So where are all the first impressions? (right here)

binumar said:

Took delivery of mine today here in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Really happy with it. Didn’t face any electrical gremlins as mentioned by others. Smooth drive and surprisingly quick when you floor it. Anyone knows if there is a break in period?

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binumar said:

Took delivery of mine today here in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Really happy with it. Didn’t face any electrical gremlins as mentioned by others. Smooth drive and surprisingly quick when you floor it. Anyone knows if there is a break in period?

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muxmax said:

The first tank is almost empty and so I thought I'd share my first impressions with you. To be honest, I bought the Grenadier to scratch an itch. I don't really need it and mostly use it for everyday driving to the office and back. My offroad experience is and will be limited to some more or less well maintained dirtroads in the forest and a hunting trip to the Alps every now and then. The one thing I still want to achieve is to get a little more freedom to move by installing a remote office. Unfortunately my thread regarding that has somewhat died out without really producing helpful results. That being said, the vehicle is all that I had hoped for and more. It does have character, the air of timelessness, solidity and beauty and feels just right in these crazy times where everything that you thought was tried and trusted is being questioned in every aspect of life. It just feels good to turn the engine on when my electrified neighbours are still asleep. On top of that, driving the Grenadier for me is what I imagine a yoga session to be: it calms me down. I would describe myself as rather an assertive driver and I sure love to fly down the Autobahn with 250 km/h. But in the Grenadier, there's nothing of that. Sitting in that solid tank (as my oldest sons call it) just asks for some good music and going with the flow. The steering is of course different than that of an Mercedes E 63 S, but it is exactly how I would want it for such a car. As many before me wrote, I got used to it after a few minutes. Even my wife now loves the car and I must say, there is definitely a sex appeal factor to it when she jumps off that machine in a pretty dress.

There are a few minor issues that still need some attention and will hopefully be fixed soon. Not too many bings and bongs, but the seat belt warning did go off two or three times now without any apparent reason. My only bings-and-bongs-going-mad-experience was yesterday, when I had stopped the car and wanted to turn the ignition back on so that my children could listen to the radio. I had the door open and apparently the car doesn't like that too much . I got all sorts of warnings up to the request to push the brake pedal. This, I hope, will be sorted with the software update. Besides that there is a noise when rolling down one of the rear windows, a loose screw rolling around somewhere under the flooring, the windscreen fogs up from time to time when AC is on, the buttons of the rear doors sometimes get stuck, switching from high to low is a bit tough, and the light sensor is too senisitive for my taste. I have adressed all of that with my dealer and we shall see what they can do about these things. Nothing of that worries me too much.

Four things I would say are a tiny bit annoying to me: first and foremost, I really cannot understand why INEOS made a car that relies on the customers to connect their phones and then be so stingy with the power outlets. The ones hidden in the middle storage box are ok, but if you want to use a magnetic cradle and not plug and stow away your phone for every ride, this is a nuisance. Especially since the cables have to be in the very correct position for the lid of the storage box to close. I understand and appreciate the concept of leaving as much as possible to the creativity of the customer, but one or two USB sockets around the front panel or dashboard wouldn't have hurt. The second thing that surprised me is the absolute lack of any storage space besides the middle box that deserves the name. Luckily, I don't need specs to drive, but if I did, I would not even know where to safely put those. The two spots on the dash and below the front panel are only good for peolpe who love their stuff to fly around through the car at the slightest turns. Well, and the glove compartment is really just for gloves (unless you have the manual in there; then its already full). My car is now full of molle rigs to create space for the little things I tend to carry around (like an oyster knife, you never know). The third thing are the reflections. When driving at night, rear and side vision really is not the best since the main display strongly reflects from the side and rear windows. I have dimmed it now and not driven in the dark since, but dimming the screen takes a couple of steps in the menu and is not something that you want to do too often. It would have been nice if the display (and the warning light smorgasbord in front of the steering wheel) would dim with the rest of the interior lights mechanically. Fourth is the turning circle. I know, I could have (and did) known that in advance, but it still is a bit more difficult than I hoped it would be. Pulling in and out of parking lots and garages can be a challenge and definitely is more difficult than with my VW T6 whith roughly the same dimensions. (Before anyone feels compelled to comment that, I know that the T6 ends about 50cm before my feet and thus is a completely different vehicle). Well, if I hadn't killed it already, the panic button would be No. 5. INEOS could have made that optional for the US market or at least program it so that it only goes off when you really want it to.

I had almost forgotten one thing: after a few too short drives on the first kilometres, I apparently interrupted the cleaning cycle of the particle filter. As a result, the radiator continued to run very loudly for several minutes. However, this has not happened since.

All in all, the positives far outweigh the negatives and I still catch myself making up reasons to take another quick trip with the car. Next week I'm going to drive a longer distance of a few hundred kilometres for the first time. I hope I can at least temporarily stop grinning then so I don't get a cramp in my cheeks.

For the statisticians among us: ordered 21 March 2023, went into production 11 May 2023, contract came 10 July 2023, collected the vehicle on 31 August 2023. VIN ...3918.

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YIPPE said:

Finally a few shots from the weekend. Though many say it looks like a defender, when it is actually with one it looks nothing alike.

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Off.Grid said:

Nice pics. Whereabout‘s did you camp? Looks like a lovely spot.

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DenisM said:

Thanks Yippe for your summary... I'm nowhere near 6'6" so I bought the side runners ...transformed the in/out routine. Even my 6'4" youngest sees the benefit!
The Tom Groggin locality is a magnificent part of the world ... it's one of the reasons now that I'm well retired, why I miss living in the ACT!
That's a great idea re. utilising the tie down bolts to accommodate brackets to support a shelf!
I have a 14yr old Bushman fridge stashed in a wardrobe. I wondered if it would fit.. now I know!

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grenadierboy said:

Thanks for the write-up Yippe and photos - did you meet the defer or were you in convoy?

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grenadierboy said:

Couple of Q's:

When you get home - can you/do you remove the drawer and fridge slide. (Like you I want a storage system for 30 days a year camping and then the cargo extra fully available the other 330 days).

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grenadierboy said:

No future roo bar/side steps (I note you are 6.6) or rock sliders?

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grenadierboy said:

Plan on any camp lights attached to the grab handles?

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grenadierboy said:

Plan a solar panel charging set-up?

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grenadierboy said:

I installed a Front Runner Slimline yesterday and, so far, very impressed with build quality, low profile, lightness but yet to load it up.

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emax said:

Not exactly a first impression, but the first impression after the update and other issues.

Picked up my car today at the agent (K+E). Things on the list were

• Software update. Done and successful, no more errors. There are still things which could be improved, but all in all it is finally a software which deserves the attribute "production ready".
• Sidesteps mounted. The car looks certainly better without them, but the improvement for getting in (and out!) is clearly worth it. The lateral seat bolsters will thank you.
• Camping table mounted, not much more to say.
• Rubber mats delivered.
• Door seals changed, will see how they work in the future.
• Safari window seals changed, same as above: will see.
• The steering wheel now points to 12 o'clock and it feels as if you don't have to constantly adjust a little to the right.
• They checked ac coolant and hydraulic fluid levels, and it all was ok.
• The rubber sleeve on the steering column shall not cover the joint completely. That was confirmed by Ineos.
• The plastic covers in the wheel arches are now mounted similarly.
• Vibrations have been greatly mitigated, but they are not completely eliminated. They bent the large heat shield above the rear silencer so that the strongest noise and vibrations disappeared. But now the vibrations of other parts are becoming noticeable, and I suspect it will be an iterative process to find and delete all sources.
• The "dangling" cables have been fixed. The have btw. never been really "dangling" but just formed a loop. that has now been properly laid out.
• The powdering of the towing hitch mounting plate was damaged and has been replaced.
• The rear ladder was scratched during transport and has been replaced.
• Some cooling hoses / tubes were (I don't know exactly) either replaced or fixed somehow.
• And the biggest thing was the new tramission box, I got a new one (INEOS recall).

All in all it took a whole week in the workshop, but partly because a few small parts were missing. Now my car is in better condition than when it was delivered.

Good job, K+E and in particular Mr. Crepaldi & team!

wording
added the team ...​

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YIPPE said:

Yep they are on my list. Hoping for some sliders with side steps to come out. Love the black sheep ones. Just a little exy hoping a little cheaper once stocked in Oz. This bushman is on a slideitsolutions fridge slide. With 230mm still behind it at the base. This has allowed me to install 35l drifta poly tapered tank too.

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YIPPE said:

Apologies for a late first impression, I've had the car since July. However wanted to wait until I used it as my intended purpose for purchase.

Just completed a weekend trip of 1100km of that I could probably say 1050km were on bitumen. Slowly more off-road use will come but for now it's remaining a brand new car, and for a reasonably young bloke and any age bloke for that, it's a lot of money so don't want to leave any marks for now.

For now it's getting me out there away from the 'big smoke' and the best destinations tend to be long drives away. So I'll start with the on road experience.

I just want to get this one out there, that At 6 foot 6, and by many other peoples accounts, I should be complaining of the footrest.... however it is not an issue for me and perhaps it's because I have a young one with me and we stop every 2-3hrs for him to eat and run around. I might add im quite lean so I can tuck my leg behind the other if needed. But it is an aspect that each individual needs to decide.

On road, I love this thing. Standard wagon diesel, plenty of power, well planted and a very comfortable place to be. Cabin noise is minimum, a slight increase at 110km/h but still not a problem.

I love the simple cruise control. Being the good old classic system is fantastic. You don't slow down with other vehicles and you can get on with your trip. Slight downhill gradients allow it to hold correctly and uphill it just powers on with no drop in speed. Gear box is also very smooth and great in holding gear on downhills.

Steering is no issue, on or off-road, apart from the large turning circle. The driver input is awesome and is probably the only real thing connecting the driver to the car seeing how effortless the rest of the driving experience is. I love it. And by Input I mean correcting it back or atleast holding the wheel to ensure it does go back to centre.

Infotainment system is easy to navigate and learn after a 10 minute play. All the information seems fairly accurate and it's great to be able to browse it all so easily. I'm using wired android, not a problem for me as it keeps the phone charged, out of sight and out of the way by keeping it in the glove box.

Visibility is awesome, however at 6'6 at times I'll move the sunvisor 90' to the window to give an extra inch of windscreen, arm rest window sill is great and goes well with the glove box armrest. My seat is nearly all the way back but lowered all the way. The problem for my driving position is the mirror. (I'm planning to dismantle and see if I can possibly drill a second notch for it to lock into, further out). Ill also add at my height I still find it hard to get in and out of (without rolling the seat bolster), it's a high vehicle.

So yeah it's an amazing vehicle on road as we all know. Off road it's just as good if not better. It absorbs the bumps very smoothly and remains comfortable and quiet even with windows down.

For my camping set up I love it. I still need a roof rack, but for now I folded the 40 rear seat to slide my swag and mattress in. Keeping the seats folded for a long time does imprint the upholstery so I padded it out with towels. It raises the seat back for those planning a complete level platform (if you also want to keep your seats in good condition, alternatively removed them all together before building your platforms)

I'm keeping with the ineos motto of 'built on purpose' and keeping it simple. Gravity fed water tank, Teflon sliders for my drawer and fridge slide. The more I use it the more I'll add to it I'm sure, but you really do need to use it to see what works.

Being a standard wagon I didn't do dual battery, so I temporarily installed a battery with no charger to power my fridge when parked up and ran it off the compressor wires whilst driving. Simple enough to set up which was great.

I plan to build some brackets to bolt to the side tie down rings in the cargo area to drop in a shelf as required. You really do have to stack up to make the most of space. However when not using the car I want it as empty and practical as possible to load up with anything and also be able to transport my dogs.

Now everything I've mentioned is pretty positive and that's because I just love the car! I may be a lucky owner as no real issues at all. I've had a few warnings that clear when I restart the car but they will all go one day... not a problem for now. Other than that, steering is slightly off centre. Easy fix.
What I would change or needs addressing is... the low range selector knob is cheap (fingers crossed for an aftermarket billet piece would be great)
The rear roof above the doors... it unscrews. Could ineos please reproduce this with a gutter that we can all swap out. The water makes it's way past the seal onto the doors. If the next seal fails it makes it way down the doors, or it just falls down the doors when you open them anyway.
It has quirks like all cars and it gives it character which I love. This opinion doesn't even matter as its just another amongst many that we are all entitled too but enjoy and take of it as you may.

Finally a few shots from the weekend. Though many say it looks like a defender, when it is actually with one it looks nothing alike.




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ARF said:

Thanks for the info. Seems they have replaced many of the transfer cases. I wonder what the problem was. Had you used it before and after and notice any difference?

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AnD3rew said:

Really interested in your fridge slide, i have been trying to find one that isn’t too long for the space. I have a Bushman as well. How did you fix it to the floor?

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Tom D said:

I wasn’t meaning the pressure dropped, just that the injectors can’t decide whether to open or not, perhaps cycling between closed and open?

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tnkatoy said:

My initial first impression – loved it, great to drive (after getting used to the steering) and confident road presence.

That was the first day, second day I tested the systems, and the centre diff light wouldn’t go out, not the usual electrical gremlin, it was a mechanical fault.

It was returned to the dealer, where they thought it was fixed, but it failed again, so I've had 2 breakdowns in 2 weeks.

In summary, I am now in my 6th week of ownership (having had to pay for the car 3 weeks in advance so Ineos Automotive would release it from customs), driven it for ONE day (without fault), and now it’s been off the road for 3 weeks with mechanical breakdown.

The dealer has been great trying to sort the problem and has now provided me with a demo Grenadier to drive (I haven’t touched the centre diff shifter though), but they are having difficulty getting spare parts to fix mine.

So now, my first impressions are that it is mechanically unreliable, difficult to get parts for, and I will be very nervous going anywhere remote.

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