Mercedes-Benz GLB-Class vs Ineos Grenadier

What's the difference?

It’s easy to say the GLB35 doesn’t deserve to be called an AMG when looking at its credentials on paper, but get behind the wheel and it’s evident Affalterbach played a key role in making it feel as special to drive as it should be.

The GLB35 has all of the great qualities of the GLB250 and other GLB variants, but successfully adds a performance focus to make for an even more compelling package.

Indeed, the GLB35 proves you can pretty much have it all.

The Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster is undeniably cool. Its razor focus on rugged usability in an off-road environment is admirable. I particularly appreciate that the brand has an extensive array of factory customisability and has sought aftermarket support for cab chassis variants early on to secure that modality for tradies and off-road rig builders.

Be warned though. While it might be pricey, this isn't a luxury ute. Its standard feature list is ultimately short and its live-axle design, tight back seat, and old-school steering will make it harder to live with as a daily driver than most.

As a result, don’t read too much into the score. Those who are building one for its intended purposes should be across the downsides, but many will love that something so comparatively analogue can still exist.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

With the boxy and therefore rugged-looking GLB laying some great foundations, it’s no surprise the GLB35 looks pretty damn good – to these eyes, at least.

Being an AMG model, it stands out from the crowd with an aggressive body kit, with the chunky bumpers, aerodynamic roof spoiler and racy rear diffuser all unique alongside the now-signature Panamericana grille insert.

A set of 20-inch alloy wheels with 255/40 tyres ups the ante at the side, where the carryover black plastic wheel-arch and skirt cladding serves as an obligatory reminder that this is an SUV.

Also of note are the nicely designed LED headlights and tail-lights, which literally light the way, but there’s no getting past the bespoke diffuser element, which integrates the sports exhaust system’s dual 90mm tailpipes.

Inside, the GLB35 is a technological tour de force, with a pair of 10.25-inch high-resolution displays proudly sitting side by side atop the dashboard, with one the central touchscreen and the other the digital instrument cluster.

Both are powered by Mercedes-Benz’s MBUX multimedia system, which arguably remains the best there is today thanks its speed and breadth of functionality and input methods.

The GLB35 is also properly premium. Lugano leather upholstery covers the seats and armrests, while Nappa trims the sports steering wheel. Even the door shoulders and inserts get ‘cow hide’, although theirs is of the artificial variety.

Soft-touch materials are used for the upper dashboard, leaving hard plastics to the lower sections, which is what you’d expect for the price.

While the black headliner makes for a dark cabin, brightness comes from the metallic trim used throughout, notably on the steering wheel, dashboard, doors and centre console. And let’s not forget the pop of colour provided by the addictive ambient lighting.

And mercifully, scratch- and fingerprint-hungry gloss-black accents are limited to the surrounds of the turbine-style front air vents, dual-zone climate controls and centre console.

Unique to the GLB35 are Carbon Structure trim and stainless-steel sports pedals, just in case you forgot you weren’t driving a regular GLB.

The rugged appeal of this thing has to be seen in the metal to be appreciated. Not just because it looks better in the real world than it does in pictures, but also because you can appreciate the attention to detail, hardware features, and rugged construction that have been poured into it.

From a distance it may look derivative. There’s more than a little Land Rover Defender (yes, the original one) in its silhouette, but up close there’s a lot to like. It’s big, but not overwhelmingly so, and manages to pull off massive ‘Quartermaster’ sticker-work down the side of the tray, with ‘GRENADIER’ embossed on the tray with ease.

From there, it’s all attention to detail. The brand has placed nods to its international roots with a split German/United Kingdom flag near the front, representing where the car is engineered and designed respectively, with a ‘built in Hambach’ sticker on its rear window with French flag detailing underneath to rep where it was built.

On the outside, you can of course go nuts with options, some of which are as classic as the look of the vehicle itself. For example, you can choose to have a contrasting roof in either white or black (at an ouchy $2645), or even have the chassis bits powder coated in a contrasting scheme of either grey or red ($1555).

From there you can choose several different wheels. I think it looks right (and feels right) with the standard 17-inch steel wheel, but if you want a bit more bling you can choose one of a few alloy wheel designs, too.

I have to hand it to the brand for designing a car interior that stands apart from the crowd. It feels big and utilitarian with all its buttons and switches, along with hard wearing floors and an overall square theme for everything. It’s like a Tonka truck for grown-ups.

Everything has a satisfying clunk to it, including the doors, which are double sealed to prevent dust and water from leaking in. Again, there is attention to detail here with form meeting function, at least to some degree.

Customisation is key here, and each Grenadier can feel quite different depending on the packs and options chosen. For example, the seats can be chosen in a blend of cloth and vinyl (the ‘utility’ seat trim) or real leather, while the steering wheel and passenger grab handle can be trimmed in a brown ‘saddle’ leather option to mix it up.

The other area that impresses is how much unique switchgear the Grenadier has for such a niche automaker. While a vehicle like this may usually have bits from all sorts of other vehicles to make it more cost effective, the Grenadier scores its own steering wheel, indicator stalks, and switches all down the front panel, with the only hints to its BMW connection being the shifter and multimedia screen, although even that gets a distinct theme.

I like that it makes a point of being different, and I think the intended audience is discerning enough that these sorts of things will definitely go appreciated. It does leave you with a strange impression of being a new car that manages to feel old (in this context, not necessarily an insult), in stark contrast to a rival like the LandCruiser 70 Series, which is definitely an old car made to feel new (more likely an insult with or without context).

Measuring 4650mm long (with a 2829mm wheelbase), 1845mm wide and 1660mm tall, the GLB35 is more like the GLC43 in size than the GLA35, making it a mid-size SUV despite its small underpinnings. And that is good news for practicality.

Cargo capacity with the 50/50 split-fold third row stowed is more than solid, at 565 litres (VDA), but it can be increased to a cavernous 1800L with the 40/20/40 split-fold middle bench also not in use. If six or seven passengers are onboard, though, there’s very little room to move.

Nonetheless, the boot is still well packaged, featuring a huge aperture, no load lip, and a flat floor, which make loading and unloading bulkier items a hell of a lot easier. And even the load cover can be stored underfloor when out of action. How good.

There are also four tie-down points, two bag hooks, a side storage net and a 12V power outlet on hand to make matters even easier, while the rear seats can be stowed from the boot.

While we’re on the topic, Mercedes-Benz says the third row can accommodate passengers up to 168cm tall, with the middle bench able to slide fore and aft by up to 140mm.

Yes, I'm too tall, at 184cm, but I can still sit in the very back, although not in total comfort. All in all, about a centimetre of legroom and negligible headroom and toe-room are on offer there for me.

That said, getting in and out in the first place is the real challenge here, with the middle bench unable to tumble forward for easy ingress and egress. Yep, you’re not going to look smooth either way. Children can deal with it, but adults won’t be thrilled.

Therefore, the middle bench is the place to be, even when it’s slid all the way forward. Behind my driving position, it offers about a centimetre of legroom, but this can be increased to several inches by sliding it all the way back.

Either way, plenty of toe-room is available alongside more than an inch of headroom. The latter is more impressive when you consider that’s what you get with the standard dual-pane panoramic sunroof fitted.

Even better, the second row can seat three adults at a pinch, partly thanks to the low transmission tunnel, which means there’s the right amount of space for six fully grown feet across the two footwells. It goes without saying children will again be fine.

Speaking of which, four ISOFIX and five top-tether anchorage points are on hand for fitting up to four child seats across the second and third rows, which makes the GLB35 a serious option for families that like to be sporty.

There are plenty of in-cabin storage options, with the large central storage bin featuring a pair of USB-C ports, while the glovebox is also quite useful, even if it is oddly shaped. And there’s also a sunglasses holder in front of the rearview mirror.

The centre console’s cubby isn’t really designed for storage, with it basically taken up by two cupholders, another USB-C port and a wireless smartphone charger.

The front door bins can accommodate one small and two regular bottles each, which is great, while their rear counterparts can take one small and one regular apiece.

Second-row occupants also have access to a fold-down armrest with another pair of cupholders, but being of the retractable variety, they’re flimsy.

These passengers also have two USB-C ports, with the pair folding out below a small cubby and air vents, which are found at the back of the centre console. Storage nets are also fitted on the front seat backrests.

And don’t worry; the third row gets in on the action, with two cupholders (one regular, the other small) splitting the seats, which have individual USB-C ports and device straps to the sides.
 

Remember how I said this car’s design is form meets function? Arguably, it’s a lot more function than form, I suppose. Nothing says this more than in the front where there’s no instrument cluster. Instead your key information is provided in a dedicated section of the multimedia screen, which, almost like a Tesla, requires you to glance over to the midsection of the dash every so often to check your speed.

Like Teslas, it’s a bit weird and annoying to have to do this, but Ineos says this is to maximise visibility for off-road applications, something that's also mirrored by the bonnet design. The centre-bulge style it has isn’t purely for retro aesthetics. Instead, it’s to allow the driver to see to the very edges of this car’s frame to make it easier to position.

The thing is, it all works. While it might feel off-putting at first, once you get on the rough stuff you don’t notice the lack of instrumentation because you’re too busy doing other things, exactly as Ineos intended.

The same goes for the hard switches which make up the dash. Again, instead of being purely aesthetic, it makes it easy to find everything from climate controls to off-road dials and multimedia shortcuts, something that can prove invaluable when you just want to mute the music to hear whatever that crunching sound was, or press a simple switch to turn off the parking sensors when you’re approaching boulders.

Even the simple steering wheel’s comparative lack of buttons is a godsend, ensuring you don’t jam cruise toggles, volume switches or multimedia functions when you’re just trying to wrestle with the front axle.

Elsewhere in the cabin, things feel nice and wide. Maybe not so extreme as a US-sized pick-up, but it certainly manages to feel larger than most dual-cabs. A tall roof is helped along in some versions by the signature ‘safari windows’ (normally a $2720 option, standard on Fieldmasters), which have a nice manual operation for tilting them open, but annoyingly don’t come with a shade, so help to bake the interior in the Australian sun.

The seats are intentionally manually adjustable, which makes for fast-changes on-the-go, although be warned, even the lowest setting for the seat will take some clambering into, as it’s pretty far off the ground, especially with the rock sliders selected instead of the side steps.

The back seat is less impressive. Sure it still gets all the same trimmings as the front seat, but to facilitate the rear-cab design for the Quartermaster, the tilt angle for the seats is more of a right angle, and the interior space for legroom has been cropped significantly from wagon variants, too.

This means it’s tight for me behind my own seating position at 182cm tall. I have about an inch of clearance for my knees to the hard plastic inserts on the backs of the front seats, and just enough room to slide my feet in underneath before the floor starts to angle upward. I also had just enough headroom back there, with the rear seats feeling even higher than the front. The middle position looks to be pretty much useless for an adult occupant, not because of width, but because of the large transmission tunnel and wide centre console box leaving no room to put your legs. The limited space in the second row may be a dealbreaker for some buyers considering this ute as a dual-purpose vehicle for family duties.

Utility-wise there are at least large bottle holders in each door, a large centre console box up front, two more bottle holders in the centre console, a manual handbrake and lever for the low-range transfer case. Aside from the physical buttons, there are a few other clever touches, like the Grenadier’s dimensions printed on the roof panel so you’ll be across the very real possibility you won’t fit in certain parking lots (at over two metres tall).

The cabin is one thing, however. What makes or breaks utes in Australia is the tray size and load capacities.

The tray is large enough to take a standard Euro-sized palette between the arches, and comes with base mounting rails which can’t be said for every dual-cab on the market. It also gets clever depressions in each side behind the wheel arches, where you can mount spare wheels. 

Payload may surprise. Despite coming coil-sprung all-round, the Quartermaster can carry up to 832kg. It’s a bit of a departure from the expected one tonne, but it’s also significantly better than many coil sprung rivals. In addition, it is capable of towing up to the expected 3500kg, and that’s despite the fact that it’s already a heavy unit, with a kerb weight of 2718kg, owing to an impressive gross combined weight of 7000kg.

For off-road specs the Quartermaster gets a ground clearance of 264mm, a wading depth of 800mm, and angles of 36.2 degrees for approach, 22.6 degrees for departure, and 26.2 degrees for breakover. The front and rear differential locks to add to the standard centre lock ($3085) and the snorkel fitting ($1220) comes standard on Trialmaster versions.

This lands it quite comfortably closer to the universally lauded LandCruiser 70 series than the comparatively shunned Jeep Gladiator when it comes to specs, for example.

There are also additional considerations. The Quartermaster Cab Chassis comes with aftermarket support from day one in the form of the brand’s partnership with Aussie outfit Norweld. The brand does premium-looking trays with colour-matching extruded side-boards, a single-piece floor fitting and a 76mm headboard for all your mounting needs. It also scores LED tail-lights as well as tool boxes and a trundel draw.

Ineos says to expect other options in the future including a ready-to-go canopy set-up and more.

Finally, from the factory options list, there’s a bumper-integrated winch ($5990, load rated to 5.5 tonnes) which hides behind a tidy flip-open licence plate cover, pre-wired tow-hitch ($820), auxiliary charge points ($245), a high-load switch panel with pre-wired electrics ($1990) and a dual-battery set-up ($1165).

All of this speaks to a robust offering which Ineos is hoping will give the Quartermaster its best chance. Indeed, aftermarket support or such a deep list of options for many new Chinese rivals is either not available or not so clear-cut, so the British marque at least gets an advantage there.

Let’s get something out of the way immediately, the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster isn’t cheap. With a base price of $102,000 for the cab chassis or $105,000 for the ute before on-road costs, it’s starting from a high base.

It only gets more expensive from there, with an extensive options list that ups the price quickly, and two variants that pre-package some of those options together for convenience. You can choose the tougher Trialmaster or the on-road-focused Fieldmaster, both from $115,000 as a cab chassis, or $118,000 as a ute.

Even the notoriously pricey and also purpose-built Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series is more affordable (starting from $79,300 for an equivalent dual-cab), although it looks and feels significantly older.

Elsewhere, the price spectrum covers everything from base 4x4 versions of the usual dual-cab crowd, to newcomers like the hybrid BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha.

It’s also worth remembering the Jeep Gladiator (from $78,250) as an example of a six-cylinder ute version of a renowned off-road SUV which has hardly been accepted by Aussie buyers.

The Ineos has the advantage of offering both petrol and diesel (as a no-cost option either way) for its 3.0-litre inline-six turbo engine, sourced from BMW. More on that later.

The standard equipment list is impressive in terms of functional off-road equipment, but perhaps less so for cabin luxuries and safety features.

Ramming home that off-road focus are 17-inch alloy wheels, hard wearing ‘utility’ interior trim (consisting of cloth with leather edges), a Nappa leather steering wheel, tough vinyl flooring with drain valves (so you can literally hose it out), a centre console filled with buttons, dials, and switches for most functions designed to be used with gloves on, as well as an overhead console featuring buttons and switches for off-road functions as well as pre-wired and fused switches for auxiliary features.

On top of that, there’s a 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity (this also serves as a digital instrument panel), a rear-vision camera, and Bridgestone all-terrain tyres.

What else? Not much. Everything from leather seat trim to a 5.5-tonne load-rated winch integrated into the front bumper lives on the options list, with a number of inclusions on the Trialmaster and Feildmaster versions.

On this front, I suppose it’s not great value. So it’s worth remembering that this vehicle’s breadth of ability and specific off-road focus, along with competitive load and tow ratings is what you’re buying into here.

After all, the Grenadier is meant to be a continuation of the original Land Rover Defender, and this specific low-volume engineering goal is what you’re paying for. For some people, that’s priceless.

The GLB35 is powered by an uprated version of the GLB250’s 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder petrol engine, with the AMG-fettled version producing a more substantial 225kW of power from 5800-6100rpm and 400Nm of torque from 3000-4000rpm (up from 165kW/350Nm).

This version is also matched to an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission as well as Mercedes-AMG’s front-biased but fully variable 4Matic all-wheel-drive system.

Thanks to this combination, the GLB35 can sprint from 0-100km/h in just 5.2 seconds with launch control enabled, while its electronically limited top speed is 250km/h.

It’s pretty simple under the bonnet. Two 3.0-litre straight-six engine options, either in petrol or diesel.

Yes, these are both BMW engines (B57 for diesel and B58 for petrol for the nerds among you), and while that may not sound promising from an off-road durability point of view, Ineos says it has upgraded several core components to make them ready for unsealed action. 

The petrol produces 210kW/450Nm, while the diesel produces 183kW/550Nm.

Additionally, the engines and the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission get unique software maps to make them more appropriate for the Grenadier’s use-case. Something which becomes quite evident as soon as you hop behind the wheel.

While you get a manual low-range shifter and manual handbrake, the drive system is permanent automatic four-wheel drive, there’s no way to manually engage a 2WD mode.

Big six-cylinder engines are becoming increasingly rare in this space, and the Ineos strives to strike a balance between power, capability, fuel efficiency and in the future, emissions.

Unlike many big four-cylinder units, the BMW engines are already Euro 6 compliant (with the diesel requiring AdBlue) although it is likely Ineos will have to change something a few years into the future as Australia’s new vehicle efficiency laws start to bite.

The GLB35’s fuel consumption on the combined-cycle test (ADR 81/02) is 8.3L per 100km, while its carbon dioxide emissions are 186 grams per km. All things considered, both claims are pretty decent.

In our real-world testing, though, we averaged a high 14.1L/100km over 75km of driving split between highways and country roads, so not your typical mix, then. A heavy right foot also played into that result, so expect a better return after a regular run.

For reference, the GLB35’s 60L fuel tank can be filled up with 98RON petrol at minimum.

As a result of these large turbocharged engines, fuel efficiency isn’t exactly segment leading, but you may be surprised that they aren’t as inefficient as you might expect (especially considering the weight of the Quartermaster).

Official combined use figures place the diesel version at 13L/100km (for reference I saw about 14.2 on the vehicle I drove across some fairly severe conditions) placing it about 20 to 30 per cent worse than an equivalent four-cylinder dual-cab.

The petrol, meanwhile, consumes a hurty 16.3L/100km on official numbers, and to top it off you’ll need to fill it with premium unleaded. The petrol version I drove saw a mix of conditions, but hit somewhere between the mid 15s and 16s so the official number is likely not far off the pace.

Both vehicles get large 90 litre fuel tanks, with the brand investigating aftermarket support for something even larger. As it is, the stock tank will take you just 552km per fill at the official consumption, while the diesel will go significantly further, at 692km.

Don’t let the GLB35’s family friendliness fool you, this is an SUV that can get up and go.

The engine’s extra power and torque over the GLB250 are immediately felt behind the wheel, with the GLB35 accelerating with the vigour of an all-wheel-drive hot hatch, which makes sense given their similar claims.

And if you have one of the sportier drive modes engaged, the booming noise generated is also special – even if a lot of it is of the artificial variety, pumped into the cabin to make occupants feel like things are getting serious.

What is genuine, though, is the well-rounded transmission, which is characteristically quick with its upshifts. At the same time, it’s also relatively smooth, even at low speed, which has proven to be a challenge for dual-clutch units over time, but not here.

To earn the AMG badge, the GLB35 goes even further with other mechanical upgrades, including sports tunes for the suspension and steering.

Specifically, the GLB35’s independent suspension set-up not only consists of MacPherson-strut front and trailing-link rear axles with adaptive dampers, but also introduces new steering knuckles, transverse control arms on the front axle, and a stiffened subframe.

The resulting ride is actually quite good. Yes, the extra firmness over the GLB250 is noticeable – particularly in the sportier drive modes that stiffen the adaptive dampers all the way – but it’s by no means a deal-breaker.

That said, it’s worth noting our test vehicle was fitted with the optional 21-inch alloy wheels ($1990), so the GLB35’s like to ride even better on its standard package.

This is remarkable considering the handling improvements made, with the GLB35 managing body roll and pitch better than the GLB250 when pushing hard into and around corners, coming out of which grip is plentiful thanks to the all-wheel-drive system.

Thankfully, the standard-fit high-performance braking package consisting of 350mm front and 330mm rear discs with four- and one-piston callipers respectively helped it wash speed away with ease when attacking the twisty stuff with intent, even with 1857kg (kerb) to deal with.

Also on hand is electric power steering, which is speed-sensitive and has a variable ratio in the GLB35. Basically, it’s quicker when you want it to be, remaining on the lighter side in hand until you engage one of the sportier drive modes and weight is increased markedly.

It may look new in a lot of ways, but there’s something refreshingly old-school about the way the Grenadier attacks what you can throw at it.

The first and most alarming thing that sets this big off-roader apart is its ultra analogue steering. Thanks to its commitment to a live front axle and limited electronic assists, the Grenadier makes do with just hydraulic pump steering. This takes a second to adjust to, and for anyone who has driven an old off-roader (like the original Defender) it will be familiar in a way most vehicles are not today.

The problem is the steering feel is best described as agricultural. On the tarmac this is typified by a slight dead zone in the middle, followed by significant effort required to turn the wheel enough to actually corner. Compared to today’s crop of utes and off-roaders with electrically assisted steering pumps, it’s not for the faint of heart (or upper body strength).

This combines with an unexpected ride quality. When you approach a vehicle like this with coil-sprung suspension, you’re expecting something that will ride significantly better than the standard leaf-sprung rear on most popular dual cabs.

But because of both the live axles, and no doubt to maintain its decent payload and towing specs, the springs are firm. The good news is, it feels more balanced in terms of weight distribution and rebound compared to most dual-cabs, which have coils in front and leaf spring rears (at least unladen). The bad news is it feels firm on potholes, speed bumps, and other imperfections the urban environment will throw at it.

This does mean it's not an ideal choice as a daily urban commuter. Even basic versions of the more mainstream dual-cab lot are more compliant in a lot of ways, but then that’s not the point of the Grenadier.

This becomes evident as soon as you get it off the tarmac and on to something a bit rougher. The Grenadier is surprisingly quiet and refined on gravel roads (even with washboard-style corrugations), and its additional articulation has all four wheels grabbing undulating terrain with some confidence.

The standard off-road tyres add to the picture to make for a vehicle that feels at home climbing rocks, driving on sand, and powering up embankments and over obstacles.

Our pre-set drive course didn’t require using low-range settings, but if the gearing is anywhere near as well behaved as the high-range mode, it will be a solid offering.

The bespoke software maps for the BMW engine and ZF transmission certainly make this ute feel more truck-like than you might expect. It certainly doesn’t feel like the brand just shoehorned a 5 Series drivetrain into a ute, there are meaningful changes to both the throttle response and shift mapping to have it behave this way. These have the unexpected side effect of making the diesel feel more refined than the petrol, which has to rev significantly harder to keep up.

For driving Australia’s great distances the Quartermaster also provides an insulated cabin experience. Between the extra sound deadening in the engine bay and the double seals on the doors, you can barely hear the engine. To boot, the seat is comfortable for long drives (despite the somewhat hard suspension) and the knobbly off-road tyres are distant. The biggest intrusion on a flat expanse of tarmac is actually wind noise (this thing is basically a lego brick hurtling through the cosmos) and at a standstill the whine of the power steering pump is strangely loud.

Speaking of commuting long distances, the Grenadier is missing some pretty key kit when it comes to safety equipment.

One could say it’s quite deliberate. The old-school focus of this thing is refined to a point. Would it hurt to give it at least camera-based auto emergency braking and adaptive cruise control though? With a big switch to turn it off like you can for the parking sensors? I would argue at least that would make a big difference to its day-to-day drivability. These systems are, after all, responsible for a recent steep decline in low-speed traffic accidents, whether you like them or not.

There are basically no modern active driver assists here. No blind spot monitoring, no front or rear cross-traffic alert, no lane keep aids, no driver attention monitoring, and no traffic sign recognition.

Even the passive safety stuff is barebones, with just the standard array of six airbags and of course the ADR required stuff like stability control and anti-lock brakes.

The Grenadier doesn’t currently have an ANCAP rating, nor does the local division aspire for one. It does say, however, that a safety option pack (or increased levels of equipment) are possible in the future, as several global jurisdictions clamp down on the minimum required gear.

As with all Mercedes-AMG models, the GLB35 comes with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, which currently sets the standard for the premium market. It also comes with five years of roadside assistance.

The GLB35’s service intervals are long, at every 12 months or 25,000km (whichever comes first). Better yet, it’s available with a three-year/75,000km capped-price servicing plan, but it costs $2750, with the third visit alone incurring a $1300 charge.

The Grenadier is covered by a five-year and unlimited-kilometre warranty (at least for mechanical equipment, accessories and paintwork), and has a 12 month/15,000km service interval.

To try to meet Australian off-road buyer expectations, Ineos is aiming to have a network of service locations so most buyers will be within a 1hr/100km drive of a workshop and parts delivery can stick to a 24 hour turn-around. It’s not there yet, but it already covers a decent chunk of the east coast and has a few locations several hundred kilometres inland.

Service pricing varies year-to-year, but evens out at a total of $4626 for the diesel and $4896 for the petrol over the five-year period (so, nearly $1000 a year for either), although Ineos says this includes additional service items (like filters, a water separator, and a catch can) that aren’t normally part of this engine’s service schedule.