How much is too much? There’s a lot to like about the Jeep Gladiator– most of which comes inherent to its uniqueness– but there’s a big elephant in the room in the form of sticker shock. The 2025 Jeep Gladiator Sport S (the third of nine rungs up on the Gladiator model scale) seen here is optioned up nearly $20k over its $38,100 base price to a whopping $58,755. Maybe slow sales aren’t forcing Jeep to walk back Gladiator prices after all. So can the options help justify the truck’s price and if not can it at least charm us into thinking the MSRP is reasonable? Survey says…
It’s how expensive?
Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way first. When manufacturers build vehicles for the automotive media to test, they tend to include as many factory options on said vehicles as possible to show off the latest available features, niceties, and tech that each new model touts. It makes sense from a business perspective: Showcase your latest and greatest. Unfortunately for the sake of analyzing this specific Gladiator Sport S, that means ticking seemingly every option box means it takes a vehicle with a base price of $38,100 and brings it up to $58,755.
Looking at this truck’s Monroney sticker, much of what is normal, standard equipment for other 2025 model year vehicles costs extra, and you pay dearly for it. Things like automatic headlights and an automatically dimming rearview camera, for instance, bring up the price, and it only gets worse from there. For example, the $3,500 Customer Preferred Package 24S adds sun visors, heated mirrors, painted wheels, a “premium wrapped” steering wheel, “Deep-Tint Sunscreen Windows,” and radar cruise control.
Even though the $2,500 Convenience Group adds heated seats (and a couple other items, like automatic A/C and keyless entry– again, things most other automakers include in the standard price of a vehicle), power seats are only available on the top-trim $61,695 Rubicon X or Mojave X. Consider that this reflects only a small price jump over our Sport S press vehicle.
Is it any good in everyday life?
Enough of beating the dead horse that is the Gladiator’s price. What’s it like to drive and live with? You probably already know: The Gladiator is its own entity. Taking the Wrangler’s platform and stretching the wheelbase makes for a much better riding and more stable vehicle, at least by Wrangler standards. Meanwhile, the recirculating ball steering is still laborious relative to other modern vehicles and the vehicle is louder and less comfortable than just about anything out there, and certainly anything in its class. Blame doors and a roof that can be removed and Jeep’s decision to make the Wrangler-turned-Gladiator provide the archetypal “Jeep experience.”
Which, for most, is a love-it-or-hate-it ordeal. The noise, lethargic drivetrain, cumbersome handling, and upright ergonomics either charm or deter depending on the interested party’s fondness for such, and the highway manners too are a point of contention. Everything comes down to frame of reference and expectations; compared to any other new pickup, the Gladiator’s driving dynamics are like stepping back in time. But drive a Wrangler of pre-JL vintage and the Gladiator suddenly feels luxurious.
And for the price, it should be. It’s impossible to not keep coming back to the money the Gladiator commands in any form, and it’s also impossible to ignore the powertrain. The ZF 8-speed transmission is good, but the 3.6L Pentastar V6 feels every bit of the 15 years old that the design is. It’s a shame the Wrangler’s 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder isn’t available, and even more so that the 3.0L EcoDiesel is no longer so. The Gladiator 4xe is allegedly dead, but we’d love to see Jeep cram the 392 engine into the Gladiator. And yes, we know what it would do to the price, but as-is the drivetrain feels anything but sophisticated.
The Gladiator did receive some noteworthy quality-of-life updates for 2024, many of which should still be discussion points. These include a much larger and better UConnect infotainment screen, side curtain air bags, the aforementioned available power front seats, structural improvements, and so on. All-in-all they make the truck better to drive and live with than it was prior, but it’s still lacking well behind the other vehicles in its class in what most would consider the most important categories. The GMC Canyon AT4X that we drove earlier this year is better than the Gladiator in nearly every usable way— but then again, you can’t take its roof off.
Everything is a compromise in Gladiator land
At the end of the day, the Gladiator simply exists on its own planet. It really is what it is; despite endless appearance, convenience, and off-road hardware options, the motto for the engine and cab/bed configuration is “you get what you get and you don’t get upset.” All Gladiators effectively drive the same regardless of trim, and the competition (Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier, Honda Ridgeline) are all smoother, quieter, more comfortable, safer, and better on-road.
In truth, the Gladiator’s most redeeming quality is its charm and what you can do with it on the front of fun. These trucks can go effectively anywhere you point them and out-wheel most other trucks in the class when properly equipped, yet this loaded-up Sport S– with the Mojave’s hood and riding on OEM street tires– looks like it’s cosplaying. The biggest appeal then comes down to the removable doors and roof, for which Jeep has made the process extremely easy, with the front two panels coming off in less than a minute. Stripped of every panel it can be while maintaining street legality, the Gladiator provided an incredible open-air experience. The thing is, you can experience it for a lot less than one optioned like this, or at least having spent your money better. We simply can’t get around the price of this vehicle; it overshadows everything else about it.
This review isn’t meant to be a takedown of the Gladiator; to be honest, I’m very fond of the JT and have considered replacing my own vehicle with one. However, the value proposition of a new Gladiator just isn’t there. It doesn’t feel like the money goes a long way, instead leaving us wondering if a Gladiator spec’d like this is the worst way to spend $60k in today’s market.
And yet, we still like the core of the Gladiator, especially when painted in Mojito and with the roof off. As is the case with its Wrangler sibling, the JT has a character unlike anything else out there, thanks largely to its old-school mentality and the overall unique experience. Whether you want to (or should) live with the downsides and pay for them is up for debate. Our money would tell you to buy a different trim than what you see here, or at least lay off the option list. Either way, and so long as you ignore your bank account, you’re bound to have a good time.
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