LDV, a brand specialising in commercial offerings in the Australian market, has teased a fully electric eTerron 9 ute with 3.5-tonne towing ability at the Mobility Live conference in Melbourne.
At the event, the company surprised many attendees by showcasing a right-hand-drive version of the eTerron 9 ute, unveiled globally under the Maxus brand only two months ago at the IAA Auto Show in Germany.
From the front, the design features a wrap-around light bar and a fully enclosed hood with a large LDV badge in the middle.
When the frunk is opened, it opens quite well with a large flat surface and a nice depth, ideal for practically loading items or charging cables.
The grey example at the event had black mirrors, giving it a two-tone look. It also had large alloy wheels and side steps, making it easier to get into this vehicle with reasonable ground clearance.
According to the specs, in the dual-motor AWD variant, the eTerron 9 can pack up to 325 kW of power, thanks to a 200 kW rear motor and 125 kW front motor. This powertrain setup can propel the eTerron from 0-100 km/h in around 5.8 seconds.
Although specs of the battery pack were not explicitly mentioned, it is expected to have a 102 kWh battery pack, leading to 430 km of WLTC range.
Speaking of the battery, charging specs were also not publicly shared, but it’s expected to have fast charging speeds of up to 115 kW, helping it charge from 20-80% in around 40 minutes.
On top of that, vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability is available from the large battery pack, making it ideal for powering things on the job site.
Moving onto the inside, there is a dual horizontal screen setup with control buttons on the steering and underneath the infotainment screen.
There is also a central floating island armrest with integrated wireless charging and space to store things in the cubby underneath it. Cup holders are also seen on this level.
Another development since the event where it was showcased is that the eTerron 9 now has ADR approval, with documents revealing more details on what LDV may have planned for the upcoming ute model.
Coming in at 5.5 metres, the ute is expected to be offered in two variants. The first is a 200 kW rear-wheel-drive (RWD) variant while the top-spec is expected to have a 325 kW dual-motor all-wheel-drive (AWD) powertrain.
Electric utes did make the news last week with the launch of the BYD Shark plug-in hybrid with around 80 km of real-world EV range.
LDV’s plans to bring an all-electric option will offer a good alternative for those looking at going fully electric while having a 3.5-tonne towing capacity when needed.
This isn’t LDV’s first rodeo when it comes to electric utes as it launchied the eT60 in Australia over two years ago. The pricing of that product was above $90,000 before it was on-roads, and not too many were sold in the market.
The new eTerron 9, though, looks quite promising, and being a global product, it’s bound to have some buyers in early 2025 when it launches locally.
More information on the pricing and local specs is expected to be announced closer to the launch.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.