PAY DAY

Like most fly anglers, we like to day dream about having an indestructible 4x4 that can take us anywhere to fish. And, like your average seven-year-old (or billionaire), in those dreams we have unlimited dosh to design our own. Industrialist Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Britain’s wealthiest man) didn’t have to dream. This is a guy who is rumoured to be buying Manchester United, which means that when it comes to dream cars, he has the loot to actually do something about it.

The result is the INEOS Grenadier. We know, we know. At first glance it looks a lot like the classic Land Rover Defender. In a way, that’s half the point and a large part of the story of Jim’s vehicle. When Land Rover ceased production of its legendary Defender series in 2016 after nearly seven decades, Jim was bleak about it so he allegedly tried to buy the tooling rights to the Defender from Tata who own the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) group. They turned him down so, as billionaires do, Jim decided he would rope in the best automotive engineers, get the best components and build his own (better) no-frills nofuss 4x4 from scratch.

After approximately $1.6bn, a legal battle with JLR and several years of global supply-chain setbacks, the INEOS Grenadier is about to hit the dirt near you. Named after Jim’s favourite pub, the Grenadier has enough of the Defender shape to be familiar but, with plenty of modern trappings, functionality and comfort, it is very much its own car. We went for a drive in one recently and can confirm that, what with the numerous switches, toggles and buttons in the front, it’s a little like being in the cockpit of a Boeing.

According to Barry Havenga, the marketing manager of INEOS Grenadier South Africa, it was important to Jim that instead of touch screens all over the place (there is one upfront for your phone/music), the control buttons in the car needed to have a solid tactile feel. That’s because when you are bumping over tricky terrain, attempting to hit a small spot on a touch screen is a lot more difficult than pressing a proper button. If you’ve ever tried to call your significant other while rumbling over potholes on Beyers Naude and eating a KFC Zinger, you’ll know that fat greasy fingers and slight bumps do not a happy marriage make. Thanks for thinking of us Jim. We feel seen.

The obvious, old school, Defenderesque touches like round headlights, flat fenders and boxy proportions aside, the Grenadier is a smarter, much more modern car than its spiritual automotive ancestor. Take the black strips on the body which are utility belts that can take up to 45kg of clobber; or the lockable 20-litre storage box in the reverse-mounted spare wheel; or the inside of the boot door that hides a table for impromptu coffee breaks. All versions sport an 8-speed automatic transmission with manual override. At this stage you can pick between BMW 3.0L Turbo Petrol or BMW 3.0L TwinTurbo Diesel Straight-Six Engines (an EV vehicle is apparently in the works too). INEOS Grenadiers come with permanent four-wheel drive, a full box-sectioned ladder frame, a galvanised steel body, heavy-duty coil suspension, two-speed transfer case, centre differential lock, 30/70 split rear doors, towing eyes front and rear, an overhead control panel, offroad and wading modes, and a ton of other features.

As for colours, there’s a range like Scottish White, Magic Mushroom (shuwoo), Eldoret Blue and Inky Black. Our favourite is obviously the Selá Green, named after the famous Icelandic river.

South Africans can get their hands on Grenadiers from May this year. Anticipate a three-month waiting list and a starting price of around R1.5m. ineosgrenadier.com

Jim Ratcliffe is a keen fly fisherman and has invested heavily in protecting Atlantic salmon through the Six Rivers Project, a not-for-profit salmon conservation programme that seeks to reverse the decline of the Atlantic salmon population. The rivers in question in north-east Iceland are the Hofsá, the Selá, the Midfjardara and the Sunnudalsá. Find out more at sixrivers.is.