JEEPIN' AROUND

CAN THE GLADIATOR RUBICON STAND UP TO AUSTRALIA’S TOUGH OFF-ROAD CONDITIONS? THIS ONE HAS BEEN PUT TO THE TEST OVER 12 MONTHS AND 60,000KM ON SOME OF AUSTRALIA’S REMOTEST BUSH TRACKS

- DAN GREC

THE JEEP Gladiator arrived on Australian shores in the middle of 2020, and since then has been seen locally as an oddity. While it’s clearly a long wheelbase ute; 298mm longer than a 79 Series LandCruiser, its payload is only half that of the Toyota, leaving many to wonder what exactly it’s good for.

While Jeep’s marketing department would never be so blunt, the Gladiator is essentially a Wrangler with a wheelbase stretch and a five-foot bed bolted to the back. Thanks to that Wrangler heritage, the Gladiator undoubtedly has the off-road chops for more than just a fun weekend on the beach, and some would even say it doesn’t look half bad. That depends, of course, on which half you happen to be looking at.

And while it’s great to have a big beach-buggy with removable roof and doors for some weekend fun in the sun, the question remains as to whether the Gladiator is up to the real challenge of tens of thousands of kilometres in tough Aussie conditions.

THE TEST

TO ANSWER this nagging question that used to keep me up at night, I outfitted a Gladiator as a full-time Aussie tourer, then lapped the continent. I didn’t just stick to the bitumen, either. The goal was to explore all the remote corners, wild tracks and iconic destinations as I made my way around this wide brown land. I ventured deep into Land Cruiser country with an unproven newcomer, and I honestly didn’t know how it would go.