2023 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon is a Great Pickup Truck That Needs a V8

I get behind the wheel of a 2023 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon and review it!

So we’ll be getting our full-fledged acceleration here with the Rubicon.
It has a foreign 3.6-liter V6, and it has an 8-speed automatic transmission. The engine produces 285 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, with a combined fuel economy of 17 in town and 22 on the highway. So let’s start at the beginning of this Gladiator Rubicon.
To begin with, as you can see, it’s done in sage green metallic.
We’ve got the Rubicon, the hood vents on either side, and then we’re going to lower the windshield onto that. Then you’ll be able to see it here with the Rubicon logo. We’ve got the amazing LED lights that come with the glide on the side, with the red print.
At the very least, you can get that with the Gladiator, and then you can see the Jeep hallmark, the front grille here red to represent the Rubicon.



Perfect in Green Color

We have fog lights down there, and yes, I like this green because it isn’t as bright as some of the greens Jeep is doing for 23, but there’s the front coming around the side here.
Our turn wheel configuration is 285/70, 17 in the front and over in the back, and as you can see, I love the Gladiator Rubicon’s wheel design.You’ve got the silver ring on the outside, and you notice it. The size of these spokes is, of course, mirrored in the Jeep at the bottom.
I believe it just looks incredibly nice; nothing else comes to mind. I’m a huge fan of Gladiator. The Rubicon has Fox shocks, which I prefer over the Mopar shocks found on the normal Wrangler Rubicon, so it’s just a much superior shock setup here, plus look how aggressive these tires are.
You’ll notice with the Jeep logo, with the red accenting down the Gladiator logo, down below the rock rail here on the side, and take a few steps back that this one also has the body-painted hard top, so yeah, it’s just yeah.
It’s really cool. This is our key fob.
As you can see, you have the Jeep logo on the back. We have the unlock lock feature, the remote start feature, and the flip-out key. It’s just something Jeep does.
So, with the Gladiator Rubicon LED lights in the bed, we have a payload capacity of 1099 pounds.
This one already has a lining. However, there is no cargo light for the Gladiator Rubicon or for the Gladiator in general, which is strange, but yeah, really great; everything is protected, the tailgate is quite light, and you can see here with the taillight LEDs.

There is a spare tire (Yes)

Definitely a great design, and then there’s the turn signal indicator; you’ll note that it looks like recovery hooks here on the back end. We have towing plugs, but there is no receiver hitch on this one. Surprisingly, you also have a spare tire and a whole spare solid axle in the rear, as well as Fox shocks. There’s the rear, so here’s the front door panel; you can see some great padding in the stitching that runs over, and look at this interior.
Because of the interior, I wanted to review this Wednesday. I adore this color, especially when combined with green. Guys, maybe I’m just getting old. I’m not sure.
In any case, there is storage space here, as well as smallholders on the backs of the seats and some vents in the back.
We also have all of our window controls and that little rope to draw down the cupholder armrest in the rear, and then we’ll pop in with a nice grip and handle to aid with legroom and headroom, as you can see here.
With the rear window, simply pinch it there and go, and then pull it open. So, on the front left side, you have a fairly cool configuration.
So here’s the front door panel, which you can see the cushioning and stitching on again, and then the mirrors are heated via the button for mirror adjustments. Then your door lock can unlock rather ordinary items. And now for the front seats. The Rubicon logo, white stitching, and then all of our settings, which are manual normal pedal layouts, light controls, fog light, and then that’s really for the led bed lights.
Because, once again, no cargo light steering wheel is manually adjustable, let’s slip it in, and here it is. You can notice the excellent leather trim all around, as well as the white contrast and stitching. The back radio controls include controls for the center stack, your voice, command phone controls, cruise control, as well as turn signal stock, windshield stock, and wiper stock.
You know the drill, and there’s a steering wheel. So here’s our center gauge cluster, with analog gauges on either side and a center screen where you can scroll through various bits of information. Off-road status is appealing to me.

It is well equiped

That’s entertaining, but you can see things like fuel economy. So, first and foremost, we have a backup camera whose path corresponds to the steering wheel when we move into reverse. I’m not sure if you can see the little red recovery hooks on the back, and then there’s the infotainment system. We’ll start with heated seats, a heated steering wheel, and dual-zone climate control, which we’ll use.
Put that down, and then we’ll hit the sync button. Look how simple that is to use. As you can see, the shortcut is at the bottom of the notes. We also received the off-road pages. That includes a slew of Jeeps and circular notice vents.

Because it’s gray here, look down below. We have our analog control area for things like the radio’s little offroad cruise control button, which auto stop is beginning to turn off. Window controls are in the center, followed by the charging area and 12 volts, and then this is for the locker situation, so we now have front and rear lockers, and you can do just the rear or both.
At the same time, we have our offroad plus, which is similar to your offer mode sway bar disconnect, and our driveline choose. So this has two wheels: four high wheels, four auto wheels, four high part-time neutral wheels, and four low wheels. Then there’s our shifter; take a look at him. It reminds me of Gladiator.
The parking brake sits on top, along with a couple of cup holders, and the center console features a great grab handle and the glove box.
Finally, this one has the top installation, which I usually encourage, and then you can easily remove this part of the top, or at least the front half of the top. The back section does require the use of tools, and it is quite hefty. Actually, but that’s all so—our winning sticker for this Rubicon base is MSRP 49110, and the majority of what we looked at was standard equipment.

This particular one has quite a bit of optional stuff. So, once again, that exterior color was followed by the leather trim interior—another option—and finally the headliner.

The four-wheel drive system is fascinating

And the MSRP on this one is: A five-year, 60,000-mile powertrain warranty stretched out over three or thirty years costs $63,870. Let’s see how she drives after 6,000 miles on the basics.
So, before we go, let’s speak about visibility. Here’s a look at the hood, both mirrors, and the rest of the back end, and then let’s go. So, as we set off in the Gladiator Rubicon, I feel like I’m not leaning back enough for you to have a nice camera angle, so there we go. Today’s video has enough gangster lean that you should be able to see the driving wheel, but first and foremost, quality. I’m really driving this alongside a Sahara Wrangler; it’s actually rather solid. The Gladiator features a slightly longer wheelbase than the Wrangler, which provides a more comfortable ride.
I was about to say “magic carpet ride,” but isn’t that still a Jeep? Both the front and rear axles are still sturdy. So you know it’s still a little lumpy, but it appears to be so.
I believe a little less head toss than in a Wrangler, which is good, is doing quite well in V6. The Rubicon has a 410 axle ratio, which helps a lot with, you know, torque off the line, but keep in mind that we are also. This is most likely 4000 feet above sea level. So you know it’s going to put some strain on the engine. Get up and get a little bit more into it here.
Yeah, I feel like I need to get up, not super high in the RPMs, but somewhat high in the rpm range, to get up and move with the V6. some other stuff with it Clay, on the other hand, is fantastic.
I notice some tire rattling, so keep that in mind. That bus was a little too close to the railroad tracks. Man, it was kind of fascinating.

Let’s Get Our Acceleration

This Nissan blows those away. Those things have about two horsepower; the thing will be lucky to get up to speed. Let’s be honest. So, with the Rubicon, we’re going to get our full-fledged acceleration. Do you know what’s reasonable? It moves so smoothly.
Let me summarize: in a previous video of the ecoSo Rubicon, uh, Gladiator, I suggested that you purchase the ecoDiesel powerplant, and I still believe it. To be honest, here’s the deal: the V6 is tried and true and super reliable, so if you want a super reliable powertrain, the v6 is worth it, but it just doesn’t have the torque of that ecodiesel powertrain, and I know diesel prices are high now, but equities will still get better fuel range, which is great. The most important aspect of off-road activities is the driving experience. I just appreciate the torque, and it seems correct for this, like needing to really put your foot into a pedal with any pickup truck, Gladiator or otherwise. It just doesn’t feel right to me for some reason.
This isn’t uncompetitive with other midsize pickup vehicles. It’s just that you know it’s cool, but you know what’s even cooler. Is it proper to say 5 7 Hemi and 6 4 hemi? Nope.
They did it in the Wrangler, in the six in front of me, and now they want to do it in the Gladiator.
Unfortunately, that would sell really well. Jeep really squandered an opportunity here, but I adore the specs on this one.

The V6 is excellent.

I believe the simplest way to describe it is to compare it to a v6 powertrain.
Do you remember what it’s like to be in high school? You already have. You have two girls: one who is cute and you know she will never cheat on you, and the other who is not. You know, just an ordinary person, and you know if you go for her safe bet, and then you get the hot one who will most likely cheat on you.
The relationship will be a disaster, but she’s extremely hot. That’s how I feel.

The v6 is the safe bet

It’s not like the powertrain is horrible or anything, but it’s just a little bit extra.
So I’m not sure if that was a strange analogy. I’ll just terminate the video here. I’m not sure what’s up with my brain today. Please tell me which powertrain you prefer. I still prefer the ecodiesel, but I can see why this V6 is appealing.

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