Of China LDV It’s best known for its affordable workhorse vans and utes, not all-electric shuttles packed with luxury features.
gave MIFA 9 It’s a big part of the company’s self-described transformation from a challenger brand to an “innovator brand,” and comes to market before competitors get out of bed.
Aimed at corporate transport companies or hotels wishing to operate a low-emission fleet LDV MIFA 9 MIFA joins the Petrol – a competitor to the newly launched Kia Carnival.
LDV general manager Dinesh Chinnappa claims the company is “talking to early adopters, SMEs and corporate transport businesses that want to reduce their environmental footprint.”
We had a very brief introduction to MIFA 9 at a massive media event last week, but obviously didn’t have enough time to do a full review.
Although it will be coming soon, for now it’s a quick drive with all the specs and some initial impressions.
How much does LDV MIFA 9 cost?
There’s no getting around it: like LDV’s eDeliver 9 EV van and eT60 EV ute, the MIFA 9 is expensive, especially compared to its internal combustion equivalent. There are three specific levels coming to Australia.
2023 LDV MIFA 9 Pricing:
- MIFA 9 Mod: $106,000
- MIFA 9 Executive: $117,000
- MIFA 9 Luxe: $131,000
Prices are before on-road costs.
This makes each variant between $52,000 and $58,000 more expensive than the equivalent LDV MIFA petrol model in Mod, Executive and Luxe forms respectively.
The only competitor at the moment is the more van-like Mercedes-Benz e-Vito Tourer at $116,115 before on-roads, which frankly has only slightly more badge prestige.
How is the LDV MIFA 9 inside?
It has a sleek and minimal front, with a rear reach and rack adjustable steering wheel behind a 7.0-inch digital instrument display with excellent resolution.
Standard on all variants is a 12.3-inch touchscreen with good graphics and a handy vertical toolbar on the right.
There’s no Android Auto or satellite navigation listed, just Apple CarPlay, and while the mid and top trims have 360-degree cameras, the base model only has a rear-view camera.
Underneath that sits a silver plastic trim piece (with the wrong joint on our test car, much to my minor irritation) with touch-sensitive climate controls that look a touch fiddly but smart.
Overall material and trim quality looks good, with plenty of soft-touch padded surfaces, while our high-spec test model had chic perforated door sills and contrasting white stitching.
There are numerous storage options between the front two seats, including cup holders and a center-split console, plus you get LED lighting through the cabin and seven USB ports.
While the MIFA 9 Mod has a fairly substantial rear feature list (full details below), the MIFA 9 Executive adds some real cabin glamor such as 64 interior lighting colors, front and rear sunroofs and rear privacy glass. Plus, power sliding side doors, and more. Speaker, and air cleaner.
All grades have a 2-2-3 seating arrangement, meaning two seats in the middle row, easy access to the back row, and grab handles to help you get up and in.
In Mode they move manually, while in Executive they move electrically and have lumbar adjustment.
But in the Lux variant, they become captain’s chairs with heating, cooling, massage, reclining, and footrest. Also a table. Somewhat like the 787 business class cabin…
All variants have a three-seat rear bench that reclines, but also slides forward to free up more space for luggage.
Measures of LDV MIFA 9 5270 mm long, 2000 mm wide And 1840 mm height on a 3200 mm wheelbase.
This is a decent one 466L Luggage space with the second and third rows in use. This increases with the third row not in use. 1702Land is also combined with the middle row. 2017L.
Mods are about payloads and executive grades. 650 kgbut the Luxe with its heavy center seats is rated for carry-only. 525 kg. Keep in mind that this figure includes passengers.
What’s under the bonnet?
Some motor parts and a small storage tub.
MIFA 9 is powered by a 180kW/350Nm Driving the front wheels is a permanent magnet synchronous motor (front-wheel drive is standard), with power, normal and eco settings.
It runs on electricity stored in a 90kWh The lithium-ion battery pack offers a generous maximum WLTP-rated driving range 430km-440km – The more luxurious the grade you choose, the more weight there is, and the slight differences reflect that.
Driving range is based on claimed power consumption. 21.3-21.8kWh per 100 km.
is the tire weight 2310 kg on mode, 2410 kg and on executive 2535 kg on the Luxe – which means each is between 270kg and 305kg heavier than the petrol equivalent.
According to LDV an 11kW charge in an AC wallbox with a Type 2 port will fill the battery in about 8.5 hours on a three-phase installation, while the single-phase time is not listed in the datasheet.
A 120kW charge on the DC charger is claimed to take the MIFA 9 from 30 percent to 80 percent in about 36 minutes, for top-ups when running between jobs.
It has a rated towing capacity. 1000 kgand the top speed is listed. 180 km/h.
MIFA 9 Technical Specifications:
- Power: 180 kW
- Torque: 350Nm
- Top speed: 180 km/h
- Range claimed: 430-440 km
- Battery: 90kWh
- Towing: 1000 kg
How does LDV run MIFA 9?
Ideal for electric power shuttle services: perfectly quiet to enable conversation, and fast off the mark but with linear acceleration.
The MIFA 9 felt the most impressive car we drove on the day – it’s clearly part of LDV’s next-generation premium line-up, while the eT60 ute and eDeliver 9 van are more utilitarian.
The claimed driving range is a generous north of 400km and it can handle 11kW AC recharging, although its 120kW DC charging speed ceiling is merely adequate.
I’ve ridden in many van-based shuttle solutions that aren’t as quiet or comfortable on rough roads as the MIFA 9 – both in the front seat and in the middle row.
It soaked up the regional NSW patchy tarmac quite well, feeling like a solid and plush commuter, the good quality Continental tires likely helping to filter out road roar.
You sit nice and tall, and outward visibility is helped by large windows and slim pillars – plus it’s well-equipped with the latest active driver assist features, though our quick drive didn’t really let us test their effectiveness. Allowed.
The suspension layout includes MacPherson struts at the front and an independent multi-link setup at the rear. It has disc brakes all around (plus regenerative braking) and a low-resistance electric power steering system.
The key question to answer: If I were a business person flying into one of these at the airport and heading to a meeting, would I be satisfied with the comfort, space and technology on offer? Yes, yes I will.
what do you get
MIFA 9 Mod Highlights:
- 18 inch alloy wheels
- Tire repair kit
- Rear parking sensor
- LED headlights
- LED daytime running lights
- LED taillights with dynamic indicators
- Manual sliding side doors
- Manual tailgate
- Proximity key fob
- LED reading lights
- Multi-zone climate control
- Leather seats.
- Manual front seats x 2
- Manual second row seats x 2
- Manual rear seats that slide and recline x 3
- 7.0 inch instrument display
- 12.3 inch touch screen
- Apple CarPlay
- Reversing camera
- 6-speaker audio
- 7 x USB ports
- Bluetooth
The MIFA 9 executive added:
- 19 inch alloy wheels
- Tire repair kit
- Front parking sensor
- Adaptive headlights with auto high beam
- 360 degree cameras
- Front and rear sunroofs
- Rear privacy glass
- Powered sliding side door
- Powered tailgate
- Power folding side mirrors
- Rain-sensing wipers
- air purifier
- Ambient interior lighting – 64 colors
- Leather wrapped steering wheel
- Powered front seats x 2
- Power second row seats x 2
- Auto dimming rear view mirror
- 12V socket x 2 and 220V socket x 1
- 8-speaker audio
- Wireless phone charging pad
MIFA 9 Luxe added:
- Heated steering wheel
- Digital Rear View Mirror (Camera Based)
- Rear climate control settings
- Premium leather seat trim
- Heated, cooled and massaged front seats
- Second row captain’s chairs with:
- Heating
- Cooling
- Massage techniques
- Leaning on
- Pedestrians
- 12 speaker audio system
Is LDV MIFA 9 safe?
LDV MIFA and MIFA 9 are yet to be tested by ANCAP.
Standard safety features include:
- Driver and passenger front airbags
- Driver and passenger side airbags
- Front center airbag
- Full-length curtain airbags (all pillars)
- Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB)
- Blind spot monitoring
- Rear cross traffic alert
- Adaptive cruise control
- Lane departure warning
- Keep lane support
- Fatigue reminder and attention support
- Rear collision warning
- Traffic sign recognition
- ISOFIX (3) and top tethers
- Tire pressure monitoring
How much does it cost to run LDV MIFA 9?
While the MIFA petrol version has a seven-year warranty, for some reason the MIFA has a 9-year warranty Five years or 160,000 km (whichever comes first), with roadside assistance.
The battery, however, gets an eight-year/200,000 km battery warranty.
Service intervals are long: every two years (24 months) or 30,000 km – whichever comes first.
CarExpert’s Competition at LDV MIFA 9
Obviously the MIFA 9’s price tag will put off the majority of private buyers, but some shuttle operators will be watching it closely.
What the car does is make us look at LDV in a whole new way, and give us a glimpse of its next generation of products that are a big step up from what it has done before.
Electric MPVs make a lot of sense considering their use cases, although we initially doubt the MIFA 9 will be sold in small batches for trial applications.
Click on the images for the full gallery.
MORE: Everything LDV MIFA