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By Jonathan Crouch

Leapmotor aims to add a dash of charisma to its line-up with this compact B03X small EV crossover. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 24

Chinese maker Leapmotor tries its hand at a supermini-based compact electric crossover with this B03X. Can it offer more than just practicality and value?

Backgroundword count: 189

It's probably fair to say that Leapmotor has yet to capture the hearts of European buyers. But it's fifth model for our continent, this B03X, is a small EV crossover that aims to pair practicality and value with a dash of added character. It's called the A10 in China, but (because Audi owns that badge elsewhere in the world) adopts its development codename (B03X) for Europe. With so many recently launched Chinese car makers jostling for a slice of the UK market, it's ever more vital to stand out and so far, Leapmotor hasn't really done so. We'd expected that part-ownership by European conglomerates Stellantis (who also distribute the Leapmotor models through their dealerships) would have made this marque one of the most Western-feeling of the new wave of Chinese makers. But there wasn't much evidence of that in the company's first four models after its 2024 launch here. With the B03X though, the designers and engineers have clearly sat down and thought carefully about what a European owner wanting a really compact electric crossover might need as a 'want one' factor. How successful have they been? Let's see.

Driving Experienceword count: 288

Our market gets the bigger of the two batteries offered on this car in China, a 53kWh LFP pack offering a supposed range of 237 miles. It's bolted to Leapmotor's A platform (as used in the B03 supermini) and energises a front-mounted motor putting a not-insubstantial 197bhp through the front wheels. Expect the low rolling resistance Yokohama BlueEarth GT tyres to occasionally struggle with the 200Nm of torque this generates and you'd be doing well to replicate the modest quoted 8.6s 0-62mph sprint time except in very dry conditions. Top speed is an irrelevant 99mph. The lifeless steering has attracted plenty of adverse comment, but likely customers for this car are unlikely to care much. After all, this isn't the model in this segment you'd choose if you really like your driving. The helm is as light in town as you'd want it to be and has three (rather pointless) settings - Normal, Sport or Comfort. There are three drive modes (Comfort, Standard and Sport). And three regenerative braking settings, including a dedicated 'one-pedal' mode. There's nothing very sophisticated in terms of suspension - just a simple rear torsion beam arrangement. So despite the comfort-orientated set-up, don't expect a particularly absorbent low-speed ride. You could live with this but you might struggle a little more with the rather intrusive ADAS systems - there are no fewer than 17 of them, admonishing you with everything from a vibrating steering wheel to irritating bings and bonds. Realistically, you'd have to put aside time before each journey to delve into the centre screen menus and disable some of the features. Leapmotor really needs to work on this. And exercise its ties with Stellantis to create a slightly more driver-centric roadgoing experience.

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