Deepal reveals 900km range-extender dual-cab electric ute, a chance for Australia

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The Deepal Hunter K50 – with a claimed 900km range – has been revealed at the 2025 Bangkok Motor Show in Thailand as a potential electrified showroom rival to the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux in Australia.

And it is a chance for Australia, after the Deepal Hunter name was trademarked locally.

The Deepal K50 Hunter is a rebadged version of the Changan Hunter – with Deepal owned by Changan – which the car maker claims is the world's first range-extender ute.

A 'range extender electric vehicle' (REEV) uses an electric motor/s to drive its wheels but has an internal combustion engine on board acting as a generator to top up the battery – extending the range.

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The closest thing to range-extender cars on sale in Australia – since the BMW i3 city car launched here in 2014 was discontinued – are hybrid Nissan SUVs such as the X-Trail e-Power, but unlike the Deepal ute, they cannot be plugged in.

The Deepal K50 Hunter has a front axle electric motor producing 70kW/150Nm and a rear axle motor delivering 130kW/320Nm, making it all-wheel drive.

A 135kW 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel is used to charge a 31.18kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery.

A combined fuel economy claim of 1.3L/100km includes 131km of electric range (without the petrol engine kicking in) before a total driving distance of 900km overall from a 70L fuel tank.

The K50 Hunter can also be plugged in for fast charging of up to 41kW, with 10 to 80 per cent battery replenishment in 30 minutes.

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The Deepal has a 3180mm wheelbase – compared to a Ford Ranger XLT dual-cab's 3270mm – but at 5380mm is 10mm longer, is 70mm wider and is 3mm taller.

The five-seat dual cab has a tray area of 1590/1580/490mm (length, width and height) giving it a wider opening than a Ranger XLT's 1393mm.

Behind 18-inch wheels is an independent multi-link coil-spring rear suspension set-up, where most dual cabs in Australia use leaf springs which can carry more load but are not as quiet or comfortable for rear passengers.

Towing and payload figures were not included in the information released with its unveiling.

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The cabin includes perforated leather-look upholstery with aluminium-look inlays and space-saving electronic park brake, a 7.5-inch digital instrument cluster and a 12.3-inch infotainment centre display with 360-degree camera and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone compatibility.

If it is to make it to Australia, it will need additional driver assist technology, as while it has six airbags, Brake Assist (BA), Electronic Stability Control (ESP) and Hill Descent Control, it doesn't have including autonomous emergency braking (AEB) which is mandatory on all new cars sold in Australia.

That's in part due to the basis of the K50 Hunter – the Peugeot Landtrak – being made as a cut-price utility vehicle for Latin America, where safety standards are behind Europe's, for example, by as much as 20 years according to the Global Health Advocacy Incubator.

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Changan and Peugeot are long-term partners, forming a joint venture (JV) to develop and produce vehicles together in 2010.

Adding tech for Australia may increase the K50 Hunter's ฿1,099,000 ($AU51,125) price, which in Thailand is slightly more than the Ford Ranger Wildtrak 4×2 at ฿1,094,000 ($AU50,892).

Deepal parent company Changan is one of China's largest automotive companies, with Deepal already on sale in Australia and Changan expected later in 2025.

Deepal will display its Tesla Cybertruck-like E07 and the Deepal S07 SUV at this weekend's Melbourne Motor Show.

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