Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster review

The Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster is for you if you need a go-anywhere off-roader, want the back-to-basics practicality of an open load bay – and have very deep pockets.

In short, the Quartermaster is the pick-up truck version of the Ineos Grenadier. From the front bumper to the back, you get the same boxy styling, the same choice of BMW-sourced six-cylinder petrol and diesel engines, the same permanent all-wheel drive and locking centre differential, and the same ability to wade through 800mm of water.

But out the back you’ll find that the enclosed boot has been swapped for a loading bed sitting on an extended chassis. It’s big enough for a Euro pallet, a couple of dirt bikes, or – if you’re feeling particularly outdoorsy – a weekend’s worth of camping gear.

Could the Quartermaster be the Grenadier we’ve been waiting for – a proper workhorse with unparalleled off-roading ability? Perhaps. But there are many much cheaper rivals to consider too, from the Ford Ranger and Isuzu D-Max to the Toyota Hilux and VW Amarok. And if it’s a bad-ass lifestyle truck you’re after, there's also the Ford Ranger Raptor.

Read on to find out whether the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster is just another left-field alternative to more established names or one of the best pick-up trucks you can buy...

No matter whether you choose petrol or diesel power for your Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster, you’ll find a BMW-sourced 3.0-litre turbocharged straight-six engine under the bonnet.

Both deliver plenty of performance, but in different ways. The 282bhp petrol is the smoother and more refined of the two, although its sharp throttle response means you’ll need a careful right foot to pull away smoothly.

Officially, it gets from 0-62mph in 8.8 seconds – respectable, but almost a second slower than a petrol Ford Ranger Raptor.

The 246bhp twin-turbo diesel, meanwhile, has the stronger low-down punch, producing 406lb ft of torque compared with the petrol’s 332lb ft. If you plan to spend a lot of time off-road, it’s the better option.

And while its official 0-62mph time of 9.8 seconds might not sound quick, it feels much livelier than that figure suggests – easily outpacing a 2.0-litre Ranger Raptor EcoBlue. Like all Grenadiers the Quartermaster can tow up to 3,500kg.

Every Quartermaster comes with an eight-speed automatic gearbox that shifts smoothly. However, on motorways it has a tendency to shift between its top two gears too often, meaning it doesn't settles into a cruise as well as some rivals. That said, it’s better suited to off-road driving, where selecting low range allows it to crawl over tricky terrain with ease.

And off-road is where the Quartermaster truly excels. Even on a steep, muddy incline, it keeps moving without hesitation. In Trialmaster or Fieldmaster trim (or with the Rough Pack added to a base car) and you’ll get front and rear locking differentials plus chunkier BFGoodrich All-Terrain KO2 tyres, making it even more capable when the going gets tough.

That said, the Quartermaster's steering is a major weak point. Unlike most modern vehicles, which use a rack-and-pinion setup, the Grenadier has a recirculating ball system designed to be more robust and resistant to kickback.

While that makes sense in theory – avoiding sharp jolts through the wheel when hitting obstacles – it goes too far in practice, leaving you with little feel for what the front wheels are doing. The steering is slow to self-centre, takes a hefty 3.85 turns lock-to-lock, and can be tricky to judge, especially in tight situations off-road.

We’ve tackled plenty of challenging terrain in the latest Ford Ranger Raptor and Land Rover Defender, and neither suffered from excessive steering kickback. Both also make engaging their off-road modes far simpler, automatically adjusting differential locks and hill-descent settings, whereas the Quartermaster requires a more involved, multi-step process. If you get that process wrong, the system can refuse to engage properly.

Of course, the length increase has some ramifications for the Quartermaster’s off-road credentials. It's the same as a Grenadier in terms of ground clearance (264mm) and approach angle (35.5 degrees). But the breakover angle is down from 28.2 degrees to 26.2 degrees, and the departure angle reduced from 36.1 degrees to 22.6 degrees. In reality, those figures still embarrass most regular pick-up trucks. 

Now, if you’ve read our Ineos Grenadier review you’ll know that its biggest weakness is its on-road manners. But the Quartermaster’s rivals aren’t plush SUVs like the Defender and the Mercedes G-Class – it’s competing with old-school body-on-frame pick-up trucks. And in that company, it more than holds its own.

We wouldn’t go as far as calling it comfortable, but it rides with more composure than a Toyota Hilux or a standard Ford Ranger. The BMW-sourced automatic gearbox is smooth and unobtrusive, and even road noise is surprisingly well contained – despite our test car being fitted with all-terrain tyres.

The biggest problem? That steering. While most cars naturally self-centre, the Grenadier requires constant small corrections just to keep it in a straight line. That’s manageable on short trips, but after a couple of hours it becomes tiring.

“I took a petrol Quartermaster on a road trip to Scotland and found that it will sit comfortably on the motorway at 70mph. The only issue is that at motorway speeds the fuel economy quickly drops into the low teens.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

If you want a commanding driving position from your pick-up truck, the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster delivers.

As with the Ford Ranger Raptor, you’ll need to climb up using the grab handles to get in (strangely, side steps are optional) but once seated in the supportive Recaro seats, you’ll enjoy excellent visibility to the front and sides.

Rear visibility is more restricted due to a massive rear overhang, but the base Quartermaster gets rear parking sensors while Trialmaster and above get front and rear parking sensors and a high-definition camera.

There is, though, a flaw in the driving position. While the steering wheel is well aligned with your body, the pedals are set unusually far to the right. That’s because the space to the left is taken up by an oversized footrest – designed to cover the protruding exhaust manifold. As a result, you’ll likely need to slide your seat right back to avoid sitting with a bent left leg.

As with the standard Ineos Grenadier, the interior is packed with sturdy buttons and dials, including an overhead panel for locking differentials, off-road modes, and power outlet breakers. At first, the sheer number of controls can seem overwhelming, but they’re solid, well-spaced and easy to operate wearing gloves.

Every Quartermaster comes with a 12.3in infotainment touchscreen mounted on the dashboard, controlled using a rotary dial. It’s responsive, easy to navigate, and packed with useful features, including an off-road-specific sat-nav app for planning adventures away from the beaten track.

On-road sat-nav is not built in but we never missed it because wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are included as standard. The only minor frustration is that the speedometer is displayed on the touchscreen rather than in the driver's display, meaning you have to glance sideways to check your speed.

While the Quartermaster is not as plush insider as a Land Rover Defender, quality is generally good. Some areas feature rugged, scratchy plastics, but there are also soft-touch materials in key places, and everything feels solidly put together.

“The Quartermaster is refreshingly old-school inside, but the effect is slightly undermined by its BMW-sourced gear selector, which looks out of place in such a purpose-built interior.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

Like a regular Ineos Grenadier, the Quartermaster gives you plenty of space up front, with supportive seats and a good amount of storage. You get two cupholders, a centre console cubby for your phone, and large door pockets that can each hold a big bottle of water.

However, rear space has been compromised to maximise the size of the load bed. Ineos has moved the rear seats and bulkhead forwards, resulting in a more upright seating position. Six-footers will find their knees gently brushing the seat in front.

Thanks to the Quartermaster’s boxy design, head room isn’t an issue, but if you regularly carry five people, it’s worth noting that the middle-seat passenger will have to straddle a bulky transmission tunnel. A Ford Ranger or VW Amarok offers a more accommodating rear bench.

At the back, the Quartermaster swaps the SUV’s vertically split rear doors for a traditional drop-down tailgate. As a result, the spare wheel is no longer mounted on the rear but instead sits in a recess on the side of the load bed.

It gives the truck a rugged look, but if you plan to use it for work we’d recommend relocating the wheel to an optional roof rack or above the load bay. Why? Because removing the spare wheel frees up space for a standard Euro pallet.

There are plenty of lashing points in the load bay to secure your cargo, and with the tailgate lowered, loading a dirt bike is straightforward.

There’s a catch: payload capacity. The petrol Quartermaster fares best at 835kg, but that falls short of the 1,000kg required for a pick-up to qualify as a commercial vehicle. The diesel model is even lower, at just 760kg. That could be a dealbreaker for those who were hoping to use their Quartermaster purely for work.

The same issue affects the Ford Ranger Raptor. With coil-spring suspension tuned for on and off-road handling rather than load-lugging, the Raptor is rated to carry just 652kg in its flatbed.

“I like that on the range-topping Quartermaster Fieldmaster you get safari windows in the roof. They flood the interior with natural light helping to create a more airy atmosphere.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

Let’s not beat around the bush. The Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster is significantly more expensive than even the top-spec versions of rivals such as the Isuzu D-Max AT35 and Ford Ranger Raptor let alone a base spec Toyota Hilux or VW Amarok. 

And because its limited payload means the Quartermaster doesn’t qualify as a commercial vehicle, it's essentially 20% more expensive than it would be due to the fact that you have to pay VAT.

Then there's the fact that it won’t be cheap to run. The BMW-sourced 3.0-litre petrol and diesel engines are rather thirsty compared to the four-cylinder units you’ll find in most pick-ups. The petrol will return an official 19.6mpg and the diesel 25.9mpg, but if you exercise your right foot you’ll find those dropping into the low teens. 

Taking all of that into account, it’s clear that this is not a car that has been designed to be a proper commercial vehicle – and, anyway, for that Ineos would point you in the direction of the two-seat Commercial Grenadier that qualifies owners to reclaim VAT and receive lower BIK tax rates. 

Instead, by adding the versatility and utility of a pick-up bed, the Quartermaster has been designed to broaden the appeal of the Ineos Grenadier for people who want something incredibly capable off-road and – dare we say it – classier than any pick-up truck. Viewed in that rather niche way, the Quartermaster makes sense. 

As standard the Quartermaster comes pretty pared back, with just 17in steel wheels, cloth seats, LED headlights and auxiliary grille lights, rear parking sensors, a central locking differential and lots of off-road and infotainment goodies. 

You can add plenty of options to the standard car to bring it up to your ideal specification, but it doesn’t take long until you’ve specced a car that’s equivalent in price to our favourite Quartermaster, the Trialmaster.

The Trialmaster comes with the Rough Pack, which gets you front and rear locking differentials, and chunky BFGoodrich All-Terrain KO2 tyres, as well as raised air intake, a loading bay liner, cargo bay utility rails, an auxiliary battery under the rear seats, heated exterior mirrors and front parking sensors. 

Fieldmaster – the top-spec trim – adds safari windows, 18in alloy wheels, leather upholstery, a premium sound system, heated front seats and carpet floor mats. It’s expensive, but if you want maximum comfort its well worth considering. 

Ineos has not featured in our What Car? Reliability Survey so we don't have any data on how dependable the Quartermaster will be. We can tell you that all versions come with a five-year, unlimited-mileage warranty. That’s slightly longer than the three-year cover offered by Land Rover.

“Our favourite Quartermaster model is the Trialmaster, but I’d be very tempted to pick the Fieldmaster because after a day of hiking I like to jump into something with supportive heated seats and a good sound system.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor