Projekt Grenadier
Latest on Ineos’s hardcore 4x4
I neos Automotive has confirmed its Projekt Grenadier will use Bmwsourced petrol and diesel engines in the first of a series of upcoming announcements about its new hardcore 4x4.
The model – created by chemical company Ineos, which is owned by Britain’s richest man, Jim Ratcliffe – will be revealed in 2020 and go on sale in mid-2021, the firm has confirmed to Autocar.
A host of different variants, bodystyles and wheelbase lengths for the new model are planned as part of its brief as a back-to-basics 4x4 to fill the void left by the original Land Rover Defender.
Around 25,000 units a year is the ultimate production goal across its various derivatives. Ineos believes this spiritual successor to the Defender can be profitable at that volume even though Land Rover didn’t have a business case for the original Defender, which was just below those levels.
Mark Tennant, Projekt Grenadier commercial director, said this is no vanity project for Ratcliffe and the venture will be judged internally against the same profitability criteria as Ineos’s other businesses.
After the BMW powertrains, the exact specifications of which have yet to be revealed, the next announcement is set to cover where the model will be made, and there is a desire for it to be built in Britain.
Ineos isn’t ruling out using an existing site to build Projekt Grenadier, although Honda’s Swindon plant is considered too large and Ford’s Bridgend plant is not geared up for car production. Ineos is ensuring its plant has greater capacity should its 25,000 sales target be exceeded, said Tennant.
The production name of Projekt Grenadier is due to be revealed this summer after a public competition to name it. The model will be built on a steel ladder-frame chassis designed and built by Ineos, with aluminium body panels. Solid live front and rear axles will feature along with permanent all-wheel drive to help the car achieve its target of best-in-class off-road ability while remaining as light as it can be and retaining credible on-road performance.
The engineering has been outsourced to German firm Mbtech. Around 150-200 Mbtech engineers are working full time on it, with another 40-50 Ineos engineers embedded in the project. One mule has been built and has been testing around the Austrian Alps since last June.
Ineos will work with partners, such as BMW, on some areas of the project but will design, develop and build for itself in other areas. These include the chassis because there is not an off-the-shelf ladder frame that can meet
the project’s requirements. Ineos also plans to build the car itself, including developing its own tooling, rather than use a contract manufacturing company.
Although Projekt Grenadier may have been born out of a desire to fill the Defender’s void, the project has developed into a significant entity in its own right. The brief has evolved to be tough off road and easy to repair, like the original US Army Ordnance Technical Committee spec Jeep. Rivals such as the Toyota Hilux and Jeep Wrangler are mentioned by Ineos. This hints at both the kinds of bodystyles it will offer and pricing, which is likely to be in the high £30,000s or low £40,000s as a starting point.
Ratcliffe, an engineer by trade, has said the car must be capable and durable, with a good design, while remaining affordable.
As for its powertrains, Projekt Grenadier will not use electrified technology at first, but it does have its eye on future Euro 7 emissions regulations. It will not use plug-in hybrid technology due to the weight it adds, but Ineos is watching closely the development of fuel cells. A diesel is still considered crucial in Europe initially because that’s where the market remains for such vehicles. An automatic gearbox is likely, but not yet confirmed, due to its greater robustness.
As for the car’s styling, Tennant said it will “not be on-trend as another jellymould crossover SUV” and Ineos will “move away from the homogenised vehicles that ultimately give less choice”. The nature of its design – narrow width, short wheelbase, wheel at each corner and flat glass – means it will be a boxy 4x4, but Ineos is working hard on giving it a visual character of its own, with a face and lighting signature.
“It won’t be an alternative to an SUV. It’s putting the utility back into that,” said Tennant. He added that it will be built for purpose, with everything functional, and is designed to be a working tool with real credibility in markets such as Africa and Australia, and for use by nongovernmental organisations. It will be designed with easy maintenance in mind and to run on lower-quality fuels that it might encounter in more remote places.
The interior will also be functional in its design, with drain plugs and hose-down materials. Chunky rubber will feature inside and leather will be used only if it’s the most durable and functional material. Cabin ergonomics will be greatly improved over the original Defender’s.
A series of aftermarket options is under consideration to allow even greater customisation of the model, including removable body panels.
A full-sized clay model is currently being honed and finalised before being imminently signed off. Ineos has worked with a design company in Stuttgart on the look of Projekt Grenadier but has also consulted with a bigname major car designer.
The company will sell its models directly where it can because, with its sales spread across multiple variants, the numbers of each model sold in each market are likely to be quite small.
Initially, Ineos plans a launch in Europe for its first new model, with other ‘rest of world’ markets, such as Africa and Australia, to follow. A US launch is further off due to the different regulatory requirements. A Chinese launch is not being considered at present because of the challenges of entering that market.
Tennant does not rule out other cars or vans from Ineos in the future, but the long-term focus will be on getting Projekt Grenadier and its derivatives launched around the world.
It will be designed with easy maintenance in mind and to run on lower-quality fuels