The soon to be unveiled INEOS Grenadier Quartermaster may well be another potential UK GSUP (General Service Utility Platform) contender, writes Bob Morrison.
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The new double cab pick-up variant of the French-built INEOS Grenadier, to be known as the Grenadier Quartermaster and unveiled at Goodwood next month, might well be a potential UK GSUP project replacement for the British Army Land Rover Truck Utility Medium Higher Specification (TUM HS) or Wolf fleet.
Although INEOS do not yet appeared to have commenced militarisation of their now in production Station Wagon base model, which is effectively a Land Rover Defender clone, as UK MoD has confirmed that the revised OSD( Out of Service Date) for the Wolf 110 fleet is 2030 there may still be time for INEOS to militarise and then trial the Grenadier. Alternatively, a partner company which specialises in producing dedicated military conversions for UK MoD might be commissioned to allow the car manufacturer to concentrate on its core civilian markets.
At present the British Army only has a small number of double cab Wolf Land Rovers on strength (see Project HEBE) but as modern European and North American road safety regulations mostly prohibit inward-facing rear seats on utility vehicles, most recent NATO nation procurements in this category have been for four-door pickup trucks or slightly militarised five-door SUVs with forward-facing seating. It is therefore not beyond the bounds of possibility that a four-door with open cargo compartment (aka a double cab) vehicle, or a combination fleet of Station Wagons and Double Cabs, could be chosen for (the softskin portion of) GSUP.
Last month INEOS displayed at FEINDEF 2023, the Spanish defence expo in Madrid, so clearly the company has not ruled itself out of the military Defender replacement market. There still remains the issue of BMW engines (which is what Grenadier currently uses) usually not being available for military vehicles, but as parent company INEOS is heavily involved in hydrogen fuel cell development it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that they might not even offer a diesel-powered military utility vehicle if they do enter the market.
[© Bob Morrison]
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INEOS Press Release, London, 29 June 2023: Following the start of series production of the Grenadier 4×4 last year, INEOS Automotive will make its mark across this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed (13 – 16 July).
The All-New Grenadier Quartermaster, a double cab pick-up variant of the award-winning Grenadier, will make its global debut on Thursday 13th July. This will be shortly followed by a very special appearance on the famous hillclimb with some familiar Goodwood faces to celebrate two 75-year automotive anniversaries – motorsports at Goodwood and the Belstaff Trialmaster Jacket that lends its name to one of Grenadier’s trims.
Also making its first ever public appearance is the Grenadier Hydrogen Fuel Cell (FCEV) Technology Demonstrator, which will show how well-suited the zero emissions technology is for a future long-range 4X4 off-roader. Both the Grenadier Quartermaster and FCEV Demonstrator will be showcased in the First Glance Paddock and will be driven up the hillclimb route on each of the four days of the Festival.
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