The Gladiator Rubicon has an active front sway bar, which helps keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnects at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The Colorado doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.
The front and rear suspension of the Gladiator uses coil springs for better ride, handling and control than the Colorado, which uses leaf springs in the rear. Coil springs compress more progressively and offer more suspension travel for a smoother ride with less bottoming out.
The Gladiator has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Colorado doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.
For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Gladiator’s wheelbase is 5.9 inches longer than on the Colorado (137.3 inches vs. 131.4 inches).
For greater off-road capability the Gladiator Sport has a 2.1 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Colorado (10 vs. 7.9 inches), allowing the Gladiator to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Gladiator Mojave’s minimum ground clearance is .9 inch higher than on the Colorado ZR2 (11.6 vs. 10.7 inches).