2025 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon vs Mojave: Which Trim Is Right For You?

November 15th, 2024 by

A green 2025 Jeep Gladiator for sale near Huntersville is shown off-road.

The 2025 Jeep Gladiator is all about rugged utility. You get the awesome off-roading capabilities of the Jeep Wrangler but with all of the utility and functionality of a midsize pickup truck. It’s the best of both worlds. However, just because the Jeep Gladiator is rich with utility and off-road features doesn’t necessarily mean every trim is going to be right for you. If you live in North Carolina and you’ve been thinking about shopping for a Jeep Gladiator for sale near Huntersville, but you can’t quite decide on which of the enthusiast-oriented trims is right for you, then it’s important to take a step back and survey what they have to offer.

If your choices are hovering around between the Gladiator Rubicon and the Gladiator Mojave, you might be wondering what the significant differences are between the two trims and how that will impact your driving routines in Huntersville. We’ll break down these two different trims and run through some comparisons to give you a better understanding of what each one offers. This way, when it’s time for you to head to our dealership and test drive one or commit to a purchase, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting and why.

2025 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon vs Mojave Exterior Differences

The look of your vehicle says a lot about you. The color, the decals, and the wheelsā€”they all tell a story about what you use your vehicle for and how it represents you. When it comes to the Jeep Gladiator, the different trims reflect different drivers’ personalities. In this case, the Mojave and Rubicon are very similar but also have some distinct visual differences on the exterior, namely the wheels, decals, and hood.

The Rubicon comes with ā€œRubiconā€ decals above the front fenders and Trail Rated badges. The Rubicon also comes with 17-inch machined black-painted wheels as standard equipment, but you can swap those for 17-inch machined wheels with black-painted pockets. The Rubicon also features a hood with vents on either side and a steel rear bumper with steel rock rails as part of its trail-rated appeal.

The Mojave comes with ā€œMojaveā€ decals and Desert Rated badges. However, the Mojave features a very different hood design from the Rubicon, with a raised vented sports hood for added cooling, and its 17-inch wheels are dark gray. You also have optional 17-inch multi-spoke machined dark gray wheels. Another big difference with the exterior is that the Mojave comes with orange front tow hooks instead of the red tow hooks of the Rubicon. While steel bumpers and rock rails are available, they are not standard.

A close up shows the bed of a black 2025 Jeep Gladiator.

2025 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon vs Mojave Interior Differences

The interior differences between the Rubicon and Mojave are a lot more minor than some of the exterior differences. This mostly comes down to different seating materials. You have basic black cloth low-back bucket seats or black Nappa leather seats for the Gladiator Rubicon. Heated driver and front passenger seats with eight-way power adjustment for the driver are available, which is a relatively new option for the Gladiator.

The Mojave, however, comes with more heavily bolstered sport seats to keep you in place during high-speed driving. It comes standard with premium cloth in a black interior color scheme, or you can opt for leather seats with a black and green interior color scheme. Like the Rubicon, the Mojave features standard manual seats, with available heated eight-way power-adjustable seats.

When it comes to the interior, both trims offer a lot of great features. This includes a standard 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen with optional navigation and comfort features like a leather-wrapped steering wheel. So, if you’re a Huntersville resident who really relishes the comfort aspects available in the Gladiator, you can enjoy them all in either of these trims.

2025 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon vs Mojave Mechanical Differences

The biggest differences between the 2025 Gladiator Rubicon and Mojave are the mechanical properties of the two trims. The Rubicon features Tru-Lok front and rear axles, so you can lock the front and rear differentials for improved traction, as well as a 4:1 Rock-Trac part-time four-wheel drive system. This gives you an incredible 100:1 crawl ratio for unmatched low-end torque, which is great if you’re doing a lot of technical off-roading at any of the off-road parks near Huntersville. The Rubicon also comes with Red Tenneco shocks on the front and rear axles.

The Mojave offers a different selection of mechanical capabilities, swapping the Red Tenneco shocks for FOX 2.5 performance internal bypass shocks with external reservoirs to help improve the damping capabilities of the Gladiator when driving fast in rough terrain. Other significant changes include the Mojave featuring a Tru-Lok rear axle but a conventional front axle. However, while it doesn’t have front and rear electronically locking differentials like the Rubicon, it can lock the rear differential when in 4Hi. In contrast, the Rubicon can only lock its axles in 4Low. The Mojave also opts for the Command-Trac part-time four-wheel drive system, featuring a low gear ratio of 2.72:1, giving it a top speed of 50 mph in 4Low instead of the 30 mph limit of the Rubicon.

What Do the Differences Mean for Drivers?

The differences between the Mojave and the Rubicon all boil down to what you want out of the midsize pickup truck. If you plan on doing more technical off-roading and want the extra traction that comes with the four-wheel drive system in the Rubicon, then it’s going to be your better bet. However, if your idea of a fun day on the trails involves kicking up mud and sand as you fly along at higher speeds, then the Mojave is the truck for you.

It’s not a matter of one version of the Gladiator being objectively better than the other, but rather, it depends on what you’re planning on using the truck for and which aesthetic appeals to you. Keep in mind that both trucks still share a ton of similarities. So you still get all the same interior amenities, 35.5 cu.ft. of cargo capacity in the bed, and seating for up to five people across two rows. Plus, both options offer Jeep’s trademark modular open-air design and a selection of accessories to personalize the Gladiator your way.

A grey 2025 Jeep Gladiator Mojave is shown off-road.

Are You Ready to Shop for Your 2025 Jeep Gladiator?

If either of these trims seems appealing to you, it’s just a matter of ironing out which of the features you find most enticing. If you’re more of a Baja fan looking for something bold, rugged, and utilitarian, the Mojave covers a lot of what you would want out of a midsize pickup. However, if you want something ready-made to take on some serious rock crawling, the Rubicon is the trim you will want in your driveway. Either way, both options are more than capable of handling off-road traversal, daily driving, and utilitarian functionality. It’s just a matter of veering more into one category or the other, depending on your preferences. If you need help shopping for the right Jeep Gladiator for sale near Huntersville, contact us at your earliest convenience so we can set you up with a test drive to help you decide which one you prefer.