LDV Terron 9 review: The Chinese ute that could change the game
It's the all-new Terron 9 diesel dual-cab, and if you're thinking it looks a bit weird, that's because it has a unibody design, with no gap between the tub and the cabin.
That helps allow more tray space – it's one of the biggest in the segment, at 1600mm long with a 1230mm gap between the arches, making it Aussie-pallet-friendly.
MORE: Secret Aussie driving rule revealed
The big downside? There is no cab-chassis model, and there won't be. So it could be ruled out for a lot of tradies and fleet businesses.
Despite that, it still has a ladder-frame chassis, and serious off-road chops – not to mention the expected 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity that utes apparently need to be considered 'real'. And in a plus for buyers, it includes a towbar assembly, hitch, and wiring as standard. A rear diff lock and spray-in tub-liner are standard too, as well as a locking tailgate with assisted lift mechanism.
There are two grades on offer, both with ABN discounted prices for tradies – the entry-level model is known as Origin, starting with promotional pricing of $49,990 drive-away, and it comes with 18-inch wheels, auto LED lights and auto wipers, cloth trim, power adjustable front seats, and a pair of 12.3-inch screens – one for driver info, one for media, including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto wirelessly available.
MORE: Musk signs $25bn AI deal with tech giant
Spend $5000 more and you score heaps of extra kit, like 20-inch wheels, a locking front diff, cargo area lighting and adjustable rails, trailer back-up assistance, and inside it steps it up with massaging front seats with heating and ventilation, heated rear outboard seats, an eight-speaker JBL stereo and ambient lighting.
Some of those items aren't available in other utes, let alone at this kind of money.
And while it is cheaper than most, it doesn't drive like a cheap ute. The Terron 9 feels sophisticated in ways that many other body-on-frame utes don't, with a well-sorted ride that is comfortable and impressively damped over rough road surfaces and big bumps.
It isn't the most enthusiastic thing to steer, but it is predictable enough, and the new diesel engine teams up well with the ZF eight-speed auto, offering strong and – again – predictable response, meaning this one feels more complete than some of the other LDV utes of years gone by.
MORE: 'Like Tinder': Huge problem with Aussie cars
I also put it through its paces of road, and aside from some clearance concerns due to its enormous 3300mm wheelbase (and huge 13.3m turning circle that also results from that!), it was up to the task with good mechanical ability and technological help, thanks to smart traction management and a very impressive off-road data screen that includes an off-road camera mode – because it has surround-view as standard.
The interior is close to complete, too, with a design and execution that belies the price tag. It feels more SUV-like than any other vehicle at this price, and the amenities are all taken care of, including decent storage in the doors and between the front seats.
The back seats have a flip-down backrest with proper top-tether attachment points for the window seats to complement the ISOFIX points in those positions. There's no centre top-tether.
It is loaded with the expected safety kit, including speed sign detection and lane keeping, and a driver monitoring camera – the latter of which is a bit incessant. Thankfully, the screen offers you a quick drop-down menu to turn those things off if they get on your nerves – it just takes a couple of seconds.
LDV is offering a seven-year, 200,000km warranty for the Terron 9, and the brand has five years of roadside assistance included at no cost, too. There is no capped-price servicing plan (yet…!), but the first visit is due at 12 months or 10,000km, then it's every year or 15,000km.
This is a peculiar option that, if suitable for your needs, is well worth a look. It's impressively refined, powerful and appointed, and the pricing embarrasses some of the other pick-ups in the segment.
MORE: 'Utopia': huge Aussie change no one saw coming
4.0 stars LDV Terron 9
PRICE: From $50,000 to $55,000 drive-away for ABN holders
ENGINES: 2.5-litre turbo-diesel four-cyl, eight-speed auto, 4x4
OUTPUTS: 163kW/520Nm
FUEL USE: 7.9L/100km
PAYLOAD: 1005-1100kg
TOWING: 750kg unbraked, 3500kg braked
SPARE: Full-size Motoring
Aussie drivers are being warned against a common parking trick that could land drivers in prison. Motoring
A little known driving rule which could save you plenty of time and traffic jam anguish has come to light.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
23 minutes ago
- ABC News
Property prices continue to climb to new records
Australian property prices have scaled new record highs as demand for housing offsets buyer concerns about the Reserve Bank's shock call to hold interest rates steady in July.
News.com.au
23 minutes ago
- News.com.au
‘Oh my god': Sydney woman's 7-day trick to buy Sydney apartment
The property market is tough, just ask Lindsey Fellows, who offered a 7-day settlement to starve off the competition. Ms Fellows, 55, is an office manager for the skincare and wellness brand, The Fountain of Youth and Lifestyle and spent three months trying to buy in the incredibly competitive Sydney property market. 'I was sort of losing the will to live,' she joked. 'I had previously gone for an apartment at auction, and that was horrendous, and I never wanted to do that again.' The most appalling aspect of the auction was that a one-bedroom apartment in South Sydney, priced at $750,000, ultimately sold for a staggering $951,000. One auction failure was enough for the office manager to find herself completely depressed by the Sydney property market, where the median price for an apartment is now $1 million. 'What I found was real estate agents are different beings to the rest of us in the world. They always put the price guide really low,' she told She argued that you genuinely need to add on about $100,000 to every price guide you see listed in Sydney to get into the 'right ballpark,' otherwise you'll find yourself disappointed. When she found another apartment she liked in Alexandria with a price guide of $750,000 she was determined not to miss out. 'The apartment was at a guide of like $750,000, and so I spoke to them, and I just said, 'Look, I don't want to go to auction again,' she said. The agent informed Ms Fellows that the owner would be open to offers, so she went in hard and offered $800,000 straightaway. 'It was always going to go over $800,000, and I wasn't going to go in too low,' she said. The offer wasn't accepted straight away, and she was informed the vendor wanted to do a few open viewings first. After the weekend, she was contacted again and told that another woman had made an offer who wanted to buy the place for her son. Ms Fellows put in another offer of $820,000 to starve off the competition, but the other bidder than offered $850,000 and then things got tense. 'I was like, 'oh my god … here we go,' Ms Fellows said. Eventually she offered $880,000 and managed to outbid the competition, but then she was told a buyer's agent offered $900,000 on a client's behalf. 'I just thought for the love of god,' she said. 'The real estate agent said, 'If you do want it, you need to give me your best offer', and I said, 'I have been giving you my best offers,' she said. Ms Fellows relented and put in an offer of $910,000, and to sweeten the deal, offered to do an earlier settlement. She remembered her mortgage broker had said they could easily get her mortgage sorted within 7 days, so she offered a 7-day settlement; in general, settlements typically go for 42 days. The agent then spoke to the vendor, who was so pleased with this 7-day settlement offer that the agent said it was enough for the vendor to 'stick' with her offer and not accept any other offers, even if they were higher. Ms Fellows claimed she was told that if the vendor got '20 more offers', he'd stick with hers because of the short settlement. So she agreed and then had to break the news to her conveyancer, who was 'panicked,' and her mortgage broker, who was surprised but less stressed. Despite everyone's initial freak-out, both her mortgage broker and conveyancer managed to get the whole thing 'done and dusted' within five days. Ms Fellows explained that sometimes you have to think outside the box, especially when you're at the 'bottom end' of the market, where competition is fierce. 'There's so much competition, and I was buying as one person, and you're up against couples who have that two-salary power,' she said. Ms Fellows' mortgage broker, Craig McDonald, the owner of CBM Mortgages, said that he'd never had anyone request a 7-day settlement before. 'The standard settlement is 42 days and you have clients asking if you can do 30 days. This was an exception when she asked me to do it in 7 days,' he told Mr McDonald said he is seeing people request quicker settlements 'more than normal' because they're trying to compete in the Sydney market. The mortgage broker explained that it was possible because Ms Fellows had 'existing approval from a solid lender,' and so he was able to make it happen within a week. He said if any buyers want to use the offer of a shorter settlement to sweeten the deal, they need to make sure they have the 'right lender' because some lenders just aren't that fast. Mr McDonald said in general, there are just a lot more buyers on the market right now, which is 'pushing prices up' thanks to a combination of rates holding and government schemes.
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Multi-million-dollar deal struck for Wises Farm in heart of Maroochydore
One of the last working farms in the heart of the Sunshine Coast has been sold for $93.5 million. The 39-hectare block is just an eight-minute drive to the beach at Mooloolaba, and is bordered by Wises Road and the Sunshine Motorway. The land was purchased by privately owned property development company QM Properties. It was owned by Maroochydore's pioneering farmer Peter Wise. Mr Wise did not live to see the day his family would be forever financially secure. He died suddenly after being taken to hospital in January last year. His family made the decision to place the land on the market following his passing. The site had prior approval in place to build up to 570 dwellings, including retirement living, traditional homes on residential blocks, townhouses, and apartments. A proud eighth-generation farmer, Mr Wise had for decades rebuffed approaches from dozens of developers. Speaking with the ABC last year, town planner and close friend James Brownsworth said the work of the late farmer showed he "had a big-picture view of the highest and best use of the land". Mr Brownsworth said Mr Wise was passionate about properly planning for growth on the Sunshine Coast. "Beyond farming and his family, it was probably his primary passion, and you should see the paperwork he left behind around documenting and recording this and the milestones that he was involved in," he said. "The primary focus that he and I had was to work out what the development footprint looked like on his land versus the bits that weren't to be developed." Mr Brownsworth said they had nominated key items including roads, open space, and green linkages. Mr Wise once ran a pick-your-own-fruit agritourism attraction on land where the Maroochy Boulevard and Harvey Norman Homemaker Centre were built. Mr Brownsworth said Mr Wise had influenced much of the development of Maroochydore's CBD. "Maroochy Boulevard absolutely, but earlier than that, Sunshine Plaza before it was Sunshine Plaza, road network planning, open space planning, defending his land from the unwanted impacts of urban development so he could continue to farm it," he said. "It was his absolute passion, and his heart was always in the right place." The Wise family is continuing the tradition of growing Buderim gold coffee on another property on the mountain using trees passed down by their ancestors. Earlier this year, the family honoured Mr Wise with one final fig harvest using instructions scribbled in three notebooks left by Mr Wise. Speaking with the ABC earlier this year, his wife of 59 years, Ivy, said her family's support had helped her adapt to life without her husband. "I have a lot of family helping out. Without their support, we wouldn't be able to do the figs this year." Mr Wise and Mr Brownsworth's families have declined to talk today, still taking in the enormity of the sale without him.
