Munro’s utility vehicles are built for ‘extreme off-road and heavy industrial use’A British carmaker behind an “ugly” line-up of electric 4x4s will open a new UK factory next year as it gears up for a significant expansion.Munro, which makes the £70,000 Series M off-roader, is searching for a location in the UK and plans to open the facility next year.The company – whose utility vehicles are built for “extreme off-road and heavy industrial use” – is currently based in a workshop in East Kilbride, near Glasgow, where it employs around 30 people.AdvertisementAdvertisementExecutives at the carmaker said on Tuesday that the company was preparing to “scale globally” as they target buyers of rugged vehicles in industries such as mining, emergency response, defence and construction.The electric vehicles (EVs) are also used for off-road tourism experiences at the luxury Gleneagles resort in Perthshire.The company’s Series-M, which competes with the Ineos Grenadier, was named the best off-roader at the Top Gear 2026 electric vehicle awards.Munro’s M280 has been described as ‘ugly’Top Gear magazine labelled the start-up’s M280 a “bulldozer from north of the border” and hailed it as “ugly, utilitarian ... and utterly lovely”.AdvertisementAdvertisementGoodwood, the motoring festival, previously described Munro’s pick-up as the “love-child of a Defender and a Tesla Cybertruck”.The Scottish start-up was co-founded by Russell Peterson and Ross Anderson in 2019, originally to convert Land Rovers to electric.However, it began developing purpose-built electric 4x4s to address maintenance and range issues.Munro’s Series M 4x4 weighs close to two and a half tons today and is sold in utility, truck and chassis configurations. It can transport payloads of up to one ton and has an electric range of up to 200 miles, with rapid charging.Munro is searching for a location in the UK and plans to open the facility next yearMunro’s planned factory would be the first new major UK car plant since Aston Martin opened its St Athan site in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, to build the Aston Martin DBX.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe carmaker has so far produced a limited run of vehicles at its workshop in Scotland, but said last year it had orders for 250 more.Munro also announced on Tuesday that Mr Peterson had moved into the role of chief product officer to focus on vehicle development, while Avinash Rugoobur and Tim Holbrow had been appointed as chief executive and chief financial officer, respectively.Mr Rugoobur is a former executive at General Motors’ subsidiary Cruise and was previously president of British electric van maker Arrival, which struggled with production issues before collapsing in 2024.He said: “The Series M is built to suit customers’ exact needs and to power through situations where others break down.AdvertisementAdvertisement“My focus now is on scaling the business to meet demand and establishing Munro as the global standard for specialist electric 4x4s in heavy industry.”Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.
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