regulation side (Mahindra) or 2. had a substandard product (Vinfast).
  • Midori Mayari I live in a South American country where that is already the case; Chinese brands essentially own the EV market here, and other companies seem unable to crack it even when they offer deep enough discounts that their offerings become cheaper than the Chinese ones (as Renault found when it discounted its cheapest EV to be about 15% cheaper than the BYD Seagull/Dolphin Mini and it still sold almost nothing).What's more, the arrival of the Chinese EVs seem to have turbocharged the EV transition; we went from less than 1% monthly EV market share to about 5% in the span of a year, and it's still growing. And if — as predicted — Chinese EV makers lower their production costs to be lower than those of regular ICE cars in the next few years, they could undercut equivalent ICE car prices with EVs and take most of the car market by storm. After all, a pretty sizeable number of car owners here have a garage where they could charge, and with local fuel and electricity prices charging at home reduces fuel costs by over 80% compared with an ICE car.
  • FreedMike So...Tesla does no marketing except to justify Elon Musk's pay. Mmmmmkay...
  • Daniel J [list=1][*]Would we care if this was Mexico or India? No. The problem is China and it's government.[/*][*]Tariffs are used to some degree to prop up American companies. Yes, things are going to be more expensive, but we already have significant Japanese, S. Korean, and German competition. [/*][*]After years on this website, people still can't wrap their heads around two opposing forces: High Prices and High Wages. Everyone on here is applauding the high wages mandated by unions but complain at the very same time that the cars aren't cheaper. No amount of corporate pay slashing will give you both. "Oh, but I could run the company better". GFL. Go start your own company.[/*][/list=1]
  • SCE to AUX Sports teams pay mediocre players millions, and great players tens of millions. Same thing in the movie industry.People object to these figures, but then line up to buy tickets.I don't see a difference here. The Tesla BoD wouldn't try this outrage if the company was doing poorly. However, consumers might recoil when they hear about it - or not.
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