INEOS Automotive is striking agreements with retail and aftersales partners around the world as it seeks to establish sales and service footholds in readiness for the July 2022 launch of its Grenadier 4×4 and has chosen Bosch to provide the service support necessary to its diverse Australian customer base. 

The rugged Grenadier 4×4 is expected to gain traction in markets familiar to the Toyota LandCruiser and its ilk. INEOS says that by partnering with Bosch it can provide remote and rural customers with a comprehensive service network that means most customers will never be further than 50km away from an INEOS-accredited workshop.

Importantly for the Australian market, the Bosch Car Service network will provide INEOS with the coverage required to service a start-up brand in a country with obvious geographical challenges. 

As reported in GoAutoNews Premium, INEOS recently detailed plans for a 200-strong sales and service network across Australia and New Zealand with 120 Bosch workshops already committed to the deal.

The model is one Bosch Australia and New Zealand general manager of automotive aftermarket, Michael Werle, said the company is observing with great interest. 

With the arrival of an increasing number of new brands to the region over the coming decade, he says there is potential for collaborations similar to those struck with INEOS Automotive that could change the way some manufacturers think about the existing dealership service model.

“It’s a really exciting partnership that we are seeing, and also an interesting trial that allows new OEMs to get to market faster by not doing everything themselves. Personally, I think it’s something of a case study and I could see that new OEMs in Australia might take a similar path,” Mr Werle said.

Selected Bosch Car Service centres will implement what INEOS Automotive says is a first-class global aftersales blueprint co-developed with Robert Bosch GmbH over the last three years. Its retail partners will form the ‘backbone’ of the service network with additional geographical coverage provided by ‘hand-picked’ Bosch Car Service outlets.

“For Bosch it’s not entirely new. We are already in the workshop space, and we have a lot of experience in that space. We also have much of the special tooling and staff training to be able to provide those types of solutions very quickly to an OEM,” Mr Werle added.

Mr Werle said Bosch will begin contacting individual workshops next month (November) to introduce the “facts and figures” of the cooperation before more detailed discussions surrounding minimum service requirements, SQA and SQT audit score minimums, and additional INEOS Automotive requirements for after sales support commence. 

GoAutoNews Premium understands that Bosch and INEOS Automotive are currently working to define service partner location targets and that recruitment and acquisition activities are scheduled to commence from January 2022.

“Bosch is in a unique position to offer support to start-up companies like INEOS Automotive. Because our global footprint is so big – about 30,000 workshops overall in more than 150 countries – we are in a unique position to be a partner in this space and we are able to readily support the service requirements of someone who wants to build a global brand,” Mr Werle said.

“We’re looking forward to seeing how this works out in the local market. INEOS will obviously have retail service centres, but the Bosch Car Service network will provide crucial support around those chief locations. That’s what makes this an interesting project for us. It’s a learning journey, and probably a blueprint for similar partnerships to come.”

The INEOS Automotive Grenadier 4×4 is expected to go on sale locally next year. The five-door wagon and dual-cab utility range will be priced from $84,500 in Australia and $93,500 in New Zealand. Further specification details and variants are expected to be announced closer to the model’s local launch.

By Matt Brogan