Mistake was rectified quickly, though.
While there’s plenty of buzz surrounding Jeep’s upcoming ute, slated for reveal at the upcoming LA Auto Show, we didn’t expect Jeep themselves to be bursting with the sort of excitement that could lead to silly mistakes. When we say ‘silly mistakes,’ we mean putting up the the press release and full photos of an upcoming model a good two weeks ahead of its scheduled debut.
The surprise upload served up only one major surprise, as it seems that Jeep’s ute will just be a Wrangler with a 5-foot cargo bed, as expected. That upset comes from its name, Gladiator. We thought (and quite a number of others, too) that it’d be dubbed the ‘Scrambler.’ In fact, the Jeep Gladiator Forum that found these images used to be called the Jeep Scrambler Forum, with a hasty rename executed.
Some details were also noted from the accidental Jeep release. The Gladiator, which will be released for the 2020 model year, will arrive with either the 3.7-litre Pentastar V6 or a 3.0-litre turbodiesel V6 engine, with an 8-speed automatic gearbox available with both engines, while the petrol-V6 gets the additional option of a 6-speed manual.
Interestingly, in the move from SUV to ute, the Gladiator’s lost none of the Wrangler’s innovative features. That includes the fold-down windscreen, removable roof panels, LED head- and tail-lights, and so on. So they just tacked on that cargo bed. Perfect.
It goes without saying that the Gladiator will most-definitely make it to Australian shores, if anything just to avoid the public protest that will happen if Jeep Australia says no.
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