Comparison (2023 Grenadier v 2023 Defender 110)

We certainly embrace change; however, we also believe that in some instances, the old-school way is the way to go. This also seems to be the vision of Sir Jim Radcliffe – the man behind the incredibly appealing and nostalgic Ineos Grenadier.

This isn’t often mentioned, but the Ineos Grenadier is the spiritual successor to the old Defender. When the old Defender was axed, Sir Jim Radcliffe wanted to purchase the model but Land Rover refused to make one. Since he couldn’t get it, he made his own version of it.

Is The Ineos Grenadier Really Better Than A Land Rover Defender 110?

Here's why the Grenadier Vs. Defender debate is one that many seem to seem get wrong

www.topspeed.com

 

[bemax]

Nice summary. Did they really drive the cars or did they just discussed the different approaches?
I would say the second.

 

[alvan]

This isn’t often mentioned, but the Ineos Grenadier is the spiritual successor to the old Defender.

Ha Ha Ha...!

 

[anand]

Nice summary. Did they really drive the cars or did they just discussed the different approaches?
I would say the second.

I would have to agree

 

[Stu_Barnes]

Nice summary. Did they really drive the cars or did they just discussed the different approaches?
I would say the second.

To that I’ve no idea, but would probably agree with you.

 

[Earthwatcher]

That summary doesn't say anything that hasn't been said here countless times. I wonder, however, just how many Grenadiers will be driven across continents. War and political instability have limited such adventures outside Australia and the Americas.

 

[lightning]

l've got a new Defender but also love the Grenadier. l've driven the Grenadier and would swap my Defender for one if it was classed as a Commercial Vehicle here in the U.K.
However the fact that it isn't, means l can't put it through my company so that makes it effectively £25,000 more than my Defender Commercial

 

[Sam]

I think thats fair enough @lightning and suits your usage case and budget.

I had a ND on order, but cancelled, after some time stewing over LR's demented decision to fit minimum 20" wheels to standard diesel variants (in Aus).

Aesthetics triumphing over utility... LR's trajectory

 

[DenisM]

l've got a new Defender but also love the Grenadier. l've driven the Grenadier and would swap my Defender for one if it was classed as a Commercial Vehicle here in the U.K.
However the fact that it isn't, means l can't put it through my company so that makes it effectively £25,000 more than my Defender Commercial

I thought from reading other posts by our UK -based forum friends, that the N1 version of the Grenadier (the two seat "utility" version) was classified as "Commercial" in the UK...

 

[Earthwatcher]

A note on my Grenadier/New Defender 110 comparison. Have just completed 14,000 miles and a year of ownership of the Defender and, at last, a fault to report. The computer isn't responding on some of the software touch-screen icons such as car dimensions and seat-heating, nothing important so have booked it in to have it looked over. Otherwise it's run like a dream. In six months have covered just 1,400 miles in the Grenadier, again trouble free apart from the software glitches - booked for software update next month when I'm also having some side steps fitted. I did put the Grenadier up for sale (very close to cost price) as running two big 4x4s together didn't make much sense. But whenever has sense had anything to do with it? I had two responses, both from wide boys (at least that's what I concluded), and it seems to me there just isn't much of a market in these cars right now. To be honest, I'm quite pleased because I want to keep the car and believe that it will prove the more reliable motor in the long run. It's so pristine I've been reluctant to take it out, though, so need to get out more . Most of my journeys involve taking two dogs and this is the "dirty paws" season. When I was a kid we didn't have a big house and the "front room" was always kept for best, made no sense at all, yet it looks like I can't quite shake of that front room syndrome with cars. Had it not been for the long wait, my intention was to get a smaller second-had car with some milage (what my missus wanted) for the local dog walks, but the Defender fulfils this role now. It's been a hell of a lot of cash to tie up, could have afforded to buy a garage for them had I not bought both. Anyway I can take the Grenadier on a shoot in November, should be a proper baptism. One of my mates sent me a film of a Grenadier being towed off a grass moor a few weeks ago. True!

Have been trying to dream up a good long-run for the Grenadier and think we might it take it to the north of Norway or maybe Finland in the late spring. But I'm not getting a roof tent, have ruled that out, probably a three-quarter length roof rack next. We have a cabinet maker nearby and I might ask him to fix it up with some wooden drawers for guns/rods etc if he'll charge less than some of the accessory makers I've seen. So really nothing much to report which has to be good news!

 

[Donny]

I'll chime in here too. I have a 2023 New Defender 110 that I've put 17,000 problem-free miles on since last summer. I love it and it's the best car I've ever had. I test drove a Grenadier Fieldmaster for the first time this past weekend. Rutted trails, winding paved foothill roads, highway up to 80 mph, and even pulled it into a crowded parking lot to see how it works in the "real world." My take is that the two vehicles shouldn't really even be compared to one another. They're totally different and clearly built for different purposes.

I was very pleasantly surprised by the Grenadier. I knew it'd be capable off road, but it was shockingly good on the road too. Great seats, great visibility, surprisingly smooth, felt like driving a bank vault. I loved the safari windows! They made the cabin feel roomy and gave me a great view of the mountain peaks as we were driving up to the trails. And I got used to the steering after 5 minutes so it was a non-issue. But... lots of little things make it clear that the dollars spent on developing this vehicle all went into the frame and drivetrain and that passenger comfort and convenience were a distant second. That's not a knock...that was a purposeful decision by Sir Jim and the team. But it's full of hard plastics and other cheap-feeling materials, tiny low-resolution backup camera, no rearward visibility, no seatback pockets on the front seats, no grab handles to get into the back seats, no ski pass-through or 40-20-40 fold down rear seats... I could keep going but you get the picture.

Land Rover also made a choice...they made a more complicated, less capable, but significantly more comfortable and convenient SUV. I wouldn't trust it to take me on a three month overlanding trek across Africa, but it gets me up into the mountains in Colorado, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Utah just fine. And when I'm driving it to work or to the airport or my kids' sports it's insanely comfortable and easy to live with. The New Defender is a great example of a modern 4x4 that seamlessly blends capability (good enough for 99% of the population) with comfort and technology. If you spend most of your time on the road, you'll be supremely comfortable. The Grenadier feels like the best possible execution of an old-school 4x4 that is significantly better than it has any right to be. And it's cool as hell!! But as soon as I got back in my Defender for the drive home I knew that I'd have to talk myself into buying the Grenadier.

For now, I'm trying to have the best of both worlds. I may still buy the Grenadier and my wife would drive the Defender. Would be great having both vehicles in my garage. I'm not supposed to take delivery until the spring so I have several months to figure it out.

 

[Earthwatcher]

I'll chime in here too. I have a 2023 New Defender 110 that I've put 17,000 problem-free miles on since last summer. I love it and it's the best car I've ever had. I test drove a Grenadier Fieldmaster for the first time this past weekend. Rutted trails, winding paved foothill roads, highway up to 80 mph, and even pulled it into a crowded parking lot to see how it works in the "real world." My take is that the two vehicles shouldn't really even be compared to one another. They're totally different and clearly built for different purposes.

I was very pleasantly surprised by the Grenadier. I knew it'd be capable off road, but it was shockingly good on the road too. Great seats, great visibility, surprisingly smooth, felt like driving a bank vault. I loved the safari windows! They made the cabin feel roomy and gave me a great view of the mountain peaks as we were driving up to the trails. And I got used to the steering after 5 minutes so it was a non-issue. But... lots of little things make it clear that the dollars spent on developing this vehicle all went into the frame and drivetrain and that passenger comfort and convenience were a distant second. That's not a knock...that was a purposeful decision by Sir Jim and the team. But it's full of hard plastics and other cheap-feeling materials, tiny low-resolution backup camera, no rearward visibility, no seatback pockets on the front seats, no grab handles to get into the back seats, no ski pass-through or 40-20-40 fold down rear seats... I could keep going but you get the picture.

Land Rover also made a choice...they made a more complicated, less capable, but significantly more comfortable and convenient SUV. I wouldn't trust it to take me on a three month overlanding trek across Africa, but it gets me up into the mountains in Colorado, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Utah just fine. And when I'm driving it to work or to the airport or my kids' sports it's insanely comfortable and easy to live with. The New Defender is a great example of a modern 4x4 that seamlessly blends capability (good enough for 99% of the population) with comfort and technology. If you spend most of your time on the road, you'll be supremely comfortable. The Grenadier feels like the best possible execution of an old-school 4x4 that is significantly better than it has any right to be. And it's cool as hell!! But as soon as I got back in my Defender for the drive home I knew that I'd have to talk myself into buying the Grenadier.

For now, I'm trying to have the best of both worlds. I may still buy the Grenadier and my wife would drive the Defender. Would be great having both vehicles in my garage. I'm not supposed to take delivery until the spring so I have several months to figure it out.

That's a very fair summary in my view. As someone who did go ahead and take delivery of the Grenadier, I wouldn't blame you at all for doing likewise but I do find it hard to justify keeping both, particularly in the UK where there's so little off-road driving. It'll be fascinating to see how the Grenadier evolves. I'm looking forward to driving it more over the winter now that the weather and nights are closing in. We live next to a muddy farm and drive through a water splash most days so it's good to be raised up well off the ground.

 

[PBD]

I'll chime in here too. I have a 2023 New Defender 110 that I've put 17,000 problem-free miles on since last summer. I love it and it's the best car I've ever had. I test drove a Grenadier Fieldmaster for the first time this past weekend. Rutted trails, winding paved foothill roads, highway up to 80 mph, and even pulled it into a crowded parking lot to see how it works in the "real world." My take is that the two vehicles shouldn't really even be compared to one another. They're totally different and clearly built for different purposes.

I was very pleasantly surprised by the Grenadier. I knew it'd be capable off road, but it was shockingly good on the road too. Great seats, great visibility, surprisingly smooth, felt like driving a bank vault. I loved the safari windows! They made the cabin feel roomy and gave me a great view of the mountain peaks as we were driving up to the trails. And I got used to the steering after 5 minutes so it was a non-issue. But... lots of little things make it clear that the dollars spent on developing this vehicle all went into the frame and drivetrain and that passenger comfort and convenience were a distant second. That's not a knock...that was a purposeful decision by Sir Jim and the team. But it's full of hard plastics and other cheap-feeling materials, tiny low-resolution backup camera, no rearward visibility, no seatback pockets on the front seats, no grab handles to get into the back seats, no ski pass-through or 40-20-40 fold down rear seats... I could keep going but you get the picture.

Land Rover also made a choice...they made a more complicated, less capable, but significantly more comfortable and convenient SUV. I wouldn't trust it to take me on a three month overlanding trek across Africa, but it gets me up into the mountains in Colorado, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Utah just fine. And when I'm driving it to work or to the airport or my kids' sports it's insanely comfortable and easy to live with. The New Defender is a great example of a modern 4x4 that seamlessly blends capability (good enough for 99% of the population) with comfort and technology. If you spend most of your time on the road, you'll be supremely comfortable. The Grenadier feels like the best possible execution of an old-school 4x4 that is significantly better than it has any right to be. And it's cool as hell!! But as soon as I got back in my Defender for the drive home I knew that I'd have to talk myself into buying the Grenadier.

For now, I'm trying to have the best of both worlds. I may still buy the Grenadier and my wife would drive the Defender. Would be great having both vehicles in my garage. I'm not supposed to take delivery until the spring so I have several months to figure it out.

Exactly the route we took (nearly). Kept the Landmark Disco 4, 2016 model as the wife loves it and I bumble about in "Rocky" (Trialmaster)