When fledgling Chinese brand Leapmotor's next SUV is coming to Australia

Although Leapmotor just launched in the Australian market with its Tesla Model Y-rivalling C10 mid-size electric SUV, attention is already shifting to what’s coming next.

In October 2024 the Chinese carmaker revealed the B10 small electric SUV, which is a rival to the likes of the BYD Atto 3 and Chery Omoda E5, at the Paris motor show.

At that time Leapmotor announced the B10 was coming to Australia at some point during 2025, and now the company has indicated it will arrive in the later part of this year.

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“[The] B10 is expected to arrive later this year, given it was only announced at the Paris motor show in October last year” said Andy Hoang, head of Leapmotor Australia.

“Closer to that date we will confirm the specs and pricing and things like that.”

The B10 will launch locally after the C10 REEV (Range Extender Electric Vehicle), which is currently slated for the first half of 2025.

As previously reported, the Leapmotor B10 is expected to undercut the C10 in terms of pricing. The C10 currently starts from $45,888 before on-roads.

This means the B10’s starting price could be closer to $40,000 before on-roads, which would put it in contention for the title of Australia’s cheapest electric SUV.

This currently goes to the BYD Atto 3 which now starts at $39,990 before on-roads in the recently launched Essential trim level.

Car News China reported back in December last year the B10 measures 4515mm long, 1885mm wide and 1655mm tall on a 2735mm wheelbase. This makes it 60mm longer, 10mm wider and 40mm taller than a BYD Atto 3, on a 15mm longer wheelbase.

Kerb weight is between 1670kg and 1705kg, while available equipment includes a LiDAR sensor and a surround-view camera.

The filing noted a choice of two electric powertrains – one with 132kW of power, the other with 160kW – though it didn’t include battery specifications or claimed range figures.

At this stage no images of the B10’s interior have been released, but its exterior styling closely mirrors its larger sibling.

Leapmotor is a young company, founded in China in 2015. It exclusively offers EVs and range-extender vehicles, the latter of which also incorporate a combustion engine.

In October 2023, Stellantis announced it would invest €1.5 billion (A$2.5 billion) in Leapmotor, purchasing about 21 per cent of the Chinese carmaker.

It obtained a controlling 51 per cent stake in Leapmotor International, a joint venture between the two carmakers, which is now exporting vehicles to markets like Australia and Europe.

Here, Leapmotor has tapped both Stellantis’ existing dealers plus some new partners. It currently has 12 dealerships across Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory.

Mr Hoang indicated there are plans to double its dealer network by the end of 2025, bringing the network to between 20 and 30 dealers.

“We plan to cover 65 per cent of the Australian segments in the next three years,” Mr Hoang told CarExpert in November last year.

“[We plan to] have up to six models in the next three years.”

In addition to the B10 and C10 SUVs, it plans to offer passenger cars in Australia.

Globally it currently produces passenger cars like the T03 city electric hatch, as well as the C01 electric and range-extender sedan.

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