Ineos delays production start for Grenadier SUV
Launch will be pushed back to July 2022
Reuters
The Grenadier will be aimed at fans of the original Land Rover Defender.
LONDON Production of Ineos first car, the Grenadier SUV, will be pushed back to July 2022 to make sure rigorous testing targets are met following delays last year, the company said Wednesday.
Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe s UK petrochemical company announced in December it would manufacture the off-roader in Hambach, France, starting in late 2021 after a deal to take over a site run by Daimler, abandoning plans to build a factory in Wales.
On Wednesday Ineos said more than 130 second-phase prototypes will be tested in extreme environments around the world. The Grenadier is seen as a potential rival to the Land Rover Defender.
Ineos delays production of the Grenadier 4x4 autoblog.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from autoblog.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s hopes of having his all-new Ineos Automotive Grenadier on the road before the end of the year have been dashed, after confirming that ‘unavoidable delays’ have pushed production back to 2022.
The 4X4 is seen as the spiritual successor to the Land Rover Defender of old, providing a tough, utilitarian vehicle that’s aimed at farmers, explorers and off-road enthusiasts.
It was confirmed last year that Ratcliffe – Britain’s fifth richest man with an estimated wealth of £12.2billion – had ditched plans to build the Grenadier at a state-of-the-art new site in Wales in favour of purchasing a French factory from Mercedes.
INEOS Grenadier passes prototype tests just-auto.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from just-auto.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
INEOS Grenadier completes dynamic testing
INEOS Grenadier completes dynamic testing
May 12, 2021
Hard-core 4x4 off-roader passes Schockl torture test; now on track for production in mid-2022
The INEOS Grenadier has completed the dynamic testing phase of its development program, but production has now been delayed to July 2022.
Confirmed for release in Australia, where INEOS Automotive previously said it would also be tested prior to launch, the Grenadier continues the hard-core utilitarian approach abandoned by the Land Rover Defender in 2016 and will also be available in five-door wagon and four-door ute forms.
However, it won’t be built in the UK following the decision to build the ladder-frame 4×4 at a former Daimler factory that previously produced smart vehicles in Hambach, France, and now INEOS has cited “unavoidable delays” in its development due to the COVID-19 pandemic.