Sadly, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders decided not to hold their usual drive day at Wetherby Racecourse. A great shame, as the venue was convenient and the roads in the area ideal for putting all the latest cars through their paces.

And thus, another long trek south was required to just outside Coventry, the venue for this year’s autumn event. It was too far for me to want to travel there and back the same day, so a night was had in the Days Inn at Corley Services. It’s a glamorous life! The hotel was quite comfortable and as I was travelling in an electric car, charging overnight was easy, though not cheap. And there was a Waitrose in the service station itself, ideal for tasty snacks.

The cars driven:
KGM Musso EV

KGM has been producing its Musso pickup for many years and I gather a new model is in the offing. Of far more interest, was their Musso EV, on show in the UK for the first time and on sale later this year.

Based on the Torres EVX SUV, the Musso EV is powered by a 207hp motor and boasts an 80.6 kWh battery. Range is quoted as 249 miles and from my brief drive I would suggest this is somewhat optimistic. 200 miles if driven gently, maybe, and the weather on the test day was warm.

The Musso’s load bed is on the smaller side and payload just 500kg, limiting its use. The likely user may well be the private buyer who wants pickup practicality for leisure use or a small urban business that wants an open load area rather than a van.

Being based on a car means that the Musso EV is more comfortable and refined than its bigger diesel-engined brother. Ride comfort is especially impressive with little of the bounce normally exhibited by empty pickup trucks.

Rivals are few and far between, with the Maxus T90 EV one of the very few. It’s not very refined and hard to recommend, especially with an asking price of £50,000 plus VAT. Isuzu will be bringing us an electric D-Max before too long and BYD are readying their Shark pickup.

No word on pricing yet, but the Torres EVX is priced from £36,995 so your guess is as good as mine. I’d wager an asking price beginning with a ‘4’, plus VAT of course.





Changan Deepal SO7

Another new car from China is the newly launched Deepal SO7 from Changan, which is one of the country’s largest car makers. I must confess to never having heard of it.
The snappily titled Deepal SO7 was designed in Turin and engineered for UK roads at Changan’s Brimingham R&D facility. The aim is clearly to adapt the car to suit our tastes.
The car boasts a familiar SUV profile, with a well-equipped interior including such niceties as a rotating 15.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system, vegan leather upholstery and a panoramic glass roof.

Power comes from a single rear-mounted electric motor generating 218PS and 320Nm of torque. This is enough to whisk the Deepal SO7 from 0-62mph in 7.9 seconds. The 80kWh battery claims a WLTP range of up to 295 miles. Rapid charging is somewhat slower than some rivals with a 10-80% charge taking a leisurely 48 minutes.

I am told there should be around 20 dealers up and running now, with another 30 to become operational by the end of this year.

My brief drive was fine, if unmemorable, a voice chastising me for any minor discretion such as exceeding the speed limit by an mph or two or glancing away from the road for too long. The latter was necessary trying to fathom the touchscreen, on which lay buried full controls for the windscreen wipers for example.

The Changan Deepal S07 is designed to make electric driving accessible, enjoyable, and practical for UK consumers. It combines sleek design, advanced technology, and real-world range with a price point that makes sense. We believe it will truly resonate with British drivers looking for a high-quality EV without compromise.

I hope for a press loan before too long with more opportunity for driving impressions as the roads around Coventry weren’t the most inspiring.

Oh, nearly forgot. The price – from £39,990 so Changan’s first UK offering will face some stiff competition.