It seems that you can’t be a mainstream car firm with volume aspirations in 2026 without a small electric SUV in your line-up – and Leapmotor will get in on the act with the B03X later this year.
At 4270mm long, it will rival the Renault 4, Kia EV2 and forthcoming Volkswagen ID Cross, although expect Leapmotor to undercut those established firms on price.
The B03X will essentialy be twinned with the forthcoming Leapmotor B03 hatch, which is set to arrive in the UK in early 2027. The model is named the A10 in China, but has had to be renamed for export markets because Audi has ownership of alphanumeric car titles beginning with A. But given B03X was the development code for the project, it arguably makes more sense anyway.
Regardless of its name, the B03X looks much like you would expect a small Chinese SUV to, albeit with enough neat details to give it a pleasing dash of character – particularly the rear light clusters, which resemble a smiley face. There are also flush door handles, while it rides on 18in alloys. You might notice the fitment of a Lidar sensor on our test car (it's the London taxi-style bump on the roof line), which is because the Chinese-spec A10 offers semi-autonomous driving features. Cost and legislation means that won't reach the UK.
Leapmotor claims the sloping roof line, aero stylings and flush handles all help the aerodynamics – it has a drag coefficienct of 0.26 – in a bid to boost range. Overall, the crossover measures just over 4200mm long, 1800mm wide and 1635mm high, with a wheelbase of just over 2600mm – all firmly in the ballpark for cars in this category.
The interior is similarly functional with some interesting elements. As with most Leapmotor models, the dashboard features a 14.6in touchscreen and a distinct lack of buttons, but the materials are pleasant and there’s plenty of space, which is well used.
It’s quite tall and because of the underfloor battery you sit fairly high up, but that fits this type of car. For a small crossover, the boot is massive, having a big second compartment under the floor similar to the Ford Puma Gen-E’s Gigabox. Also useful is a big storage cubby hidden underneath the rear seats, while the front passenger seat can be folded forward flat to create extra load space.
The B03X and the closely related B03 sit on Leapmotor’s front-driven A platform. It will be offered in the UK with a modest 121bhp motor and a 53kWh battery, giving a range of around 250 miles on the Chinese test cycle. Charging speeds have yet to be disclosed, although Leapmotor claims a 30-80% fill will take 16 minutes.
Underneath, the B03X has a pretty standard suspension set-up for this sort of car, with MacPherson struts up front and a torsion beam at the rear.
We only had a brief time in the B03X on a short test track in Huzhou, China, without long enough to draw any firm conclusions. But it did give a taste of what to expect.
As the claimed 0-62mph time of 10.5sec would suggest, the B03X isn’t a sporty performer, but it’s not that sort of car. The motor is decently responsive, though, and you won't be left struggling when trying to pull away from junctions or merge into traffic.
The steering lacks feel or real engagement, and feels particularly light. That's reflected in the tight 5.1m turning radius, which should make it good for city use. It is easy to place on the road and responsive to inputs. But even flicking through the various drive modes didn't much liven things up.
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