Two days.
Twelve tonnes of
Norfolk mud.
Drive a Grenadier the way it was built to be driven — elephant steps, 30% side inclines, technical climbs with obstacles and a proper hill descent — with an instructor in the passenger seat telling you exactly what the car is doing under you. Then take your own car round one of Norfolk’s beautiful green lanes .
BOOK A DRIVE SLOT SEE THE WEEKEND
Free to attend · Food and drink on us · Station Wagon drive slots limited to 23 per day · Full UK licence required to drive
- Dates
- 05–06 Sep 2026
Saturday and Sunday, 9:00–16:30
- Location
- Elveden Estate
Thetford, Norfolk IP24 3TQ
- Entry
- Free
Food and drink included too
- Gates open in
- —Counting down to Saturday 9:00
What you’ll put it
through
Elveden gives us forest tracks, sand and gradient inside a couple of hundred acres. Our instructors have built four sections that each ask the Grenadier a different question — and show you which switch, which diff and which gear answers it.
01 Elephant steps
Staggered blocks that lift a wheel clear of the ground. You’ll feel the centre and rear lockers pick the car up and drive it out on the diagonal.
02 Side incline
A 30% cross-slope. It feels far worse from the driver’s seat than it is — which is exactly the point of doing it with someone next to you.
03 Technical climb
Loose ground, obstacles placed to break your line, and a descent the other side. Low range, one gear, no heroics.
04 Hill descent
Off the throttle, off the brake, hands loose. The section that changes how people think about 4x4s.
Three ways to drive this weekend
Accompanied test drive
Estate tracks and then the full off-road course in a Grenadier Station Wagon, with a Busseys-trained instructor talking you through every section as you drive it.
Booked · 20 minutes · Full UK licence, photocard on the day
Green lane experience with Muddy Boots
Muddy Boots lead a convoy out onto the byways around the estate on Sunday 6th — navigation, lane etiquette, right-of-way rules and where the good routes actually are. Please let us know in advance if you would like to take part.
Booked · Sunday only · Own vehicle
Trailer tuition
Reversing a trailer is the skill nobody ever teaches you properly. Our tutors will — whether you tow a plant trailer, a horsebox or a caravan you’re dreading.
Booked · 20 minutes · Complete beginners welcome
And if you never get in a car
All of this runs all day, both days, with nothing to book. It’s a decent day out in its own right.
Gearmate
Accessories, fitted and open
A Station Wagon and a Quartermaster kitted out with Gearmate drawer systems and load-bay storage — doors open, drawers out, so you can see how it actually works rather than guessing from a brochure. This is your chance to get inside a Quartermaster.
Elveden Estate
Axe throwing and rifle shooting
Supervised, all equipment provided, no experience needed. Two things that look simple until you try them, and a leaderboard that gets competitive by about eleven o’clock.
Arrogant BBQ
Live-fire cooking, on us
Arrogant BBQ running proper low-and-slow over open fire from late morning through to close — and it’s free. Somewhere to sit, eat well, and argue about tyre pressures.
The practical bit
9:00 – 16:30
Both days. Last drive slot leaves at 16:20.
IP24 3TQ
Signed from the A11 at Elveden. Follow the event signage on site.
Free
Nothing to pay. Parking on grass, marshalled from 8:30.
Also free
Arrogant BBQ from 11:30 to close, on us. No tokens, no queue-jumping, just eat.
Boots
It’s a forest estate in September. Sensible footwear, layers, waterproof if it’s wet.
Both welcome
Dogs on leads throughout. Children stay with an adult in the driving areas.
Driving? Bring your licence
Every driver must hold a full, valid UK licence and physically bring the photocard on the day. No licence, no drive — our insurers are immovable on this, and we’d rather tell you now than at the gate.
Pick your 20 minutes
23 Station Wagon slots a day, one car out at a time, instructor included. Choose a time and we’ll hold it for 15 minutes.
Please write in the notes if you would like to take part in the Green Laning on the Sunday or the Trailer Tuition on either day.
Asked before
Do I need to have driven off-road before?
No. Most people on the course haven’t. The instructor sets the pace and you can stop at any point — plenty of people do a lap as a passenger first, then drive it.
Can I drive the Quartermaster?
Not this weekend, no. Gearmate have a Quartermaster on the stand with accessories fitted so you can get in it, open everything and see how the load bay works — but the drives are Station Wagon only. If you want a Quartermaster drive, talk to us on the day and we’ll arrange one at the dealership.
What if the weather is bad?
The event runs whatever the weather — mud makes it better. We’d only stop for genuinely unsafe conditions, and we’d email everyone who has booked a slot.
Is there anything for people who don’t want to drive?
Gearmate’s accessory display, axe throwing and the rifle range all run all day with nothing to book — and Arrogant BBQ feeds everyone from 11:30, free. It’s a decent day out even if you never get behind the wheel.
Is the site accessible?
It’s grass and forest track underfoot, so it’s uneven in places. Tell us what you need when you book, or call ahead, and we’ll plan a route round the paddock and get you into a vehicle without a hike.
Can I bring the children and the dog?
Both. Under-18s can ride as passengers on the off-road course with an adult, and dogs are welcome on leads throughout. Age limits apply on the rifle range and axe throwing — the Elveden instructors will tell you where they stand.
Will someone pressure me to buy a car?
No. There’ll be a Grenadier specialist on site if you want to talk numbers, and they’ll leave you alone if you don’t.
