Farizon SV review: Going after Green Van Man

Can the Farizon SV deliver practicality, quality and performance to rival the very best one-tonne electric vans?

The electric van market is still in a tricky place. Fleet buyers and small owner-operators still need convinced that a battery-powered van is right for their business.

All the major European van makers are working hard to make the case for battery over diesel and, like the passenger car market, there are a growing number of Chinese brands looking to muscle in too.

These include Farizon, which is hoping to steal business from the likes of Ford, Peugeot and Vauxhall with its segment-straddling Farizon SV and the recently announced V7E.

With prices starting at £44,000 and body sizes ranging from the Ford E-Transit Custom-like L1H1 to the full-sized E-Transit-rivalling L2H2, Farizon is hoping the SV has a model to suit everyone.

Design, interior and technology

There really is only so much you can do with the basic panel van shape to make individual models stand out.

Like every alternative, the SV has a short snout, long mostly flat flanks and an upright rear end with twin 270-degree-hinged rear barn doors. It also gets a single pavement-side sliding door as standard.

To help distinguish it from rivals, the SV gets a gloss black “mask” beneath the windscreen, housing a light-up Farizon badge and slim LED headlights. It also comes in some unusual colours, including my test van’s rather fetching Bamboo Green.

Inside, Farizon will tell you the SV is more comfortable and more high-tech than its rivals.

It’s certainly comfortable enough, with decent space for a driver and two passengers, and reasonably supportive seats. The cabin is fairly bright and has a simple, obvious layout to it, with two digital screens, and two banks of physical buttons. It has a decent under-seat storage space and a couple of smaller cubbies in the dashboard, but compared with European rivals, there’s a lack of storage for the odds and ends that accumulate in any van. It also only has two cupholders and, like the in-dash storage, these can’t be used if there’s a passenger in the middle seat.

In a victory for practicality, heating systems are controlled via proper buttons on the dashboard, as are various other basic functions. However, the controls don’t feel particularly robust – a trait shared with quite a lot of the cabin materials.

Every version of the SV gets a 12.3-inch infotainment screen supporting Apple and Android phone connectivity. The screen is a usable size but the underlying software is laggy, basic and unresponsive.

Predictably, the Farizon’s driver “assistance” systems are over-zealous and inaccurate, so you’ll be diving into that screen to deactivate them every trip.

Battery, motor and performance

The Farizon SV comes with just one motor – a 228bhp unit mounted at the front wheels – and a choice of three batteries.

The massive L3H3 variant gets a 106kWh NMC battery as standard, while the smaller models get a choice of 67kWh or 83kWh LFP units.

In my L1H1 test vehicle with the larger LFP battery, Farizon claims a range of 234 miles and efficiency of 2.55m/kWh.

In real-world mostly unladen use, my test van managed 2.58m/kWh. That translates to a range of around 214 miles. Charging for the smaller battery tops out at 120kW, while the bigger battery gets a respectable 140kW capability, giving a 20-80% charge in 36 minutes.

Performance from the 228bhp/248lb ft motor is quick enough for a van of its size, with decent low-speed poke for nipping around the city. The only thing holding it back is an unpredictable throttle map that makes smooth progress tricky.

Part of the SV’s high-tech pitch is that all the controls are “by-wire”, including the throttle, steering and brakes. On the braking front, the pedal feels perfectly natural and there are three stages of regeneration. However, like the throttle, these are poorly calibrated and there’s no fully off or full one-pedal mode. The steering, too, feels fairly natural and has more weight and feedback than most Chinese passenger cars.

Panel vans aren’t famed for their refinement and it certainly isn’t one of the SV’s strongest suit. The ride itself is firm but just about acceptable and the boominess from the load space isn’t too bad but elsewhere it’s a noisy affair. At low speed the pedestrian warning sound creeps into the cabin while at higher speeds there’s an ever-present and intrusive whine from the motor.

Payload and practicality

The SV comes in five configurations covering three lengths and three heights.

Across its multiple variants, the Farizon SV offers payloads between 1,045kg and 1,350kg, which puts it among the best in its class, and which can be monitored via those clever on-board scales. All variants can tow two tonnes, while cargo volume ranges from 6.95m³ in the tested L1H1 to 13m³ for the L3.

The load space is big and easy to access thanks to a low floor level and, in my test van, the optional 270-degree opening rear doors. Unlike some rivals, there’s only a single sliding side door and no option for a second slider.

Price and specification

Prices for the Farizon SV start at £44,000 before VAT and rise to £55,000.

The entry price is for the L1H1 with the 67kWH battery. The 83kWH battery I tested starts at £47,000. As with all electric vans of its size, the SV currently qualifies for the £5,000 Plug-in Van Grant.

And as with a lot of imports from the East, the SV comes with all the bells and whistles as standard – from adaptive cruise control and 360-degree parking camera to heated and cooled seats, LED lights and a heated front screen.

Every Farizon SV also comes with the “Big 4” offer for retail customers. That includes a four-year warranty, four years’ servicing, four years’ roadside assistance and 4,000 miles’ worth of free charging in the form of a £940 credit on a charging card.

Verdict

With a price and specification like that, the Farizon SV is a competitive offering from this newcomer brand.

Its payload, capacity and range also put it squarely in the mix and make it worthy of consideration.

However, it is let down by poor cabin design and construction and a slightly questionable driving experience, which might send buyers towards their local Ford or Renault dealership.

Farizon SV L1H1

• Price: £47,000 excl VAT (£43,850 as tested and including PIVG)
• Powertrain: Single-motor, front-wheel-drive
• Battery: 83kWh
• Power: 228bhp
• Torque: 248lb ft
• Top speed: 84mph
• 0-62mph: 12 seconds
• Range: 234miles
• Consumption: 2.55m/kWh
• Charging: up to 140kW

Rivals

• Ford E-Transit Custom – The OG one-tonne panel van and still the one to beat thanks to its smart cabin and recent powertrain upgrades
• Kia PV5 Cargo – If load capacity is less of a concern, the PV5 feels smarter and better made than the Farizon and comes with the backing of one of the biggest names in the UK auto scene.
• Renault Master – Bigger and better than the Farizon but cheaper too. And if it’s too big, there’s new Trafic on the way that promises to be just as good