PASSENGER RIDE
INEOS GRENADIER The off-road world is waiting with baited breath for the vehicle hailed as the spiritual successor to the old Land Rover Defender. Here’s where we find out how it’s shaping up…
AS INEOS AUTOMOTIVE PROGRESSES TOWARDS next summer’s launch of the new Grenadier, the fledgling 4x4 manufacturer continues to do things its own way. It revealed the vehicle’s exterior design early in the development process and more recently unveiled its cabin, allowing the press to sit inside a prototype model – something few other manufacturers are ever willing to do. More recently, the company embarked on a UK roadshow, presenting the vehicle to prospective customers – again, in prototype form – and allowing
them to experience it through a series of off-road passenger rides. Actually driving one remains a treat for the future, however the event gave us a first opportunity to understand what the Grenadier is all about, albeit in fairly moderate terrain. We were also able to chat with senior engineers from the INEOS programme, who answered a number of the questions we were left with following the static interior reveal event we reported on in last month’s issue of this magazine.
With live beam axles at either end, the Grenadier is designed to lift itself over the ground and keep its wheels pressed down on to the surface wherever possible. Articulation looks good, from what we’ve seen so far, and INEOS says its use of a five-link rear set-up hasn’t detracted from that. A feature we should all be pleased to see is that the chassis is galvanised – so the sort of galloping rot that overtakes so many other off-road vehicles shouldn’t be a problem here
28 | OCTOBER 2021
2pp Grenadier passenger ride.indd 28
4x4 29/08/2021 21:40
