diesel engine LDV Delivery 9 from China has become Australia’s best-selling large truck, eclipsing Mercedes-Benz sprint car on the charts due to high valuations.
It’s not this electronic 9 the EV battery is approx though. They may be somewhat popular in Europe and China, but electric trucks are few and far between in Australia.
However, some fleet operators that offer last-mile delivery want to put a few people on their list. The driving factor could be the company’s CO2 goals, a desire to be future-proof, or just old-fashioned eco-consciousness.
For example, IKEA is a company that has jumped into the game. Perhaps your next bookcase or couch could come to you in eDeliver 9… though that’s statistically unlikely.
The Ford E-Transit (mid-2023), Mercedes-Benz eSprinter And Renault’s master electronic technology (all 2024) are well on their way, but it was the unannounced LDV that beat them – perhaps no big shock given China’s global dominance in almost everything EV.
The company says its electric vans are “directly aimed at sole traders, SMEs, trucking companies and corporate fleets who want to reduce their environmental impact,” and quote “silent progress and reduced maintenance costs”.
How much does LDV eDeliver 9 cost?
This is kicker. We’re used to electric vehicles asking for higher tolls, which are offset by lower running costs, but in the case of the 9-van eDeliver, the gap is simply too great to overcome.
At the time of writing, LDV is advertising an ABN price for the Deliver 9 diesel that equates to $46,490 to drive (Medium Roof) or $48,490 (High Roof). In contrast, eDeliver 9 costs $116,537 (middle roof) or $118,836 (High Roof).
That’s a $70,000 price gap, which equates to an increase of about 150%.
Price of LDV eDeliver 9 in 2023:
- Roof Valve Mid: $116,537
- High roof: $118,836
There isn’t any competition for the eDeliver 9’s size yet (which might explain the price), despite its smaller size. Mercedes-Benz eVito cost about 90,000 USD.
What’s inside LDV eDeliver 9 like?
It’s a relatively comfortable workspace, with typical sweeping road views thanks to the raised seat height. Side windows and slender A-pillars provide excellent visibility from the outside.
The driver’s seat can move back and forth, up and down and has a pull-down left armrest. The passenger side bench seats two, with the center section folding down to become a tray and cup holders.
There are plenty of places to keep your stuff – large bottle bin, 1L bottle holder next to the steering wheel, center seat that folds down, underneath the passenger seat, in the glove box and in the attached compartments on the roof above your head.
LDV has fitted a sturdy bulkhead between the cabin and the loading area, which provides as much protection as a crash cage with the added bonus of isolating you from road noise.
The build quality is relatively good, with the panel being an acceptable fit and no rattling, but it’s also a brand new vehicle. Plastic material is not pleasing to the touch, especially the interior door handles and dashboard. The floor is covered with a wipeable rubber-like trim.
Behind the multifunction steering wheel (cruise control button on the left and audio/telephone on the right) is an analog gauge with a small LCD display in the center, providing speed and status information. charging state.
The 10.1-inch central touchscreen isn’t the fastest or clearest and lacks satellite navigation and Android Auto. However, you do get Apple CarPlay and Bluetooth streaming as well as an overhead-mounted reversing camera display with wide-angle but slightly grainy resolution.
LDV General Manager Dinesh Chinnappa stated: “From an operational perspective, the eDeliver 9 requires very little, if any, compromise from the fleet operator.
“The position of the battery on the floor has ensured that it does not affect the cargo space. There are no block capacity reductions or disruptions to flat floor space, so our launch range is optimized for urban logistics without compromising capacity.”
As the table below shows, the electric and diesel powered LWB Deliver 9s are the same length and width, and have the same wheelbase. The EV has a 10mm advantage in cargo height, but the payload advantage is 230-270kg because the eDeliver 9 is a heavier vehicle.
Still, Load capacity 1350 to 1410kg likely to please the majority of users, especially considering the heavy weight impedes driving range, meaning more electric trucks are better for high-volume rather than high-weight subjects.
Remember that there is only one sliding outlet (passenger side).
What’s under the bonnet?
eDeliver 9 is powered by a 150kW/310Nm Permanent magnet synchronous motor drives the front wheels. In contrast, the diesel has 108kW and 3765Nm, and behind-helm.
Vans are powered by electricity stored in a 88.5kWh lithium iron phosphate battery pack, which provides a claimed maximum WLTP driving range of 275-280 km depending on roof elevation. With heavy loads, this range will decrease, as it will decrease in cold weather.
One way to charge is to use an AC wall box installed at your facility that, with a maximum output of 11kW, will fill the battery in 12 hours for a single-phase setup or 8 hours for a three-phase setup. phase.
The DC Public Charger (80kW) will get the eDeliver 9 to 20 percent to 80 percent charge, on the go, in about 45 minutes.
eDeliver 9 has a towing capacity of 1500kg compared to 2800kg for diesel and its top speed is limited to 90km/h.
LDV eDeliver 9 Specifications:
- Power: 150kW
- Torque: 310Nm
- Top speed: 90km/h
- Required range: 280km
- Battery: 88.5 kWh LFP
- Scissors: 1500kg
How does LDV eDeliver 9 work?
It’s obviously much quieter than the diesel, which is especially evident at ‘idle’ when you’re delivering or leaning firmly on the accelerator. If you deliver early in the morning, I can see that being a big win.
It’s also quite powerful and smooth, with good load-holding and straight, steady acceleration until you hit the 90km/h speed limit. This really won’t go smoothly on long highways – you’ll be pushed down the leftmost lane.
Range of 280 km based on claimed power consumption is approx 34kWh per 100km, which is not surprising since it is not aerodynamically remote. This range number is sure to drop quickly under heavy loads and on cold winter mornings.
Unfortunately, our brief driving experience didn’t allow time to test detailed range degradation at full load.
Idle ride quality is pretty good for such a large van, and the extra weight on the floor helps it resist wobbling – although it’s always more enjoyable to stop/start.
Fit LDV has updated the steering to an electric motor and it is very light.
There are horses here, of course: eDeliver 9 will be hopeless as a logistics-related solution for travel in the region, but for last-mile urban deliveries it clearly outperforms driving. .
You get what?
exterior
- 16-inch alloy wheels
- Full size spare parts
- Tire pressure monitoring system
- Front and rear parking sensors
- Electric rearview mirror, heating
- Single passenger side sliding door
- Rear barn door 236 degrees
- Integrated rear step
- Non-slip entry steps – side and rear
- Draw (x8)
- Anti-slip rubber floor
- The rear cargo area is illuminated by LEDs
inland
- air conditioner
- power windows
- 4.2 inch LCD dash computer
- 8-way adjustable driver’s seat with armrest
- Bench for two passengers
- Storage box under the saddle
- Fold-down middle passenger seat with cup holder and laptop
- Upper storage compartment
- Driver and passenger door drawers
- 10.1 inch touch screen
- Apple CarPlay
- USB port x 2
- FM/AM/DAB/Bluetooth
- Reverse camera
Is LDV eDeliver 9 safe?
While LDV MIFA people on the move (including the MIFA 9 EV), D90 SUVs and T60 max All have five-star ANCAP safety ratings, the wider Deliver 9 and eDeliver 9 ranges are unrated.
That said they come with a number of driver-assistance and safety features – although we’d love to see blind-spot monitoring added.
Standard safety features include:
- Driver and front passenger airbag
- Driver and passenger side airbags
- curtain airbags
- Automatic emergency brake
- Adaptive cruise control
- Lane departure warning
- Front and rear parking sensors (valve)
- Reverse camera
- Tire pressure monitoring system
What is the operating cost of LDV eDeliver 9?
eDeliver 9’s warranty is five years or 160,000km, with roadside assistance for five years and unlimited mileage. The battery is warranted for 8 years/160,000km.
If we do some granularity in operating costs, you can see how the upfront price gap could be reduced – to some extent.
Deliver 9 diesel engine has an 80 liter fuel tank with a fuel consumption of 10L/100km recorded in our reviewequivalent to an operating range of about 800 km per tank.
If we assume the bowser price is $2 per liter, then it needs $160 diesel for every 800 km driven, which equates to $40,000 diesel for a total of 200,000 km used.
In eDeliver 9, it will take about three battery cycles to cover the same distance of 800 km, requiring about 260 kWh of electricity (triple battery capacity).
At 30c per kWh this will cost $78, or off-peak at 20c per kWh it will cost around $52. Extrapolate this to that 200,000 km mark and the savings in this case by charging, rather than filling up with diesel, would be between $20,000 and $27,000.
Great! The thing is, the eDeliver 9 EV costs $70,000 more than the diesel version, so you’re still tens of thousands of dollars in debt.
This model assumes a few things like the relative price of diesel and electricity and that the business operator does not use batteries and solar on-site. It also ignores residuals.
What do you say about service costs? Three years or 95,000 km (whichever comes first) a limited-price service for the Deliver 9 diesel engine costs 1962 USD. Although LDV does not advise service costs for eDeliver 9, they should be cheaper.
But even if they were free, it still wouldn’t close the gap.
eDeliver 9 is also ineligible for a government cut on the EV side benefit tax, because its tonnage is too high and its price exceeds the threshold.
CarExpert undertakes LDV eDeliver 9
For urban deliveries, an electric truck makes perfect sense: it’s quieter, smoother and cheaper than a diesel vehicle.
But at this price point, sales will likely be limited to a small number of fleet operators with CO2 targets to achieve or a desire to better understand costs and operability.
The numbers don’t stack up like they usually do, and that fact really gets in the way of what should be a great logistical choice.
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THAN: Everything LDV Deliver 9
