It was a long road. From the unofficial start of the project in 2016 and ambitious goals of being on the market before 2020, right up to today. The moment has finally come: Grenadier production has begun. Six years after the start, the first Ineos Automotive vehicle has now rolled off the line in Hambach, France.
This dish was a long time cooking. From the first announcement that Ineos wanted to build an off-roader to October 2022, it was a long way. It won’t have surprised automotive experts that a start from 0 to 100 takes its time. Six years have now passed, and after many marketing videos, images and reports, the first buyers can now look forward to their Grenadier.
Ineos Automotive announced today in a press release that the Grenadier is now in production, and the first one has already rolled out of the hall. After the development and test phase, this begins the third decisive stage: proving itself with customers. The first customers are due to be able to take delivery of their vehicles as early as the end of December.
More than 200 sales and service points have been set up worldwide to support customers. A map of the bases is already online. Here too, Ineos Automotive has set itself an ambitious goal, as no customer should ever need more than 50 kilometres or 45 minutes to reach the nearest service partner.
Original goals not met, so what?
If the Grenadier was originally meant to be a deliberately simple workhorse with a starting price of around 40,000 euros, it can be said that it hasn’t quite turned out that way. A well-equipped model now costs twice that, with the entry point at just under 60,000 euros for the commercial model. The equipment has turned out more lavish, which raises both weight and price while lowering its utilitarian character. At least on the prototypes it could be seen that no expense was spared on the materials and that clear value was placed on toughness and durability.
But none of that has to mean anything bad. In the end the Grenadier has simply become something different, and that’s allowed. It is likely to sit more in the territory of the BMW X5, Mercedes GLC and GLE and other luxury SUVs, with the difference that the Grenadier can also handle off-road and doesn’t just look the part. That should give it a clear edge over the others.
It may well take a while before we find the Ineos Grenadier on real terrain, but when the time comes, I’ll be glad to see one there.
© Photos: Ineos Automotive