Off-road upstart INEOS has beaten rivals Land Rover to the punch with an all-terrain electric vehicle. The Fusilier is a scaled-down version of the highly-capable Grenadier, but will only be available as a range-extender hybrid or battery EV.
Just as with the Grenadier, the styling is distinctly old-school 4×4, with hints of the original Land Rover Defender and Mercedes G-Wagen. Rugged, yes, but pretty? not so much. As is the INEOS ethos form has followed function and, despite doing away with the power of BMW six-cylinders engines in favour of electric motors the Fusilier is promised to be just as eager in the rough as its bigger brother.
An e-motor on each axle will provide instantaneous torque and proper off-road credibility says INEO CEO Lynn Calder. “This will be a serious off-road vehicle, not just something with some e-diffs,” she told Autocar. “It might be a bit softer as it’s not on a ladder frame but it will pass all our tests or we wouldn’t do it.”
Full technical details haven’t been revealed but INEOS has said it is aiming for a road-going range of 249 miles for the BEV and that the REx version, which will feature a compact combustion engine to charge the batteries, should go 168 miles without guzzling any gas.
INEOS Chairman Sir Kim Ratcliffe isn’t exactly brimming with enthusiasm for the new model, however. “BEVs are perfect for certain uses: shorter trips and urban deliveries, but industry and governments need to have realistic expectations around other technologies that can help accelerate the necessary pace of change,” he said. “That is the reason we are offering an additional powertrain for the Fusilier, one that dramatically reduces emissions but has the range and refuelling capabilities needed.”
Or, as he told Autocar, “We have to have [an EV] whether we like it or not.”
No on-sale date has been given, but if INEOS wants to hit the trails before a fully-electric Land Rover Defender or Mercedes G-Wagen arrives it will have to get the Fusilier to market in 2025.
