Letter to Lynne Calder

[Baron von Teuchter]

Doesn’t off road mode allow you to do this? I haven’t tried it mind but think it allows you to drive with a door open.

Yes it does

 

[Woody]

Leak.
I noticed smoke billowing out of my engine bay while waiting at an intersection (I initially thought engine bay fire there was that much).

Mine has just gone in this morning to investigate an oil leak from the turbo. I too had smoke from under the hood, although I wouldn't call it billowing. The drops would hit the exhaust under the turbo and thus cause the smoke. I am hoping for a quick fix, and not a dodgy one. Parts, if required, seem to be a little scarce in the land downunder.

On another note, the Canberra agent, 4X4 Garage, has been doing a little renovation, removing the centre wall and roller door and adding in some more vehicle lifts. They are also removing Grenadier specific furniture and signage from inside. There was only one Grenadier there, and it looks like just a regular mechanical workshop now. No formal word yet on when/who/where the vehicles will be serviced with moving forward. Speculation seems to suggest at the Nissan dealership just down the road.

 

[Skymark]

Drip, drip, drip. That’s the sound of the momentary goodwill Lynn Calder generated six weeks ago around the workshop manual specifically and after sales engagement generally leaking away. The lack of follow through and proactive communication evaporates scrappy startup goodwill patience into an all too common residue of corporate customer service sludge cynicism.

I just don’t understand INEOS’ strategy. A better approach for her to take would be to just reset expectations and assert the marketing around user maintenance was a mistake and there is no manual coming. Disappointment all around but nothing compared to the ill will and loss of respect the current (lack of) communications strategy generates as Ineos manipulates its customer’s expectations and violates their own corporate value of a Focus on customer satisfaction, total quality, and reliability. Such a shame.

 

[Motorvat]

She's definitely interested in feedback and suggestions too.

Hi Tom

Unfortunately I had to use the UK INEOS roadside recovery yesterday which raised a couple of issues Lynn may not be aware of:

The AA databases both simply say no “technical information available”.

The recovery company( national company) were not aware of the transfer bolt and would not be prepared to remove it without instructions.

Although the AA attempted a hard reset, checked fuses and tried to clear, without success. the multiple fault codes, nothing helped.

Advertising roadside assist that can’t really offer any more than an owner could probably try ,is I believe a little misleading.

The only advantage appears to be that when the car is under two years old the AA the can organise a mid size hire car for 3 days

The AA ( and the other national breakdown companies for owners with cars over two years old ) should have the same information as dealers.


I should say both the AA and recovery company could not have been more helpful they both tried to help as much as they could

 

[Baron von Teuchter]

I have a general observation about the construction of the vehicle and parts prices.

I was really happy to see the bumpers, arch extensions, mirrors etc in plain, black, unpainted plastic. The sort of sacrificial bits you can reasonably expect to scrape and scratch or crack. The bumper is made up of several small pieces instead of one large piece. Bolts and screw heads are easy to get to. All this should mean that parts of the vehicle that are easily and regularly damaged in an off-road environment are cheap and easy to replace.

Crack a bumper corner and you only need to replace one or two small, cheap bits and not an entire moulded bumper (that also needs to be painted.)

I didn’t get a detailed prices bill of parts when my vehicle was repaired after an unfortunate prang with an old defender but the parts cost was absolutely eye watering. £7500. Now, a large part of that could have been the headlamp and that’s fair enough. I would love to see individual parts prices (I will ask my local dealer who supplied them next time I’m in but I suspect they will politely tell me to poke it).

It doesn’t really tally with the original concept of cheap and easy repairs on a vehicle likely to require such things on a more frequent basis than most cars.

 

[Greasemonkey]

I installed an aftermarket Warn winch with a LeTech winch mount. The mount alone costs approximately €2,400.

Initially, I wanted to install a mount from a Belgian company, which would have only cost around €1,350. However, that would have required me to purchase the original winch's three-piece plastic center section. These three parts would have cost another €1,300.

According to the dealer, a standard bumper costs approximately €2,500.

When I ordered the INEOS, I thought it was a fantastic idea that if something were damaged, you wouldn't have to replace the entire bumper and could buy individual parts. Now I understand why.

 

[Tom D]

Hi Tom

Unfortunately I had to use the UK INEOS roadside recovery yesterday which raised a couple of issues Lynn may not be aware of:

The AA databases both simply say no “technical information available”.

The recovery company( national company) were not aware of the transfer bolt and would not be prepared to remove it without instructions.

Although the AA attempted a hard reset, checked fuses and tried to clear, without success. the multiple fault codes, nothing helped.

Advertising roadside assist that can’t really offer any more than an owner could probably try ,is I believe a little misleading.

The only advantage appears to be that when the car is under two years old the AA the can organise a mid size hire car for 3 days

The AA ( and the other national breakdown companies for owners with cars over two years old ) should have the same information as dealers.


I should say both the AA and recovery company could not have been more helpful they both tried to help as much as they could

I installed an aftermarket Warn winch with a LeTech winch mount. The mount alone costs approximately €2,400.

Initially, I wanted to install a mount from a Belgian company, which would have only cost around €1,350. However, that would have required me to purchase the original winch's three-piece plastic center section. These three parts would have cost another €1,300.

According to the dealer, a standard bumper costs approximately €2,500.

When I ordered the INEOS, I thought it was a fantastic idea that if something were damaged, you wouldn't have to replace the entire bumper and could buy individual parts. Now I understand why.

I now have all the EU bumper parts in the shed! sounds like I am sitting on a gold mine!

 

[landmannnn]

The way the motor industry works is not quite what you would expect.

Car manufacturers get bumpers and tyres virtually for free.

The tyre manufacturers know that people tend to buy like for like. So they are virtually guaranteed future sales and of course load the retail prices accordingly.

For the likes of bumpers and plastics on the front and rear, the manufacturers know there will be a steady future income stream from accident damage. Prices again are loaded as normally insurance pays for it. Saying that, today's car tech is hitting that industry as accidental damage is reducing in most countries.

I'm not saying this is a good thing.

 

[255/85]

Drip, drip, drip. That’s the sound of the momentary goodwill Lynn Calder generated six weeks ago around the workshop manual specifically and after sales engagement generally leaking away. The lack of follow through and proactive communication evaporates scrappy startup goodwill patience into an all too common residue of corporate customer service sludge cynicism.

I just don’t understand INEOS’ strategy. A better approach for her to take would be to just reset expectations and assert the marketing around user maintenance was a mistake and there is no manual coming. Disappointment all around but nothing compared to the ill will and loss of respect the current (lack of) communications strategy generates as Ineos manipulates its customer’s expectations and violates their own corporate value of a Focus on customer satisfaction, total quality, and reliability. Such a shame.

I understand the temptation to become cynical but I completely disagree with your suggestion that Ineos reneg on the workshop manual promise. Tying the Grenadier (and QM) to the dealer service network will turn these vehicles into little more than standard soccer mom SUVs - a task they are ill suited to. For starters they simply don't have enough cup holders. Or a third row. Or one hundred other amenities the additional cost of will quickly force shoppers into looking elsewhere.

I don't know the man but I'll bet there is also no more certain a way to drive Sir Jim into washing his hands of the whole mess than to cut the nads off the Grenadier and confine them to the dealer's corral. No one will continue to use the them as intended and the brand will be gone in less than a decade. A manual is absolutely necessary to the success of IA as it it stands today. I hope Lynn and her team know this already. Nobody is going to be lining up for the Ineos Gelding.

 

[Tom D]

I messaged Lynn today to ask. They are just bug fixing now prior to roll out. No definite date yet but imminent.

 

[AaronS]

I messaged Lynn today to ask. They are just bug fixing now prior to roll out. No definite date yet but imminent.

Thanks Tom!

 

[Tommo]

So, It was suggested in the stuck in Namibia thread that a letter ought to be sent to IA to question the standard of after sales care. This can then be signed by any interested parties.
I’d be happy to write it, however I think that as it’s a letter from the Grenadier owning community then it ought to be representative of the views of that community. So I would like your feedback.
I sense that many of the issues with customer service are mostly in the European market however some affect the rest of the world too.

Topics I would include in the letter:
Spare parts availability. Why aren’t parts available next day as they are for other manufacturers?

Diagnostics: Why are owners unable to diagnose faults and reset service intervals as we were promised in the buildup to launch. We were told that this would be a car that you can work on yourself.

The workshop manual: Where is it? Will we ever get it or have they changed their minds on this?

Others??
Please make your suggestions below.

Did this progress?

 

[Tom D]

Did this progress?

Yes, all 39 pages of it!

 

[Max]

I messaged Lynn today to ask. They are just bug fixing now prior to roll out. No definite date yet but imminent.

The tech looking after my Grenadier said the same, it is there but having navigation issues which is frustrating

 

[acky]

thanks @Tom D
hopefully everyone doesnt hit it at once an crash it !
i only intend to access if theres an issue i need to ts

more interested in the OBD read, write option, especially for resetting service reminders!

 

[OGrid]

Mine has just gone in this morning to investigate an oil leak from the turbo. I too had smoke from under the hood, although I wouldn't call it billowing. The drops would hit the exhaust under the turbo and thus cause the smoke. I am hoping for a quick fix, and not a dodgy one. Parts, if required, seem to be a little scarce in the land downunder.

On another note, the Canberra agent, 4X4 Garage, has been doing a little renovation, removing the centre wall and roller door and adding in some more vehicle lifts. They are also removing Grenadier specific furniture and signage from inside. There was only one Grenadier there, and it looks like just a regular mechanical workshop now. No formal word yet on when/who/where the vehicles will be serviced with moving forward. Speculation seems to suggest at the Nissan dealership just down the road.

That’s not good to hear - on both fronts.

My vehicle is still off the road awaiting the part.

 

[Baron von Teuchter]

I was talking to my local service tech yesterday and he said he got kicked out of the system 3 times whilst trying to following a procedure to recode a new battery. Seems their IT system is not that stable.

 

[Woody]

That’s not good to hear - on both fronts.

My vehicle is still off the road awaiting the part.

Grenadier spent the day in the workshop, requiring the banjo nut/bolt on the top of the turbo to be tightened. They tested and no more leak. Will keep a regular on eye on it for the next few weeks. Also had some seepage from under the power steering reservoir, where a washer had not been seated properly. That has now been rectified. So looks like a good result with no parts required. George is back in action.

 

[FlyersFan76]

I was talking to my local service tech yesterday and he said he got kicked out of the system 3 times whilst trying to following a procedure to recode a new battery. Seems their IT system is not that stable.

Dealer IT or Factory IT? Getting kicked out of any "cloud" system could be caused by 1000's of things. One of my offices used to lose connection to the internet with the slightest amount of precipitation.

 

[Baron von Teuchter]

I got the distinct impression he meant the Ineos system.