LEVC L380

FIRST DRIVE Luxury eight-seat electric MPV glides in with a sumptuous, versatile interior, air suspension and a long range

- Mark Rainford

MPVS have very much fallen out of favour in Europe but, for the rich and the famous, premium people-movers like the Mercedes V-Class and Lexus LM remain very much in vogue.

Now LEVC, manufacturer of the iconic TX/TX5 London taxi, is looking to muscle in on the MPV action with its L380, an electric MPV.

It's a big car. So big, in fact, that it's available to order in China with eight seats (UK cars are due in around 18 months). That in itself wouldn't be so surprising but for the fact that those chairs are spread across four rows in a body that's still a few centimetres shorter than a V-Class.

Indeed, such is the practicality of the L380, it comes with not one but two rows of fully reclining captain's chairs, with passengers in the second and third rows both able to lie back, complete with a leg rest, without any compromises. There are also near-two-metre-long rails in the floor that allow all the seats to be spread out, or pushed together for greater storage space.

When specified as an eight-seater, the fourth row seats can fold into the floor electronically, or rotate 90 degrees to enable a so-called 'fishing mode, allowing you to dangle your legs out of the back and catch your lunch in comfort.

These qualities mean the L380 is just as adept at bussing a large family around as it is shuttling the wealthy to their private jets.