Ineos Automotive may have been born around a singular vehicle, but it doesn't plan to maintain a one-auto lineup. In fact, it's preparing to follow the greater industry into the EV business. The spinoff of the British petrochemical giant of the same surname is working on its first all-electric vehicle. Like the company's original Grenadier, the electric 4x4 will be built with an eye toward uncompromising off-road performance. Toward that end, Ineos will team with Magna Steyr leading up to a 2026 launch.
Ineos' electric utility vehicle won't be a mere Grenadier EV, as the company says that the EV will be smaller, which should only make it more of an off-road force. Not to be confused with the hydrogen fuel cell Grenadier prototype Ineos has shown in the past, this electric 4x4 will rely on pure battery power and be designed for "world-class off-road capability, without compromising on-road comfort or performance."
Ineos has named OEM vehicle manufacturer Magna Steyr its development and manufacturing partner for the project. While Ineos builds the Grenadier at its own plant in Hambach, France, it worked closely with the Graz, Austria-based team at Magna Steyr on Grenadier engineering and development.
Magna Steyr's long history of 4x4 expertise drives far deeper than the Grenadier. Long before being absorbed by Canada's Magna International and reincorporated into Magna Steyr in 2001, Steyr-Daimler-Puch developed iconic off-road machines such as the Haflinger and Pinzgauer, honing expertise that helped it go on to co-develop the Mercedes G-Class, which has been manufactured in Graz since the 4x4's 1979 debut.
Magna Steyr has another built-in advantage when it comes to developing an off-roader: the Schöckl. The 4,740-foot (1,445-m) mountain plateau just outside of Graz is known for its steep gradients and has always served as a proving grounds for the G-Class – Mercedes calls it the "Green Hell of Styria," referencing the Austrian state of which Graz is the capital. The Ineos Grenadier also proved its mettle on the Schöckl, and Ineos confirms that its electric 4x4 will do the same.
The Ineos EV will come at a time when electric off-roading should really be heating up with next-generation offerings like the VW Scout EV and Mercedes-Benz EQG with silicon-anode battery joining other available and upcoming truck and utility vehicle offerings from Rivian, Ford, GMC and more.
Source: Ineos Automotive
