Orlando truck: Jeep Gladiator

The truck driven onto the stage at the Orlando was the 2005 Jeep Gladiator, which was reviewed some years ago by Allpar. It had the box side-mounted spare of historic models, an open-air canvas top, an expandable truck bed, and a stowaway rear seat cushion. The actual concept car has a 2.8 liter VM engine, and a mostly standard Wrangler dashboard. Like the Chevrolet Avalanche, the Gladiator includes a midgate to make use of interior space when loads longer than 5 feet, 8 inches are needed.

The design was credited to Mark Moushegian and Steve Ferrerio. In 2005, we wrote it was likely a “first try at getting the dimensions and shape of the next-generation [2006] Wrangler.” The truck had nearly two feet of ground clearance.