Before Saturday's hitch-up, picture a 2027 Jeep Gladiator Sport S as a three-step ladder. Step one, as delivered, is 4,500 pounds for towing and 1,025 for payload. Step two, the Trailer Tow and Auxiliary Switch Group, gets you 6,000 pounds. Step three, the Max Trailer Tow Package, gets you up to 7,700 pounds, alongside up to 1,720 pounds in payload.

Like the look of bigger tires? On a Willys or Rubicon, the 35-Inch Tire Package lowers towing to 5,000 pounds, with payload at 1,230 pounds on the Willys and 1,090 on the Rubicon. Jeep also reminds shoppers that options, passengers, equipment and cargo weight may affect payload and towing, so ask us about the truck you have in mind.

• Tow limit 7,000 pounds, payload 1,100 pounds: Rubicon, Rubicon X
• Tow limit 6,000 pounds, payload 1,050 pounds: Mojave, Mojave X
• Tow limit 6,000 pounds, payload 1,025 pounds: Willys
• Limited special edition Rewind tows up to 6,000 pounds
• Jeep lists 4,500 pounds for Sahara

Here is one thing the household does not have to debate: the powertrain. The 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 is standard on every 2027 Jeep Gladiator, with 285 horsepower on tap, torque of 260 lb.-ft. and the 850RE eight-speed automatic. All eight models are 4x4, a comfort during a Missouri January. Each also has a 240-amp alternator and an engine oil cooler.

Want a Class IV Receiver Hitch on Sport S or Sahara? It's in the Trailer Tow and Auxiliary Switch Group, with Heavy-Duty Engine Cooling, four programmable auxiliary switches and Trailer-Hitch Zoom. Going further on Sport S means the Max Trailer Tow Package: that hitch and cooling, wide-track Dana 44 axles, a 4.10 axle ratio and a Trac-Lok rear differential.

• All eight: 7-pin and 4-pin wiring, Electronic Trailer Sway Control
• Willys, Rewind, Mojave, Rubicon models carry a standard Class IV hitch
• 3.73 gears on Sahara, Rewind, Willys and a standard Sport S
• 4.10 gears on Mojave, Rubicon models; 4.56 with 35-Inch Tire Package
• ParkView camera gridlines help you line up a trailer

When the float-trip gear comes home wet, it can ride in the bed instead of on your back seat. The bed on every 2027 Jeep Gladiator runs 5 feet, all steel, with 35.5 cubic feet of box volume and 56.8 inches of width. Close the tailgate for 60.3 inches of length, or drop it for 81.3 inches.

What about the smaller stuff that stays in the cab? Front seatback map pockets, behind-rear-seat storage, door trim panel storage nets, a locking glove box and a full-length floor console come on all eight models. The Cargo Group with Trail Rail System, available lineup-wide and included on both Rubicon X and Mojave X, adds a lockable, removable rear underseat bin.

• Wheelhouses 44.8 inches apart, with a 50-inch tailgate opening
• 29.7-inch liftover height, 34.8 inches from open tailgate to ground
• Cargo tie-down loops and Power Tailgate Lock on all eight models
• Truck bed 115-volt AC outlet, Trail Rails, roll-up tonneau: Cargo Group
• Available Mopar tri-fold tonneau covers and spray-in bedliner