The Leapmotor T03 is Stellantis’ own affordable Chinese car, with a retail price of £15,995 (Image: Jack Mortimer)
What we love
- One of the cheapest new electric cars available in the UK
- Incredibly spacious interior for a city car
- Good amount of standard technology
What we don’t
- Steering settings are all too light
- Missing a rear window wiper
- Infotainment system could be more refined
The Leapmotor T03 is a tiny electric city car that is sold amongst Vauxhalls and Fiats in Stellantis dealerships at the impressively low price of £15,995 – the second-cheapest electric car drivers in the UK can buy. Whilst its styling is somewhat generic, the bug-eyed headlights and piggy nose of the front grille panel help to make the front end look rather cute.
Inside, the Leapmotor T03 is rather simple but light and airy, thanks no end to the full-size glass roof fitted as standard. For such a small model, the T03 offers a particularly impressive amount of space for front and even rear passengers; however, the 210-litre boot is not as big as the Dacia Spring’s.
The little Leapmotor is certainly well-equipped, however. All models include alloy wheels, a touchscreen, and a reversing camera, though they lack a rear wiper or parcel shelf. All T03s come equipped with a 94bhp electric motor and 37.3kWh battery pack, offering good levels of performance and a 165-mile range.
Taking to the roads, the Leapmotor T03 is deceptively sporty up to around 40mph and exceptionally manoeuvrable, making it a good choice for city dwellers. That said, the steering is particularly light and, in the case of the test car, the tyres rubbed against the wheel arches when cornering at full lock.
There is no doubting that China is going to play an increasingly significant role on the UK’s new car market. In 2024 alone, nearly 100,000 new cars bought by Brits came from the country – a figure that will only rise with the influx of companies launching this year.
However, in the eyes of many UK motorists, it is better the devil you know, meaning that Leapmotor may soon be one of the most recognisable Chinese car brands in the country.
Established in Hangzhou at the end of 2015 and building their first model in 2019, Leapmotor first came to the attention of UK petrolheads when they were bought by Stellantis in 2023 – owner of 13 other brands, including staples like Fiat, Vauxhall, and Peugeot.
As a result, we already know that Leapmotors will have a strong dealership network – sharing space alongside the usual Corsas and 500s and Stellantis & You showrooms, and their entry-level model, the T03 electric supermini, is advertised at the very tempting price of just £15,995.
Whilst the Chinese-designed and Polish-made T03 is not quite cheapest new electric model, with the Romanian-designed yet Chinese-built Dacia Spring costing £1,000 less, it still represents one of the cheapest ways to get into a new car of any kind. But, can this Chinese newcomer beat the Dacia and, perhaps more crucially, army of second-hand EVs from traditional brands?
The T03 has a rather cute front end, though the model’s rear end is somewhat generic (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Styling:
Whilst many Brits think that Chinese cars are almost always styled after popular Western alternatives, the Leapmotor T03’s looks are decidedly unique. The front end, in particular, manages to look quite cute, with its bug-eye headlights and slightly piggy nose, helped by the oversized panel containing the charging port.
Unfortunately, those design cues do not feature at the rear of the model, with a set of horizontal taillights connected by a black bar that spans across the unusually shaped tailgate and a largely flat panel on the back bumper, giving the T03 a rather generic appearance.
Also somewhat non-specific is the Leapmotor’s range of colours, with UK drivers getting white as standard or, as a £650 optional extra, Glacier Blue (as pictured) or a Starry Silver. The Chinese market gets a number of other colours, including a very vivid orange, but at least all UK-spec cars feature are two-tone, featuring a black roof.
Despite its use of black and grey plastics, the T03’s large glass roof makes the interior feel light (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Interior:
Despite its low price, getting into the Leapmotor is quite a surprising experience. Sure, it’s no Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and the dashboard has its fair share of hard black plastics, but the general fit and finish is good.
Whilst a black and grey cloth interior may sound somewhat dull, especially compared to the ivory-coloured alternative offered in the Chinese market, the full-size glass roof that comes as standard helps to give the whole interior a brighter, more spacious feel.
Unlike most new cars, the T03 doesn’t come with a bulky centre console, but there is enough space to store a couple of cups between the two seats and operate the electronic handbrake. Like a growing number of EVs, the automatic gearbox is controlled by a column shift near the steering wheel.
The Leapmotor’s boot is smaller than rivals, but it offers impressive levels of rear passenger space (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Practicality:
You might not think it, but practicality is actually one of the Leapmotor T03’s strongest points. At 3.62 metres long and 1.65 metres wide, it’s certainly not a large car but has a notably higher roofline than most other models.
As a result, occupants front and rear have a very good amount of headroom. Perhaps even more surprisingly, however, with the front seat pushed slightly forward, I had a very decent amount of legroom – more than I’ve encountered in much larger models, including compact crossovers.
Unfortunately, the decent amount of rear space comes at a price, with the boot featuring an awkward shape and capacity of just 210 litres – around 100 less than the Dacia Spring and Citroen e-C3. The rear seat can fold flat, boosting the load volume to 508 litres; however, I would have liked to have seen a split-folding back for those occasions when drivers need more boot space but still enough room for three occupants.
The Leapmotor’s 10-inch touchscreen was feature-packed but took a while to get to grips with (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Features:
Currently, UK buyers can only get one version of the Leapmotor T03. However, it is loaded with standard equipment, including quite a few goodies buyers can’t get with the little Dacia. These include a set of 15-inch alloy wheels, air conditioning, a 10-inch touchscreen with Bluetooth (although no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto), a full-size glass roof, and a particularly clear reversing camera.
That said, I was surprised to find that the T03 does not feature a rear window wiper or a parcel shelf. Reader, my friend’s Ford Fiesta Popular Plus has both of those luxuries, despite being made in 1991!
The vast majority of controls are accessed via the Leapmotor’s touchscreen, with the volume, heater controls, and boot release always available from the bottom of the display. That said, most icons are a little on the small side, meaning drivers will need to take their eyes off the road to use them and likely go through a number of awkward menus, which can take some getting used to.
With 94bhp and a 37.3kWh battery, the Leapmotor T03 offers plenty of power and range for city use (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Performance:
Nobody would expect a car like the Leapmotor T03 to be a ball of fire but, compared to the Dacia Spring’s two power options, it packs a fair punch. All T03s are fitted with a single electric motor that drives the front wheels – generating a very fair 94bhp.
As a result, the Leapmotor will reach a top speed of 81mph and sprint from 0-62mph in 12.7 seconds – about a second less than the most powerful Dacia Spring but two more than the Citroen e-C3 and entry-level Renault 5 E-Tech.
The Leapmotor is currently only fitted with one battery, featuring a 37.3kWh usable capacity, which allows the T03 to cover a range of up to 165 miles per charge. As a result, the little Leapmotor is ideal for city driving and the odd lengthy trip.
The Leapmotor’s steering is surprisingly manoeuvrable but rather numb-feeling around corners (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Driving:
Even knowing the performance figures, I was notably impressed by how spritely the Leapmotor T03 feels. Pull away with your foot fairly planted on the accelerator, and the cheap hatchback will rocket its way up to 30 or 40mph.
Ride quality is perfectly acceptable, particularly for such a low-cost model, but owners will notice a small amount of body roll if they take corners a little too quickly. That said, at low speeds, the Leapmotor is impressively manoeuvrable, with a turning circle of under 10 metres.
Unfortunately, the one driving characteristic that I did not enjoy so much about the Leapmotor T03 was the handling. Whilst drivers can choose from three steering settings, I found even the Sport mode to be a little too light for my liking.
Also worth noting is that, on the particular test car I received, the very edges of the front tyres would rub against the arches when taking tight bends in car parks – not a noise any driver would like to hear when positioning their car near high kerbs!
The Leapmotor T03 offers very good value for money and practicality, but is hardly perfect (Image: Jack Mortimer)
Conclusion:
For an electric car that costs less than most mainstream petrol-powered city cars, the Leapmotor T03 does have a lot going for it. I’d argue that nothing that small has so much room for rear passengers, and it has enough power and range to make it practical for considerable amounts of driving.
That said, the little T03 certainly has its flaws. The ultra-light steering makes driving notably less enjoyable, whilst some very helpful features that drivers expect on cars of any price are missing.
I think the Leapmotor T03 certainly has its place in the market, though – particularly among drivers interested in leasing or entering a salary sacrifice scheme through work. For drivers who insist on a new model, the T03 would make a decent entry into the world of electric motoring for a young family or as a second car to be used for school runs and shopping trips.