The dream of a Mazda-badged electric “multitruck” has officially hit a wall. While speculators hoped Mazda would leverage its partnership with China’s Changan to disrupt the Australian ute market with the Deepal E07, the company has shut the door firmly: it’s not happening.
- The Denial: Mazda Australia has explicitly confirmed there are no plans to introduce the Deepal E07 Multitruck.
- The Utility Gap: Despite its futuristic look, the E07 is a “ute-ified” SUV with a heavy 80kWh battery that compromises actual payload and towing capacities.
- Strategic Pivot: Mazda is focusing its EV efforts on the 6e liftback and CX-6e SUV, prioritizing urban mobility over heavy-duty utility.
To understand why Mazda is passing on what looks like a “no-brainer,” you have to look past the futuristic renders and into the brutal reality of the Australian “tradie” economy. Australia is one of the few markets globally where the utility vehicle is king, but the requirements are strict: payload, towing, and ruggedness. The Deepal E07 is a lifestyle accessory masquerading as a tool.
The E07 attempts to evolve the classic coupe-utility formula pioneered by Ford decades ago, blending a five-seat SUV cabin with a rear bed. However, in the tech world, we call this “feature creep” without a core value proposition. By slapping a massive 80kWh battery into an SUV chassis and cutting a hole for a bed, the vehicle becomes too heavy to be a useful ute and too expensive to be a sensible SUV. With price points reaching $74,000 for the AWD version, it doesn’t compete with the BT-50—it competes with Mazda’s own premium CX-60 and CX-90 SUVs, potentially cannibalizing its own sales.
Furthermore, the market data is damning. Only 66 units of the E07 were registered in Australia during its first three months on sale. For a segment as massive as the Australian ute market, that isn’t a “slow start”—it’s a rejection of the concept.
The Forward Look: Where Mazda Goes From Here
Mazda is currently a “comparative minnow” in the global EV race, lacking the deep pockets of Toyota or Tesla. Their survival strategy relies heavily on the Changan partnership to fast-track EV entries like the 6e and CX-6e. However, the E07 debacle proves that “rebadging” Chinese tech only works when the product fits the local utility profile.
Expect Mazda to double down on their relationship with Isuzu for the BT-50’s diesel dominance for the foreseeable future. They won’t risk their brand equity on a “lifestyle” EV ute that can’t haul a proper load. The real shift will only happen when battery density improves enough to allow for a purpose-built electric chassis that doesn’t sacrifice payload for range. Until then, the “Multitruck” remains a curious concept—a tech demo that failed the ultimate Australian stress test.
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