NEW YORK — Ineos Automotive, the upstart maker of rugged, go-anywhere light trucks, is set to go where few automakers have tried to forge a path in recent decades.
The British automaker is determined to make President Donald Trump’s U.S. tariffs on imported vehicles just a bump in the road for its new European-built Grenadier Quartermaster pickup.
The Quartermaster, already subject to a six-decade-old 25 percent U.S. tariff known as the chicken tax on imported pickups, and a delayed launch due to a production stoppage in 2024, will now be hit with tariffs totaling 50 percent.
While Toyota and Mitsubishi imported some Japanese-made pickups in the 1990s, light trucks shipped to the U.S. and subject to the chicken tax are rare.
Some brands have come up with creative workarounds to dodge the chicken tax, notably the Subaru Brat of the late 1970s. To avoid the duty, Subaru installed a pair of seats in the pickup’s bed, making it a passenger vehicle.
Ineos has no such plans. It builds the Quartermaster pickup alongside the Grenadier SUV at its plant in Hambach, France.
Ineos said on April 4 it would increase prices of the Quartermaster by 11 percent to help the small-volume brand offset the tariffs. The pickup’s pricing now starts at $94,500, including shipping, up from $85,500. Two trim levels are available.
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Affordability continues to weigh on the broader U.S. light-vehicle market, and pickups are no exception,
Kelley Blue Book said the average transaction price for a midsize pickup in March was $41,741, down 0.9 percent from a year earlier, while the average transaction price for a full-size pickup was $63,623, off 1.3 percent from a year earlier.
For Ineos executives, the allure of selling a pickup in the U.S., the world’s biggest market for light trucks, is too strong to pass up — even if that means absorbing the steep tariff tab to do so.
A company spokesperson said Ineos will pay and absorb the tariffs.
“The potential for the Quartermaster in the U.S. market can’t be ignored from both a U.S. perspective” and a “global perspective as well,” said Gregor Hembrough, Ineos’ executive vice president of the Americas. “We continue to move forward with that as an offering in the U.S.”
The first cargo ship of Quartermasters arrived stateside in March. The U.S. is the largest market for Ineos globally.
Hembrough, speaking on the sidelines of the New York auto show here, said the U.S. pickup market represents a tremendous amount of opportunity for the Quartermaster.
Total U.S. pickup sales, including the Tesla Cybertruck and the Rivian R1T, totaled 2,924,069 in 2024, up 2.3 percent, according to the Automotive News Research & Data Center.
And while Ineos doesn’t envision the Quartermaster competing with a Chevrolet Silverado, the automaker does see room for the pickup to challenge pricey rigs such as the Cybertruck, the R1T, GMC’s Hummer EV pickup, Jeep’s Gladiator Rubicon and the Ford F-150 Raptor.
“It’s a long-term view for us,” Hembrough said of the Quartermaster and the impact of the tariffs. “You can do the math and understand the profitability is not where we targeted it to be.”
George Ratcliffe, Ineos’ president of the Americas, said the 25 percent chicken tax on the Quartermaster was manageable but acknowledged that 50 percent will be a challenge.
“It’s commitment to the growth in the U.S.,” Ratcliffe said of the decision to push forward with the model.
Hembrough previously said Quartermaster sales could account for up to 20 percent of Ineos’ U.S. volume, depending on the market.
Ratcliffe said Ineos plans to lower its U.S. sales target for the Quartermaster, without providing specifics, and noted that the company has the option of shipping additional pickups to other global markets.
Ineos, which launched U.S. deliveries in late 2023, does not disclose sales but S&P Global Mobility said the automaker’s vehicle registrations totaled 5,765 in 2024.
Strong April sales
Ineos also raised prices on its Grenadier SUV by 4.9 percent to start at $80,455 including shipping. Grenadier orders placed before April 3 are not subject to the price hike or any extra tariff charges upon delivery. Inventory already at dealerships is also not subject to the price hike.
“The dealer partners are contributing some of their margin to make sure that we really ensure that the volume and the throughput continues at a good level,” Hembrough said. Ineos’ U.S. retail footprint grew in 2024 and is set to expand in 2025.
Hendrick Automotive Group, the nation’s largest private auto retailer, opened an Ineos dealership in Charleston, S.C., on May 1.
Robert DiStanislao, president of RDS Automotive, is pleased with how Ineos responded to the tariffs and the company’s commitment to the U.S. DiStanislao’s store in Devon, Pa., west of Philadelphia, was one of the first Ineos dealerships to open in the U.S.
“The increase will be minimal to ensure that consumers have the opportunity to experience this uniquely positioned vehicle,” he said of the price increases.
DiStanislao believes demand for the Quartermaster will come around once consumers experience the pickup. He said that retailers will play a key role in getting the word out about the vehicle.
In May, DiStanislao said his group plans to place a Grenadier and Quartermaster inside the nearby King of Prussia mall, a popular shopping destination with heavy foot traffic.
His store has been selling about 20 new Ineos vehicles a month.
Hembrough said April was shaping up to be one of the Grenadier’s best months since launching in late 2023, adding that Ineos has a long list of pre-sold SUVs that are inbound.
“We’ve seen customers that put orders in on cars coming through after tariffs,” Hembrough said, with “very little change as far as our sales pace goes.”
