HIGH ACHIEVER

A FLEET OF INEOS GRENDIERS ISN'T AT MOUNT BULLER FOR FUN AND APRES SKI, IT'S THERE TO WORK

- DANIEL GARDNER

As a general wellbeing precaution, I try to avoid the UK between early October and late May and, in almost two decades of being an expat, there has been only one event sufficiently irresistible to break my own self-imposed rule - the global launch of the Ineos Grenadier.

Getting a first steer of this deeply intriguing new 4x4 in 2023 meant leaving the height of the Australian summer and travelling to Scotland in January, facing subzero temperatures and - the part everyone forgets - seven hours of daylight. But it was absolutely worth it to witness the arrival of one of the most dedicated off-road vehicles in decades.

At the time, I was reminded that the pinch of arctic air, frozen toes and the palpable depression of sunset at 4pm were the main reasons I left this hemisphere all those years ago. But I was happy to tolerate the discomfort in the knowledge that the next time I drove a Grenadier it'd likely be blasting across an arid Australian desert or some idyllic white sand beach closer to home following its local launch.

So why is it that I'm at the wheel of the new Grenadier Quartermaster, heated seats blasting and watching its digital gauges tell me I'm heading up as steeply as the temperature is plummeting? Since it arrived Down Under, we've thoroughly examined the Grenadier and explored its breadth of ability as a recreational vehicle, and each time we take it for a steer it impresses with standard equipment, unquestionable off-road ability and gorgeous driveline. But Ineos says its vehicles transcend the usual freedom machines and weekend warriors and is putting that claim to the test in one of the most extreme environments in the country.