It’s been a while since any manufacturer in the globe-straddling SUV market segment used phrases like “nononsense”, “stripped back”, and “workhorse” in the same sentence. But Ineos is crystal clear about the Grenadier’s purpose. It’s an old school off-roader for people who run farms or drive across – and spend nights camped out on – African plains. No doubt plenty of them will end up parked outside Daylesford Organic in the Cotswolds, but that’s not the Grenadier’s natural habitat.
Ineos? You might have heard of it. One of the world’s largest chemical companies, with a growing presence in the energy sector, it’s also a massive mover and shaker in global sport. It owns a third of the Mercedes-AMG Formula One team, runs the Grenadiers cycling team, and is bankrolling Sir Ben Ainslie’s America’s Cup sailing campaign (F1 on the ocean, basically). It’s all backed by Ineos’s owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, one of the richest Brits with an estimated net worth of £13.3bn. We’re talking deep pockets here.
Ratcliffe is also a bona fide adventurer who has sunk £1.3bn into building a brand new off-roader because he simply didn’t like over dinner. “I’ve done the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. Some people get comfortable with that sort of thing, but it wasn’t my natural turf.” Tackling the North and South Poles and crossing the Northwest Passage were presumably a doddle. He also owns a fine car collection that includes a few Mercedes G-Wagens, which Ratcliffe loves but says he would never consider adventuring in. Which brings us to the Grenadier.
