Four-door small pickups and compact trucks are nothing new. The Jeep Gladiator stands out for its minimalist design. The Jeep Gladiator’s distinct physical appearance provides it with an unquestionable stylish aspect. The Gladiator can also be specified with a manual transmission, which is nearly non-existent in new trucks.
Following the release of the Gladiator, an enticing new variant was added to the roster. The Mojave trim level, which debuted earlier this year alongside the gigantic Rubicon at the top of the Gladiator’s model range.
The Mojave is built on Jeep’s well-known Trail Rated vehicles, which are equipped for off-roading in the conventional sense with sturdier four-wheel-drive tech, skid plates, and improved and better tires built to prove itself in higher-speed off-road conditions.
How does it drive?
The offered eight-speed transmission (a six-speed manual is standard) does a superb job handling the 3.6-liter V6’s torque limitation, making city cruising a pleasurable experience.
Keeping 70 mph on the open road demands a lot of downshifting from the gearbox, affecting fuel economy. However, the Jeep keeps up with modern traffic quite fine, and despite its flaws, it’s still a lot of fun to drive.
On paper, the standard V-6 is powerful enough, but it’s limited by the eight-speed automatic long transmission gears. It gets the job done, but you want to get up to speed quickly when the vehicle can take this much speed off-road.
The Mojave gets rolling with one foot flat on the ground, but you can’t help but wonder how much better it would be if it had a little more power. Mojave feels like it is in desperate need of some turbos, or at the very least a couple more cylinders.
Suspension and Tires
The Mojave gets new 2.5-inch Fox internal-bypass dampers, a 1.0-inch front suspension lift, and secondary Fox hydraulic front jounce dampers, which function as additional heavy-duty, short-stroke shock absorbers that help avoid the suspension from bottoming out, in addition to a reinforced frame, 33-inch tall tires on 17-inch wheels, and slight increases to the Gladiator’s wheelbase and track.
While the Mojave’s Dana 44 axles are comparable to the Rubicon, it has beefier front steering knuckles, a beefier rear axle housing, and a transfer case with a steeper low-range ratio of 2.72:1 against 4.00:1 on the Rubicon. There are also model-specific front seats with increased side bolstering.
The Mojave struggles a little when handling mud holes and more technical off-road obstacles since it lacks the Rubicon’s electrically locking front differential and disconnecting front anti-roll bar.
Solo Off-roading
The Mojave is a great bridge between the tough Jeep Rubicon and the bigger Ford, with excellent front and rear sightlines and outstanding agility. The short hood, distinct fenders, and high driving position all work together to make this a fun vehicle to solo off-road in.
Added ground clearance also helps in rough driving, and the Mojave’s totally adequate 2.72:1 low-range transfer case was no match for our a lot of relatively difficult route choices.
Where it gets rough
The Mojave has many areas where it gets rough and hard to choose over other trucks. Despite being the favorite of many, the vehicle has issues.
Old Suspension Tech
This vehicle has flaws. The Gladiator’s solid front and rear axles are hidden by a coil-sprung, five-link suspension all around, but there’s no getting around decades-old technology. Although the Dana 44 logs in the front and rear provide outstanding off-road movement, they also imply that if one wheel hits a hurdle, the entire truck feels it. It’s a trade-off Jeep makes for good off-road performance.
Steering
Another concern is the steering. Working with the steering wheel is a full-time job, requiring continuous necessary adjustments on the highway and in mountain sharp turns due to excessive rear-axle movement in even the most moderate driving actions.
We can overlook the latter because few people rush their Gladiators on mountains, but driving on a highway appears to be a liability unless your trip is short and your off-road track is not too rough.
Aerodynamics
Because of its windscreen, the Jeep Gladiator Mojave also has issues with aerodynamics. The almost vertical and foldable windscreen is inefficient in terms of aerodynamics, depleting both highway cruising momentum and fuel economy. Also, the unstable ride at times is due to the windshield being almost straight.
