How to Make A 3-Row Jeep Wrangler From A Gladiator
Let’s get out there and make some three-row Jeep Wranglers like this. Though it looks like it came from the factory it is not. But the slicing and dicing were not as involved as one might think. And while it looks like somebody just took a hard shell and bonked it onto a Gladiator bed, there is a lot more going on than just that. So here is how to make a three-row Jeep Wrangler from a Gladiator.
You’ll need one Jeep Gladiator and a two-door Wrangler body
You’ll need one Jeep Gladiator and a two-door Wrangler body from the cowl-back. The upper portion of the two-door doors will need to be made rectangular as shown. Then weld the two-door back-half to the front-half of the Gladiator. Add another set of front seats in the middle, and a third bench seat in the rear.
Of course, it is a lot easier describing it than making one. Some of the rear door’s upper jamb will need to be created and it also looks like the Gladiator frame needs to be lengthened a bit. The quarter panels and top have also had to be extended. If you’re really wanting to make one of these you’ll need to cut up some side view images to actually figure this out. If you do metal fab or know someone who does you’re home free.
This three-row JL comes from the Off-Road History Museum in Abu-Dhabi. Owned by Sheikh Hamad bin Hamdan Al Nahyan, he provides the roadmap for making copies. You may remember the Sheikh because we posted a story on his Ram 4500 pickup with the 16-foot long bed. Yeah, this is the same Sheikh. The museum is touted as the largest collection of 4×4 vehicles and who are we to argue?
While this Gladiator looks simple to make, it’s not
We’ve seen four-door first-gen Broncos made so this is not new, but the combined pieces creating this three-row is. Many times what looks simple and easy is really not. In the YouTube video, it labels this as the “first longest JL.” That would seem to indicate there are more to come. Maybe longer? Like a Wrangler limousine. Or another 16-foot bed; this time made from a Gladiator.
Whatever the Sheikh has up his sleeves we’ll be checking in from time to time to see what new creations he reveals. And it might behoove Jeep to check-in as well as we think a production version of this three-row Wrangler would sell well.
