Is this the ultimate work vehicle of 2022?

Ineos Grenadier picks up where classic Land Rover Defender left off

If you take deep love for the previous-generation Land Rover Defender and swirl it around in some premium British beer, this is the result: the Ineos Grenadier, heading for New Zealand in 2022.

Grenadier is still 18 months away from production in the UK, but Ineos has signed off the styling and decided to reveal it at this very early stage.

That’s partly to help establish a completely unknown brand, but also to enable the company to embark on 1.8 million kilometres of durability testing “in plain sight”.

There are obvious similarities to the Defender and other iconic 4x4s — and Ineos is okay with that.

“Early on, we defined the engineering and chassis,” says Dirk Heilmann, chief executive of Ineos Automotive.

“Looking at solutions for Land Cruiser and Land Rovers . . . you go through that history, you end up in a similar position and find similar results.

Ineos says the Grenadier follows a “function before form” design ethos, but also acknowledges that it has to look good to sell. And while it says off-road ability is first and foremost, that need not rule out modernity and comfort.

The Grenadier rides on a ladder chassis with beam axles front and rear, but under the bonnet there will be current-generation BMW 3.0-litre turbodiesel and turbopetrol engines, driving though an eight-speed gearbox and Ineosdesigned transfer case.

Grenadier will launch in Europe first, but says that global markets will “quickly follow”.

“We won’t be competing with double-cab utes on price,” says Ineos commercial director Mark Tennant. “But we’re not going to be up there with [the MercedesBenz] G-Wagen either. This is a working tool.

“[Jeep] Wrangler, Land Cruiser — it’s that sort of ballpark.”