Deepal E07 2025 Review

When the Chinese manufacturer confirmed its intriguing machine would be hitting the Australian market, immediate speculative pricing guessed the 2025 Deepal E07 Multitruck might come in at as much as $90,000.

Perhaps it was a guerrilla strategy from within the very walls of Deepal’s importer Inchape intended to lower expectations and therefore deliver a pleasant surprise when the actual pricing was confirmed. Or it was a product of other pricey EVs hitting the market at about the same time.

Clever strategy, or pessimistic media? Either way, the entry price of $64,900 plus on-road costs (ORCs) did indeed come as a pleasant surprise and although that’s still on the high side for a challenger brand, there is a lot included for the cash.

Specification is almost identical for both the most affordable rear-drive single motor variant and the Performance which has two e-motors, all-wheel drive and a $73,900 (plus ORCs) asking price. Both have a 90kWh lithium-ion battery, Nappa leather interior, a plethora of large digital displays, full-length sunroof, electric seats, air suspension and, of course, that defining ute tray.

Performance ranges from quick to absurd (3.9 seconds) thanks to an 800-volt main electrical system and range is respectable with between 510km and 550km on a single charge. You’ll also get the support of a distribution heavyweight like Inchcape to boost confidence and peace of mind.

Just a couple of options are offered including a wild but lovely Premium Orange interior for $500 and posh paint for $1800.

Capped-price servicing is available for both variants costing about $3000 over the seven years and intervals of 20,000km, while the warranty also extends to seven years but is limited to 160,000km. The battery gains an extra year and up to 240,000km.

Deepal’s first model – the S07 – hasn’t made a massive splash in Australia’s unforgiving and fickle market since it arrived about a year ago but the E07 has a much better chance of getting noticed.

Firstly, it is massive. Measuring more than five meters in length and two meters wide, it’s imposing but proportionally sweet and its size enables it to fit many vehicles into just one shell.

Firstly, it has a plush cabin that’s beautifully appointed with good quality materials, solid build quality and room for up to five accessed through four doors. With a ride height of just 133mm it gives distinct premium sedan vibes.

However, it also has standard air suspension that can float the body up to 223mm above the road, a wading depth of 600mm and, in the case of the Performance, all-wheel drive with an off-road driving mode – so it’s a Bonafide SUV right? Wait.

Stand near the boot and say the words “Hey Deepal – one-click open” and the E07 will reveal its party trick – a proper ute tray accessed through a tailgate and sliding glass roof. The unique load bay offers 524 litres of space under the closed roof, but obviously a bit more if it’s open.

But if that’s not enough, the second row of seats can be folded electrically, turning the entire space behind the first row of seating into about 1600 litres of cargo area. And you’ll find another 131 litres of waterproof space under the bonnet.

Adding to versatility, the vehicle can be driven with any combination of rear compartment open or closed with a full waterproof load area and hose-out cleaning, or completely weatherproof once closed. The latter allows one of our favourite features – the camping mode – which keeps the climate control on when the vehicle is off for maximum comfort if you choose to slot in the custom-made air mattress and settle in for the evening.

With the rear seats in place, a glass panel seals off the cabin from the tray or, just like the slim rear glass panel over the tailgate, it can be kept open to either reassure a nervous dog or just let a bit more of the outdoors in.

It doesn’t take long playing with the various combinations and ute-like features to realise the E07 wasn’t conceived as some gimmicky show pony, but as a versatile and flexible vehicle that blends some compelling facets of several segments into one.

Aside from its practical load and people-lugging capability, it’s also good to drive. Standard air suspension is supple and smooth over some nasty roads but also keeps the significant mass of up to 2.4 tones tied down. It’s no sportscar, but the light and responsive steering combined with good acceleration in either variant has produced a vehicle that defies its mass under most driving conditions.

Fast EVs are nothing new but the Performance rolls in the tyre tracks of some seriously potent battery powered models before it, demonstrating excellent traction and straight-line speed over changing surfaces. We weren’t given a chance to test the off-road ability and claims, so that element will have to wait.

There are plenty of technological easter eggs that owners will enjoy discovering, not least the vehicle-to-load (V2L) charging and power possibilities, which even includes the vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) option to charge another electric vehicle – a bit like when you used to donate pay-as-you-go mobile phone credit to a mate back in the 2000s.

We also love the tilting and rotating central screen that detects who is taking in the car and obediently swivels to face them, the amazing interior lighting and ambient effects, one of which looks like softly rippling water, and an extensive list of seat massages. It can get quite intimate.

For the main part, the E07’s interior is a beautiful blend of minimalist design, pleasant materials and plenty of space. However, too much function has been stuffed into the 15.4 touch-screen and just a pair of steering wheel scroll wheels.

Finding the various virtual functions is not the most intuitive experience and the sheer number of ‘electric this and electronic that’ makes navigating to your chosen function more difficult.

Speaking of electronics, there’s a bit of the dreaded overly eager driver-assistance technology and while all the usual offenders allow you to switch them off, at least the Deepal systems stay off. It’s a bit of a Band-Aid fix, but we would prefer to see the lane-keep and driver monitoring refined and developed to a point that the driver doesn’t feel they need to cancel them at all.

Visibility to the side and front is excellent thanks to large glass expanses and an elevated driving position, but it’s not so good rearwards. The curved spans that follow the roofline down to the tailgate appear to be smoked glass from the outside but are in fact solid with no quarter lights between the B-pillar and tailgate.

The small glass window at the top of the tailgate makes an essential difference, but the E07 still has some significant blind spots that all the camera views and mirrors in the world can’t completely solve.

And while there are some truely impressive manners when driving, nothing can entirely defy physics and the significant heft comes across in corners and heavy braking.

Despite its own weight, the E07 can only haul up to 1500kg and that’ll certainly have a noticeable impact on outright range if you do.

If you do choose to take either variant away from the beaten trail and test the off-road ability, make sure part of the clever rear load area is occupied by a spare wheel because there’s none provided.

After spending some time poring over the 2025 Deepal E07’s numerous fascinating features, it’s obvious that it’s not trying to be different for the sake of being different, it’s unconventional through the combination of various types of normal.

Australians love a large SUV, which the Deepal is from the nose to the B-pillar, at which point it becomes Australia’s best-selling car – a dual-cab ute. Its electric drivetrain is the unorthodox element in the formula and that will certainly put off a few potential proponents before they even walk through the showroom door.

But for everyone else, the Deepal E07 can make a lot of sense. The Performance is an all-wheel drive monster with the potential to go anywhere, while the rear-drive is a relative bargain with probably all the ‘performance’ you’d ever need.

If you, like many other Australians, are considering the BYD Shark 6 or plug-in Ford Ranger because you’d like an electrified family car with the practicality of a ute, then the Deepal E07 is something you should certainly take for a drive.

And if you’re one of the thousands of disappointed Australians who don’t yet have a Tesla Cybertruck on your driveway (and maybe never will), the Deepal E07 is the only thing that comes close – and in many ways does better.

2025 Deepal E07 at a glance:
Price: from $64,900 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: From 252kW/365Nm to 440kW/645Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 90kWh lithium-ion
Range: 550km
Energy consumption: Not available
Safety rating: Not tested

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