Work on Ineos’ long-promised dual-cab pickup is nearing completion, with Grenadier utes already built at the company’s factory in Hambach on the French-German border.
Speak to Car Expert at the launch of the Grenadier wagon in Scotland this week, Ineos commercial director Mark Tennant says the brand has been working on a ute in parallel with the wagon.
“We can’t be a reliable OEM with just one product,” Tennant told Car Expert.
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Credit: Ineos Grenadier Owners Group forum
“The ute is coming… later this year. It is important to [Grenadier] products, cab chassis as well. They are out there and are being built in the factory in Hambach, they are very advanced, we will have them out there by the end of the year – production ready.
“If you think about this [wagon] product, it’s been almost five years in the making and we opened protection on it very early because we had nothing to protect, but the pickup has been in the parallel process as well.”
The dual-cab Grenadier pickup will give buyers a tough alternative to the Toyota LandCruiser 70 Dual Cab, and more car-like competitors like the Ford Ranger and Jeep Gladiator.
Images of a test vehicle in Austria near development partner Ineos Magna were recently posted on Ineos Grenadier Owners Group Forum.
The Ineos Grenadier ute’s powertrain will be the same as the wagon, meaning the B57 (diesel) and B58 (petrol) engines sourced from BMW.
The 3.0-liter twin-turbo six-diesel produces 183kW (3250-4200rpm) and 550Nm (1250-3000rpm) of torque and is capable of propelling the Grenadier wagon from 0-100km/h in 9.9 seconds.
The 3.0 liter single turbo six petrol produces 210kW of power (4750rpm) and 450Nm of torque (1750-4000rpm) and can propel the Grenadier from 0-100km/h in 8.6 seconds.
Both powertrains are mated to a ZF eight-speed automatic transmission (codename 8HP51 for petrol, 8HP76 for diesel), with what Ineos calls a new “heavy duty” torque converter.
All Grenadiers vehicles will come standard with permanent four-wheel drive (4WD), with low range accessed via a Tremec 2.5:1 two-speed transfer case. Matching the class leader, the Grenadier ute will also have a braked towing capacity of 3.5 tonnes.
The Grenadier ute’s wheelbase will be 12 inches (305mm) longer than the wagon and although it is identical to the wagon up to the B-pillar, the rear doors are slightly different, the second row has less legroom and the rear seats are straighter to accommodate trays.
Although the full dimensions of the tray have not yet been officially confirmed, Car Expert have seen photos of the final version and it’s going to be huge, so much so that a 2240mm long BMW GS1200 can fit in the back (straight, not diagonal) with the tray door open.
The first Grenedier Utes will leave the Ineos factory in Hambach before the end of the year and Australia – as the third largest market for Ineos overall – will have a high priority for production, but it’s unlikely we’ll see them until 2024.
The Grenadier is the brainchild of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, billionaire British engineer and chairman of multinational petrochemical giant Ineos. No expense was spared for his passion project.
The official story says Ratcliffe was hanging out in London’s Grenadier pub in 2017, bemoaning Land Rover’s decision to kill off the old Defender and replace it with a new, more modern and luxurious SUV model.
Ineos Automotive Australia is a factory supported operation rather than an independent licensed dealer. The company is led here by Justin Hocevar, who previously ran Mini Australia and Renault Australia, and was a senior executive at Jaguar Land Rover and BMW Motorrad.
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