Summary
The Leapmotor C10 is a new mid-large electric SUV that was launched in the UK in early 2025. The C10 and the small T03 city car are the first models to be sold by new Chinese car brand, Leapmotor.
Leapmotor is part of the huge Stellantis network of brands, so its dealerships are popping up alongside various Vauxhall, Fiat, Peugeot and Citroën dealers around the UK. It’s early days but there will be up to 80 dealers by the end of 2025.
The C10 plays heavily on being a value proposition, meaning you’re getting a lot more car for your money than with many similar vehicles from other brands. It’s much more spacious than pretty much anything else at a similar price point, or if you prefer, it’s a lot cheaper than cars with a similar amount of space and standard equipment.
The biggest criticisms of the C10 so far have been the way that it drives. Although it’s mostly comfortable in how it rides and copes with bumps, the steering and handling have been judged harshly by the automotive media. Car, for example, was less than glowing about the “decidedly average driving experience”. But the biggest complaints have been reserved for the car’s accident-avoidance systems, which Auto Express described as “infuriating” and Electrifying said are “horribly intrusive”. Our own editor at The Car Expert, Stuart Masson, has said that “the constant beeping and bonging is so bad that it would be a deal-breaker” for many customers.
As of July 2025, the Leapmotor C10 holds a New Car Expert Rating of B, with a score of 69%. It scores top marks for its five-star Euro NCAP safety rating and its zero tailpipe emissions, while its running costs and new car warranty scores are also good. But it’s let down by very poor media reviews from the UK launch. This may improve over time as more journalists spend more time with the car, and if Leapmotor can address some of the key problems with the C10’s accident-avoidance technology.
C10 highlights
- Much more spacious than similarly priced EVs
- Plenty of standard kit for your money
- Build quality seems competitive
- Ride is generally comfortable
- Excellent Euro NCAP safety rating
C10 lowlights
- Unknown brand
- Accident-avoidance warnings are unbearable
- Noisy for an EV
- Handling is very disappointing
- No Apple CarPlay or Android Auto
Key specifications
Body style: Medium-sized SUV
Engines: Single electric motor
Price: From £36,490 on-road
Launched: Spring 2025
Last updated: N/A
Next update due: TBA
Image gallery
Media reviews
Highlighted reviews and road tests from across the UK automotive media. Click any of the boxes to view.
Featured reviews
“The Leapmotor C10 offers genuine value for money, but infuriating driver-assistance tech and sub-par range limit its appeal.”
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 6 / 10
Read full review
Auto Express
Ellis Hyde, Richard Ingram
“The Leapmotor C10 offers a decent range and lots of standard equipment in an affordable SUV package.”
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 7.6 / 10
Read full review
Carbuyer
Richard Ingram, Tom Gumbrell, Andy Goodwin
More reviews
Auto Trader
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 7 / 10
“If the generic electric SUV styling is nothing to get excited about the price perhaps is, the Leapmotor C10 is a big step up from the T03 city car, a tad more modern looking and polished than some of the other Chinese newcomers and undercuts established players like the VW ID.4 and Skoda Enyaq by a healthy margin.”
Author: Dan Trent
Read review
Business Car
Score: 8 / 10
“There is plenty to like about the Leapmotor C10. It looks and feels upmarket, has impressive levels of interior space and plenty of standard equipment for the price. We just feel more work is needed on the infotainment and safety systems to suit UK buyers.”
Author: Martyn Collins
Read review
Car
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 6 / 10
“The Leapmotor C10 is an interesting entrant to the electric family SUV class – and an entirely recommendable one at that. It’s a genuinely decent car that’s far better equipped and less expensive than most of its rivals. However, the derivative styling, lack of customisation options and decidedly average driving experience may hold it back.”
Author: Luke Wilkinson, Seth Walton
Read review
Carwow
Model reviewed: Range overview
“The Leapmotor C10 is a smart-looking budget EV with reasonable specs – but doesn’t seem to offer anything to trouble the established alternatives.”
Read review
Electrifying.com
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 6 / 10
“You might not have heard of the Leapmotor C10, but the brand has the backing of industry giant Stellantis, and this big SUV looks brilliant value next to rivals like the Tesla Model Y. It has plenty of space and equipment too, but it lacks polish in some areas and the driver assist systems are horribly intrusive.”
Author: Tom Barnard
Read review
Green Car Guide
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 7 / 10
“The Leapmotor C10 is an easy car to live with overall, offering comfort, space, a decent real-word range, and a price that undercuts most rivals. However if you simply get in the car and drive off, within a short distance you’re likely to be assaulted by multiple beeps and boings, and you probably won’t know what the beeps are for. We’ve reviewed every single EV that’s ever been on sale in the UK, and no other car has beeped at us this much.”
Author: Paul Clarke
Read review
Parkers
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 7 / 10
“Lots of room, lots of equipment.”
Author: Luke Wilkinson, Seth Walton
Read review
The Independent
Score: 6 / 10
“Leapmotor is big on value and the C10 puts a huge tick in the lots of car for your money box, but the price puts it up against some seriously talented contenders.”
Author: Steve Fowler
Read review
The Sunday Times
Score: 6 / 10
“Value but no vigour.”
Author: James Fossdyke
Read review
Top Gear
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 5 / 10
“The Leapmotor C10 is competent in enough areas to be a budget option, but will you pine for one? No.”
Read review
Safety rating
Independent crash test and safety ratings from Euro NCAP
Overall score: 5 stars
Date tested: December 2024
Read the full Euro NCAP review
Adult protection: 89%
Child protection: 85%
Vulnerable road users: 77%
Safety assist: 76%
Although the Leapmotor gets an excellent safety rating for including all of the systems designed to help protect you in an accident, the high score for helping you avoid an accident (the ‘safety assist’ score above) is not backed up by the actual driving experience. Pretty much every single review of the C10 has singled out the car’s accident avoidance warning systems as being terrible.
Our own editor at The Car Expert, Stuart Masson, has said that “the constant beeping and bonging is so bad that it would be a deal-breaker” for many customers, and that the C10 is “a prime example of badly executed safety systems that actually make driving less safe”. We strongly suggest you test drive a C10 before buying one…
Eco rating
Independent economy and emissions ratings from Green NCAP
No eco rating
As of July 2025, the Leapmotor C10 has not been assessed by Green NCAP.
The Green NCAP programme measures exhaust pollution (which is zero for an electric car) and energy efficiency. Electric cars are much more energy-efficient than combustion cars, so the C10 is likely to score very highly in Green NCAP testing if and when it takes place. Check back again soon.
Running cost rating
Monthly cost of ownership data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by Clear Vehicle Data
| Battery range | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
| EV models | 263 miles | B |
| Electrical efficiency | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
| EV models | 3.8 m/KWh | D |
| Insurance group | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
| All models | 41 | D |
The Leapmotor C10 is only average when it comes to running costs, according to numbers provided exclusively to The Car Expert by our data partner, Clear Vehicle Data. However, if you can charge the car at home or work, rather than relying on public charging, it should still be much cheaper to run than a petrol or diesel car.
We don’t yet have service and maintenance costs, so we will update this table when we have more information. However, the insurance group is high for a relatively budget car, and the electrical efficiency (the EV equivalent of miles per gallon in a petrol or diesel car) is only average.
Reliability rating
Reliability data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by MotorEasy
No reliability rating
As of July 2025, we don’t have enough reliability data on the Leapmotor C10 to generate a reliability rating.
The Car Expert’s reliability information is provided exclusively to us using workshop and extended warranty data from our partner, MotorEasy, sourced from both official dealerships and independent workshops.
As soon as MotorEasy has sufficient data on the C10, we’ll publish the results here.
Warranty rating
New car warranty information for the Leapmotor C10
| Overall rating | B | 68% |
| New car warranty duration | 4 years |
| New car warranty mileage | 60,000 miles |
| Battery warranty duration | 8 years |
| Battery warranty mileage | 100,000 miles |
Leapmotor’s new car warranty is better than the industry average, although there are other brands in this price bracket that do better, offering up to seven years of warranty cover.
The duration for Leapmotor is four years, with a limit of 60,000 miles. Additionally, there is a separate eight-year/100,000-mile warranty for the battery components.
If you’re looking to buy a used car that is approaching the end of its warranty period, a used car warranty is usually a worthwhile investment. Check out The Car Expert’s guide to the best used car warranty providers, which will probably be cheaper than a warranty sold by a dealer.
Recalls
Official DVSA safety recalls that have been issued for the Leapmotor C10
As of July 2025, we are not aware of any DVSA vehicle safety recalls affecting the Leapmotor C10, which is not surprising, since it’s a brand-new car. However, this information is updated very regularly, so it may have changed.
You can check to see if your car has any outstanding recalls by visiting the DVLA website or contacting your local Leapmotor dealer.
Similar cars
If you’re looking at the Leapmotor C10, you might also be interested in these alternatives.
Audi Q4 e-tron | BMW iX3 | Ford Explorer | Hyundai Ioniq 5 | Kia e-Niro | Kia EV5 | MG S5 EV | Mini Couintryman Electric | Peugeot e-3008 | Subaru Solterra | Tesla Model Y | Toyota bZ4X | Vauxhall Grandland Electric | Volkswagen ID.4
The Leapmotor C10 is very aggressively priced, meaning that it competes on price against smaller electric SUVs, or against similarly sized electric SUVs that are more expensive.
More information
More news, reviews and information about Leapmotor at The Car Expert
Buy a Leapmotor C10
If you’re looking to buy a new or used Leapmotor C10, The Car Expert’s partners can help you find the right car.
Find your next used car with Motors. Find out more
Find your next new or used car with Auto Trader. Find out more
Find your next new or used car with Carwow. Find out more
Lease a Leapmotor C10
If you’re looking to lease a new Leapmotor C10, The Car Expert’s partners can help you find a competitive deal.
Personal contract hire deals from Leasing.com. Find out more
Personal contract hire deals from Carwow. Find out more
Personal contract hire deals from Select Car Leasing. Find out more
Subscribe to a Leapmotor C10
Subscriptions are becoming a very popular way for consumers to try an electric car for a few weeks or months to help decide whether it’s a suitable alternative to a petrol car. If you’re interested in a car subscription, The Car Expert’s partners can help. (PS: What’s a car subscription?)
Car subscriptions from SelfDrive.
Find out more
Car subscriptions from DriveFuze.
Find out more
Car subscriptions from Cocoon.
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