Cheaper Jeep Gladiator ute coming

If you’re keen on the new Jeep Gladiator but can’t stretch to the sky-high $75,000-plus entry price don’t fret, because there’s a more affordable version coming.

Available in Australia by the end of this year, the Jeep Gladiator Sport S will be priced about $10,000 lower than the Overland variant ($75,450 plus ORCs), which will open the all-new dual-cab 4x4 ute range when it is officially launched later this month.

Few other details have been revealed, but Jeep Australia product manager Guillaume Drelon said the cheaper, entry-level Gladiator will likely be based on the more urban-friendly Overland variant, but with fewer standard features.

It’s unclear what equipment buyers of the circa-$65K Gladiator will miss out on, but the Sport S will likely be powered by the same 209kW/347Nm 3.6-litre petrol V6 paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission, along with a Selec-Trac Active On-Demand 4x4 system.

“The [Sport S] will be more like the Overland in the sense of capability, as we are aiming at adding the same off-road system,” Drelon said.

Like pricier versions of the petrol-only Jeep Gladiator, the entry-level Sport S will also be aimed specifically at recreational buyers rather than tradies.

Drelon says the Gladiator will most likely be cross-shopped against other premium ‘lifestyle’ utes like the Ford Ranger Raptor, which is priced around the same and also has a sub-par tow capacity of less than three tonnes.

Drelon said the lack of a diesel engine option for the Gladiator would not necessarily deter off-road-oriented buyers, as most Aussie buyers of the Jeep Wrangler (which is available with both petrol and diesel power) opt for the petrol version.

“We are not aiming to play in that [diesel dual-cab ute] market,” he said.

“We are not intending to sell 15,000 cars in that [work ute] market, because we know we have a product that is unique, specific and has a [different] purpose.”

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