Gladiator Tow Thread

sipafz

sipafz

Caught the Bug
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Jeep Marketing is working its magic on me! My wife and I are about 8 years out from retiring. Since we will be retiring early at age 57/58 we will not have jobs of any kind in order to pull funds from our retirement accounts, penalty free.

Our plan is to purchase a rig, I hope similar to what is pictured above. The Truck would be a Sport S:

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Options related to towing, safety and cargo management:
- Max Tow Package

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- 3.6 Pentastar
- Auto Transmission
- Blind Spot Sensors
- Tonneau Cover
- Bed Liner
- Trail Rail System
- Aux Switches
- 7” Radio (for backup camera)

I hope the Max Tow Package includes this:

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The Airstream will be a 27’ at 7,600 GVWR:

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Or the sightly smaller 25’ at 7,300 GVWR:

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Or we could go even a bit smaller with a 23’ at 6,300 GVWR:

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At the end of the day, we will get the Gladiator, because we both love exploring and want the ability to remove the top and doors while doing so. I’m really not interested in a different tow vehicle, so we will size the trailer to the truck getting the largest possible while still having some sort of confidence or safety margin.

That brings me to the reason for creating this thread. I hope to hear about your Gladiator towing experiences to help me make the best possible decisions. Please include the following information with your comments:

- Gladiator Details (ie Max Tow Package, etc. )
- Tow Weight
- Tongue Weight
- If Load Distribution Bars were used
- If Sway Bars were used
- If Brake Controller was used
- Ascents/Descents and Grade
- Additional Gladiator Upgrades you Have or Recommend.

Thank you in advance for your insight!

Chris
 
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Sounds awesome and fun to plan for the future like this. I can't speak for towing with a Gladiator or at least, not as of yet but when it comes to towing in general, I always find that it's nice to have a rig that is capable of towing considerably MORE than what you'd be pulling. But, that's just me.
 
The lightest trailer is still heavier than the GVWR rating of the Jeep.

Honestly I think a Jeep is too small and underpowered for trailer life. But I understand the draw. I also would love one for all the same reasons you said.
 
sipafz said:
Meaning that’s expensive? It has more options that I didn’t list.
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Yes. Super expensive. Don’t they start at like $36? I would be buying a Rubicon for sure if I was spending that kind of money.


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HighwayTrout said:
The lightest trailer is still heavier than the GVWR rating of the Jeep.

Honestly I think a Jeep is too small and underpowered for trailer life. But I understand the draw. I also would love one for all the same reasons you said.
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I agree. Tow vehicles need to be min 3/4 ton w/ V8s. Not saying a Jeep won’t do it... but I think you’ll kill it sooner than later. An offroad trailer like Brutes is the most I’d be willing to tow with a Jeep, on a regular basis. It will be interesting to see how far these Gladiators get pushed to their towing limit... and how they hold up.
 
OverlanderJK said:
Yes. Super expensive. Don’t they start at like $36? I would be buying a Rubicon for sure if I was spending that kind of money.


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The Towing capacity for the Rubicon is less than the Sport S with the Max Tow Package by 650lbs. Max Tow is not an option with the Rubicon.

I hear what you’re saying and I would like nothing more than to get the Rubicon model and I would, but my reality is I need to balance the truck capability with maximum trailer size so I can get a close as possible to having the best of both worlds.

Saying all that, the future may hold aftermarket options to increase tow capacity?
 
wayoflife said:
Sounds awesome and fun to plan for the future like this. I can't speak for towing with a Gladiator or at least, not as of yet but when it comes to towing in general, I always find that it's nice to have a rig that is capable of towing considerably MORE than what you'd be pulling. But, that's just me.
Click to expand...

I hope we can get some combination of this to work. Shooting for the best of both worlds. The smaller trailer might be the way to go.
 
HighwayTrout said:
The lightest trailer is still heavier than the GVWR rating of the Jeep.
Click to expand...

The Max Tow Capacity is 7,650 which is more than the GVWR of 6,250. I’m admittedly not a towing expert so what are you saying? Should the tow load be less than the GVWR? If so, why isn’t the tow capacity the same as the GVWR?

TrailHunter said:
I agree. Tow vehicles need to be min 3/4 ton w/ V8s. Not saying a Jeep won’t do it... but I think you’ll kill it sooner than later. An offroad trailer like Brutes is the most I’d be willing to tow with a Jeep, on a regular basis. It will be interesting to see how far these Gladiators get pushed to their towing limit... and how they hold up.
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I guess that’s what a drivetrain warranty is for?

I get what you are saying, I’m just not interested in a full size truck. Then again, maybe I’ll trade the Jeep in after a month if it’s that bad.
 
If you are only going to tow once or twice a year, the 23’ may fit the bill. If you are going to be a retired road warrior, either buy an RV and tow your JK, or buy a 2500 series pickup.


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I feel like these Mfgs are trying to get tow values up on Trucks by making them lighter.... My 18 F150 with the 2.7 is rated for 8k... My 05 2500HD durmax was rated for 9k. I would never tow the same shit with this Ford I towed with the Dmax.... In my experience, Heavy trucks with power simply tow the best. They feel planted on the road with the weight behind it.... and have the Torque needed to Pull. When towing with the right truck for the job... you feel safe and the truck feels at home with the load.
 
notnalc68 said:
If you are going to be a retired road warrior, either buy an RV and tow your JK.
Click to expand...

That would make more sense to me.

TrailHunter said:
I feel like these Mfgs are trying to get tow values up on Trucks by making them lighter.... My 18 F150 with the 2.7 is rated for 8k... My 05 2500HD durmax was rated for 9k. I would never tow the same shit with this Ford I towed with the Dmax.... In my experience, Heavy trucks with power simply tow the best. They feel planted on the road with the weight behind it.... and have the Torque needed to Pull. When towing with the right truck for the job... you feel safe and the truck feels at home with the load.
Click to expand...

Yup, this ^^^^
 
Perhaps downsize the trailer to something like a teardrop?...I feel we may be going this route when I approach the 70 yo mark to simplify camp setup...if you’re truly committed to a more comfortable trailer like an Airstream, get a full size pickup...
 
The max tow rating is there because at that limit it gets unsafe. NEVER tow what the max rating is. I always say 1500-2k less than the max rating is about the most you should tow. That rating is there for your safety and others safety.
 
Towning capacity for anything has to do with so many factors, power, stopping, weight of vechicle, airflow, ect... Just look at the much more powerful 3.0 eco diesel jeep on the way, cant keep it cool enough at those higher towing weights so it drops the capacity; Things to keep in mind when pushing the limits, it's not just about can it pull it. Shoot I remember my dads old suped up 97 powerstroke pulling a fully loaded 18 wheeler for about a mile down the road to his shop, it pulled it but probably would have burned the thing up if he had to go much longer.

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Remember that you have to add the weight of the stuff you put in the camper along with the trl. And you also have to figure the weight of the water in the fresh water tank

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I agree, it’s great in principal. If you’re towing flat thru the Midwest, I’d guess you will be fine as long as you keep your speeds down. If you are thinking of towing in the mountains and going east or west, you’ll need a 3/4 or 1 ton to tow with. Last thing you want to do is burn your Jeep up going up a long grade.


2015 JKUR AEV JK350
1985 CJ8 Scrambler
 
sipafz said:
Meaning that’s expensive? It has more options that I didn’t list.
Click to expand...

OverlanderJK said:
Yes. Super expensive. Don’t they start at like $36? I would be buying a Rubicon for sure if I was spending that kind of money.


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Click to expand...

I'd have to look at ours again but I think we were at 39,900 (3% under invoice) not including tax. Sport S with max tow, cold weather group, and aux switches. I don't think we added anything else.
 
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