The perennial bush favourite – Toyota’s LandCruiser 79 Series – has a new competitor in the Quartermaster pick-up from British brand Ineos. While the LandCruiser brings 40 years of bush-bred heritage and proven durability, the loss of its V8 diesel in favour of a four-cylinder has many traditional Toyota owners looking elsewhere.

The Quartermaster is the cab-chassis variant of the Ineos Grenadier wagon and, like the wagon, it comes in three grades with petrol or diesel six-cylinder engines, live axles, diff locks and genuine heavy-duty underpinnings. But is the hardware enough to entice hard-core 79 owners to consider a relatively new European contender?

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The LC79 is many things to many customers, and part of its appeal has always been the extensive aftermarket support that allows owners to tailor the vehicle to their needs. We’ve showcased plenty of LC79 builds on these pages over the years. Only now are we starting to see Ineos vehicles built up as heavy-duty 4×4 tourers, and this build from Jason Bell is the first Quartermaster we’ve had the chance to inspect.

Jason’s rig is a 2024 Quartermaster Trialmaster, and when it came to transforming it into his ultimate off-road tourer, he handed it over to Ineos specialists GrenX. GrenX is the company behind the Grenadier that graced our cover 12 months ago, and the man behind the brand, Rohan, told us that Jason was the perfect customer to work with in developing the Quartermaster.

“Jason is an exceptional customer,” Rohan said. “He gave me full creative freedom to build my interpretation of the ultimate GrenX Quartermaster, with no limitations.”

Back when we featured Rohan’s Grenadier, he spoke about the big plans he had for future Ineos builds, and judging by Jason’s Quartermaster, this project has allowed him to realise them. While the look and stance of the finished rig are impressive, some of the most significant upgrades are concealed underneath. Like most factory 4x4s, the Ineos models could do with a boost in load capacity, so GrenX has developed Second Stage Manufacturer (SSM)-approved GVM upgrade kits for both the wagon and cab-chassis models.

Jason’s truck now has a GVM of 4499kg, up from the factory 3550kg. To achieve this extra capacity, GrenX fits Dobinsons remote-reservoir shock absorbers and springs, along with additional bracing on key sections of the chassis and diff housings. A Bilstein steering dampener – specifically developed to improve the Ineos’ steering feel – is also part of the package.

All GrenX modifications and the uprated GVM are carried out under SSM approval to ensure compliance, and this also covers an increase in tyre size up to 37-inches. Of course, all of this is done to allow the vehicle to carry a truckload of touring accessories, recovery gear and protection equipment while still remaining within its load limitations.

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Loaded with accessories

To carry the kit, the truck is fitted with a tray and canopy developed by GrenX, which in turn supports a Clevershade awning up top, tapered toolboxes underneath, a rear trundle tray, a 70-litre water tank, internal storage drawers and a Bushman 130-litre fridge.

A Bushman drawer fridge will also be installed by the time you’re reading this. Protection gear includes a GrenX rear bar and rock sliders, along with an Offroad Animal bullbar. A Warn 12.5 Evo winch is tucked neatly into the bar, ready for recoveries.

Ineos offers buyers a choice of petrol or diesel six-cylinder BMW engines, and Jason chose the latter for his Quartermaster. In standard form the engine makes a claimed 185kW and 550Nm, but a GrenX ECU tune bumps that up to a far more useful 700Nm. The GrenX 4.5-inch intake snorkel and airbox ensure plenty of fresh, clean air is fed to the engine.

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Putting that new-found torque to work are 35-inch Yokohama muddies mounted on forged alloy wheels, and they’re just the ticket for off-road use – in any conditions. That’s exactly what Rohan set out to achieve with GrenX – turn-key builds that improve the performance and capability of Ineos 4x4s, tailored to each owner’s needs and desires.

Will it be enough to emulate – or even topple – the success of the LandCruiser 70 Series? Time will tell. But the product already looks and performs well above what the manufacturer intended, and that’s exactly what a bespoke-built 4×4 should do.

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