I think the Leapmotor B10 might be budget electric motoring done right | Stuff

Introduction

There are oodles of options in the crossover SUV arena right now and here’s another; the Leapmotor B10. It’s a Chinese brand part owned by Stellantis, which in itself has many of the rival options pitched directly at it, including the Peugeot e-2008, Vauxhall Mokka Electric, Alfa Romeo Junior and Jeep Avenger. Other obvious contenders for your mid-market custom are the Ford Puma Gen-E or Hyundai Kona Electric, not to mention the perennially popular MG S5.

That’s why I approached my road test of the Leapmotor B10, seen here in the Design model variant destined for the UK market, with a little trepidation. On face value, it looks good, but I wondered if it might be a tad on the generic side. Well, it is a bit, but there was also plenty I liked about it. I’d already driven the tiny Leapmotor T03 city car and thought that worked well enough. Best of all, though, like that model, the Leapmotor B10 comes with a very tempting price.

There doesn’t appear to be too much skimping on the quality for your £29,995 either. Sure, my test car had a set of budget Linglong tyres and a touchscreen that was comprehensive but fiddly to use that suggested an air of compromise. But, on the upside, the Leapmotor B10 had an interior that I got along with very well indeed. It felt, well, surprisingly premium, even if the exterior looks are a little on the forgettable side.

The styling

Walking around the Leapmotor B10 for the first time, I thought it looked… okay. The vibe is minimalist and fuss-free with a shape that is presumably executed to provide as much of an aerodynamic edge as can be possible for a crossover SUV-type thing. I particularly like the way the light bar works under the bonnet and the front end is perhaps the most identifiable part. There are flourishes here and there, like the black pods at the back of the front wing. Meanwhile, the wheels could be from anything.

I like what Leapmotor has done with the interior of this car, more so than the exterior styling. It’s a little bit quirky, with some interesting design touches that help lift it from the norm. Most work I think, although I did wonder if the small openings that run along the dashboard on the passenger side were a smart move as they seemed just about right for accommodating a small child’s hand with the potential for getting stuck as a result.

However, the use of materials is quite impressive, with the door cards feeling impressively spongy and premium compared to some rivals that almost seem to use one slab of plastic for the whole construction. There’s 64-colour ambient lighting that offers an uplifting glow to proceedings in lower light conditions too, which helps raise the bar somewhat. I thought the seats were very comfortable and accommodating too, with heated and ventilated options in the front, topped with a heated steering wheel.

I was also very impressed with the generous levels of room found inside the Leapmotor B10, with rear seat space good, including room under the front seats for feet. The boot space, at 430-litres, will be fine for many, though buyers craving more will need to look at the many rivals.

The drive

What I liked about that little Leapmotor T03 was that I knew exactly what I was getting. The same can be said for the rear-wheel drive Leapmotor B10. It turned out to be quite predictable and followed a theme that’s quite common with quite a lot of Chinese output, in that the car feels relatively fine in a straight line but was less happy on curvy roads. Central to this was the slightly woolly feel of the steering, which was very light and far from positive. I’d like to see that tightened up a bit if I’m honest as it felt like the weakest link.

Of course, settings can be tweaked so it was possible to switch into Sport mode, but this had to be done via the touchscreen and wasn’t immediately obvious, so I tended to stick with the standard mode. There’s not a huge amount of power, but for family-focused owners the Leapmotor B10 delivers everything needed to get through dally drives without too much fuss. The drive selector is a column shifter affair, which I quite liked, while other core controls are centered around the screen, which I didn’t.

While those Linglongs didn’t like the bends, they didn’t howl too much when I was on the straight and narrow stuff, although I did detect some wind noise down the sides that could have been from either the mirrors or the window surrounds. Overall, though, the Leapmotor B10 is decent enough, with a fairly genteel 0-62mph time of 8 seconds and a top speed of 106 mph being much the same as many other average EVs in this bracket.

The technology

It didn’t come as any real surprise to find the Leapmotor B10 centred everything around the 14.6in touchscreen that dominates the middle of the dash. It’s a landscape affair and the resolution is of a good standard. Less great is the amount of information that is quite small, which for controls that need quick and easy access, proved frustrating on the go. I dipped inside the screen menus and found loads of options in there, but things like drive modes and other crucial setup options proved frustrating to use.

What tends to happen with cars like this is that I just put up with what I’ve got, rather than risk tweaking on the go. Hardly progress, is it? I couldn’t really fault the package of tech though, which features wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. I was also surprised, nay, amazed at how good the bespoke satellite navigation was. The polite but meticulous voice issued some deliciously precise commands, which helped, although on some occasions it felt like she’d taken a coffee break and told me the instruction too late. Overall, mind, this was a hit, which can’t be said for many cars. I could have done without some of the novelty infotainment items, even though they’re trying their best to inject a bit of fun into the interior feel.

In practical terms though, the tech delivers well enough when it comes to the 360-degree camera system, while the suite of driver assistance tools was also right on the money. Thankfully, silencing the more annoying features was a doddle too. All good. The audio system, incidentally, was acceptable rather than dazzling but what do you expect for this sort of cash?

Leapmotor B10 verdict

I like the simplicity of the Leapmotor B10. It’s going to be perfect for buyers on a budget who want a decent level of specification, without needing much in the way of inspirational design. That interior works well I think, and I can live with the exterior too, although it’d probably be quite hard to find in a busy car park. Seriously though, there’s a lot here for the money, which is all some people care about in the financially stretched times we live in.

If those Leapmotor engineers can tighten up the handling a touch, then I’d be even more behind this car. As it stands though, the Leapmotor B10 is a very respectable arrival.

Leapmotor B10 technical specifications