EV powered's Matt Allan with the Munro M-Series

Driven: Munro M-Series prototype

October 16, 2025 Matt Allan

The Munro M-Series aims to be the world’s most capable all-electric 4×4. We head off road to see how it measures up

The past decade of innovation has proved that EVs are brilliant at a great many things. Whether it’s delivering silent luxury, smashing speed records or plugging away on construction sites, electric power is at the forefront.

However, it is yet to make its mark in the world of “proper” 4x4s. There are plenty of all-wheel-drive EVs out there, some with “off-road” driving modes. There are electric pick-ups trucks too. But there’s nothing in the vein of an old-school Land Rover or the current crop of rugged diesel pick-up trucks. Nothing electric that can plough its way across hillsides or through quarries with a literal tonne of detritus in the back.

And that’s where Munro EV hopes to step in with its M-Series. You can read what CEO Russell Peterson had to say about the company and its ambitions here, but for now we’re concentrating on the “car”, which EV Powered got an early drive of recently.

Right tool for the job

It’s not really a car though, Peterson describes it as a “tool”. This is a purpose-built all-electric 4×4 designed to perform in the most hostile working environments. It aims to blend hardcore off-road ability with smooth, quiet and dependable electric power.

At the heart of it all is a single electric motor with up to 375bhp and 516lb ft sending its power and torque to all four wheels via an old-school two-speed transfer box. The thinking is that you get the seamless delivery and minute controllability of electric power allied to proven four-wheel-drive hardware that is cheap and easy to maintain.

That’s all packaged in a platform design to be put to work in forestry operations, mines and mountain rescue.

Under the skin there’s a traditional ladder frame chassis with coil-sprug live axles and underbody protection. Ground clearance is a whopping 480mm (a Toyota Hilux tops out at 330mm) and wading depth is 800mm. Short overhangs allow an approach angle of 84 degrees, departure angle of 51 degrees and breakover of 148 degrees. All of which prove what you can achieve if you prioritise off-road ability above all else.

That off-road focus is clear in the M-Series’s design. It’s big, bluff and, frankly, a bit weird looking. Form follows function with flat aluminium body panels, square edges and peculiar in-set LED lights. Everything is coated in a scratch-resistant finish and there are definite old-school Defender vibes. Depending on your needs, Munro can supply an SUV-style Utility body, crew cab pick-up or two-door chassis cab with various configurable body styles.

At 4.59m long, the M-Series is roughly the same length as a family SUV like the Skoda Enyaq. But it is 2m tall, 1.8m wide and with a massive 3.25m wheelbase that creates acres of space for a crew of five and allows the Utility model to offer 1,600 litres of cargo space in its load bed.

The M-Series’ interior is deliberately spartan. It is a vehicle designed to deliver what users need with none of the fripperies of modern “lifestyle” trucks or SUVs.

Munro M-Series interior picture — The Munro M-Series interior keeps things simple

The floor can be hosed down, the door pulls are big chunks of billet aluminium and there’s hard-wearing leather on the five individual seats. The instruments are a basic digital speedo while the heater controls are two big simple dials and there are chunky rocker switches for most other functions. There are some concessions to comfort, not least heated seats for everyone and an Android Auto screen that doubles as a monitor for the reversing camera.

Our test car still features lots of elements that feel “prototype-y” but give an indication of the focus of the vehicle. Touchpoints feel solid in the way you’d want – not the slightly flimsy buttons and dials of some current commercial pick-ups.

Running up that hill

There are two powertrain options for the M-Series. The M170 uses a 223bhp version of the motor, with 443lb ft of torque. The M280 gets 375bhp and 516lb ft for greater towing capacity.

Both use an 85kWh LFP battery that Munro says was chosen for its durability, stability and ability to function better in extreme temperatures than NMC chemistry. Range for both versions is estimated at 170 miles on road or 16 hours of use off-road. DC charging of 130kW allows a 15-80% top-up in 30 minutes.

From the wheel, all those stats come together in a seriously competent package. Drumclog Off-Road Centre, where we tested it, is the sort of place where you see everything from trail bikes to Unimogs. It’s 1,600 acres of rutted, mud-soaked valleys, boggy flatlands and vertiginous rock-strewn slopes. The terrain changes day by day and hour by hour and proves a stern test for our M-Series.

Thankfully, the massive suspension travel, extreme axle articulation and huge ground clearance mean that the Munro can handle deep ruts, cloying mud and sudden shifts in terrain with relative ease. The short overhangs mean it can scrabble over steep ascents and descents like a (very heavy) mountain goat and the linear electric drive makes it easy to make steady, safe progress.

There’s a seamlessness to the power delivery that’s familiar to any EV driver and replaces the sometimes peaky feel of an ICE 4×4. It makes ploughing through the mud or up a rutted slope deceptively easy – pick your line, squeeze the throttle and let the mechanical bits underneath pull you through.

There are no fancy drive modes, just the choice of high- or low-range to keep things simple for operators. A hill descent function is always there to keep things steady on tricky downhills. But that’s it for driver aids.

For all of its 21st-century powertrain, the M-Series feels much closer to a classic Defender than Solihull’s current £90k Chelsea Tractors.

Practicality at a price

Equipped with the more powerful of the two motor options the Munro M-Series will carry up to a tonne of cargo or tow up to 3.5 tonnes – the current default numbers for any true “utility vehicle”.

All that capability comes at a cost and explains, partly, why the M-Series can do things that electric pick-up trucks from established brands can’t.

Prices start at £69,662 (Exc VAT) for the M170 Utility and rise to £82,495 (Exc VAT) for the M280. You can then build from there with accessories such as extra heaters and roof racks or bespoke fit-out services for lights, beacons, winches and more.

Munro argues that operators will easily make their money back in saved costs. It estimates that operational costs are 60% lower than an equivalent diesel vehicle. There’s also the small matter of a 4.5-tonne saving on CO2 emissions every year.

With operators looking to cut their corporate emissions, that’s an attractive prospect. So, too is the ability to charge vehicles using on-site generation at remote locations, saving costs on diesel shipped in from outside at great expense.

Verdict

Munro EV is clear that the M-Series is not a vehicle for everyone. It’s a niche tool intended for specialist markets.

Within that context it feels like it hits the brief. It’s spacious and practical and delivers the benefits of an electric drivetrain without compromising on capability.