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Jeep Gladiator 4xe Plug-In Hybrid Pickup Truck Confirmed

In production since the 2020 model year, the JT is arguably the coolest pickup in the segment in bone-stock configuration. Opt for the Gladiator Rubicon, and you also get serious off-road capability from the factory.
Jeep 4xe badge 7 photos
Photo: Jeep
2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys2021 Jeep Gladiator Willys
The 3.6-liter Pentastar is the base engine, and a six-speed manual comes standard. Customers are offered the ZF 8HP automatic transmission as well, and the 3.0-liter EcoDiesel serves as the torquiest option at the time of writing. Not long now, Jeep will expand the lineup with a plug-in hybrid.

Speaking to Go Auto, head honcho Christian Meunier said that electrification is on the menu for the Gladiator. The Wrangler is offered with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, which means that Jeep is going to calibrate the 2.0-liter turbo engine and two-motor setup for the mid-sized pickup truck.

Meunier has told the cited publication that diesel is becoming increasingly hard to sell because of emissions regulations, which are tightening pretty much everywhere across the world. By comparison, PHEVs use less dinosaur juice and offer fully-electric propulsion at the touch of a button.

In the case of the Wrangler 4xe, which is only available with the four-door body style from the Sahara trim upward, Jeep quotes 25 miles or 40 kilometers of zero-emissions driving. Only one of the electric motors is tasked with propulsion while the other serves as a motor-generator unit.

The 4xe takes its mojo from a 17-kWh battery located under the second-row seats, and all told, the most fuel-efficient Wrangler of them all peaks at 375 horsepower and 470 pound-feet (637 Nm) of torque. In other words, it’s torquier than the 3.0-liter EcoDiesel (442 pound-feet or 599 Nm).

Jeep’s president didn’t mention when the Gladiator 4xe will go into production, but given the Wrangler 4xe's existence, the 2022 model year would be my bet. As for pricing, well, that’s going to hurt a little.

Compare, for instance, the auto-equipped Wrangler Unlimited Sahara with the Pentastar V6 and the Wrangler Sahara 4xe. But on the upside, the federal tax credit for plug-in hybrid vehicles brings down the starting price of the fuel-sipping powertrain to $41,990 including destination charge.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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