B10: Leapmotor’s play for the South African mass market

Leapmotor has added a second model to its South African line-up, with the B10 compact SUV opening for order on Tuesday from R499 900 – some R260 000 below the C10 that launched the brand locally in October.

The B10 uses the same range-extender architecture as the C10 that Stellantis brought to South Africa last year . Despite the “hybrid EV” badge, the wheels are driven only by the electric motor. The 1.5 l petrol engine is never mechanically connected to them and works purely as a generator, topping up the battery when the charge runs down.

The trade-off against the C10 is battery size. The B10 carries an 18.8kWh pack good for up to 86km on electricity alone, against the C10’s 145km, though the range extender lifts combined range to about 900km. Leapmotor claims combined fuel consumption of 0.9 l /100km. The electric motor produces 158kW.

Both derivatives get vehicle-to-load, letting the car power external appliances off its battery — a useful feature in a market still living with load shedding. Drive is to the rear wheels, unusual at this price in a compact SUV, and the 18.8kWh lithium iron phosphate pack takes 20 minutes to go from 30% to 80% on a DC charger, peaking at 46kW. On a household three-pin plug the same top-up takes four to six hours. The battery carries its own eight-year or 150 000km warranty, separate from the vehicle’s five years and 100 000km.

South African buyers are getting a different B10 from the one that made headlines internationally. The version that drew attention abroad is a full battery-electric SUV with lidar-based driver assistance priced under US$18 000. The local car is the range-extender variant, and the launch material makes no mention of lidar.

Inside, the B10 gets a 14.6-inch 2.5K touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Leapmotor app handles remote locking, pre-departure air conditioning, battery and range checks, driving statistics, charge scheduling, and over-the-air software updates.

Safety kit runs to seven airbags and a claimed 17 driver-assistance systems, with a five-star Euro NCAP rating. When TechCentral drove the C10 in Spain ahead of its local launch , the car impressed on technology, comfort and performance, but its driver-assistance system was noticeably overeager – worth watching on a model carrying 17 of them.

Two derivatives are offered, Style at R499 900 and Design at R549 900, with five exterior colours and two interior themes. The R50 000 step-up buys comfort rather than capability. Both cars get the panoramic sunroof, 360-degree camera, 18-inch alloys and the full driver-assistance suite.

Design adds leather seats, heated and ventilated electrically adjustable front seats, a heated steering wheel, electric tailgate, rain-sensing wipers, privacy glass, 64-colour ambient lighting, folding mirrors and 12 speakers in place of six.

Stellantis took a stake of about 20% in Leapmotor in 2023 and holds 51% of Leapmotor International, the joint venture selling the brand outside China.