So I responded to a question on Reddit concerning the Grenadier as a daily driver and inadvertently wrote a review (I got a bit out of control). The asker was inordinately concerned with daily comfort and carrying on about air suspension. Critiques welcome.
I’ve had mine for five days now and put 350 miles on it between a lot of highway driving, little bit of town driving, dirt road commuting, and checking cows in the pastures.
Background: I’m an automotive engineer and farmer, I’ve owned everything from an Audi A3, 2500 shit box Cummins, 2011 Suburban, and my previous favorite, a 1981 Toyota Hilux (my daily before the INEOS). The longer I farm and work in the automotive industry, the more I hate new cars. As part of traveling for my industry job, I’ve rented a lot of new domestic cars and SUVs. They all suck (especially the ‘24 4-runner…man they screwed that one up). So I say unequivocally, I love the Grenadier.
Let’s start with the bad: it’s raw. They blew their design budget on the things that make it work and, on the night before the project was due, they had to make a bunch of concessions to pass EU and US regulations. So the software sucks. It’s glitchy. It takes forever to do basic menu operations. Like they got somebody’s second cousin who codes for funsies to do the infotainment system.
The steering requires attention. It’s not bad steering, but it’s hyper focused. You drive this sumbitch. All the time. No steering with your knee while you eat a milkshake. This is a truck, not a car.
You get solid axles and springs and trailing links. No air. That shit breaks.
The fuel mileage sucks. It requires 91 octane. I could go on and on about the mechanical compromises, but I won’t. You guys know.
The good: in my professional estimation this thing will last to the heat death of the universe. It’s a street-legal Unimog. The power train is bombproof. You change the oil, follow the maintenance schedule, and it will give you little trouble. Most things I think I could fix with a rock and a set of wrenches. And, 15 years from now when INEOS is belly-up and the B58 dies, there’s enough room in the engine bay to repower with any number of platforms.
Also, it’s just really fun to drive. But that’s subjective. I like to drive. I like to hear the road noise and the hiss of a honkin big turbo. I like to fiddle with the steering to keep it between the lines. I don’t mind the annoying software, or the PS5-like bongs when a pot hole whips me over the center line and freaks out the driver aids. I don’t mind that the HVAC is mildly bipolar and has just the vaguest idea which heat/air blend to deliver to the cabin. And the startup procedure to disable those driver aids just adds to my fun (‘cause big-ass switches need to be pushed).
Comfort? Nah man, not here. The Recaro seats are great, the steering wheel is comfortable. That’s about it. There are two, count ‘em, TWO tiny euro cup holders. You can’t really lean on the center console. Short answer: this is not a machine for someone who enjoys comfort. But, despite all that, it is comfortable. It hugs you, and it very well behaved on the road. 80 mph is quite composed, and when you put your foot down, the B58 remembers its heritage and wakes up like only an angry German straight-6 can.
When I was shopping and bidding this thing, I felt like every dealer I talked to was interviewing me. Like I was applying to adopt a working cattle dog that had been kept in town for too long and was being fostered to a farm because it was destroying furniture.
Don’t let my assessment put you off. If you love it that’s all there is to it. But you gotta be really sure you love it all, be damned to the annoying faults. This ain’t a machine that cares if you’re comfortable or not, it’s just here to do a job. But, personally, I think it’s an excellent daily driver, and is plenty comfortable for me. It has just enough contemporary tech to work with, but it never lets you forget it don’t give a shit about your phone or latté.
At the end of it, this is a really divisive vehicle; it’s a love it or hate it machine. I love it.
Good luck.
I’ve had mine for five days now and put 350 miles on it between a lot of highway driving, little bit of town driving, dirt road commuting, and checking cows in the pastures.
Background: I’m an automotive engineer and farmer, I’ve owned everything from an Audi A3, 2500 shit box Cummins, 2011 Suburban, and my previous favorite, a 1981 Toyota Hilux (my daily before the INEOS). The longer I farm and work in the automotive industry, the more I hate new cars. As part of traveling for my industry job, I’ve rented a lot of new domestic cars and SUVs. They all suck (especially the ‘24 4-runner…man they screwed that one up). So I say unequivocally, I love the Grenadier.
Let’s start with the bad: it’s raw. They blew their design budget on the things that make it work and, on the night before the project was due, they had to make a bunch of concessions to pass EU and US regulations. So the software sucks. It’s glitchy. It takes forever to do basic menu operations. Like they got somebody’s second cousin who codes for funsies to do the infotainment system.
The steering requires attention. It’s not bad steering, but it’s hyper focused. You drive this sumbitch. All the time. No steering with your knee while you eat a milkshake. This is a truck, not a car.
You get solid axles and springs and trailing links. No air. That shit breaks.
The fuel mileage sucks. It requires 91 octane. I could go on and on about the mechanical compromises, but I won’t. You guys know.
The good: in my professional estimation this thing will last to the heat death of the universe. It’s a street-legal Unimog. The power train is bombproof. You change the oil, follow the maintenance schedule, and it will give you little trouble. Most things I think I could fix with a rock and a set of wrenches. And, 15 years from now when INEOS is belly-up and the B58 dies, there’s enough room in the engine bay to repower with any number of platforms.
Also, it’s just really fun to drive. But that’s subjective. I like to drive. I like to hear the road noise and the hiss of a honkin big turbo. I like to fiddle with the steering to keep it between the lines. I don’t mind the annoying software, or the PS5-like bongs when a pot hole whips me over the center line and freaks out the driver aids. I don’t mind that the HVAC is mildly bipolar and has just the vaguest idea which heat/air blend to deliver to the cabin. And the startup procedure to disable those driver aids just adds to my fun (‘cause big-ass switches need to be pushed).
Comfort? Nah man, not here. The Recaro seats are great, the steering wheel is comfortable. That’s about it. There are two, count ‘em, TWO tiny euro cup holders. You can’t really lean on the center console. Short answer: this is not a machine for someone who enjoys comfort. But, despite all that, it is comfortable. It hugs you, and it very well behaved on the road. 80 mph is quite composed, and when you put your foot down, the B58 remembers its heritage and wakes up like only an angry German straight-6 can.
When I was shopping and bidding this thing, I felt like every dealer I talked to was interviewing me. Like I was applying to adopt a working cattle dog that had been kept in town for too long and was being fostered to a farm because it was destroying furniture.
Don’t let my assessment put you off. If you love it that’s all there is to it. But you gotta be really sure you love it all, be damned to the annoying faults. This ain’t a machine that cares if you’re comfortable or not, it’s just here to do a job. But, personally, I think it’s an excellent daily driver, and is plenty comfortable for me. It has just enough contemporary tech to work with, but it never lets you forget it don’t give a shit about your phone or latté.
At the end of it, this is a really divisive vehicle; it’s a love it or hate it machine. I love it.
Good luck.
