After just over 2 months ownership and 3500km its time to start a blog for Henry my Grenadier. The plan is this thread will capture my impressions, issues, mods and travels. I won't be going overboard with the mods and I’ll generally be sticking to easily fitted accessories and keep the weight down.
Why is he called Henry? Except for the GTV6 all my cars have had names with the 4wds following a theme of British Kings. Last year I named the Cub Longreach camper trailer “Banjo” after the Australian bush poet Banjo Patterson, so it was a short jump to naming the Grenadier “Henry” after Henry Lawson another Australian poet and compatriot of Banjo Patterson, while keeping with the existing British king naming theme..
My first impressions.
Overall they are positive, but there’s been lot of muscle memory retraining and a reasonable technology learning curve, coming from an early 2000’s TD5 Discovery 2.
The Good:
Why is he called Henry? Except for the GTV6 all my cars have had names with the 4wds following a theme of British Kings. Last year I named the Cub Longreach camper trailer “Banjo” after the Australian bush poet Banjo Patterson, so it was a short jump to naming the Grenadier “Henry” after Henry Lawson another Australian poet and compatriot of Banjo Patterson, while keeping with the existing British king naming theme..
My first impressions.
Overall they are positive, but there’s been lot of muscle memory retraining and a reasonable technology learning curve, coming from an early 2000’s TD5 Discovery 2.
The Good:
- The car is solid and well built.
- The ride is excellent and for its size and weight it handles really well.
- Fuel economy currently is in the low 12l/100km range, which includes some towing. Getting mid 15l/100km when towing my camper trailer (approx. 1600kg). It also appears to be getting better as the engine loosens up.
- The car tows really well and after the Discovery the extra power is most welcome.
- The optional front tow hitch makes moving my camper trailer up my angled drive so damm easy.
- He handles the dunes and soft beach sand very well in H4 with the centre diff locked and tyres at 18psi. Haven't had the need to try the front and rear diff locks yet.
- Seats are really comfortable.
- Radio is loud enough for me and I’m enjoying having Apple CarPlay. So far I’ve had only a couple of freezing issues with either CarPlay, dash compass or GPS. There are some pairing issues but that is due to my 4 year old iPhone. DAB reception is equivalent to the Kenwood I had in the Discovery
- Though I’ve only had a short test I reckon I’m going to love the breadcrumb trail capture functionality.
- Transfer case shifting effort is on par with my old Discovery.
- Air-conditioning is positively frigid.
- I was rather surprised to find that the Ineos seat covers fitted reasonably well and don’t slip off. Not perfect but perhaps Ineos have made some changes to the first batch.
- Once I worked out the undocumented trip meter features I’ve grown to like the daily “from start” setting. I can use this to get the stats for the day’s travel while still having the traditional trip meter, which I display next to the odo and reset every time I refuel.
- The driving position is a work in progress to find the most comfortable position. I’m used to a low seating position with outstretched legs, so the upright position and left footrest are taking a bit of getting used to. That said on a long trip last week the position hasn’t been uncomfortable, but I did notice having to move my left leg around more often than normal.
- The limited adjustment range for the driver’s door mirror is also an issue. Set fully out I’m still seeing a little too much of the car side. The mirror really needs another indent in the base so I can move it out further.
- Despite having the full software update, I’m still getting front PDC errors while stopped at lights or intersections. Most annoying, but hopefully will be fixed a future software update.
- There is a metallic resonance/rattle/vibration at 1800-2200rpm at slow speeds and when the engine is under load. The dealer has had two cracks at fixing it with some improvement noted after the last visit, but another visit will be required to get on top of it.
- Having spent the last week eating other vehicle's dust it would be great it the HVAC recirculate button would not switch off every time I switch the car off.
- No commercial DAB stations. This is a fundamental limitation in Australia as I’m advised by Ineos Australia that the radio is only DAB not DAB+.
- I’m going to have to neuter the security panic alarm button on the remote with a small O ring soon. I’ve pressed it accidentally a few too many times including going off in my pocket.
- I’ve also accidentally switched on the rear wiper by knocking the end button a number of times. More muscle memory training is needed.
- Mismatched paint work. The front fenders are a slightly whiter shade of white compared to the rest of the car. I’m not alone as all the Scottish White vehicles I’ve looked at suffer the same issue to varying degrees. Not impressed for a +$100k car. In discussions at present with Ineos Australia as to a possible resolution.
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