The British company Ineos Automotive plans to add a junior SUV, the Suzuki Jimny, and a luxury flagship SUV to its lineup, which will compete with Mercedes-Benz G-Class and Land Rover Defender.
Due to the new GSR2 (Global Safety Rule 2) safety standards and stricter cybersecurity regulations, many automakers' model lineups in Europe will thin out this year. One of the victims of legislative innovation, according to the German magazine auto motor und sport, will be the small frame SUV Suzuki Jimny: this summer it will leave the European Union market, Suzuki has nothing to replace it with, Jimny also has no direct analogues on the market now, but this The young British company Ineos Automotive is targeting a niche.
Ineos Grenadier
Let us remember that Ineos Automotive was founded in 2016 as a daughter of the large petrochemical company Ineos, which is headed by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, a passionate car enthusiast and a big fan of the classic, frame Land Rover Defender. The debut model of Ineos was the mid-size frame SUV Grenadier, designed with the help of the Austrian company Magna Steyr and externally reminiscent of the classic Defender. The Ineos Grenadier entered the market in 2022 and is produced at Ineos Automotive's own plant in Ambach, France (a former Mercedes-Benz plant). In 2023, the range was supplemented by the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster pickup truck, based on an SUV.
Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster
Last year, Ineos, according to the analytical agency JATO Dynamics, sold only 2,351 cars in Europe, in the first quarter of this year – 387. Sales of Ineos Grenadier in North America began only last April. Meanwhile, in the future, the British company wants to sell 300,000 cars per year worldwide, for which it will have to expand both the model range and production capacity.
Ineos Fusilier
In February this year, Ineos unveiled the exterior of its second SUV, called Fusilier: it is slightly more compact than the Grenadier, has a monocoque body and is built on a new electric skateboard platform, the development of which is also supervised by Magna Steyr. Fusilier will enter the market in 2027, and its production will most likely be set up at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria. Fusilier will have not only electric, but also plug-in hybrid versions of the range extender type, where the compact gasoline internal combustion engine is not mechanically connected to the wheels and acts as an extender of the electric power reserve.
Ineos Fusilier
Ineos Automotive's plans have changed more than once – in particular, the hydrogen SUV project was shelved, but, as it became clear from a recent publication in the magazine auto motor und sport, which refers to Ineos Automotive CEO Lynn Calder, the intentions to release a junior SUV, class below the Fusilier, and a large flagship SUV with premium trim and increased levels of ride comfort.
Ineos Fusilier
What the flagship Ineos SUV will be is still unknown, and the younger one will most likely share the platform with the Fusilier, that is, it will also be offered as a pure electric vehicle and a plug-in hybrid. The junior SUV may well become a hit both in Europe and abroad, unless, of course, the price turns out to be exorbitant. Ineos Grenadier, I remember, has become much more expensive as it gets closer to production and now costs from 71,140 euros in Germany. Suzuki Jimny, by the way, has risen in price by more than one and a half times over the past five years and now costs from 29,490 euros, and it is offered in Europe exclusively as a commercial vehicle without a back seat. What you can be sure of is that the smallest Ineos will inherit the angular styling of its older brothers and will be at home off-road.
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