Stellantis-backed Leapmotor launches B10 baby SUV, arriving next year

Leapmotor has debuted a small SUV for the European market. The B10 is a smaller version of the C10 – of course – with both looking more than a smidgen like the Hyundai Kona Electric.

The B10 is going to have the Leap 3.5 architecture, said to be a ‘highly integrated platform’, which in English translates as ‘much technology’. All the tech, in fact. Driver assist, digital cockpit and decent connectivity is the name of the game, and that’s likely what Stellantis is after (but we’ll come onto that in a bit).

The B10 is aimed at the tech-savvy youth, and there’ll be a fully electric version and a range-extended one with a 1.5-litre engine. Head of brand strategy for the joint venture, Francesco Giancalone, tells TG.com we won’t get any further details on powertrains or pricing until next year.

Joint venture? Yep, let’s recap. Back in May, Stellantis announced it had partnered with the Chinese carmaker. Stellantis has a 51 per cent stake in the sales and marketing outside of China, and a 21 per cent stake in the manufacturing inside of China. The two will lean on each other - Stellantis will likely make a play for Leapmotor’s electric platform know-how and connected tech smarts, while the Chinese brand will be able to access the production facilities and network of the Alfa, Citroen and Peugeot parent company.

Tianshu Xin, CEO of Leapmotor International, said: “Leapmotor International may be a start-up, but it’s a start-up with two incredibly strong parents. One brings innovation and competitive pricing to the table, while the other - through our partnership with Stellantis - offers powerful global resources and an unmatched service infrastructure. Together, we are able to offer consumers products like the B10, which combine cutting-edge technology with affordability.”

Giancalone told us Leapmotor will aim to sell 500,000 of its cars by 2030 in the rest of the world and for now, has no plans to expand into North America. He firmly denies that the US decision to ban connected car tech has influenced that decision.

We'll have to wait until February next year before we know more but we're expecting the Leapmotor B10 to be on UK roads by the end of 2025.