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Below is the definitive op-ed for the state-of-the-art in 2024 for overlanding capable personal transportation. No further discussion will be necessary, and all youtube reviewers can move onto compact sedans from here onward.
Since the richest man in England made the announcement in 2017 he would be bringing to the market the classic Land Rover replacement, as it seems Land Rover decided to stop making utilitarian vehicles. The off-road world has been abuzz with what it will be or should be. The story is he tried to buy the rights to the Defender from LR along with all the tooling, they said no, so in true billionaire spirit he said he'll just make his own. Fast forward some years later and the Ineos Grenadier is hitting car lots around the world, including North America. I applaud Sir Jim Ratcliffe for keeping an English icon alive. This is on par with FCA stopping the production of the Wrangler and a private person taking up the task.
The history of Land Rover was that it started as an attempt at England's copy of the USA's Jeep. After the Jeep freed Europe in '45 many were left there and some Englishmen recognized the usefulness of such a piece of equipment. Below is a Drivetribe video which may be of interest, however they do skip the whole part that they made a bad copy of the jeep to start the whole thing off in the UK and that their version was NOT the "grandfather of all 4x4's" but that was indeed the Jeep; in the same vein they do skim over the whole American revolution as well in their education.
The Grenadier is the English answer to utilitiarian personal transportation. I will say in this modern age I am glad to see such a vehicle being produced and welcome it to the market, especially to the North American market. With this in mind the Grenadier answers an English question in a very European way. What is this question you ask? And, does this answer suit America's question?
For those that have been to the other side of the pond, one can easily notice the parameters of a vehicle are substancially different than in the USA. Size and historical use bear on what is fit-for-use in the UK vs. USA. The Grenadier is considered a large heavy duty vehicle in the UK, while it is the same dimensions as the four door bronco, a mid-size vehicle in the USA. For some reason, what we call a truck, never caught on in Europe, they went down the path of station wagons as their do it all choice. The Grenadier is a bronco sized SUV, with a heavier frame and springs and rated to pull over twice the trailer weight. Grenadier weighs 1,000lbs more and has more interior room, 1,500lb payload and can tow 7,500lbs, in the same size package as the desert runner Bronco. It indeed is the marriage of a workhorse and a station wagon; it is the modern day equivalent of a shetland pony. Fit for the purpose of hauling weight in tight spaces. If this is your purpose then the Grenadier is a great solution.
How is the Grenadier designed? What you have is 5 link coil sping suspension front and rear on a robust fully boxed ladder frame, a turbo charged BMW inline 6 cylinder backed up by a ZF 8 speed auto transmisison, a full time lockable transfer case which is gear driven, and ~8.5" (same size as dana 44's) differentials that have optional lockers. With a quality body sitting on this drivetrain. Not one single thing is rewriting the book, what is amazing is they are doing old school in a way to pass modern 'safety' regulations and have completed the R&D to make sure their design has reliablity, in contrast to LR historically. Also, it must be stated the driveline is made in the LR and LC method of both differentials being offset to one side. There are clearance advantages to this for ground hugging small tire vehicles, burdens we in the USA do not have.
If one (or two) needs to live out of a vehicle while exploring unknown roads of all kinds, the Grenadier can be a world class choice. Robust design, small package, tested and proven design, and an engine with worldwide support are all kinds of goodness. How many of us really need that, Scott Brady most of us are not. Any American style truck will do a better job of carrying a load, livestock feed or groceries, and cost less all the way around, including MPG. Any AWD suv will get the kids to the soccer game at a much lower cost. The bronco badsquatch or jeep rubicon with 35" or larger tires out perform the off-road capabiities of the Grenadier. You can also throw in the fact the Grenadier is made in Germany at a time when their production capacity is in great question; many global economic factors could spell the end to such a start-up in the near future, leaving current owners with a curious and exotic piece of conversation material, on the other hand with the base model being ~$70K usd, will never be this cheap again. Are the benefits worth the $20K premium to you? If you are in the situation to be able to afford such a toy and have the use for it, now is a great time to buy. My personal choice would be the base model with the rough package, and would suggest Scot Brady and all other world traveling dreamers do the same.
We are truly blessed in the USA with an abundance of choices, OEM and aftermarket, to satisfy any niche task we desire to take upon ourselves. At the same time we are one of the largest markets in the world so almost all major manufacturers want a market share. The consumer wins from this competition. The Grenadier is a welcomed factor to this equation, however unless the Grenadier answers the exact question you are asking there are other choices better suited in our market.
Since the richest man in England made the announcement in 2017 he would be bringing to the market the classic Land Rover replacement, as it seems Land Rover decided to stop making utilitarian vehicles. The off-road world has been abuzz with what it will be or should be. The story is he tried to buy the rights to the Defender from LR along with all the tooling, they said no, so in true billionaire spirit he said he'll just make his own. Fast forward some years later and the Ineos Grenadier is hitting car lots around the world, including North America. I applaud Sir Jim Ratcliffe for keeping an English icon alive. This is on par with FCA stopping the production of the Wrangler and a private person taking up the task.
The history of Land Rover was that it started as an attempt at England's copy of the USA's Jeep. After the Jeep freed Europe in '45 many were left there and some Englishmen recognized the usefulness of such a piece of equipment. Below is a Drivetribe video which may be of interest, however they do skip the whole part that they made a bad copy of the jeep to start the whole thing off in the UK and that their version was NOT the "grandfather of all 4x4's" but that was indeed the Jeep; in the same vein they do skim over the whole American revolution as well in their education.
The Grenadier is the English answer to utilitiarian personal transportation. I will say in this modern age I am glad to see such a vehicle being produced and welcome it to the market, especially to the North American market. With this in mind the Grenadier answers an English question in a very European way. What is this question you ask? And, does this answer suit America's question?
For those that have been to the other side of the pond, one can easily notice the parameters of a vehicle are substancially different than in the USA. Size and historical use bear on what is fit-for-use in the UK vs. USA. The Grenadier is considered a large heavy duty vehicle in the UK, while it is the same dimensions as the four door bronco, a mid-size vehicle in the USA. For some reason, what we call a truck, never caught on in Europe, they went down the path of station wagons as their do it all choice. The Grenadier is a bronco sized SUV, with a heavier frame and springs and rated to pull over twice the trailer weight. Grenadier weighs 1,000lbs more and has more interior room, 1,500lb payload and can tow 7,500lbs, in the same size package as the desert runner Bronco. It indeed is the marriage of a workhorse and a station wagon; it is the modern day equivalent of a shetland pony. Fit for the purpose of hauling weight in tight spaces. If this is your purpose then the Grenadier is a great solution.
How is the Grenadier designed? What you have is 5 link coil sping suspension front and rear on a robust fully boxed ladder frame, a turbo charged BMW inline 6 cylinder backed up by a ZF 8 speed auto transmisison, a full time lockable transfer case which is gear driven, and ~8.5" (same size as dana 44's) differentials that have optional lockers. With a quality body sitting on this drivetrain. Not one single thing is rewriting the book, what is amazing is they are doing old school in a way to pass modern 'safety' regulations and have completed the R&D to make sure their design has reliablity, in contrast to LR historically. Also, it must be stated the driveline is made in the LR and LC method of both differentials being offset to one side. There are clearance advantages to this for ground hugging small tire vehicles, burdens we in the USA do not have.
If one (or two) needs to live out of a vehicle while exploring unknown roads of all kinds, the Grenadier can be a world class choice. Robust design, small package, tested and proven design, and an engine with worldwide support are all kinds of goodness. How many of us really need that, Scott Brady most of us are not. Any American style truck will do a better job of carrying a load, livestock feed or groceries, and cost less all the way around, including MPG. Any AWD suv will get the kids to the soccer game at a much lower cost. The bronco badsquatch or jeep rubicon with 35" or larger tires out perform the off-road capabiities of the Grenadier. You can also throw in the fact the Grenadier is made in Germany at a time when their production capacity is in great question; many global economic factors could spell the end to such a start-up in the near future, leaving current owners with a curious and exotic piece of conversation material, on the other hand with the base model being ~$70K usd, will never be this cheap again. Are the benefits worth the $20K premium to you? If you are in the situation to be able to afford such a toy and have the use for it, now is a great time to buy. My personal choice would be the base model with the rough package, and would suggest Scot Brady and all other world traveling dreamers do the same.
We are truly blessed in the USA with an abundance of choices, OEM and aftermarket, to satisfy any niche task we desire to take upon ourselves. At the same time we are one of the largest markets in the world so almost all major manufacturers want a market share. The consumer wins from this competition. The Grenadier is a welcomed factor to this equation, however unless the Grenadier answers the exact question you are asking there are other choices better suited in our market.
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