I ended up with a Liberty rental once and agree with your findings, but the Wrangler and Gladiator are completely different vehicles with good track records.
My Liberty was a fun little vehicle to drive--made a decent grocery grabber and go to work car. But it didn't age very well and little things started to go wrong, like 3 our of 4 (power) window regulators going DOA within a few months of each other.
There were kits if minor fit/finish issues, but a common problem I saw in clients' Wranglers with the cooling system overflow reservoir. On many vehicles, it's just an overflow container that connects to the radiator neck and is not pressurized. It was different on Jeep vehicles--the reservoir was made out of plastic (two halves molded together) and was part of the pressurized cooling system. Over time, the plastic would become brittle at the seam and the container would spring a leak when pressurized, which isn't a good thing to happen when you're 4Wheeling out in BFE.
There wasn't a really good field repair, either. Usually large hose clamps, and maybe sealing tape or Justice Bros. epoxy (along with careful driving), would last long enough to get the vehicle safely back to pavement.
I was amazed the Jeep didn't offer a, OEM replacement pressurized tank made from metal or molded differently.
HHMMMMMM.... now build an aluma tape ground plane under it.... Probably work good.
