LDV Deliver 9 2021 review GVM test

If the thought bubble “LDV” comes to your mind, there’s a good chance the next thing to pop into your head will be “budget”. The brand has established itself as a price player locally, and the new LDV Deliver 9 range is no exception.

In fact, the costs of the LDV Deliver 9 easily undercut all of its main rivals in the 3.5-tonne and above class. As mentioned above, the company claims it is 61 per cent cheaper than the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, while the VW Crafter, Renault Master, Ford Transit and Fiat Ducato are all well over the odds in terms of the price list.

The brand has established itself as a price player locally, and the new LDV Deliver 9 range is no exception.

Below there is a table of the models in the range, including a price for ABN holders, which is a drive-away price direct from LDV, as well as an MSRP/RRP for those who aren’t ABN holders, and even that’s a driveaway price. There are no on-road costs to concern yourself with here. And the deals? They’re strong.

Standard equipment for the Deliver 9 2021 model range is quite decent, considering that price list.

Fitted on all models is: 16-inch steel wheels with a full-size spare, side and rear steps (when doors open), a sliding passenger-side door and 180-degree barn doors, eight cargo area tie-down points, rubber flooring in the cargo area, LED lighting in the cargo area, a 10.1-inch touchscreen multimedia system with Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring (no Android Auto) and Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity, two USB ports, and a 4.2-inch multifunction display with digital speedometer.

A 10.1-inch touchscreen multimedia system with Apple CarPlay comes standard.

There are also heated electric front mirrors, air conditioning (manual), a multifunction steering wheel, cruise control (adaptive cruise on auto models), a three-seat layout for van and cab chassis models (two-seat passenger bench with under seat storage), eight-way adjustment for the driver’s seat, rear fog lights, halogen headlights, a ‘wide view’ rear overhead reversing camera, and plenty of advanced safety technology.

The safety spec includes auto emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning (LDW), rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control (auto models), and more. Read the safety section below for more detailed information.

Unlike many of the van’s rivals, there aren’t too many options available yet. You can’t opt for side glass glazing, or a driver’s side sliding door, or a tailgate, or a bulkhead or mesh steel protection cage. LDV Australia says it will offer these options later in 2020.

Thinking about colours? Don’t get ahead of yourself.

There is, however, an optional pack that adds handy wider-opening barn doors (236-degrees), as well as keyless entry, push-button start, and a blind-spot monitoring system with lane change assist. It costs $1500. 

Thinking about colours? Don’t get ahead of yourself. There’s only the choice of Blanc White or Pacific Blue ($500 extra). There’s no red, green, yellow, grey, silver, black or brown option, because LDV reckons customers will wrap their van anyway, if they want to brand it with their company colours. 

For a little bit of context on the pricing, the entry-level Deliver 9 auto undercuts the most affordable Toyota HiAce diesel auto while offering customers considerably more cubic metres for their money. More on how it sizes up below. 

Let’s start with the cabin area. If you’re going to be driving a van like this day-in, day-out, you want to know that it has the cabin smarts and design attributes to make for a pleasant space.

And the Deliver 9 is packing the goods, really, when it comes to the cockpit, which is mostly really well considered, and shows an improvement in terms of ergonomics and controls compared with some of the brand’s older vehicles.

There's a 10.1-inch media screen, which is the largest in the class. It has Apple CarPlay and Bluetooth phone connectivity plus 2xUSB connections, but there is no Android Auto phone mirroring. It is an eye-catching thing, but it has some operation gremlins.

The Deliver 9 is packing the goods, really, when it comes to the cockpit.

For instance, it had a tendency to revert to a radio station when CarPlay was connected but reverse was engaged. Or, it would do that - blare some FM radio - just before a phone call connected.  And also, when you disconnect your phone from the USB cable, the radio volume will be much higher, meaning a few surprisingly loud moments. And the phone call volume is a bit too muted, even with the car's stereo on max vol, and a phone all the way up, too. Plus it’s hard to figure out how to get back to Apple CarPlay if you hit the home button or do anything else through the screen. 

All of these issues may be addressed with a software update, and we hope that’s the case, and it has been in the LDV D90 and T60.

The reversing camera is a top-mount wide angle lens that offers a decent view of your surroundings, but the quality of the image is quite poor, with contrast issues and pixelation on screen. But is it clear enough to see what’s what when you’re reversing? You bet. And there are rear parking sensors too.

The driver gets adjustment for the seat (eight way) and an armrest on the inner side.

As for other cabin attributes, the Deliver 9 has big door pockets with bottle holders and additional storage, plus there is a flip-down section with an elasticated strap for documents and a pair of cup holders in the middle seat area. There are also high-mounted cup/bottle holders on the outer edges of the dashboard, which is something tradies will definitely appreciate.

The dash also features a curvy shelf section for the passenger side, though unlike some rivals, there are no dash-top storage trenches for loose items. There is, however, an overhead folder holder which is very handy for light items. 

There are dials for the fan and air conditioning controls which are much simpler to use than in the G10 van, and there are a few hard buttons above that for Eco mode, Power mode, lane departure and AEB. The screen doesn’t have a dial for volume control, which is annoying. 

The driver is treated to a clear set of dials and a 4.2-inch digital instrument cluster with a digital speedo, and while the steering wheel is a hard plastic one, the design and controls are pretty easy to come to grips with, though the lack of reach adjustment for the steering wheel (angle/tilt/rake adjust only) means getting your perfect position mightn’t be possible. 

The Deliver 9 has big door pockets with bottle holders and additional storage.

That said, the driver gets adjustment for the seat (eight way) and an armrest on the inner side, but there’s no armrest on the outboard edge - we know it gets in the way if you’re climbing in and out a lot, but on longer drives, you can find yourself leaning a bit too far to the right to rest your arm on the door. 

The bench seat is wide enough for two adults, but forget taking your kids with you if they’re young - there are no ISOFIX or top-tether points for baby/child seats. But under that bench there is a hidden storage section, with the bases of both seats opening independently.

In the back of the van the neat chequerplate vinyl finish on the floor continues, and there are eight integrated floor lashing points for securing loads. There are no wall-mount points, though. More on the load space in the Tradie Driving section below.

One thing that we noted from the outside, but not the inside, is that the panel welding divots were very noticeable in certain light, but not in others. From one angle, our videographer said he though there were huge dents in the back panels - but from a different spot they weren’t discernable at all.

Under the bench there is a hidden storage section, with the bases of both seats opening independently.

Don’t expect an ANCAP crash test safety rating for the LDV Deliver 9. It’s rare that these larger vans are tested locally or internationally, but the brand does offer a decent amount of safety technology across the range.

Standard is low speed auto emergency braking (AEB) that works up to 30km/h, but sadly doesn’t include pedestrian or cyclist detection. There is a lane departure warning (LDW) system, which works between 60km/h and 150km/h. The system doesn’t offer active steering assistance. There is adaptive cruise control for the auto models, but manuals have regular cruise.

You can option blind spot monitoring as part of a pack ($1500 - also includes keyless entry and push-button start), but there’s no rear cross-traffic alert system. 

Don’t expect an ANCAP crash test safety rating for the LDV Deliver 9.

All vans and buses come with a reversing camera system and rear parking sensors, but none have front parking sensors (not that you really need them, the forward vision is very good). All models have electronic stability control, hill hold assist, electronic brake force distribution, and anti-lock brakes with brake assist. 

There are no rear seats, so therefore no child seat attachment or ISOFIX baby seat tethers. 

The LDV Deliver 9 range has six airbags - dual front, front side and front curtain airbag protection - in all derivatives.

Hardly anybody chooses a van like this as a daily driver. Unless they are looking for a van to convert to a camper, or if they just like vans (I get it).

But the surprising thing to me is that the Deliver 9 is surprisingly easy to drive, so just about anyone could easily slide in behind the steering wheel and get where they need to go. They might even enjoy themselves while doing it.

That’s because the Deliver 9 is really quite well sorted in terms of its driving manners when unladen. I did several hundred kilometres in this vehicle without weight in the cargo area, and was impressed by many attributes of the drive experience. I’ve driven all the vans in this segment, and the LDV drives as good as any of them, and no worse than any of them.

Just about anyone could easily slide in behind the steering wheel and get where they need to go.

The ride comfort and compliance was very good, only ever getting upset over large potholes, but never feeling skittish or lumpy in the way it coped with bumps. It runs a Macpherson strut front suspension setup and leaf springs at the rear, and while it hasn’t been tuned for local conditions, it handled the ones we put it through just fine.

The hydraulic power steering is decently weighted and easy to judge, with decent feel through the wheel, too. You might notice the steering wheel jostling in your hands more than some of its rivals, but it’s never violent.

The engine is urgent enough in its response, with decent pulling power from a standstill and even the engine’s start-stop system didn’t interrupt the drive experience too much. In traffic it cut the engine at a stop, and rapidly restarted and was ready to go as soon as brake pedal pressure was let off. 

The Deliver 9 is really quite well sorted in terms of its driving manners when unladen.

The six-speed automatic fitted standard to this size of van was well behaved, too. The shifts were smooth and smart, with a good logic to the way the gearbox behaved up hills, on the open road, and around town. It even managed hill descents easily, holding gears and allowing a level of engine braking. 

All told, the daily driver experience was really good. For a vehicle of this size, it really has that “shrinks around you” feel to it.