Stuck in Namibia !

[DenisM]

I wonder how the Aussie ones were spec'd - they have more corrugations than most.

We certainly have widespread corrugations, and that's even before we leave the bitumen!

 

[Shopkeep]

My top bracket is a

VIN 1886 build 2/2023 for the Australian market. Compared to @Logsplitter's pic above I appear to have different top brackets, but hard to confirm without disassembly, and I have the round support struts underneath (ref the dome nut). Same on both sides.

My bracket the same, a wide black painted steel unit.

One of the first deliveries in Oz was someone in WA who immediately took it on a long outback trip with a caravan, he had a one of these secondary radiators fail on the corrugated roads but I can’t remember the exact reason.

 

[BMW.Leo]

Hi all,

I’m sorry that I’ve not kept up with posting about my African trip as the lack of WiFi in most places is and has been rather hit and miss.
As some of you are aware at the moment I am stuck in Namibia as my Grenadier broke down.
Here’s how it all went down.

I have been travelling since the 3rd of January throughout South Africa Botswana and had just entered into Namibia last Tuesday, I stayed at a lodge in Tsumkwe just over the border of Botswana for one night and was leaving for a place called Grootfontein the following morning, I left for the 300 km trip first thing in the morning and after about two hours on the gravel corrugated roads my Gren temperature shot up to 130 and the warning said to stop the vehicle immediately which I did I checked for water and the water was non-existent…dry as a bone, I put lots of water in which made no difference to the vehicle whatsoever, I was on a road where there was literally no one and no passing vehicles, the heat was over 30° and after three hours started to panic and thankfully I had a satellite device on me where I could send a message and after a few hours there were four police forces looking for me and I was found by the owner of the lodge that I had stayed the previous night, I truly was so frightened as there were no vehicles passing and I was running out of water because I had put in over 60 L into the vehicle with no effect of cooling it down.

After nine hours, I had been found and returned to the lodge and Ineos in Windhoek was contacted and they arranged for a pick up truck to collect the vehicle and myself to drive to Ineos in Windhoek, a couple of days later I was on the pick up truck with my vehicle and endured a 15 1/2 hour drive to Ineos, I was put up in a hotel in the capital when my vehicle was dropped off and was told by the servicing manager not to worry about anything as long as I was safe that everything would be taken care of regarding my accommodation, warranty of the vehicle, and recovery of the vehicle.

So that was last Thursday that they received the vehicle at the garage and now it is late on Monday and Ineos South Africa who apparently have to authorise any work, warranty etc and accommodation costs have done in my opinion very little, after saying everything would be taken care of it seems that they want me to pay for my accommodation and recovery costs and get it back from INEOS in the UK, I don’t have the funds for this and also I have lost a whole week of travelling and my pre paid accommodations en route throughout Namibia.

So, what went wrong ?

The small radiator on the drivers side had become loose and detached on the corrugated gravel roads, on the early vehicles that radiator was not held in place by brackets, Logsplitter also had exactly the same problem with his Gren travelling through Africa on the same road, but he managed to mend his and then got it fixed at a later date, now in my opinion Ineos new that the earlier vehicles had this fault and I believe they should have been recalled to have that radiator rebuilt with a bracket around it to stop it falling out and apart, I don’t know how Ineos did their trials through Namibia, but I am as sure as sure can be that they certainly didn’t test them for hundreds of miles on those corrugated roads.

I have completely lost confidence in the vehicle and its capabilities certainly in Africa, I hopefully will get it back tomorrow and I can continue and salvage a little bit of my Namibian trip, I know people say that maybe I should travel with somebody else but that’s not the point. I don’t like to travel with anybody else, that’s why I’m travelling solo but I shouldn’t have found myself in a position with a vehicle not fit for what it was built for on these roads, stranded on my own fearing I would die alone.

Now I have had INEOS saying I should pay for my hotel etc when they initially said they’d sort it out (Ineos in Namibia) but they are just a sales team and service department and everything has to go through Ineos in Cape Town I found out, many emails were sent today and went unanswered, now Ineos in Cape Town have replied saying they have to get authorisation from the chief financial officer in the UK, it beggars belief !

I feel like selling my vehicle on return to the UK and going back to an old defender, Ineos customer service remains complete shit.

And this is a company that contacted me in the first instance when they found out I was bringing my Gren and doing a three month trip through Africa asking me if they could follow my journey and post it on their social media, strange how I’ve contacted them today on social media telling them all about what’s happening and my disappointment in the company and yet they haven’t replied not once.

Annee

hi Année, very sad to hear that, but my experience with Ineos are same. communication zero, help zero. info zero.

 

[ECrider]

VIN 1886 build 2/2023 for the Australian market. Compared to @Logsplitter's pic above I appear to have different top brackets, but hard to confirm without disassembly, and I have the round support struts underneath (ref the dome nut). Same on both sides.

Thanks Clark Kent that's helpful. I wonder whether the top bracket is different as believe you have the steel bumpers down under. Perhaps similar reasoning/ease of fitment for the bottom bracket compared to our plastic ones. Just thinking aloud. Will take a good look under mine this weekend when filling the bloody front diff again with sweet smelling oil!!!

 

[Logsplitter]

VIN 1886 build 2/2023 for the Australian market. Compared to @Logsplitter's pic above I appear to have different top brackets, but hard to confirm without disassembly, and I have the round support struts underneath (ref the dome nut). Same on both sides.

It would be interesting to see whether U.K. and EU vehicles with a similar VIN have the same support brackets as yours
My VIN 1163. Maybe the prototypes didn’t have the auxiliary radiators ( an afterthought maybe to keep temps down) as surely during the 1.8m km of testing they would have had similar issues of rads falling out of fixings with the original U.K. spec brackets.

 

[CRH]

We certainly have widespread corrugations, and that's even before we leave the bitumen!

We have craters covering all of our roads destroying wheels and suspension, I would have assumed we would have needed the additional bracket. Or at the very least, slalom driver training.

 

[Clark Kent]

It would be interesting to see whether U.K. and EU vehicles with a similar VIN have the same support brackets as yours
My VIN 1163. Maybe the prototypes didn’t have the auxiliary radiators ( an afterthought maybe to keep temps down) as surely during the 1.8m km of testing they would have had similar issues of rads falling out of fixings with the original U.K. spec brackets.

I thought the auxiliary engine radiator (RH wing) was unique to the Grenadier but the BMW training material for the B58 shows an auxiliary radiator and my wife's 2018 M140i (also B58) has the same auxiliary radiator in the RH lower bumper.
The transfer case cooler (LH wing) is likely unique to Grenadier/Quartermaster but I have no idea when it was introduced.

The support struts are cantilevered from the frame and appear to push upwards on the wing radiator supports to reduce downwards flexing.

 

[Gwynne]

Hi everyone.

So I'm planning my own mini adventure this summer to Iceland where I'll be driving on the F Roads. Not as gruelling or impressive as Annee's trip but I'd like to get thee radiator brackets fitted before I leave the UK.

So any help with the following questions much appreciated:

(1). Is it just the RHC that needs the bracket or should I get two?

(2). Anyone know the official Ineos Part Numbers, Recall notice or description?

(3)

 

[Gwynne]

(3). What's involved to fit them?

Many thanks

 

[Logsplitter]

You need the support bars/brackets fitted on both sides to stop flex on the underside of the bumper next to where the small rads are fitted. Because it’s a retro fit the bumper has to be drilled out and the bolts on mine were welded in place.

 

[Kruegerruda]

support bars/brackets

Ist there a Part-Number available? Or is the support bracket a one-off?

 

[rovie]

Hi everyone.

So I'm planning my own mini adventure this summer to Iceland where I'll be driving on the F Roads. Not as gruelling or impressive as Annee's trip but I'd like to get thee radiator brackets fitted before I leave the UK.

So any help with the following questions much appreciated:

(1). Is it just the RHC that needs the bracket or should I get two?

(2). Anyone know the official Ineos Part Numbers, Recall notice or description?

(3)

Hi @Gwynne when will you be in Iceland? Maybe someone else from the forum will be there and we could meet up.

 

[Logsplitter]

Ist there a Part-Number available? Or is the support bracket a one-off?

No idea of any part no. Mine were taken off of a showroom model in Namibia to keep me going.
Hopefully an Ineos dealership or Ineos HQ can help you.

 

[CountyV8]

I asked them for a part number this morning don’t hold your breath they said pop into your dealer I said I’m not driving 200 miles.

 

[AWo]

Hi everyone.

So I'm planning my own mini adventure this summer to Iceland where I'll be driving on the F Roads. Not as gruelling or impressive as Annee's trip but I'd like to get thee radiator brackets fitted before I leave the UK.

So any help with the following questions much appreciated:

(1). Is it just the RHC that needs the bracket or should I get two?

(2). Anyone know the official Ineos Part Numbers, Recall notice or description?

(3)

Do not underestimate the tracks on Iceland! You'll find heavy washboard tracks there. You drive them with 10 km/h or above 70 km/h. Our shocks went up to between 70° and 95° C after a 2,5 hour drive. We saw a VW T5 Rockton bus were its paint was rubbed away from the door seals and the dust due to the heavy vibrations. What is not fasten good and tight will be loose afterwards or gone....

BTW, go to the Möðrudalur camp site (N 65.373611° W 15.883688°) and the famous petrol station there. The owner of the campground & restaurant & hotel is a friend of Jim Ratcliffe. He uses to stay in his hotel, when he is on Iceland (buying even more land there). So Grenadiers are welcome there.

AWo

 

[Tom109]

Do not underestimate the tracks on Iceland! You'll find heavy washboard tracks there. You drive them with 10 km/h or above 70 km/h. Our shocks went up to between 70° and 95° C after a 2,5 hour drive. We saw a VW T5 Rockton bus were its paint was rubbed away from the door seals and the dust due to the heavy vibrations. What is not fasten good and tight will be loose afterwards or gone....

BTW, go to the Möðrudalur camp site (N 65.373611° W 15.883688°) and the famous petrol station there. The owner of the campground & restaurant & hotel is a friend of Jim Ratcliffe. He uses to stay in his hotel, when he is on Iceland (buying even more land there). So Grenadiers are welcome there.

AWo

I want to go there now!!!

 

[AWo]

Ok. Fine for me. Go.

AWo

 

[CRH]

I want to go there now!!!

We all do now

 

[shakesc]

I will need to brace my radiator first

 

[CountyV8]

Asked Ineos today about the part numbers for the braces they would NOT tell me told me to ask my local dealer well my nearest couldn't be arsed to pick up the phone and the next nearest was. confused to say the least. Not good. It's not a secret is it? could it be they don't want all UK owners asking for the braces that they should have fitted in the first place.