Combustion power safe in an Ineos future

Ineos will continue to offer petrol and diesel powered vehicles in parallel with zero-emissions options to cater for global regions that are unable to transition into pure electric transport.

In response to growing numbers of governments chalking end dates for petrol and diesel vehicles, many European brands have signalled the end of combustion power in their ranks. Startup off-road vehicle manufacturer Ineos however, is planning a different future.

While the British brand will also soon offer an electric vehicle under the Ineos name, the company sees an important role and market for models like its Grenadier large SUV, which is powered by BMW six-cylinder petrol and diesel engines.

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Speaking at the international launch of the Grenadier, Ineos Automotive's commercial director, Mark Tennant, explained that the decision to persevere with internal combustion engines was not a matter or ignoring the inevitable, but a calculated strategy to meet a specific demand.

“This is not us being antediluvian or luddites in terms of progress because clearly we’re all driving towards zero emissions, but you’ve got to ask what are people going to use other than really old cars in some of these places where people are still going to need to put a fossil fuel in the tank.”

Mass-market vehicle technology continues to accelerate in all areas beyond drivetrains and emissions, and Tennant pointed out that many of these cutting-edge technologies are irrelevant in the same areas that are currently unable to support electric vehicle use.

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“What we’ve tried to do with this vehicle is what other manufacturers are doing less and less of – trying to build a vehicle for the world,” he said. “You get a divergence because of active safety, driver assistance systems, emissions, technology development and rightly so.

“But some of those things are not going to be so relevant if you’re operating in the middle of the Australian outback or West Africa. Lane-departure warning is probably secondary to those markets and the same goes for powertrain development because you need to get back as well as out.”

Conversely, the company has already presented a hydrogen fuel-cell powered prototype version of the Grenadier, showcasing a more sustainable version of its pilot model, but its first model is already gaining significant interest due to its BMW petrol and diesel six-cylinder engines.

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With its combustion-powered offering, Ineos is working hard to satisfy customers in challenging environments and considering the next move if BMW pulls the pin on combustion engine production.

“We’re working with BMW now, but we’re also thinking about what we might be able to come up with that would take us in rest-of-world markets beyond the end of internal combustion engines in Europe," said Tennant.

“The other segment is definitely corporate fleet and that includes government vehicles and such like. If we can come up with something that works for those sorts of customers I think that will take us beyond.”

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Ineos’s attitude toward combustion power is similar to Ford's, which has previously confirmed it too would continue developing and offering petrol and diesel-powered models for regions that are unable to transition to electric.

While the Blue oval has already launched three pure-electric models in developed countries around the globe, Ford CEO Jim Farley shares the Ineos belief that complete transition to electric would leave many communities with significant transport problems.

“Everyone wrote the story that EVs are the next cycle of our industry, but it’s not that simple really,” Farley said. “There are different customers who want different things, they have different duty cycles and there are 100 million vehicles sold in the world.”

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So while many global brands are forecasting the end of petrol and diesel, Ineos sees it as an integral part of its emerging lineup and as a solution to challenging markets both in Australia and overseas.

“We can get very wrapped up in the parochial and the close to home and ‘where do I go for my (Tesla) Supercharger?’ At least we’ve got a choice, but some of these places that is not going to be there for decades,” concluded Tennant.