√2023 Ineos Grenadier: First local deliveries due in April, long wait for new orders

The first examples of the Ineos Grenadier off-road wagon are due in Australian showrooms within months, however new orders may not be filled until next year.

The first customer-ready examples of the 2023 Ineos Grenadier are due to arrive in Australia in April this year – after a four-year development program for the old-fashioned brand-new four-wheel-drive, and some unexpected production delays.

The new delivery date represents a four-month delay from the original forecast of January 2023, with the company citing production slowdowns on the French assembly line, which was acquired by Ineos Automotive in late 2020.

The refurbished factory was previously owned by Mercedes-Benz and was used to build the Smart city car.

The first batch of customer-ready Grenadier vehicles for Australia started production in January 2023, but it will take some months for the vehicles to arrive in local showrooms.

The first batch of vehicles is pre-sold. Customers who place an order today face a wait of about 12 months, the company says.

New buyers will also have to stomach recent price hikes, which has seen the Ineos Grenadier step up to between $97,000 and $109,525 before on-road costs such as registration and stamp duty.

This represents an increase of 12 per cent to 14 per cent over the original prices ranging from $84,500 to $96,495 before on-road costs.

The company says buyers who made a reservation or placed an order before 9 November 2022 will be protected from the latest round of price increases.

MORE: 2023 Ineos Grenadier prices rise by up to $13,000, deliveries begin January

The company says there is currently an 80 per cent preference for diesel in Australia, with the off-road-focused Trialmaster being the more popular choice among the trim grades.

Ineos says there are more than 1000 preliminary orders in Australia, however the company has not disclosed how many of those had stepped up to the next stage of placing a $5000 deposit.

Industry analysts estimate the Ineos Grenadier – regarded as the spiritual successor to the original Land Rover Defender, which was axed in 2016 after 67 continuous years of production – has cost more than 1 billion euros ($AU1.54 billion) to develop.

The company says its production facility in Hambach, France currently has the capacity to produce up to 30,000 vehicles per year, operating on a two-shift, 16-hour roster.

Ineos says there is the potential to move to a 24-hour factory roster with an additional eight-hour shift, which would increase production capacity to 45,000 vehicles per year.

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