LDV is a relatively new name that has become a regular sight on our roads over the last few years. And much like other Chinese automotive brands, their evolution has been dramatic. The early models of the T60 looked uninspiring and cheap, and in just a few years, they look like they could be one of the top ute brands in New Zealand.
Considering how little the other brands have changed, this shows how fast LDV are developing, and if they keep this up, could overtake others. The mark of development is when you don’t look out of place among the rest of the market. Years ago, LDV stood out like a sore thumb, the trucks looked cheap and followed the stigma of being Chinese. But that’s all changed, without the LDV badge on the front of this Ute, I doubt many people would be able to pick it out, or they may mistake it for one of the big 3 brands in New Zealand.
So the top four brands, Ford, Toyota, Mitsubishi and Isuzu, should watch out, as the Chinese are hot on their feet. DriveLife had time to review the all-new LDV T60 Max Plus, so that we could see what it’s all about, and if the other Ute brands really have something to be concerned about.
The change from the 2018 T60 to the 2021 T60, was small, overall it took on a bit of a tougher look, but it still didn’t fit in. The all-new T60 is barely recognisable from the older models; it’s a massive leap forward and their latest model is not only turning heads with how it looks, but its price too.
What We Like and Dislike About The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Styling Spec Level Interior Trim Price 7-Year Warranty & WOF | Roller canopy, fitted to our review vehicle kept popping open Driver safety feature alerts Lane Assist very sensitive and grabby Windscreen demisters slow to work Fuel tank reads empty when parked on a hill |
What’s In The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus Range?
The LDV T60 is available in New Zealand in four variants, starting with the Elite, Lux, Max Plus and Traverse. Within the range, the vehicles are very similar in overall design. The Elite and Lux are available in a 6-speed manual or an 8-speed automatic, while the Max Plus and Traverse are only available with 8-speed automatics.
All models come with 4-wheel drive, and the same 2.0L bi-turbo diesel Euro V engine, which creates 160kW of power and 500Nm of torque. The load ratings and towing capability do change, as the Elite’s max payload is 935kg, while the Lux and Traverse are 750 kg. The Max Plus has a max payload of 830kg, and all variants have a 3,000kg braked towing capacity.
Prices of the LDV variants are listed below.
- T60 Elite – $34,990
- T60 Lux – $39,990
- T60 Max Plus – $55,990
- T60 Traverse – $67,990
2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus Colour Range
The colour range of the T60 is small, but it’s simple, and there are no additional costs either.
- Metallic Orange
- Blanc White
- Jewel Blue
- Lava Grey
- Metal Black
Our Review Vehicle’s Optional Equipment
Including the optional equipment, which in this case is an after market tray roller cover that was $1,949 installed, our review car’s retail price is $57,940.
For a full list of specs and options available for the 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus, head on over to LDV New Zealand’s website.
How Does The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus Compare To Its Competition?
This is where things start getting a bit spicy, for several reasons. New Zealand has a strong passion for utes, I am not a kiwi, so I don’t get it. But that being said, the numbers show that Utes sales are huge, making over 30% of all new vehicles sold in 2024.
| Make/ Model | Engine | Power/ Torque kW/Nm | Fuel L/100km | Towing Capacity Kg | Price $NZD |
| Ford Ranger Sport | 2.0-litre 4-cylinder twin-turbo diesel | 150/500 | 7.6 | 750/3,500 | $59,990 |
| Isuzu D-MAX LS | 3.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo diesel | 140/450 | 9.2 | 750/3,500 | $59,990 |
| Toyota Hilux SR5 | 2.8-litre 4-cylinder turbo diesel mild hybrid | 150/500 | 8.7 | 750/3,500 | $59,490 |
| LDV T60 Max Plus | 2.0 Litre BiTurbo Diesel | 160 / 500 | 8.9 | 3000 | $55,990 |
| GWM Cannon Alpha Lux | 2.4L 4-cylinder turbo diesel | 135/480 | 8.9 | 750/3,500 | $54,990 |
| Mitsubishi Triton GLXR | 2.4-litre 4-cylinder twin-turbo diesel | 150/470 | 8.8 | 750/3,500 | $53,990 |
| Nissan Navara ST-X | 2.3-litre 4-cylinder twin-turbo diesel | 140/450 | 7.6 | 750/3,500 | $49,995 |
| JAC T9 | 2.0L-litre 4-cylinder turbo diesel | 125/410 | 7.6 | 750/3,200 | $49,990 |
| GWM Cannon | 2.4L 4-cylinder turbo diesel | 135/480 | 8.4 | 750/3,500 | $43,490 |
| LDV T60 Lux | 2.0L-litre 4-cylinder twin-turbo diesel | 160/500 | – | 750/3,000 | $39,990 |
Please note that DriveLife does its best to ensure the information above is correct at the time of publication, however, prices, specifications and models can change over time. Please bear that in mind when comparing models in the comparison table.
First Impressions Of The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus
As I mentioned, the mark of development is not standing out from the crowd, which in this case is good, as it looks just like a Ranger, Land Cruiser, Triton or D-Max. It has a modern striking design, large rectangular front end, with clean lines and narrow LED headlights.
Roof rails, wheel arch guards and cabin steps indicate a well-optioned variant, and the rear has a tough protective plastic trim cover over the tailgate so you know this truck is hardworking.
The LDV t60 Max Plus, looks like the big boys, which makes it a very serious contender. I really liked the contrast of the Blanc White colour of our review vehicle, but I was secretly hoping that it would be in the Metallic Orange colour.
What’s The Interior Like In The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus?
Inside, the new LDV T60 Max Plus is modern and clean, with a nice mixture of soft touch materials, dark plastics and a subtle touch of silver on several key design features. The layout has been thought out very well, I especially like the placement of the wireless phone charger, at the top of the centre console.
The front seats are great, with good structure and shape, and a nice level of adjustment to them. I did find that for a taller person the seat was not as high as I had expected it to be, another 2 cm would have been great. This didn’t lead to any discomfort, but was something I noticed jumping between this and my own Range Rover.
There is a good amount of space in the back, I found it easy getting in and out, and the head and legroom was more than sufficient. My daughter had no issues with the rear seats or seat belts, nice and easy for her too.
Like most utes, they all suffer from the same issues; lack of storage space other than the ute tray itself. This is not so much an issue for a tradie, but if you’re thinking of getting the T60 for a family car, then it may present some practicality challenges.
The central infotainment screen took up the other half of the large widescreen LCD that swept across the dash. It’s not that different to the new Mercedes screens, I might add, but I feel the interface still has a bit of development to go. The main infotainment screen’s homepage is split into blocks that you can swipe left or right on to see all of them. You can rearrange them so that you have the most used ones where you need them. The blocks in the review car were set up with Media, Standard setting Reset, My Car, Smartphone Integration and Seat Heating. It was easy to use, touch, swipe, press etc. However, I never found the layout that intuitive.
One example of this is the fuel range, which should be displayed on the driver’s display, but it isn’t. I could only find this displayed within My Car, which seemed odd. I could see the fuel level on the digital gauge on the driver’s display, but I had to guess, like we did back in the day, how many km that is. Apart from that, I found that I used Android Auto most of the time, which was well integrated into the system, and came up automatically each time I jumped in. No need for wired connections to the phone, which is great.
Visibility around the cabin is good, where I can’t see out the back, the rear view and top-down 360 camera filled in. Not the sharpest resolutions I have seen on the market, but clear enough to get the job done. From the driver’s seat, the windows felt similar to my Range Rover, lower than most Utes, which meant you have a better viewpoint looking down around the vehicle at the ground, great for offloading.
The tray is like other utes, fitted with a hard plastic deck liner, and it has two hooks at the back of the tray to strap anything down. I would have liked to have seen a few more hooks, maybe two more at the middle of the tray or at the front, as you can never have too many strap-down points for large cargo. The tray’s roller cover was a manual one, fitted as an aftermarket accessory. It can’t be installed with the side wing that the standard T60 comes with, so keep that in mind if you like the default look. The roller cover did its job, however on several occasions it opened and rolled back mid-drive. I was unsure why it kept doing that.
The T60 comes with a full-sized spare wheel that is mounted under the rear of the vehicle. It’s a must for a ute, as the repair kits just won’t cut it for the large all-terrain tyres.
The overall fit and finish of the T60 is far beyond what I had expected, especially for the money they are asking for. Chinese utes are really taking some big leaps, and I have to say that the next generation might be something that really takes us by surprise.
What’s The 2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus Like To Drive?
The new T60 Max Plus appears to do just what it’s meant to do, and it does it rather well when you consider its competition. I have to say that I found the LDV to ride smoother and quieter than most of the ute’s I have tested. Other utes generally need a bit of weight in the back so they can ride better, the T60 was no exception, but it is smoother overall without weight. The engine noise and cabin noise were impressively low for a ute.
The driver’s display is clean and simple, using the right side of the wide LCD screen on the dash, the driver’s display consists of a very simple set of features. You have the speedo on the left, with a fuel gauge, and under the speedo it also displays the gear the vehicle is in. Centrally in the display, it shows an aerial view of the truck on the road and would highlight other cars around when they came within range of the vehicle’s cameras, a bit like the Tesla system.
This would also show where the lanes are, and flash warnings when you move over lanes unexpectedly. On the far right, you have the date, day and time – and that’s it. As I mentioned earlier, I find it a bit odd that I couldn’t get the range in kilometres displayed on this display, I could only find this within one of the menus on the central infotainment area, under My Car.
Did this ute drive well? Yes, it did. Steering is light and direct, and the engine is smooth on its power delivery. I didn’t see much point in having paddle shifters on the steering wheel, as the 8-speed automatic does a great job, very smooth and almost unnoticeable changes. The engine delivers good power, 160kW and 500Nm of torque, which never lets the T60 feel slow off the mark or underpowered in any way. Apart from my Range Rover, it’s one of the quietest diesels I have driven in a while.
The T60 drives well, however some of the safety features were a bit overbearing. The lane assist was one that really bugged me. This is a common feature seen in most new vehicles we test, and I just leave them on, as they should be a background safety feature. The LDV system, almost felt like was too sensitive between the lanes, and even if you got close, it would pull you back to the middle. It was like having something sitting beside you in the front seat, just grabbing at the wheel from time to time. Additionally, you can turn this feature off, however you have to turn it off every time you start the car, thanks to the latest ANCAP safety rating requirements.
The fuel economy of the T60 is a bit of a grey area. Again, you can only find this information under My Car in the central display, which gave me a reading of 9.5 litres per 100km. That is pretty good considering that the advertised consumption is 8.5, I was really not that far off. One thing that did surprise me was that when I parked the T60 outside my house; the street has a bit of a slope to it and I parked it facing down the street. And each day I would come out and jump in, and it read zero fuel. I knew that it was not the case as I got home with 200km range the day before. Once I set off and got moving, the fuel gauge crept back up to where it should have been. It took about 10 minutes to rest, but it only did this when parked on a hill. Something I have not seen in a long time, especially with digital gauges.
LDV have kept it simple with its steering wheel controls, something I do appreciate. On the left you have cruise control and menu selections. And on the right you have media controls, phone and heated steering wheel. It’s a nice touch to have a heated steering wheel, nothing better on a cold morning. Maybe they can add a heated screen next time, as the demisters were very slow at clearing the windscreen on a cold morning, took about 5 minutes to get it up to a temperature where it was starting to clear the screen.
2025 LDV T60 MAX Plus – Specifications
| Vehicle Type | Ute |
| Starting Price | $55,990 |
| Price as Tested | $57,940 |
| Engine | 2.0 bi-turbo diesel Euro V Engine |
| Power, Torque kW/Nm | 160 / 500 |
| Transmission | 8-speed Automatic |
| Spare Wheel | Full Size |
| Kerb Weight, Kg | 2,200 |
| Length x Width x Height mm | 5395 x 2145 x 1819 |
| Fuel tank capacity, litres | 73 |
| Fuel Economy, L/100km | Advertised Spec – Combined – 8.9 Real-World Test – Combined – 9.5 Low Usage: 0-6 / Medium Usage 6-12 / High Usage 12+ |
| Towing Capacity Kg, unbraked/braked | 250 / 3,000 |
| Turning circle metres | 12.6 Small: 6-10m / Medium 10-12m / Large 12m+ |
| Warranty | 7 Year or 200,000km Warranty, including Roadside Assist and WOF |
| Safety information | ANCAP Rating – Unrated Rightcar.govt.nz – 4 Stars – QZG642 |
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