Leapmotor to launch in Australia this year
Stellantis’ new Chinese EV brand will arrive here by Christmas with a cut-price city-car and Tesla Model Y rivalChinese EV upstart Leapmotor has confirmed it will enter the Australian and New Zealand markets in the fourth quarter of this year as part of an aggressive global expansion plan backed by Stellantis, the parent company of brands including Jeep, RAM, Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Maserati, Fiat, Chrysler, Peugeot and Citroen.
Stellantis made the announcement overnight, when it said the Aussie and Kiwi markets were its top priority within the Asia-Pacific region, following the launch of its European operations in September.
Thailand, Malaysia and India will then round out the initial local-region rollout of Leapmotor. Other target markets outside of Europe include Israel, Turkey, Brazil and Chile.
As predicted by carsales, the Chinese brand’s product offensive in Australia – and every other major export market – will be led by the Leapmotor C10 mid-size electric SUV and the T03 electric micro-car, before a smaller SUV joins the ranks in the first half of 2025.
Leapmotor International intends to launch at least one new model in its export markets each year, with the 2025 SUV set to be followed by a pair of hatches in 2026 and another SUV in 2027.
Until then, however, the C10 is intended to lock horns with the top-selling Tesla Model Y and upcoming Volkswagen ID.4, which were both named as development benchmarks, armed with a purpose-built platform, central integrated electrical architecture, cell-to-chassis (CTC) technology and a WLTP range of up to 420km.
Export versions will be powered by a 170kW/320Nm electric motor, however, it’s unclear which of the two available battery packs available in China will sustain the motor internationally: 52.9kWh or 69.9kWh.
Regardless, Leapmotor is targeting a maximum five-star ENCAP safety rating for the C10, thereby making it a contender for fleet as well as private sales, and has indicated the zero-emissions SUV will likely undercut its American and European rivals on price, pointing to a sub-$60,000 entry point.
The T03 city-car, meantime, will be aimed squarely at the bottom end of the EV market and could be a real contender for the title of Australia’s cheapest electric car given it starts from the equivalent of about $28,000 in overseas markets, with a similar entry price expected for the UK.
Measuring just 3.6m long and set to be produced alongside the Jeep Avenger, Alfa Romeo Junior and Fiat 600e in Poland, the Leapmotor T03 has a claimed WLTP range of up to 265km, which will be competitive with the bigger GWM Ora and BYD Dolphin, not to mention the BYD Seagull that’s also firming for Australia.
The Fiat 500e was identified as the benchmark product for the T03 and while the pint-size Italian EV offers a superior range of up to 320km, the Leapmotor T03 is set to retail for less than half of its European idol.
Details of Leapmotor’s Australian operations remain few and far between at the moment, but it’s expected the brand will be sold alongside other Stellantis brands in established showrooms, with Stellantis likely to handle distribution and aftersales care.
This arrangement was detailed overnight for Europe, where no fewer than 200 points of sale will be established across nine countries – France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Greece and Romania – as part of phase one.
“The mission is to promote sales of Leapmotor models in the rest of the world outside of China,” said Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares.
“We are of course going to support that with all the assets of Stellantis – that means aftersales.
“We are going to make sure that from day one, we have a very strong availability of spare parts to make sure the consumers are never stuck with vehicles waiting for parts coming from far away.
“We will support the sales of Leapmotor with our aftersales network… that is going to be paramount.”
carsales understands Leapmotor will become showroom buddies with Jeep and/or RAM in Australia, where sales and workshop staff will be trained and upskilled to sell and service the C10 and T03 well before their local introduction.
Stand by for more details.
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