When JAC Motors New Zealand launched in May this year, it entered the market with a focus on light-duty electric trucks. When offered the chance to drive one, we leapt at the opportunity to see if our theory of EV trucks buzzing around the city was sound.

It’s hard to say what the mix of propulsion will be as emerging technologies gain more and more traction. However, we reckon EVs in light-duty, metro applications make absolute sense. And so, we borrowed a JAC N60 EV equipped with a flat-deck body and drove it around Tauranga to see what it had to offer.

With a 5990kg GVM, the N60 EV is the smallest vehicle in the five-truck JAC EV range. The ‘60’ indicates the truck’s GVM range, meaning that with a tare mass of 3150kg, this unit offers a payload of 2840kg. Since we couldn’t actually drive around shifting freight, we felt a full IBC (1000L – ~1000kg) would give a fair indication of the truck’s daily capability.

The N60 EV has a wheelbase of 3365mm and a turning circle of 12.2m, and is as manoeuvrable as one would expect of this class of truck. The mirrors are large and provide a good field of view, and JAC also fits a standard reversing camera and radar sensors. It’s also well-equipped with stability control, lane departure warning, auto emergency braking and dual airbags as standard.

Standard comfort features include central locking, auto windows, auto lights, air conditioning and an 8in touchscreen infotainment system.

All JAC EVs are powered by CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd) lithium-iron phosphate batteries, packing 106.95kWh capacity. The drive motor outputs power and torque figures of 65kW/415Nm rated and 130kW/1200Nm peak. Drive is direct to the 6.33:1 rear axle (the largest N90 EV offers higher outputs and a two-speed transmission).

We covered 500km in our five days with the N60 EV (including fetching and returning it to JAC’s base at Southern Autos Manukau). But in pursuit of testing the truck as a daily metro runabout, we topped up the batteries and set out on a route that covered Tauranga’s city and suburban streets with a trip over the Kaimais and back.

Charging from 47% to 100% before setting off took 45 minutes at 80.4kW (JAC says it will charge from 20% to 80% in 48 minutes with a 102kW fast charger). By the end of the afternoon, we had covered 180km and used 74% of the battery capacity, affirming JAC’s claim of over 200km.

A dash-mounded ECO mode switch alters the power delivery under acceleration and energy regeneration when releasing the accelerator, and we used it variably, depending on driving requirements. We found it is particularly effective for managing the truck’s speed and deceleration, using it like a traditional two-stage auxiliary brake to manage pace and even slow down the truck to a crawl.

Around town, the JAC is nippy and easily keeps up with traffic. The electronic park brake takes a bit of getting used to when moving off, and although it features an auto-hold function for hill starts, our preference is a traditional lever for added control.

Tackling the Kaimais – because every now and then, one of these may need to head out of town – it never dropped speed below 70km/h. Engaging and disengaging the ECO switch managed the descent on the Waikato side (adding 3% charge) while heading back to Tauranga leaving it engaged required only the occasional dab of the brakes to prevent over-speeding (adding about 6% charge). While not made for highway journeys, it acquits itself well on the odd outing and recorded an average 72db at 90km/h.

Gripes? The free play in the mirror arms was distracting, the seats are perhaps a bit firm, and the indicator can be too quick to self-cancel. However, the mirror arms can surely be adjusted, the seats should soften with use, and one could adapt to the indicator operation.

Importantly, JAC offers a five-year/200,000km warranty – which outperforms its diesel-engine offering – and so clearly stands behind its EV product. JAC will also assist with grant funding from EECA’s Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund. The N60 EV retails for $148,990 but is eligible for the full $35,000 grant cap.

The JAC N60 EV is well-equipped and easy and smooth to drive, and as a light-duty metro truck, it should be a real alternative in operations with daily distances in the 200km range and charging options available.