Old-school 4x4 to tempt hardcore off-road drivers

The Ineos Grenadier is not a vehicle that many expect: it does not have fancy features like the large screens commonly found in cars nowadays.

Instead, it boasts so many buttons, reminiscing people about the age when cars were purely mechanical products. Typically an electric vehicle has around 1,500 chips, but the Grenadier only has around 40 and the company is proud of it.

"This is a vehicle for you to drive; not one that drives you," said Lynn Calder, CEO of Ineos Automotive.

That can easily be taken as a bland cliche. But the vehicle explained all for itself when a team of auto journalists drove through rugged terrain in the Helan Mountains in Northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region last week.

It offered an easy ride rarely seen in other off-roaders. Even those non-veterans felt confident sitting in the driver's and passengers' seats alike whenever the vehicle went over rocks, tilting dirt roads, or steep, downhill trails.

"One of the things we are really excited about this car is that it is almost like you are a child again. It is so fun. I don't think there are a lot of cars these days that bring us this feeling," said Calder.

The marque was founded in 2017 by Jim Ratcliffe, chairman of the multinational chemicals company Ineos. He came up with the idea of building a replacement for his Land Rover Defender, which ceased production in 2016.

In 2022, the Ineos Grenadier, named after the pub in London where Ratcliffe came up with the idea, was launched with the "rugged British spirit and design with German engineering rigor".

Produced at a former Mercedes-Benz plant in France, the model is powered by a BMW V6 3.0-liter engine, which goes with a ZF eight-speed gearbox.

It also boasts a Brembo braking system and Eibach's progressive-rate coil springs, among other things. Before its launch, it went through 1.8 million kilometers of tests.

Durability and off-road capabilities are the model's top features that distinguish the Grenadier from other models in the market, said COO Hans-Peter Pessler, responsible for all engineering and operations.

Before he joined Ineos Automotive in 2022, Pessler worked as a senior executive for Magna Steyr in Austria which manufactured the G-Wagon 4x4 for Mercedes-Benz.

The Grenadier is now available in 50 markets around the world, with more than 22,000 on the road. The United States is the model's largest market, where around 7,000 were sold in 2024.

Calder said China has the potential to grow into a market the size of the US in the coming years, as there is an increasing interest among Chinese car owners in nature and outdoor events.

Ineos Automotive introduced the Grenadier into China in late 2024, available in three trims. A 1924 edition, which celebrates the centennial of clothing brand Belstaff, also part of Ineos, is to hit the market later this year.

The brand has three dealerships in China: Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu in Sichuan province.

A fourth, located in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, will be open soon, said Calder. She added that the sales network will cover all tier-one and some tier-two cities in the near future.