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The INEOS Grenadier Finally Replaces the Land Rover Defender, but With a Twist

The INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue Vehicle 9 photos
Photo: Nith Inshore Rescue
The INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue VehicleThe INEOS Grenadier becomes a Search and Rescue Vehicle
This vehicle seems specifically designed for such missions. The INEOS Grenadier has just become a Search and Rescue Vehicle for the Scottish Rescue Station. The Grenadier will thus, replace the classic Land Rover Defender. Isn't that exactly what INEOS wanted in the first place, to replace the classic Defender?
Six year ago, the INEOS Grenadier was just a project discussed in The Grenadier Pub in Belgrave Square, London, the favorite of the brand’s founder, Jim Ratcliffe. Six years later, it is already 12 months in production and delivered worldwide, the US included.

One of them has recently been delivered to With Inshore Rescue in Scotland. The rugged off-roader will be put to good use in search and rescue missions. The volunteers who work for the lifeboat station help to protect life and property that is threatened by the sa, inland water, flooding, and various other water-related incidents in the Upper Solway and the surrounding area.

Based in Glencaple, on the estuary of the River Nith in south-west Scotland, the search and rescue station had previously used a classic Land Rover Defender, which obviously aged gracefully but was not enough anymore. Now, the INEOS Grenadier will assist the refurbished boat that the organization uses on a daily basis.

The Nith Inshore Rescue secretary, Peter Bryden, explains that there weren't many options they could think of for their missions. Thus, the Grenadier becomes the first blue-light emergency response vehicle of its kind in the United Kingdom.

“We deal with life-and-death situations, very harsh weather, and challenging terrain,” he says. The way the Grenadier is engineered convinced them to choose it. And they have great expectations of it. They hope it will serve the team for the next 40 years.

Meanwhile, the 2004 Defender will be auctioned off on Collecting Cars. It's got less than 17,000 miles on the odometer. It is powered by a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-five diesel. There is no info on the powertrain of the Grenadier that has just arrived in Glencaple, but all of them, including the hydrogen fuel cell variant of the off-roader, are BMW-sourced. So there could be either the 3.0-liter six-inline turbo petrol engine or the 3.0-liter six-inline turbodiesel unit. Both are linked to the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission.

The INEOS Grenadier had to be modified specifically for the missions it will be involved in. Search and rescue equipment supplier Emergency One came up with an extendable roof-mounted camera, a snorkel, unique decals, and flashing lights.

Attending approximately 30 callouts per year, the Nith Inshore Rescue station currently has a crew of 24 volunteers. It also supports police, ambulance, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), and mountain rescue services. The organization was founded more than 40 years ago, in 1981, after the drowning of a local man prompted residents to form Glencaple's own rescue service.
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