RAY MASSEY drives China's new sub-£16k EV: Leapmotor T03 arrives in UK to prove small electric car prices are becoming affordable

• e-mail

Are new electric cars too expensive? This five-door, four-seater, zero-emissions runaround suggests not with a price tag of under £16,000.

Meet the Leapmotor T03 city car – one of a 'little and large' pair of new EV vehicles launched this month by Leapmotor. The other is the C10, a large electric SUV priced from £36,500.

Last year, Chinese Leapmotor formed a partnership with European car conglomerate Stellantis. Its T03 supermini and C10 SUV models will be sold through 200 dealerships across the UK and mainland Europe.

City slicker: The new electric Leapmotor T03 at under £16K

Leapmoter was set up in 2015 by an electrical engineer. while Stellantis's many automotive brands include Citroen, Jeep and Peugeot.

Priced at £15,995, order books have opened ahead of first deliveries in December for the new T03 city car which Leapmotor and Stellantis claim is the 'best value' electric car on the UK market.

Rival Dacia, with its all-electric Spring, from £14,995, may disagree. There's nothing like a bit of competition to keep car-makers on their toes.

Read More

Leapmotor is the next new Chinese car brand coming to Britain and its first model will be a super cheap EV

I was pleasantly surprised by the hi-spec package and performance.

It's a nippy urban runaround with a fair bit of sprint and surprisingly agile going up steep hills around serpentine bends when I took it off-piste from the pre-planned lakeside route through villages and on motorways near Milan in Italy.

It's fairly spacious inside and easy to drive. Though there's too much emphasis on the central screen for key functions including air-con. 

It has a panoramic sun roof, adaptive cruise control, automatic climate control and all-round electric windows. 

There is lots of safety kit too, including a facial recognition camera to monitor driver fatigue. It also has a tendency to 'nanny' – with an irritating voice giving warnings.

It's a nippy urban runaround with a fair bit of sprint and surprisingly agile going up steep hills

It's fairly spacious inside and easy to drive, though there's too much emphasis on the central screen for key functions including air-con

Powered by a 37.3kWh battery and a 95hp (70kW) electric motor and riding on skinny 15-inch wheels, the T03 has a claimed average range of 165 miles (245 miles urban)

It accelerates from rest to 62mph in 12.7 seconds, up to a top speed of 81mph and 30 to 80 per cent charge in 36 minutes

There are comfortable seats but not much room in the deep, narrow boot

Read More

Car makers slash EV prices, suspend production and extend petrol model availability as electric demand wanes

Powered by a 37.3kWh battery and a 95hp (70kW) electric motor and riding on skinny 15-inch wheels, the T03 has a claimed average range of 165 miles (245 miles urban) and accelerates from rest to 62mph in 12.7 seconds, up to a top speed of 81mph and 30 to 80 per cent charge in 36 minutes.

Comfortable seats but not much room in the deep, narrow boot.

There's just one version and trim level at launch and three colours – light white, glacier blue and starry white – and three driving modes: Eco, Standard and Sport.

One of my biggest gripes is with the name.

'T03' is hardly inspiring.

And some wags have taken to nicknaming it 'TOE'.

Best change it quickly - before it gets established.

Both the Leapmotor T03 and rival Dacia Spring will be on show at this month's Paris Motor Show. Let the battle commence.