It’s amongst a slew of new Chinese brands into our market, but new-to-New Zealand Leapmotor says it has points of difference that will sway buyers to their models.
We were invited to Auckland to check out the new B10 model; it’s a compact SUV that is smaller than the company’s existing model in our market, the C10. You can read our review of that model here.
Leapmotor: Brand awareness
“We are a new brand amongst multiple other new brands,” says Brian Carr, the General Manager of Sales for Auto Distributors New Zealand (ADNZ), who are the agents for the brand in this country. “Our first goal is to let people know who we are and to get visibility on the road, then build confidence in our future products.”
Apparently Leapmotor is now available in 30 countries, with the company being founded by an electrical engineer not too long ago, in 2015. Their first car was launched just 4 years after that, in 2019, indicating the current ability of companies to get a model to market very quickly – from nothing.
The B10 is one of the company’s best-selling models in China, with 60,000 units being sold to date in 2025.
“We are here for the long term,” says Brian.
The company has a major focus on R&D, and proudly claims that 65% of the vehicle is developed and built in-house, keeping the cost-per-unit lower than its competitors.
In 2022, they developed ‘chassis to cell technology’, with the battery held within the chassis for better driving and lower centre of gravity. In 2023, the huge Stellantis group took a major shareholding in Leapmotor, cementing its ability to distribute cars around the world.
That means 700 dealers worldwide, and the company built its one-millionth car in 2025, just 6 years after its beginning. To date in 2025, sales are 8% ahead of the same point in 2024.
2025 Leapmotor B10: Features, cost, and drivetrain
The new model has an LFP battery pack, and has vehicle to load (V2L) capability, so (for example) in a power cut, you can run appliances from the car’s battery pack.
Drive is through the rear wheels only, with two models available in New Zealand:
Life – $44,990
Design – $49,990
There is a launch special price of $42,990 for the Life, and $47,990 for the Design, with no specific date of cut-off yet. Obviously Leapmotor and ADNZ are keen to get the car seen out in the wild, to encourage more visibility of the brand here.
Mechanically, the difference is in the battery size, with the Life model having a 56kWh battery pack, and the Design’s is 67kWh. Both accelerate to 100km/h in 8 seconds, with the range of the cheaper model listed at 361km, and the Design at 434km.
While the Life version has a lot of standard equipment, the Design adds items such as a 12-speaker audio system, electric tailgate, automatic wipers, rear privacy glass, as well as electrically heated, cooled and adjusted front seats. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto will not be available until December this year, or possibly January 2026.
There are 6 colours to choose from, but only white is free; all other colour options attract additional cost.
The Life will take a maximum of a 140kW charge, with the Design at 168kW.
The model is going through ANCAP safety testing at the moment, and the tow rating is listed at 750Kg (unbraked). Boot space is 430 litres with the rear seats up, and 1,700 with them down.
Leapmotor says that the chassis is tuned using Stellantis’ Chassis Master Team, so it should be good, but we will book one in to review as soon as possible.
The Leapmotor B10 comes with a 4-year warranty.
2025 Leapmotor B10: Drive impressions
We’d only get 15 minutes as a passenger in the car, and then a 15-minute drive, so this would account for very brief driving impressions.
First up, how does the car look? It’s certainly got good proportions, with a current and fresh design that could well win over some buyers. The slimline front panel housing the headlights looks very 2025, and flush-fitting panels give a sense of build quality. This is a good-looking compact SUV.
As a passenger, the car seems well-built and has that very high centre console that seems to be popular at the moment. We did have some issues getting our car started; the B10 comes with a credit card-sized NFC key, and we couldn’t get it to work without help. Once started, we headed out to the driver-change point. The car seems to restrict road and tyre noise very well and the drive seems pretty smooth. I went to put the window down, but just like we found on the recent Geely launch, the window controls seemed reversed; up is down and down is up. I have no idea why some Chinese brands are doing this.
Fifteen minutes later and I’m in the driver’s seat. The steering wheel controls are almost exactly like a Tesla, and like a Tesla, you’ll need to go to the centre screen to adjust things like exterior mirrors.
Off the mark, this car is very peppy with its 160kW electric motor that manages 240Nm of torque. The driver assist systems still feel a bit overbearing, so we turn them off for the rest of the drive.
After ten minutes of driving, I get a warning that I might be fatigued, and should pull over for a cup of coffee. I’m a sucker for any excuse for a coffee, but ten minutes’ driving feels a bit harsh. We click on the ‘off’ notice on the screen, but it keeps coming back.
Regardless, the car seems to drive well, and rides well too. Our driving was straight onto the motorway and then a little suburban driving, so not really taxing on the car at all.
2025 Leapmotor B10: Launch summary
First impressions are generally good; here is another Chinese compact SUV that is very well equipped, seems to drive well, and is excellently priced.
As always, we want to live with this car for a week to see what it’s really like, before we make a judgement call.
But as a taster, the B10 brings a good offering to the market for those who might want to dip their toes into the EV water, for that second car in the garage.
More information: www.leapmotor.net/nz
