Cargazing
By Derek Price

The 2025 Jeep Gladiator stands as a fascinating anomaly in today’s truck market, a vehicle that refuses to compromise its off-road heritage while offering genuine pickup utility.

After spending a week with the top-tier Rubicon X model, it’s clear this isn’t just a Wrangler with a cargo bed bolted on. It’s a purpose-built adventure machine with capabilities few competitors can match.

For 2025, the Gladiator lineup sees subtle but meaningful refinements, most notably the standardization of the eight-speed automatic transmission across all models. Power lock windows, a new military-inspired ’41 exterior paint color and available cabin pre-conditioning through the Jeep Connect mobile app round out the year’s enhancements.

The Gladiator’s 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 remains unchanged, delivering 285 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque — adequate but not overwhelming figures for a vehicle of this size and mission. The power delivery is smooth and predictable, though you’ll want to plan your highway passing maneuvers carefully.

On pavement, the Gladiator exhibits the expected compromises of a vehicle optimized for off-road performance.

The steering feels disconnected and requires constant small corrections at highway speeds, a common trait among solid-axle 4x4s.

The ride quality, particularly in Rubicon trim with its specialized suspension and chunky 33-inch all-terrain tires, can be jarring over broken pavement. This isn’t the vehicle for drivers seeking crossover-like comfort.

The 2025 Gladiator Rubicon X showcases Jeep’s off-road heritage with standard 33-inch all-terrain tires, high-clearance fender flares and signature seven-slot grille.

But criticizing the Gladiator’s on-road manners misses the point entirely. Take this truck to a rutted forest service road, a rocky trail or a sandy wash, and it transforms from awkward to exceptional.

The Rubicon X’s electronic sway bar disconnect, locking front and rear differentials, and 4:1 low-range Rock-Trac transfer case make short work of obstacles that would stop lesser trucks in their tracks. The 11.1 inches of ground clearance and impressive approach, breakover and departure angles — 43.4, 20.3 and 26 degrees respectively — provide genuine go-anywhere capability that isn’t just marketing hyperbole.

Inside, the Gladiator offers a surprisingly refined cabin for a vehicle with such rugged pretensions. The 12.3-inch Uconnect 5 touchscreen now comes standard across the lineup, bringing crisp graphics and responsive controls.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration work seamlessly, and the available 12-way power adjustable seats in our tester provided all-day comfort despite the truck’s sometimes unsettled ride.

The Gladiator’s cabin blends rugged utility with modern tech, featuring a standard 12.3-inch touchscreen and controls designed to be operated even with gloved hands.

The Gladiator’s 5-foot cargo bed may not match full-size trucks for capacity, but its 1,725-pound maximum payload rating leads the midsize 4×4 segment. Likewise, the 7,700-pound maximum towing capacity outmuscles most competitors.

The bed includes thoughtful touches like under-rail lighting and an available 115-volt power outlet, though the optional Trail Rail system is essential for securing gear on bumpy trails.

The Gladiator’s unique selling proposition — being the only pickup truck offering true open-air freedom with a folding windshield, removable doors and three different removable roof configurations — remains unchallenged in the market. This feature alone will sway many buyers who crave the wind-in-your-hair experience typically reserved for convertibles, combined with truck utility.

At $67,335 as tested, our fully loaded Rubicon X model represents a significant investment, but the Gladiator lineup starts at a more accessible price point under $39,000. The sweet spot may be the standard Rubicon at around $52,000, which delivers the core off-road capabilities without some of the luxury add-ons.

The 2025 Jeep Gladiator isn’t trying to be all things to all people. It’s a purpose-built tool for outdoor enthusiasts who need genuine capability matched with pickup practicality.

At A Glance

WHAT WAS TESTED?

2025 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon X 4×4 ($51,100). Options: Customer preferred package 24Y ($10,000), Cargo Group with Trail Rail system ($2,095), 17-inch machined wheels ($1,095), spray-in bedliner ($555). Price as tested (including $1,895 destination charge): $67,335

BY THE NUMBERS

Wheelbase: 137.3 in.
Length: 218 in.
Width: 73.8 in.
Height: 75 in.
Engine: 3.6-liter V6 (285 hp, 260 lbs. ft.)
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel Economy: 17 city, 22 highway

RATINGS

Style: 9
Performance: 9
Price: 4
Handling: 4
Ride: 7
Comfort: 4
Quality: 7
Overall: 7

WHY BUY IT?

The Gladiator offers an unmatched combination of open-air freedom, pickup utility and go-anywhere capability in one distinctive package.

Cargazing
By Derek Price

The 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 Final Edition represents everything wonderful and absurd about American performance vehicles.

It’s a 470-horsepower, V8-powered off-roader that can embarrass sports cars in straight-line acceleration while conquering terrain that would strand those same vehicles.

While Jeep’s subsequent announcement that the 392 will continue into 2025 creates some awkward messaging around this “Final Edition,” the vehicle itself remains an impressive testament to excessive engineering.

The combination of Jeep’s most capable Rubicon trim with the proven 6.4-liter V8 creates an unlikely performance machine that somehow makes perfect sense once you experience it.

The numbers tell part of the story: 470 horsepower, 470 pound-feet of torque, 0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds. But the 392’s character proves more compelling than its statistics.

The active dual-mode exhaust delivers a thunderous soundtrack that seems incongruous coming from a Wrangler, with purposeful pops and crackles in performance mode that would make muscle car owners envious.

A raised stance, bronze accents and quad exhaust outlets scream about the 392 Final Edition’s performance.

Yet the 392 sacrifices none of the Wrangler’s legendary capability. Our test vehicle came equipped with 35-inch BFGoodrich all-terrain tires, electronic locking differentials and an electronic front sway bar disconnect.

The two-inch factory lift and upgraded suspension components work with Jeep’s Selec-Trac full-time four-wheel-drive system to maintain the Rubicon’s go-anywhere reputation.

Inside, the 392 Final Edition adds premium touches such as black Nappa leather seats with gold stitching, while maintaining the Wrangler’s functional simplicity.

Physical controls for critical functions remain, and the 12.3-inch touchscreen proves easy to use. The Sky One-Touch power top on our tester provided open-air versatility without the complexity of removing traditional roof panels.

The driving experience requires some compromise. Despite improvements to the suspension and steering, the 392 still exhibits typical Wrangler traits such as wandering steering and a firm ride.

Premium materials and modern technology complement traditional Wrangler functionality.

The massive tires create notable road noise, though the V8’s rumble provides pleasant distraction. Fuel economy, unsurprisingly, remains dismal at 13 mpg city and 16 highway.

At $108,475 as tested, this Wrangler occupies rarefied air for an off-road vehicle. The price seems simultaneously outrageous and perfectly appropriate. Tshis is, after all, both the most capable and most powerful factory Wrangler ever produced. Its very existence defies logic while delighting enthusiasts.

The 392 Final Edition exemplifies the current moment in automotive history, a gloriously excessive celebration of internal combustion as the industry leans toward electrification.

That Jeep has already extended its life into 2025 suggests the celebration isn’t quite over.

At A Glance

WHAT WAS TESTED?

2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 Final Edition 4×4 ($91,545). Options: Customer preferred package 27J ($8,450), Sky One-Touch power top ($3,995), air compressor by Mopar ($1,995). Price as tested (including $1,895 destination charge): $108,475

BY THE NUMBERS

Wheelbase: 118.4 in.
Length: 192.5 in.
Width: 79.3 in.
Height: 80 in.
Engine: 6.4-liter V8 (470 hp, 470 lbs. ft.)
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel Economy: 13 city, 16 highway

RATINGS

Style: 9
Performance: 10
Price: 2
Handling: 4
Ride: 6
Comfort: 4
Quality: 7
Overall: 8

WHY BUY IT?

The most powerful factory Wrangler ever combines sports car acceleration with unmatched off-road capability, creating an illogically perfect enthusiast vehicle.