Ineos Grenadier Commercial van review (2025)
The version of the Ineos Grenadier that makes the most sense, but is still hard to justify against rivals
PROS
- Very capable off road
- Retro rugged styling
- A purpose-built commercial 4x4
- Choice of two strong engines
- Good for towing
CONS
- High price compared to some rivals
- Lack of big-brand backing
- Poor on-road manners
- Hard to get in and out
- Dated cabin with confusing layout
Summary
The Ineos Grenadier Commercial is a two-seater 4x4 van with serious off-road credentials. In fact, it’s fair to say it’s more at home working hard on a farm than it is in a city, such is its no-nonsense approach to tackling tough terrain and towing.
A badge on the bonnet proudly proclaims it’s ‘built on purpose’, which further emphasises its no-compromise approach. In that respect it’s similar to the Suzuki Jimny Commercial: not brilliant on the road, but it looks to make up for it in other scenarios.
And also akin to the Jimny, thanks to its vocational attributes, it qualifies for the more favourable van tax system, which means business owners can reclaim VAT and get lower benefit-in-kind rates.
Its underpinnings are the same as the car version, so it’s effectively a replacement for the old Land Rover Defender (the one that went out of production in 2016 rather than the modern version), as you can probably tell by its looks. However, while built in the French factory like the cars, the conversion to commercial vehicle is carried out in the UK by engineering firm EDC Ltd.
This conversion is done so you can't make the most of the lower tax liabilities and then convert it back to a car by reinstalling the seats. All the fixings are removed, the windows are blanked off and there is a bulkhead installed.
What is the 2025 Ineos Grenadier Commercial like inside?
It's a hugely functional machine above anything else, don’t expect Audi-esque luxury here. That isn’t to say it’s poorly equipped, however: it just has the things it needs to work, rather than bathe you in mood lighting or dazzle you with its dash design features.
Instead, it’s packed with physical buttons with words like ‘wading mode’ and ‘auxiliary battery’. These buttons are slightly confusing at first glance, with loads of them and little to differentiate them at a quick look. In short, though, the ones you need on the move are the ones down on the central console while the more hard-core off-roading functions that you will only need to access while stationary are controlled higher up.
This one’s got rubber mats up front, but also some brilliant seats covered in plush leather that wouldn’t look out of place in a sports car. Both aid the whole 'wipe it down and go again' attitude of the Grenadier.
What are the Ineos Grenadier Commercial's rivals?
As you can imagine for such a niche product, it doesn’t have a huge number of direct rivals, with the most obvious being the Land Rover Defender 110 Hard Top – a car that’s far more road-focused and nicer inside, but less capable than previous versions when it comes to getting dirty.
Other vehicles you might consider include pickups with canopy covers to replicate the contained storage area offered by the Grenadier – the likes of the top-spec Ford Ranger, VW Amarok and Toyota Hilux are all in a similar price bracket. We’re also expecting Toyota will develop a commercial version of the latest Land Cruiser at some point in future, too.
Verdict: Is the 2025 Ineos Grenadier Commercial any good?
If you judge the Grenadier purely on how it performs off road, which is what Ineos would like us to do, then yes - it is very good. It will get into the sort of places that plenty of other vehicles won't and then get itself out again. It's designed to be hardy in the process and take a few knocks. This version, with its tax-efficient status, is the one that makes the most sense in the Grenadier range too.
The problem with that approach is that there are very few vehicles that are bought to be very niche one-trick ponies these days, and the on-road manners, price and specification decisions all count against it. Some of these are easily fixed, others less so. It also faces a real challenge in that all its pickup truck rivals will get pretty much as far into the wilderness as the Grenadier and offer more luxurious interiors for a similar price, or much less if you just want a hardy off-roading tool. The modern Land Rover has far better on-road manners too.
It might be great at some things, but it feels like an outdated product in many ways. Many buyers moved on when the old Land Rover went off sale, and it will be a challenge for Ineos to lure them back to a vehicle that is a bit of a step back in time.
For an in-depth look at what this rugged load-lugger can do, read on for the full Ineos Grenadier Commercial review…
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- Not great on road
- Huge turning circle and odd steering
- Excellent off road
The Grenadier Commercial really is two vehicles in one in terms of how it is to drive. It was designed as a vehicle to go off road first and foremost, but this means there are compromises to be had in other areas. How much this matters is down to personal use and preference to an extent, but ultimately it will be a rare user that wants or needs to spend all of their time off road and even those will have to venture onto the tarmac from time to time.
On these occasions the Grenadier performs passably on the road at best. You need to make allowances for its size and shape and lots of elements take longer as a result. It’s got a massive turning circle and slow steering, which require a little additional planning for manoeuvres like parking or weaving around traffic.
That steering merits mention too. There is no self centring for the wheel, which is the sort of function that you didn't realise how much you relied upon until it isn't there. In short, every other mainstream car and van will gently help guide the wheel back to pointing straight ahead and assist you in keeping it there. The Grenadier doesn't do this, so you have to do all this manually. At low speeds this is a pain and at higher speeds it makes things twitchier, as it is solely down to you to keep the car pointing forwards.
On the road, it is at its best below 60mph, over which its brick-like aerodynamics mean the noise ramps up and fuel economy drops off a cliff. You’ll lose 5mpg between 60-70mph, which is a huge percentage of the 25mpg you’ll enjoy at 60mph.
Off road skills
That steering does help in other respects, though – it means better accuracy off road, which we put to the test over some ultra-muddy farmland, highlighting the exceptional talents this vehicle has on the rough stuff.
As with the old Land Rover Defender, its driving position is such that you can see the extremities of the front quarters, so you can place the car accurately between ruts, which sets it apart from most pick-ups, although plenty offer all-round cameras to aid with that these days.
Couple that with a low-range transmission option (that’s the little left-hand lever next to the gear selector), and front and rear diff locks (to prevent all your torque spinning away on a lesser adhered side of the car), plus electrical assistance from one of the smoothest and simplistic hill descent control systems we’ve tried, and you’re dealing with an off-road performance closer to a Mercedes-Benz Unimog than anything available in dealerships. It really is that impressive.
Many of those functions, like the low-range gearing, are engaged via the medium of manual knobs, some of which need a good shove to move them. This might be fine for plenty but those with less hand strength might prefer the touchscreen and button approach as used in plenty of modern pickups and off-roaders.
Of course, the knobbly BF Goodrich KO2 all-terrain tyres help too. We found these a great compromise between road manners and mud-plugging ability – not too loud on the road and extremely proficient where most road tyres would start to lose grip.
The suspension deserves a special mention here too. It’s firm, but incredibly well judged in its damping and rebound, feeling a lot more composed than its agricultural looks would suggest.
Ineos Grenadier off-road geometry
- Ground Clearance: 264mm
- Approach Angle: 35.5 degrees
- Ramp Breakover Angle: 28.2 degrees
- Departure Angle: 36.1 degrees
- Gradeability: 45 degrees
- Wading Depth: 800mm
- Front Axle Articulation: 9 degrees
- Rear Axle Articulation: 12 degrees
The steering’s calibration has another benefit, too. It makes towing a breeze; particularly in reverse, where accuracy is crucial for placing a trailer where you want it. We were seriously impressed with its dragging ability, the camera on the multimedia system offering a laser-accurate guide direct to the towbar for easy hitching-up.
It has the highest-rated braked towing capacity allowed under UK regulations, at 3.5 tonnes.
We’ve only tried the diesel version at time of writing, but BMW’s B57 straight-six turbocharged engine remains a wonderfully smooth and punchy option, even with 2704kg to cart around.
Its official 0-62mph time of 9.8 seconds seems completely academic here, because people simply won’t accelerate like that with this vehicle. If that is important to you then the Land Rover Defender is about three seconds quicker in the same sprint. That said, the huge 550Nm of torque and excellently calibrated eight-speed automatic gearbox mean there’s always a good amount of punch on offer when you need it. We can’t see you’ll be getting stuck waiting for the drivetrain to wake up.
Crucially, set against the various pickups available, this set-up feels far more premium in its delivery of performance, and goes some way to justifying the admittedly high asking price.
We also rated the headlights, which are full LED but feature auxiliary high-beams. Activated on the country roads in a rural area at night, you really appreciate the extra illumination.
- Loads of buttons throughout the cabin
- Odd and compromised information placing
- Hard to get in and out - side steps not standard
On first inspection the cabin is a very interesting place to be. There are countless physical buttons to control almost all aspects of the vehicle, both on the dashboard and on the ceiling, like an aircraft. This arrangement keeps the Grenadier’s capabilities front of mind.
They don’t feel of the highest quality, however, and some buyers used to Land Rovers may find it feels a little lacklustre. The rotary controller for the multimedia system is case in point here, feeling surprisingly cheaply made.
We struggled a little with the dash arrangement to start with, because unlike most vehicles, the digital speedo is located on the screen rather than directly in front of the driver which means you have to move your eyes further from the road ahead just to see how fast you are travelling.
This takes some getting used to and even then it doesn't make sense given there is a small display in front of the steering wheel that could be used for basic information such as speed. Instead it plays host to a range of warning lights - the sort of details you definitely don't need at a glance and, assuming all is well, it spends most of its time blank.
Our car had optional black Nappa heated leather seats (a £1,620 option), and these were highly supportive and comfortable.
Poor access
The doors are opened by an old-school button on the handle. Whether that is a fun retro feature or a pain for those with dodgy thumbs who would rather haul on a handle is down to where you stand on the matter. In some Grenadiers we have also found that the doors take more than one slam to get them to shut properly.
Another feature that has to be mentioned is the side runners, which, bafflingly, are not offered as standard despite the Grenadier being a very tall vehicle. Even a six-foot adult will find it genuinely difficult to climb up into without these on a firm surface and even more so on a muddy field.
These side runners are an option that will set you back the best part of £1,000, so if you are short or less mobile then you will be charged extra for a vehicle that is already more expensive than many of the alternatives. Frankly, the option to delete them at no cost would be a much more sensible and accessible approach.
Once in, we found the cabin itself to be a pleasant place to be, with fantastic noise suppression given the full-height mesh bulkhead. Often driving a van with an opening to the load area is a boomy, echoey experience, but there is enough damping material to lessen this.
The driving position itself is oddly offset, with the pedals slightly to the right-hand side of the footwell, but we didn’t find this uncomfortable, and preferable to the old Defender’s infamous window-on-face ergonomics.
One bigger issue we experienced was a result of the near-vertical glass around the vehicle, which reflects anything illuminated. This has some odd effects, such as on-coming car headlights appearing in the rear view mirror, and the multimedia screen appearing there too.
In fact, you can’t really see much out of that mirror at all. The 30/70-split rear door and massive full-size spare tyre obscure nearly everything. Thankfully the heated door mirrors are big enough that you can just default to using those.
- Qualifies as a commercial vehicle for tax purposes
- Fuel economy is poor
- Dealer network not huge but growing
This is the commercially-focused version that Ineos should really have launched with. As it is classified as a commercial vehicle, thanks to the lack of rear seats and blanked off side door windows, it is eligible for all the most favourable van tax rates. This means businesses can reclaim the VAT at purchase and run it on the much lower BIK rates that vans enjoy, giving it an advantage over the pickup trucks that are losing this status as of April 2025.
Pricing is in a similar region to the Land Rover Defender Hard Top, starting at around £52,000 (not including VAT).
Ineos Grenadier Commercial mpg
The size, weight and shape of the Ineos Grenadier means that it is not the most efficient of vehicles, and official fuel economy on the spec sheet of the diesel states 23.1-26.9mpg, and during our test we saw precisely that. Ramp the speed up to 70mph and it’ll dip lower than 23mpg, but we found 25mpg during mixed driving was a realistic figure.
This isn’t the last word in economical driving, but it’s mitigated somewhat by the vast 90-litre fuel tank, meaning real-world range was well over 500 miles per tank.
Ineos Grenadier Commercial servicing
Servicing needs doing once a year, and while you may need to search to find a dealer now, the firm claims it’s ramping up rapidly and wants to ensure all buyers are within 45 minutes of a service centre.
The firm does nod towards you doing some basic maintenance yourself, which is an increasingly unusual thing in the modern motoring market. Great if you have the hands-on nature of the target customer, and elements of the handbook will guide you on that front.
Ineos Grenadier Commercial warranty
There’s also a five-year warranty to fall back on, with no mileage cap, and this will add valuable peace of mind.
Ineos Grenadier Commercial standard equipment
Unlike the other models in the Grenadier range, there is just the one version of the Commercial, making choosing simpler - it is just a case of picking between petrol and diesel.
The standard kit highlights are listed below. As mentioned elsewhere this list doesn't include side steps, which really should just be added on as standard. Come on, Ineos, you know it makes sense.
- Underride Protection (Front, Rear and Fuel Tank Skid plates)
- Towing Eyes ( two at the front, two at the rear)
- 30/70 split rear doors
- Side bump strips
- Roof protection strips and roof rails
- Panelised rear windows
- 17-inch steel wheels with all-terrain tyres
- Full-size spare wheel
- Full-height bulkhead
- Water resistant interior
- Heavy duty flooring with drain valves
- Tie-down rings and storage locker in the loading bay
- 12.3-inch colour touchscreen
- Off-road navigation
- Wireless Apple CarPlay
- Android Auto
- Off-road and wading modes
- Uphill and downhill assist
- Trailer stability assist
It’s really difficult to say how reliable the Grenadier will be, given it’s such a new vehicle, but all signs point to a robustly built, dependable thing. You have the impression it’s been built for tackling tough situations.
The BMW engine and gearbox have been put to use in many applications over the years and we’ve not heard of any prevailing problems in this regard.
The Grenadier has an impressive list of standard safety kit. Very little is optional.
It has front, side and curtain airbags included while it also gets Intelligent Speed Assist, Lane Departure Warning, Automatic Emergency Braking and Driver Drowsiness Detection all standard. An alarm and immobiliser are also included too.
One small detail that is bespoke to the Grenadier is the so-called ‘Toot Button.’ This is a button that produces a quiet blip of the horn, intended to alert cyclists to your presence without blasting a loud ‘parp’ at them.
Which INEOS Grenadier is best for me?
There’s only one choice in the Commercial line-up: petrol or diesel. We’ve not tried the petrol yet, but the diesel’s character feels well suited to its main use cases of off-roading and towing.
The Ineos Grenadier Commercial has a shape that will be familiar to many.
Driving on road is not the Ineos Grenadier's strong suit.
The diesel engine in the Ineos Grenadier Commercial is strong and powerful.
The Grenadier's steering is unusual compared to most other modern vehicles.
The Ineos Grenadier is a tall vehicle and access is tricky.
The cabin in the Ineos Grenadier Commercial is covered in buttons.
Off road is where the Ineos Grenadier starts to shine.
The Ineos Grenadier Commercial's chunky tyres are a great asset.
The Ineos Grenadier's cabin is one from the old school.
