LDV eDeliver7 2024 Review

The LDV eDeliver 7 starts at $63,147 (plus on-road costs) in Australia, or $59,990 (plus on-road costs) for ABN holders.

That price is for the entry eDeliver 7 SWB Low Roof 77kWh that we’re focussing on for this short first drive. Keep an eye out for more expansive reviews – including load testing – in the coming weeks.

The four-model LDV eDeliver 7 range then moves varying grades including short-wheelbase and long-wheelbase, high roof and low roof, plus two different battery sizes.

Moving on, the LWB Low Roof 77kWh is second in the line-up at $65,253 plus on-road costs (ABN holders $61,990 plus ORCs), followed by the bigger-battery LWB Low Roof 88kWh at $68,411 plus on-road costs (ABN holders $64,990 plus ORCs) and, at the top end, the LWB High Roof 88kWh at $70,516 plus on-road costs (ABN holders $66,990 plus ORCs).

Those prices compare quite favourably with the eDeliver 7’s core rivals, including the Toyota HiAce ($48,886 plus ORCs) and Ford Transit Custom ($50,390) on the combustion front and the Mercedes-Benz eVito Tourer ($116,115 plus ORCs) and Ford Transit 420L BEV Electric ($104,990 plus ORCs) on the electric front.

At that money the eDeliver 7 is also about half the price of the existing (albeit bigger) eDeliver 9, which opens at $116,537 plus ORCs.

Equipment levels on the LDV eDeliver are quite generous given its electric underpinnings.

Across all models, there is 16-inch steel wheels (with a full-size spare), keyless entry and start, a heated steering wheel, heated driver’s seat, air-conditioning a reversing camera and parking sensors. Cloth seats combine with a rubber faux checker plate floor surface.

The rubber-floored cargo area is accessed via a lone sliding door on the left-hand side, with dual doors at the rear featuring a locking mechanism and 90- and 180-degree openings. LDV doesn’t yet offer a tailgate-style rear design.

Three drive modes are included standard and there is also three-stage regenerative braking (albeit clumsily located in the depths of the infotainment screen).

LDV has avoided optional packages and accessories, leaving buyers to add in additional items including cabin bulkheads and load space fitouts via aftermarket companies.

All eDeliver 7 variants are covered by a five-year/160,000km factory warranty and an eight-year/250,000km battery warranty, along with five-year/unlimited kilometre inclusive roadside assistance.

Servicing intervals are spaced every two years/30,000km – a boon for prospective buyers covering decent kays. LDV says capped price servicing will set owners back $1165 in total across the first six years/90,000km of ownership.

Headline safety gear on the LDV eDeliver 7 includes six airbags, adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), front collision warning, emergency lane keep assist, blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert.

There is also speed sign recognition, tyre pressure monitoring and driver attention warning, which is integrated into a camera system located in the driver’s a-pillar.

LDV officials claim that 13 engineers travelled out from China during development of the eDeliver 7 to ensure its safety systems were compatible with Aussie roads and our unique signage.

Like many new vehicles, we still found some of the safety systems distracting and overzealous in their application on test.

The LDV eDeliver 7 charters new territory for the brand’s commercial offerings where infotainment is concerned, offering Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility for the first time (albeit via a wired connection).

Both features are conveyed via a new 12.3-inch infotainment screen bringing LDV’s latest software. The operating system itself is a huge improvement on earlier LDV efforts, with simpler navigation and a more intuitive interface – especially while you’re on the move.

A bank of hardwired switchgear underneath the screen allows quick access to climate control functions. There is one USB port located in the cabin, and no vehicle-to-load (V2L) charger.

Elsewhere, there is a small 4.2-inch screen within the instrument cluster separating two analogue gauges. But the devil is in the detail: the screen is quite limited in its readouts (with no link to infotainment and no digital speedo of any kind).

What’s more, you cannot access the instrument cluster screen menu if any doors are open or if any occupant isn’t wearing a seatbelt.

These are small gripes in the scheme of things, but would become quite infuriating for those spending lots of hours on the road.

Both the 77kWh and 88kWh batteries in the eDeliver 7 provide juice for a 150kW/330Nm electric motor on the front axle.

DC fast-charging capabilities are rated at 78kW for the 77kWh and 90kW for the 88kWh, with claimed 20-80 per cent charge times of 43 minutes across the board. AC charge times range from eight hours to 9.3h.

Where the different battery sizes affect performance is with respect to range: the 77kWh variant providing a claimed range of up to 318km and the 88kWh variant offering up 362km claimed.

But these figures were inconsistent with our findings on test…

Here’s the rub: our first drive of the LDV eDeliver 7 reveals both 77kWh and 88kWh versions offer comparable range and easily exceeding LDV’s official claims.

On first inspection, both models look to offer a real-world range of 400km. And after a 20km drive of each mode from a full charge, that range dipped to about 380km.

However, given that this is a short 40km first drive, we’ll reserve final efficiency judgement until a more definitive test.

All models come included with a charging cable as well as the standard CCS2-type fitting

The LDV eDeliver 7 offers evolutionary progress for an electric van when it comes to the driving experience, reinforcing the pace of LDV’s development.

The electric drivetrain makes light work of city driving, the kind most couriers and prospective buyers will encounter on a daily basis.

There is ample go-forward from the electric motor, both in taking off and getting up to speed, and when more urgency is required, it makes no hesitation in channelling drive to the ground cleanly and effectively.

Light low speed steering, a relatively nippy turning circle and faithful brakes combine to make the eDeliver 7 pleasant and civilised on test.

The lack of a cabin bulkhead tends to compound the bare cargo area with respect to road noise, particularly on coarse-chip surfaces. But all in all, sound is quite well suppressed in all environments.

Equally, the van feels largely composed and controlled during a short highway stint on our brief drive.

The telling factor will be on a longer loan with a load in the back.

With all that said, there is still some fine-tuning that could improve the eDeliver 7’s on-road skillset: the steering and accelerator pedal feel quite approximate in their modulation, and the weight of the battery packs underneath isn’t infallible, inflicting some noticeable thudding and crashing over the van’s leaf-sprung rear.

There is also a bulky a-pillar to contend with from the driver’s chair, no doubt enlarged by the big brother-style camera integrated as part of the van’s safety systems.

What’s more, the three-stage regenerative brakes could do with some tweaking as well. Firstly, adjusting them requires the driver to dig through needless sub menus (steering wheel mounted paddles would be much more streamlined) and across all three settings the eDeliver 7 feels heavily bound by regeneration. A setting that switches the function effectively off would allow the van to cover long descents and open road passage much more gracefully.

All told, the eDeliver 7 is quiet and civilised for a commercial van and offers new context on how this technology might be useful to commercial, private and fleet buyers.

The LDV eDeliver 7 SWB Low Roof van offers a load volume of 5.9 cubic metres and a payload of 1350kg compared to the LWB Low Roof’s 6.7 cubic metres and 1289kg payload. Payload drops to 1205kg when fitted with the bigger battery pack.

The range-topping LWB High Roof will swallow 8.7 cubic metres and has the lowest payload of the range at 1175kg.

Those figures compare quite favourably with the eDeliver’s key rivals. However, the installation of the exposed battery underneath the vehicle means the floor height is naturally quite high.

Braked towing capacity is rated at 1500kg across the range, while all models feature 1390mm worth of width between the wheel arches.

There are six tiedown points dotted around the otherwise sparse cargo area, plus a solitary rear interior light.

LDV doesn’t offer any option for a secondary sliding door.

Space is quite generous across the three-chair cabin, with softer materials at the primary contact points and relatively comfortable seats.

There is no mistaking the van’s workhorse origins, however, with no vanity mirrors and plain hardy plastics elsewhere.

The base of the outboard passenger seat flips up to offer more storage space, including a handy space to store the charging cable. However, a sparse flip-down centre armrest misses out on requisite clipboard holders offered in rivalling products, instead offering two cup holders and a flimsy piece of elastic.

Moreover, the use of an electric parking brake has freed up room between the driver and passenger chairs, however there is no option to remove the middle seat. Doing so would allow ample walk-through space.

Elsewhere, an exposed steering knuckle between the driving pedals appears like an afterthought, making for a seemingly easy fix.

We had no troubles navigating the eDeliver 7’s steering wheel controls, but reckon an additional USB port up front would come in handy.

The LDV eDeliver 7 is a well-rounded commercial offering that will appeal to some private, fleet and commercial buyers alike – and not just because it’s seemingly ‘green’.

As ever, the bigger test is still to come with an actual load on board. But on first impression, the eDeliver 7 reveals strong progress for this fast-moving Chinese brand, and brings welcome choice to a diesel-centric commercial market.

2024 LDV eDeliver 7 Low Roof 77kWh Quick Specs:
Price: $63,417 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 150kW/330Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: (77kWh lithium-ion)
Range: 318km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: N/A
Safety rating: Not tested