2023 LDV eT60 review: Electric ute quick drive

The first electric dual-cab ute to market in Australia has landed with a price tag of $92,990.

The LDV eT60 is an all-electric version of the Chinese brand’s popular T60 dual-cab ute. Fitted with an 88kWh battery driving a single electric motor at the rear wheels, LDV claims the eT60 is good for a driving range of 330km.

That’s hardly going to set the segment alight, a segment that thrives on utility, long-range driving and go-anywhere capability.

LDV says it isn’t targeting private buyers with its $93K ute. Instead, “The LDV eT60 is aimed at large corporate entities, all three levels of government and fleet businesses who’ve committed to emissions reduction targets, and private early adopters,” according to LDV.

While we can see local councils, mining companies and localised tradie networks as a good fit, it’s unlikely the eT60 will attract too many private buyers.

We had the chance to drive the first electric ute in Australia last week, spending just 12 minutes behind the wheel covering LDV’s carefully curated test route.

And straight off the bat it’s easy to surmise this isn’t a game-changer for one of Australia’s most popular new car segments.

Instead, the eT60 fills a very small niche. For now.

It’s somewhat incongruous to move away from standstill in a ute with the only accompanying sound the increasingly familiar hum of an electric motor.

Where once the tell-tale signs of diesel combustion played an ever-present backing track, now the only sounds heard inside the cabin are the electric hum of the source of motivation and road noise.

That permanent magnet synchronous electric motor is good for 130kW and 310Nm all channelled directly to the rear wheels. Forget off-roading, this is no four-wheel-drive dual-cab ute.

Acceleration isn’t electric-vehicle manic, although by the seat of the pants it is quicker than a regular diesel-powered T60. Our very short launch drive precluded us from any meaningful performance testing.

The good news, sort of, is that the eT60 drives pretty much like a regular ute. It’s a little noisy inside, with wind noise especially prevalent, and the unladen ride is jittery and brittle.

LDV says the utes we drove at launch were pre-production models, so hopefully suspension tuning is one area that is still to receive some finessing ahead of hitting the sales floor.

The interior is nice without being EV special. There’s a 10.25-inch touchscreen that runs Apple CarPlay but not Android Auto. There’s no satellite navigation either. And the steering wheel is made out of polyurethane. Plastic, in other words.

This is a $93,000 ute, remember. And that price means it attracts luxury car tax.

Analogue dials greet the driver including, somewhat quaintly, an analogue battery-level meter where once the fuel gauge lived. The age of electrification may be upon us, but in LDV terms, analogue still rules.

That’s only highlighted by the fact you need to put a good old-fashioned key into a barrel lock to start the eT60. Yes, really.

There’s no park function either. And we’re not talking about park assist. Instead, the rotary dial gear selector (about the only nod to modernity inside the cabin) features reverse, neutral and drive only. In order to park the eT60, you need to leave it in N for neutral and then apply the handbrake, done via yet another analogue throwback, a handbrake lever. Park on a hill and forget to engage the handbrake, and you can guess what happens.

And leaving the gear selector in drive as some sort of EV life hack does little to quell rolling forwards or backwards if you don’t apply the handbrake.

On the road, aside from the jittery ride, the eT60 is pleasant enough without doing anything earth-savingly good.

Our very short test loop meant we couldn’t get an accurate gauge on energy consumption, although for what it’s worth, LDV claims the eT60 will consume 21.3kWh of charge per 100km.

Thanks to its 88kWh battery pack, the LDV eT60 tips the scales at a portly 3050kg. Its maximum braked towing capacity is rated at 1000kg. Towing is said to reduce the 330km range by around half, so realistically, forget towing with your electric ute.

The payload is also rated at 1000kg, and while we are yet to test both claims, it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest carrying the maximum payload out back will also heavily impact driving range.

Charging the battery via an 11kW charger will take around nine hours, while a DC fast-charger can replenish the eT60 from 20–80 per cent in around 45 minutes.

As stated at the outset, we can see some merit in an electric dual-cab ute. And LDV should be applauded for being the first to market in Australia.

But, the eT60 is a long way from being where it needs to be before the general public embraces the idea of an electric ute.

In the meantime, those organisations needing to fulfil their emissions targets now have a vehicle with a level of light utility and zero emissions that could fulfil those obligations.

For the rest of us looking to shore up our weekends, we’ll have to wait just a little bit longer.