The Jeep Flatbill Concept Is a Gladiator Pickup for Motocross Fans
Based on the Jeep JT Gladiator pickup, the Flatbill is a purpose-designed dirt-bike hauler.
Dynatrac ProRock 60 front and rear axles, a four-inch lift, and 20-inch wheels with 40-inch tires grant the Flatbill off-road cred.
The Jeep Flatbill is just one of six concepts Jeep created for the 2019 Easter Jeep Safari.
Dirt bikes and pickups go together like endos and Ibuprofen: if you have one of the former, you're gonna need the latter. To illustrate just how intrinsic the bike/truck relationship can be, Jeep created this Gladiator Flatbill concept for its annual 2019 Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah.
With neither a man named Bill nearby nor a particularly flat appearance, Jeep’s Gladiator-based Flatbill concept might seem like a conundrum. One peek at the round badge on its front fender gives it away: Where other Jeep products proudly display their "Trail Rated" chops on a small label, the Flatbill has in that spot a medal proclaiming it is "Bro Rated."
Don’t get the hint yet? The Flatbill name is a reference to the flat-brimmed caps favored by, well, bros-specifically, the sort of bros who might be into trucks and motocross, the prevailing themes of this Mountain Dew–soaked concept.
It's all about kicking ass, doing sweet stunts with dirt bikes, loading those bikes into a sweet truck, then looking sweet in said truck while toting sweet bikes. Or so we imagine.
Mild as far as concepts go-aside from the energy-drink color scheme-the Flatbill streamlines bike-hauling duty by removing the tailgate and fitting dedicated extendable ramps that slide out to make loading and unloading the bikes as easy as possible. A tube rear bumper teams with some custom body work on the lower rear bed sections, and high clearance fender flares make room for the running gear. Front mods include the vented carbon hood insert, and custom designed front bumper and skidplate said to improve approach angle.
As for running gear, the Flatbill utilizes Dynatrac ProRock 60 front and rear axles, a four-inch lift, bypass rear dampers, 20-inch wheels, and, for the first time on a Gladiator of any pedigree, 40-inch tires. The custom upholstery and bedliner treatment on the floor keep the interior sporty and functional. Power comes from the standard 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 and eight-speed automatic transmission, although Mopar did chip in with a cold-air intake.
If this all seems really . . . extra, just remember that that is the whole point. It is supposed to be in-your-face. Jeep's designers even put a prominent throw-down against the Toyota Tacoma-the Gladiator's direct mid-size-pickup competitor-by including a burrito cooker underwood because "Tacos suck." People colloquially refer to the Tacoma as a "Taco," so that’s where that’s coming from. (The burrito cooker is a metal box sitting atop the V-6 engine; for display purposes, Jeep placed several frozen burritos in the box.) If this Flatbill exercise serves as inspiration for a few bike-minded, truck-friendly buyers, great. If not, who cares-as a sticker affixed to its driver's-side doorjamb read: "Don't bro me if you don't know me."
We're sold on the package, but the geometric graphics treatment is giving us 1980s flashbacks of Martha Quinn and Mr. T cereal. We'll take ours in a solid color.
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