2024 Leapmotor C10 review: Can this cheaper alternative to the Model Y tempt you from a Tesla?
If you have a penchant for Chinese electric cars, you must feel like you’ve won the damn lottery in Australia, such is the hailstorm of cheaper-than-their-rivals offerings currently making dents in our new-car market.
MG, GWM, BYD. Ok, we know them. But then there’s Zeekr, Xpeng, Deepal, Chery, Jaecoo, Geely — the list goes on and on.
The next to arrive is Leapmotor, which will be offering the C10 in Australia from November. The company was only founded in 2015, and didn’t even produce a vehicle until 2019, but already the brand is a big player in China, and is targeting 500,000 global sales per annum by 2030.
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But to do half a million, it would need more than China. Enter, then, Stellantis (of Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot and Citroen fame). The auto giant took a sizeable chunk of Leapmotor’s Chinese business, and then signed a 51/49 (in Stellantis’ favour) international distribution joint venture to bring Leapmotor to the world.
Its first global product is this C10 — a Tesla Model Y-sized electric SUV that offers oodles of space, and plenty of value.
Come November, you’ll be able to buy the C10 from Jeep dealerships in Australia, and at a price that seriously undercuts the Model Y.
2024 Leapmotor C10 price and equipment
We don’t know officially pricing, but we do know you should be able to shave around $10k off the cost of a Tesla Model Y, with the Leapmotor C10 expected to land at around $45k for the Style and $49k for the Design.
As I type, the often fluctuating price of the Tesla Model Y is listed at more like $55k, meaning there are real savings to be found here.
And you get plenty of stuff. Style cars arrive with 18-inch alloys, LED lighting all around and a credit-card style key, or a phone app, to get in and go.
In the cabin, there’s a big panoramic glass roof with an automatic sun shade, dual-zone climate control, electric front seats, a 10.25-inch driver display and a 14.6-inch central screen with in-built nav and a 12-speaker stereo. Be warned, there’s no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, which will be introduced next year sometime, but won’t be able to retrofitted.
Design cars add 20-inch alloys, automatic boot opening and heating and ventilation for the front seats. It’s worth pointing out that, in Europe, there’s only a 1300 Euro price difference between the models. If that’s more like $5k in Australia, then a strong case can be made for sticking with the cheapest one.
After all, both share the same powertrain and charging capabilities, with a single rear-mounted electric motor that delivers 160kW and 320Nm. It might not sound like much, but it’s actually plenty to get the C10 up and moving, especially in its Sport setting, but it won’t be blurring the scenery. Zero to 100km/h takes a little over seven seconds.
Charging is curious, too. While the MY25 car due next year will likely adopt the Chinese version’s 800v architecture, this C10 gets 400v, and fairly slow DC charging. It’s capped at 84kW, which means at best it will take around 30 mins to take on just over 200kms in driving range.
All up, Leapmotor says you’ll get 424km from its 69.9kWh LFP (lithium ferro-phosphate) battery before you need to plug in.
The Leapmotor is shooting for a five-star safety rating with its C10, and all the sensors and active safety functions are present, accounted for, and, in some cases, infuriatingly annoying.
The C10 gets a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, but service pricing hasn’t been confirmed. It measures 4739mm long, 1900mm wide and 1680mm tall, and it rides on a 2825mm, making it just about bang-on the Tesla Model Y.
2024 Leapmotor C10: What we think
First things first, the C10 does not feel like an upstart brand’s first attempt at a global product. It’s not entirely bug-free, but we left the launch impressed by its quality look and feel and by the technology on offer.
That is, when the technology works. We were told our C10s were pre-production cars – a handy catch-all that means the brand is still working out kinks – and both of our test cars suffered from tech and driving gremlins at times, including being locked out or unable to start the car without resetting the systems.
Still, those quirks aside, the C10 is one of those vehicles that does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a comfortable, spacious, quiet drive, and while there’s nothing overly exciting or engaging about the experience, there also isn’t anything overtly negative about it either.
Yes, the safety systems are annoying – but they can be fairly quickly turned off – and the experience is lacking in the deep-connection department, but I suspect there are lots of drivers (especially drivers of big, family friendly SUVs) who just want to get in, get moving and get to their destination, and it’s here that the C10 does its very best work.
We covered plenty of kilometres across all sorts of road surfaces and speeds, from freeways to urban centres, and the C10 never felt underpowered or oversized, the latter of which being particularly impressive given its football pitch of a backseat.
And, while this is sure to get the Tesla faithful riled up, I reckon it looks significantly better than a Model Y, too.
The only real dealbreaker is its underwhelming charging speeds, and the lack of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Both will likely be fixed next year, but those who buy now will have to go without.
2024 Leapmotor C10: Verdict
Score: 3/5
This is straight-up-and-down EV motoring from Leapmotor, with the C10 a genuine – and cheaper – alternative to the Tesla Model Y for those looking for size and space from their electric SUV.
2024 Leapmotor C10 price and specifications
Price: From around $45,000
Basics: EV, 5 seats, 5 doors, SUV, RWD
Range: 423km (WLTP)
Battery capacity: 69.9kWh
Battery warranty: 7 years/unlimited km
Energy consumption: 19.7Wh/100km
Motor: 1 rear 160W/320Nm
AC charging: 6.6kW, Type 2 plug
DC charging: 84kW, CCS combo plug
0-100km/h: 7.3 seconds
