Chinese-owned brand Maxus provided one of the highlights of the CV Show with the unveiling of the T90EV, the first electric pick-up truck to come to market.
The T90EV is the electric version of the Chinese T90 pick-up and will be available to order from August with UK deliveries expected to start in the first quarter of 2023.
The first T90EV to launch is rear-wheel drive but Mark Barrett, general manager of Harris Maxus (the importer for the UIK and Ireland) says a four-wheel drive model will follow in 2024.
The T90EV has a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 3,300kg and is powered by an 88.5kWh battery pack wedded to a 150kW electric motor, giving it a claimed range of up to 198 miles.
The truck revealed at the CV Show was developed for the Italian market and had a payload of 740kg but Barrett claims the T90EV coming to the UK will have a payload of 1,000kg, enabling it to qualify as a commercial vehicle for VAT purposes.
Features are expected to include a 10.25in touchscreen in the cab, a reversing camera, LED daytime running lights and 17in alloy wheels. Barrett says Maxus will offer the T90EV in two trim levels. He is targeting 1,000 UK sales of the truck in its first 12 months on the market.
Concerns have been raised about the suitability of battery-electric technology for pick-ups, particularly when it comes to off-road work, where the low position of the batteries and motor could leave them vulnerable to damage. But while other pick-up manufacturers are keeping their plans under wraps, Barrett says Maxus has no qualms about leading the way, having flagged up its intention to launch an electric pick-up for two years.
“At the end of the day why not be first? We like a challenge, it’s exciting,” he told What Van?
As was the case last year, Maxus exhibited only electric vehicles at the CV Show.
Five examples of the large eDeliver 9 were on the stand, including a long-wheelbase crew van and a lightweight low-loader Luton with a payload of 1,400kg.
The brand also displayed five eDeliver 3 compact vans, with highlights being a Hi-roof model and a tipper.
According to Maxus, it captured an 11% market share of the 17,000 eLCVs sold in the UK between March 2021 and April 2022.
“EVs accounted for more than 36% of Maxus registrations over the past 12 months and the growth and interest in EV vans, particularly from the grocery, delivery and pharmaceutical sectors is phenomenal.”
Maxus now has 46 dealerships in the UK plus nine service only points and says 14 open points for sales and service remain. In May it opened the Maxus Academy in Dublin to train technicians to work in its retail networks in the UK and Ireland.