LDV Deliver 7 vs LDV Edeliver 7

What's the difference?

For a van that is going to be heavily loaded most of its life, the diesel Deliver 7 offers a strong value proposition with snazzy exterior design and passenger car-like interior tech. 

As a fleet-oriented vehicle, that ANCAP sticker of approval, non-slip flooring and ergonomic seats will please the health and safety officers, too.

It's a shame, then, that LDV couldn't match the reasonable refinement and ride quality offered by the electric eDeliver 7. Where that van feels competitive with rivals, the diesel Deliver 7’s budget bones add up to a bouncy, unrefined and bonging safety aid-filled driving experience.

The diesel Deliver 7 is a decent enough workhorse but it’s hard to recommend saving the money over its more refined competitor set. 

There’s room for improvement, but that room is getting smaller. For urban daily fleet or solo operation, using the convenience of back-to-base overnight charging, it offers a compelling alternative to diesel in terms of real-world driving range, performance, payload, warranty/servicing costs... and zero tailpipe emissions.

The van segment has evolved to the point where a box on wheels is no longer enough to grab attention and we can thank the Hyundai Staria for that. 

The Deliver 7 conforms to new norms adopting the exact same fascia as its eDeliver 7 that certainly stands out, though the doily pattern may trigger trypophobics. Sharp LED lighting and classic van proportions finish things off. 

The Deliver 7 rides on 16-inch steel wheels with hubcaps and 215/65R16C GitiVan 600B tyres. An upgrade to alloy wheels is offered, too.

Inside there are pleasant materials in some places, such as the soft synthetic leather door tops perfect for resting your elbow. There is some upmarket chic to the cabin but it’s eye candy only, as the blue faux stitching panel is all hard, scratchy plastic. Still, that’s the hard-wearing vibe of most in this segment.

The SWB Low Roof rides on a 3000mm wheelbase, which is 366mm shorter than the LWB models. As a result, its compact 4998mm overall length makes it well suited to work duties that require quick steering response and easy manoeuvrability in tight spaces. Plus its 1990mm height allows easy multi-storey car park access.

The front wheel-drive chassis has MacPherson strut front suspension, a leaf-spring solid-beam rear axle and four-wheel disc brakes, with the 77kWh lithium-ion battery mounted beneath the floor to optimise cargo bay volume.

It has a clean and streamlined appearance, with a functional grille that is “required to cool any later ICE (internal combustion engine) variants” according to LDV. So, in this application, it serves no purpose other than a styling feature.

Dark grey composite mouldings are used on the lower body sections to absorb the unsightly bumps and scrapes often inflected on these areas in hard-working vans.

The cabin’s interior has an upmarket look that creates a nice working environment, with a harmonious mix of colours, seat fabrics and soft-touch materials that display good fit and finish.

However, there’s no bulkhead to separate the cabin from the cargo bay, resulting in not only higher noise levels but also no protection for occupants from shifting cargo.

The cabin floor is covered in non-slip rubber finished in a smart ‘checker-plate’ pattern that's easy to wipe clean. The dash layout is uncluttered and the controls are easy to reach and intuitive to use. The transmission shifter is a stalk on the steering column.

Although the passenger bench seat has no adjustments, the centre position is surprisingly spacious, even for people my height (186cm) as it provides about 60mm of knee clearance from the dash. However, the centre passenger must also sit with their feet in a split-level position, due to a higher centre-floor section.

When it comes to exterior size, the LDV Deliver 7 sits between the smaller Hyundai Staria load SWB and larger Toyota HiAce LWB. It is only available in low-roof guise but the Deliver 7’s generous width is its party trick, measuring 2118mm from flank to flank. 

The Deliver 7’s load area is 2547mm long (or 2913mm in the LWB), 1800mm wide (pinched to 1390mm between the arches) and 1428mm tall for a total of 6.3 cubic metres of load space. There are six heavy-duty tie-down loops to secure cargo. 

Adding to practicality are standard barn doors which are handy in low car parks and make loading pallets — the Deliver 7 will easily fit two Australian or Euro palettes inside — simple.

They can be opened to 90 degrees where they lock, or all the way to 180 degrees. There is no lock when fully extended, though, so they can blow closed on windy days. We’d also appreciate seeing a second sliding side door as an option. 

The Deliver 7’s star factor is payload, in fact it’s clear of all the listed rivals above by a reasonable margin. The Deliver 7’s 2105kg kerb weight and 3400kg GVM mean drivers can carry up to 1290kg of cargo in the back. It is also capable of towing a 2000kg braked, or 750kg unbraked, trailer load. 

Oddly, for its impressive carrying capacity, the Deliver 7 is not equipped with a bulkhead. It is also a strict two-seater without a centre bench for a third occupant. 

The trade off here is that the Deliver 7 has supportive car-like bucket seats with adjustable arm rests. The upholstery is cloth that feels hard wearing and the seats slide forwards and backwards, have height and tilt adjust along with manual lumbar to keep you fresh after a few hours behind the small diameter leather-appointed steering wheel.

Moving to a stalk-style shifter frees up the Deliver 7’s centre console for added incidental storage, with handy spots for tape measures, keys, invoices and four cupholders easily accessible.

Hidden storage is a little limited, with a small-ish glove box and ashtray the extent of the cubbies. 

And while the Deliver 7’s technology suite looks good on the surface, it is not particularly responsive and many heavy-use functions are restricted to the screen.

For example, the headlight controls are on the main menu and they do not automatically switch off when you turn the Deliver 7 off using its push-button start system unless they’re in auto mode and, instead of just turning a stalk to silence beeping, you have to reboot the car. 

The eating and ventilation controls are a mix of digital and physical though the row of switches is an awfully long way from the driver’s seat. The scroll wheels to adjust fan speed and temperature have very fine stops making it difficult to be accurate on the move. 

The touchscreen’s menus are otherwise straightforward enough, though it is a shame Apple CarPlay and Android Auto phone mirroring has to run through a cable attached to only one of the three USB-A and USB-C charge ports scattered about the interior.

With a typically hefty 2300kg EV kerb weight, its 3650kg GVM allows for a sizeable 1350kg payload rating which is more than competitive with ICE rivals.

It’s also rated to tow up to 1500kg of braked trailer but with its 4250kg GCM (or how much it can legally carry and tow at the same time), that would require a substantial 900kg reduction in vehicle payload to 450kg to avoid exceeding the GCM. So, keep these numbers in mind if you plan to tow heavy.

The cargo bay is lined to mid-height and accessed through a kerbside sliding door with 990mm opening width, or through symmetrical rear barn-doors with 180-degree opening that’s handy for forklifts or when accessing loading docks.

The load floor, with its non-slip rubber surface, is 2547mm long and 1800mm wide with 1390mm between the rear wheel-housings.

That means it can carry up to two standard 1165mm-square Aussie pallets, two 1000mm x 1200mm Euro pallets or up to three 800mm x 1200mm Euro pallets.

And with its 1328mm internal height, it offers a competitive 5.9 cubic metres of load volume.

It’s also equipped with six load anchorage points plus bright LED lighting and a large handle at the front of the side-door opening to assist access.

Cabin storage includes a bottle-holder and bin in each front door, plus smaller bins above and below. There are also bottle/cupholders on each side of the dash and the driver has small bins on each side of the steering column.

There’s also a single glove box and a slender storage shelf above it for small items. And the centre seat’s backrest folds forward and flat to reveal a small work desk, with two more cupholders and an elastic strap to hold documents or laptops in place.

The new single-motor eDeliver7 range consists of four models, comprising SWB Low Roof and LWB Low Roof with a 77kWh battery, plus LWB Low Roof and LWB High Roof with an 88kWh battery.

Our SWB Low Roof test vehicle is the entry-level model, with a list price of $59,990 plus on-road costs. That’s considerably higher than diesel rivals like the Ford Transit Custom 320S ($55,990), Hyundai Staria-Load ($46,740) and Toyota’s dominant HiAce ($50,886).

Our example, finished in 'Blanc White', comes standard with 16-inch steel wheels and 215/65R16 tyres plus a full-size spare. There’s also a Type 2 11kW AC charging cable, dusk-sensing LED headlights with DRLs, front/rear fog lamps, heated door mirrors, reversing camera and more.

The keyless-entry cabin offers seating for three, comprising a driver’s bucket seat and two-passenger bench seat with heating for the two outer seating positions (tough luck if you’re in the middle during winter).

The driver’s seat has multiple manual adjustments including lumbar support and base-cushion rake, plus a fold-down inboard armrest.

There’s also a 4.2-inch LCD instrument cluster, electronic parking brake and a heated multi-function synthetic leather steering wheel with height (but no reach) adjustment.

A big 12.3-inch touchscreen controls the four-speaker multimedia system, which includes digital radio and Apple/Android connectivity. There are also two USB ports and a 12-volt socket, an extensive safety menu and more.

There is nothing special about the Deliver 7's carryover 2.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder that produces peak power and torque of 123kW and 390Nm.

The Deliver 7's engine iscompliant with Euro 5 standards and emits 203 grams of CO2 per kilometre. It is equipped with a diesel particulate filter (DPF), though no AdBlue tank. 

It is noisy and vibey in this application but provides adequate motivation unladen and loaded, feeling especially punchy between 2200-3000rpm. 

The LDV Deliver 7 is front-wheel drive and uses a nine-speed ZF-sourced torque converter automatic that shifts smoothly. There are three drive modes: 'Eco', 'Normal' and 'Power'. 

Annoyingly, the Deliver 7’s transmission is calibrated to shift into the highest gear as soon as possible, sometimes leaving you without enough grunt to accelerate without kicking down.

It is also slow to downshift under braking, meaning you need to lean on the brakes harder when carrying a heavy load. There are tactile shift paddles behind the wheel to encourage a downshift if you need, though.

Our test vehicle has a permanent magnet synchronous electric motor which produces up to 150kW of power and 330Nm of instant torque, delivering drive to the front wheels via a single-speed transmission.

The driver can select three levels of regenerative braking intensity. We used the strongest setting to ensure optimum battery top-ups when driving. This setting also requires minimal use of the brake pedal, due to powerful retardation each time the accelerator is released.

There’s also a choice of three drive modes. ‘Eco’ ensures minimal battery drain but performance is restrained and speed is capped at 90km/h. ‘Normal’ offers a good compromise in engine response and energy use, with speed increased to 120km/h. ‘Power’ is also capped at 120km/h but offers the most energetic performance and consumes the most energy.

The combined (urban/extra-urban) ADR fuel cycle efficiency for the LDV Deliver 7 is a respectable 7.7L/100km. Our 200km loop including rural, urban and motorway driving saw it return 8.5L/100km at an average speed of 45km/h.

In urban and suburban driving, we saw 10L/100km aided by the engine start-stop system. 

There is a large 80-litre fuel tank that would see driving ranges in excess of 1000km in favourable conditions, with 800km still likely on urban delivery runs.

LDV claims our test vehicle’s 77kWh battery can deliver a (WLTP) driving range of up to 318km. The battery was fully charged when we collected the vehicle and we drove 211km. This comprised mostly city and suburban driving, about 50km of which was hauling a one-tonne-plus payload.

At the completion of our test, the dash display was claiming average energy consumption of 26kWh/100km. So, based on that figure, LDV’s claimed range of more than 300km from a single charge (unladen) is credible.

The 77kWh battery takes about eight hours to charge from five to 100 per cent using an 11kW AC home charger, or around 43 minutes for 20-80 per cent using a 78kW DC charger.

The Deliver 7 is effectively the same configuration as its electric sibling, using struts with coil springs up front and a leaf-sprung beam axle at the back. Standard stuff for a heavy duty van. 

The front and rear disc brakes have a nice solid pedal feel with well calibrated ABS and the Deliver 7 is generally safe and fairly secure on the road-holding front. 

Unfortunately, the suspension set-up of LDV’s diesel van is significantly worse than the rather refined electric model. Unladen, the Deliver 7’s ride quality is atrocious, bordering on unacceptable. 

Over speed bumps, the rear end bucks and shimmies as the van’s dampers fail to control the heavy duty leaf springs. There were several instances when the Deliver 7 was so uncontrolled my backside lost contact with the seat cushion.

As Deliver 7s are likely to spend most of their life loaded up, we headed to BC Sands in Taren Point which happily put 600kg worth of builders sand in the back. The rear ride height dropped 20mm with the load onboard.

With the weight onboard the Deliver 7’s ride settled on rippled tarmac and the bouncing was less abrupt coming off speed humps.

However, the 3.3-turn lock-to-lock steering became light and ponderous and the ride still lacks finesse. A previous-gen Toyota HiAce rides better. 

Visibility is another Deliver 7 struggle. A solid-walled van will always be compromised but with the seat in a comfortable position for me, at 188cm, my head was in line with the B-pillar.

The big mirrors couldn’t be adjusted far enough out for my driving position, either, leaving plenty of blind-spot (lucky there’s a safety system for that!). The A-pillars are thick and pushed forward, impacting visibility at junctions and roundabouts.

There’s no handle on the driver’s windscreen pillar to assist climbing aboard, or a driver’s left footrest, both of which would be welcome additions. The driver’s seat is comfortable and the flat-bottom steering wheel with height adjustment provides ample space.

It has clear eyelines to the large door mirrors but vision through the central rear view mirror is obscured by the thick central join of the symmetrical rear barn-doors, which is wide enough to block vision of a vehicle travelling behind. Asymmetric doors would alleviate this.

Being a solid-walled van, there’s a huge blind-spot over the driver’s left shoulder, but fortunately the left door-mirror is assisted by blind-spot monitoring. And there’s rear cross-traffic alert when reversing out of driveways or loading docks. These active aids should be mandatory on all solid-walled vans.

We’re often critical of steering and ride quality in Chinese LCVs but the eDeliver7 has refreshing chassis refinement, from its responsive and nicely-weighted steering to its relatively supple unladen ride quality.

The single 150kW/330Nm electric motor provides an effortless surge of acceleration in all drive modes, with the Power setting producing enough instant torque to make the front tyres chirp on occasions.

Its near-silent operation also ensures deceptive acceleration, which is why the absence of a digital speedo is a glaring omission and needs to be included.

The EV silence, though, is largely negated at speeds above 80km/h due to tyre roar emanating from the rear wheel-housings, which can be intrusive enough to require raised voices. Noise-absorbing materials in the cargo bay (like the HiAce’s full-length roof-liner) would be useful.

To test its load-hauling ability, we forklifted 975kg into the cargo bay. Combined with our two-man crew, this 1155kg payload was less than 200kg shy of the van’s 1350kg limit.

The rear leaf-springs barely flinched under this loading as they compressed only 25mm, which engaged large cone-shaped jounce rubbers above the springs that provide a smooth-riding second stage of support.

Impressively, changes in ride quality and acceleration were minimal, as it proved more than competent in hauling this big payload on a congested city and suburban test route which typified the urban environments these vehicles are designed for.

No ANCAP rating at this stage but it does boast a solid suite of passive and active features including six airbags, AEB, front collision warning, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keeping, speed sign recognition, front/rear parking sensors, reversing camera, adaptive cruise, tyre pressure monitoring, adjustable overspeed alarm and more.

The LDV Deliver 7 is backed by a competitive seven-year/200,000km warranty, however LDV does not publish fixed-price servicing.

After purchase, the Deliver 7 needs maintenance after six months or 5000km at a cost of $344, with subsequent intervals yearly or at 20,000km, whichever comes first. 

Australian importer Ateco was able to give us a guide for three years of servicing at $2644 though this will vary depending on labour rates, rate of consumable use and other factors depending on the dealer. 

Toyota caps HiAce servicing at $1740 for the same period and gives a clearer indication of pricing beyond the three-year mark, which may help you budget into the future.

LDV's warranty for the eDeliver 7 is five years/160,000km whichever occurs first, plus five years/unlimited km roadside assist.

The lithium-ion battery has a separate eight year/250,000km warranty.

Scheduled servicing is every two years/30,000km, with a capped-price of $1393 applying to the first three services up to six years/90,000km. That’s an average cost of only $464 every two years.