For the time being, the B10 will only be offered as a REEV and without the fully-electric powertrains available in China and Europe.
Announced for South Africa in May this year, Stellantis-backed Leapmotor officially launches its second model in South Africa, the B10, this week.
First revealed in China last year, the smaller sibling of the C10 also becomes South Africa’s new most affordable range-extending electric vehicle (REEV), an accolade held by the former until now.
Sourced from Leapmotor’s Jinhua plant and not the Zaragoza facility in Spain that also produces the Opel Corsa and Peugeot 208, the five-seat B10 rides on the same Leap 3.5 platform as the C10, but with the following dimensions:
Length
: 4 515mm
Wheelbase
: 2 735mm
Height
: 1 655mm
Width
: 1 885mm
The B10 is classified as a crossover instead of a hatchback. Picture: Leapmotor
Along with a ground clearance of 170mm, the B10, which Leapmotor describes as a hybrid EV and not a REEV, has a claimed boot space of 420-litres, which increases to 1 415-litres with the rear seats folded down.
As is already known, the B10 range comprises two variants, Style and Design, both powered by an 18.8-kWh battery pack driving a single electric motor on the rear axle.
Adding to this is the same normally aspirated 1.5-litre petrol engine as the C10, whose 50kW/125Nm is used solely as a generator.
Topping up the battery can, however, still be done via a traditional plug-in hybrid method and not solely through the engine.
Paired to a Dedicated Hybrid Transmission (DHT), the setup develops 158kW/240Nm, which translates to an electric-only range of 86km, a combined of 900 km with the combustion engine included, and 0-100km/h in 7.5 seconds. The claimed top speed is 170km/h.
Supporting DC charging up to 46kW will require a waiting time of 20 minutes from 30-80%, and six hours when plugged into an AC outlet up to 6.6kW.
For the time being, the all-electric models available in China and Europe have not been approved for the South African market.
On the spec front, the entry-level Style has the following as standard:
On the safety and driver assistance side, the Style has:
Taking prominence inside is the 14.6-inch infotainment display. Picture: Leapmotor
Building on the Style, the Design receives rain sense wipers, an electric tailgate and a 12-speaker sound system.
Also standard is:
In total, six colours can be selected:
For the Design, a choice of two imitation leather colours are offered; Shadow Grey or Light Grey, with the Style having grey fabric as standard.
Included with each B10’s price tag is a five-year/100 000km warranty, a service plan over the same mileage and timeframe, and an eight-year/150 000km battery warranty.
