Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster: This £66k pick-up is capable, but there's a strange problem

The Ineos Grenadier is the brainchild of billionaire entrepreneur Sir Jim Ratcliffe who reportedly had the idea for the vehicle over a drink in the Grenadier pub in Belgravia, London in the 2010s.

Since then a lot has changed and that idea has moved from the mind and into reality with the launch in recent years of the Ineos Grenadier Station Wagon– which we drove last year – plans for an electric Grenadier and today a pick-up truck.

Known as the Quartermaster, it is a brand new entrant into a busy marketplace filled with the likes of Toyota, Jaguar Land Rover, Mercedes, VW, Ford, Isuzu, Mitsubishi and others.

To find out how Ineos’ latest creation stacks up, Christopher Sharp headed to Tuscany, Italy, to drive it on the road and off it.

Before we get to the Quartermaster’s behaviour first we need to address its statistics and some of the mechanical nitty gritty.

The Quartermaster shares most of its components with the standard Station Wagon with a box-section ladder frame and choice of either a straight-six petrol or diesel engine from BMW. The petrol engine produces 286PS and max torque of 450 Nm whilst the diesel produces 249PS but has 550 Nm of torque.

Both send power through an eight-speed ZF gearbox which delivers said power and torque to all four wheels. Each car comes with a high and low-range gearbox with the ability to lock or unlock the differentials.

Out back, gone is a roof and boot and instead there is a large load bay which Ineos says is large enough to carry a standard Euro pallet. The Quartermaster can carry a payload of up to 835kg and has a towing capacity of 3,500kg.

Overall, the Quartermaster is slightly bigger than the regular Station Wagon Grenadier, with an extended wheelbase which allows the load bay to be that much bigger and accommodate the larger loads.

Inside the interior is much the same as the Station Wagon with a series of tactile and high-quality materials providing satisfying touch points. Unlike many modern vehicles, there isn’t some massive touch screen dumped in the middle of the console, an area instead taken up with buttons and switches for the climate control and radio.

Handily, all the controls for the major off-road modes are on an overhead panel between the driver and passenger. This stops you from hitting them accidentally and also in truth adds to the sense of adventure when you do get to engage them.

The switches and dials are all bulky enough to be used whilst wearing gloves and the touch screen is responsive and easy to use too. There’s also space to charge your phone with USB and USB-C ports.

There are a few eccentricities inside, however. Drivers won’t have a problem with a manual handbrake, but they might with the fact that the door bins are really hard to access once you shut the door, a problem that exists sitting in the back seats where egress involves a little physical twisting.

Apart from these small problems, it's an otherwise pleasant place to be and what you might expect from paying over £66,000 for a pickup truck.

Inside the car, engine on and we head off the beaten track through the Italian wilderness. This is where the Quartermaster really thrives; it is a truly capable off-roader with plenty of torque and grip helped along by grippy off-road tyres.

Over a few hours we climb, twister, and descend rocky surfaces and hills, taking advantage of the initially frustrating to engage hill descent to traverse off-road courses. That said were in perfect conditions so it would be interesting to observe who the Quartermaster dealt in with slightly ‘boggier’ conditions. All signs point to a confident vehicle only limited off-road by its sheer size.

On the road is where things get a little bit different. Each Ineos comes with recirculating ball steering rather than rack and pinion. What this means is that it’s very easy to place off the beaten track and shocks don’t come back through the wheel.

What it also means is that it doesn’t self-centre, so you pull back as much as you’ve put in. Off-road and at speeds above 30mph this isn’t much of a problem as it flows nicely on smooth tarmac to the extent that you forget about the steering. The engines pull well despite the Quartermaster’s weight and size.

However, it’s at town speeds and on potholed tarmac where the Quartermaster falls down. The recirculating ball steering means you’re constantly sawing at the wheel and for whatever reason potholes send a very uncomfortable jolt through the entire car. That could be the tyres, it could be a few potholes, but it was an unwelcome surprise.

Overall, the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster is a slightly tricky car to get your head around because as capable as it is, I’m not sure who’s going to buy one.

It’s compromised by its size, its price – which can head far north of £70,000 – some of its on-road characteristics. It doesn’t feel like someone’s primary car in the same way Toyota, Land Rover, or G-Wagen might.

If anything, it’s one big toy, one built for those who really love off-roading, who like heading into the wilderness and harnessing their inner adventurer.

That’s all lovely, but I get the sense it’s mainly going to be bought by people who can afford not to use it.