DRIVEN: Ineos Grenadier hits the nail on the head for 4x4 adventurers

Inverness, Scotland - The design brief was simple: a triangle signifying three non-negotiables that would be the basis for a new car aimed at the off-road community worldwide.

When Sir Jim Ratcliff sat in the Grenadier pub in London and drew the first prototype on a napkin, he had design, durability, reliability and off-road capability as the priorities for what has become the Ineos Grenadier.

Five years later, the first cars are about to roll off the state-of-the-art production line in Hambach, France, which they purchased from Mercedes Benz.

It has been a long road for the CEO and chairperson of the Ineos chemicals group and his team, including a court case brought against them by Land Rover claiming that the design of the original Defender was trademarked. Land Rover lost the case, leaving the team to move forward unrestricted.

There has been exhaustive research and development, including more than 1.8-million kilometres of thorough testing across the globe in extreme weather and terrain. Now, it has the nod to go ahead.

Take a closer look at the new Grenadier in the video below:

Ineos secured the best partners for the Grenadier’s three guiding principles, with some impressive companies including BMW for the engines, ZF for gearboxes, Magna Steyr for design and engineering, Bosch, Tremec for the transfer case and the Carraro Group for the car’s live axles.

South Africa will be getting three variants – the Station Wagon, Trailmaster Edition aimed at the serious off-roader and the more bespoke Fieldmaster Edition.

Later this year, there will probably be a hydrogen fuel cell version and a double cab is also in the pipeline.

All three are powered by either the tried-and-trusted BMW 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel engine, with 182kW and 550Nm, or the German manufacturer’s 3.0-litre turbocharged straight six petrol mill providing 210kW or 450Nm.

During the three year live-testing phase, the engines were revised, reprogrammed and recalibrated for optimal on- and off-road driving, including a larger radiator and upgraded fan to improve coolant flow.

Power is sent to all four wheels permanently via the fine-tuned eight-speed ZF box attached to a heavy-duty torque converter. The gear lever can be moved across to operate it manually but we found the engine and auto box combination so smooth and hassle free that it hardly merits a mention.

Talking of the gear lever, seen in most BMWs, it’s the only glimpse in the entire car that it’s made up of component parts from across the world.

The two-speed manually operated Tremec transfer case, featuring an external oil cooling system, has a built-in centre differential that’s lockable in high and low range engaged by a good old-fashioned short lever.

Optional on the Station Wagon and Fieldmaster and standard on the Trailmaster are front and rear electronically operated Eaton lockers.

As you would expect from a vehicle dedicated to off-roading, everything is built around a full box-frame ladder chassis protected against corrosion by an E-coat treatment, internal cavity wax application and then powder coated.

In sticking with the design brief and keeping things as analogue as possible, suspension is progressive coil springs and dampers all round, anti-roll bars, a five-link set-up with a pair of longitudinal links either side of the axles and a Panhard rod. No airbags or compressors in sight, thank goodness.

Steering is courtesy of box and beam and brakes by Brembo. It is designed to handle the combined gross fully laden vehicle and maximum trailer weight of seven tons.

Seventeen-inch steel wheels are standard, with optional 18-inch steelies or 17- and 18-inch alloys covered in either specially designed all-terrain Bridgestones or more aggressive BF Goodridge rubber.

On closer inspection, there aren’t any flimsy running boards that become a Simba chip on the first outing but rather a decent set of rock sliders built to protect the sills and undercarriage.

Inside, the Ineos Grenadier is unlike any modern car you’ve seen. We’ve become so used to minimisation and enormous glass screens that seeing something that’s gone back to the basics brings a song to the heart.

Wherever possible, the Grenadier remains analogue and mechanical. Instead of an enormous screen dominating the view behind the steering wheel, there’s a small digital readout that shows only the necessary icons and information when you’ve pushed the off-road button situated in the overhead control panel inspired by aircraft cockpits. Most of the off-road switchgear is situated here, so you’ll find the Off-Road and Wading Modes, diff lock, Downhill Assist, standard and optional pre-wired auxiliary switches for light bars, auxiliary battery, fridges or winches easily reachable, even with a pair of gloves on.

The vehicle has been pre-wired for many of the accessories that off-road users are likely to attach, and this includes three 10A circuits, three 25A and one 500A circuit and four integrated weather-proof roof mounted outlets.

The centre control panel for everyday use is similarly designed with chunky dials and switches which you’re also able to operate with a pair of gloves.

Obviously, there has to be a digital presence, so there’s a 12.3-inch touch screen that displays driver information such as speed, gear and fuel level, tyre pressures, phonebook, current bearing, co-ordinates, steering angle and altitude. It can be operated using either buttons on the steering wheel, the rotary controller on the centre console and the, by now, more familiar touch screen itself.

Fitted as standard is Ineos Automotive’s Pathfinder navigation system that’s a waypoint-based navigation system using GPS signals and co-ordinates to guide drivers.

There’s a cool toot button on the steering wheel that warns cyclists, pedestrians and, in the case of rural South Africa, sheep, cattle and goats, with a less aggressive tone than the regular hooter.

All this is done while you sit comfortably in eight-way manually adjustable Recaro seats designed specially for the Grenadier.

Standard upholstery is a combination of tough dirt- and water-resistant cloth and vinyl, with an option to have them heated. If you opt for full-grain leather seats, heating is standard.

On our launch drive in Scotland, where temperatures ranged between -1 and 7ºC, they proved to be a butt saver.

Because the Grenadier was built to be utilitarian rather than a fashion statement or Sandton pavement hopper, it will probably be used as intended. This means dirt, mud and grime will gather which is easily washed out with five interior one-way drain valves under the removable rubber mats.

Critical cabin components have an IP54K rating for protection against dust and water ingress, so an occasional wet splash won’t damage the switchgear or electronics.

But what’s it like to drive the Ineos Grenadier?

We drove the Grenadier at the international launch from Inverness, Scotland to the town of Lusa in the Scottish Highlands through some of the most beautiful and rugged estates and lochs (including past Loch Ness). Did I mention it was cold?

Unlike many launches that involve off-road driving in controlled environments, with instructors in the car or around every corner and hill, the good folks at Ineos left us to our own devices, except for accompanying us over some of the technical areas merely to point out the various 4x4 settings.

Which is how we found ourselves testing the 800mm wading depth, having first cracked the ice around the edge of the lake. When you switch to off-road mode the parking sensors, seat belt reminders and start/stop facility are disabled (see what they did there America?).

Wading Mode monitors engine temperature and disables the engine fan, so you don’t have plastic bits breaking off when the bow wave gently flows over the bonnet. Oh, and there wasn’t a drop of water inside the car, a pleasant change from my own Defender every time a water crossing is attempted.

The previous week, there had been a good few feet of snow that had started melting, making the 4x4 technical sections spectacularly muddy and slippery, aided too by regular bouts of rain on the day.

Not to worry, with all three diff locks engaged, the Grenadier managed to easily get the better of the challenge, with minimal wheel slip or damage to the route.

Downhill control speed is set on the cruise-control button on the steering wheel and, when engaged, there’s no noise coming from the traction control on the disks as is often the case with other manufacturers.

Generally, in those situations, I prefer to feather the brakes myself but having tried that, I found the car a lot more in control when left to do its own thing.

Driving dirt roads is its bread and butter and exactly where the Grenadier will probably spend much of its time. It feels perfectly weighted and, thanks to the permanent four-wheel drive, there’s little slipping and sliding when going into and out of corners and sharp bends.

My driving partner was from Namibia and all we could talk about was taking it on those endless well-manicured Namibian dirt roads, fully kitted with a rooftop tent, drawers and a fridge to keep the Tafel Lagers cold.

Not that it’s a slouch on tar though.

Keep in mind that the Grenadier is a solid front-axle vehicle, so there will be a compromise when it comes to the smooth black stuff.

Again, it’s a purpose-built vehicle for off-road use and was never intended to be a slick handling racer. Given its weight of between 2 644kg and 2 740kg, depending on the spec, it does handle surprisingly well.

The work done on the engine and gearbox combination shines through spectacularly. It’s one of the smoothest I’ve experienced, including some premier brands’ flagship models.

The suspension too works well in combination with the chassis and steering and, despite its brick outhouse shape, it will tackle the twisties with little fuss.

Flooring the accelerator, it glides forward effortlessly rather than spectacularly, the cogs changing to bring it up to speed quick enough before settling down to highway speed comfortably.

Steering the wagon doesn’t require more than a single finger (I know, but we did try it briefly) and the driving position is as close to perfect as you will probably get.

Apart from wind noise from the side mirrors, the interior is quiet enough for the pope to deliver a sermon. At one stage, we had to open the window just to confirm that we were indeed driving the diesel version.

Day two saw us tackle a much more technical and rocky route to showcase the Grenadier’s goat skills. Apart from a sheer cliff face, there doesn’t seem to be too much to phase it.

I may have said before that it was cold and wet which makes rocks especially treacherous.

There was the odd spin before the diff locks shoved it forward and upwards, with a bit of rocking to and fro, which makes you appreciate the support offered by the seats under your bum and in the lumbar regions.

Waiting in the car park for the shuttles to take us to Glasgow International and chewing the cud with local, African, Australian and New Zealand colleagues, we all agreed that the Ineos Grenadier had hit the nail on the head precisely.

With a 150kg roof rating, strategically placed USB and 12V charging points, grab handles where you need them most, oodles of storage space and, most importantly, making sure that the criteria around the initial dream to build a car such as the Ineos Grenadier have been met.

They’ve even turned the rear-mounted spare wheel the “wrong way” around to create a storage space for those wet and muddy items you don’t want to carry around inside.

They have the design and off-road bits spot on and, once the world starts to take ownership we’ll know more about reliability and durability.

Click here to configure yours, including a full list of accessories and options.

The Ineos Grenadier comes with a five-year/100 000km warranty, with an optional service plan.

ALSO READ: Ineos Grenadier - SA pricing and specs

Locally Ineos has signed agreements with two partners to run three retail and service sites: