When driving, this new Leapmotor B10 blows more hot and cold. Brand representatives say they worked closely with the Stellantis teams at the Balocco plant in Italy to adapt the electric SUV to European requirements, it’s hard to tell from its setup. It only takes a few meters behind the wheel of this SUV to understand that it is more suited to Chinese roads and would not be out of place in the United States.
The management is very lacking in feeling
The first striking element is the steering is too soft. Regardless of the selected mode, it is difficult to perceive what is happening on the road out of the three available modes. At the top two levels, we feel in the middle that the system is trying painfully to create pressure to simulate an increase in effort, but to no avail. On the basic none of that, the feeling is less artificial. However, movements of the steering wheel do not always bring the desired effect and you should not hesitate to correct the vehicle to follow the route you have decided. In certain situations, it can be destabilizing at best and unsettling at worst when a road has two directions of traffic. See again.
Good comfort
The second feature that makes it more of a Chinese model than a European vehicle, its suspension is too looseamerican style. We’ve seen worse in this genre, but we’ve seen much better. This does not prevent this vehicle, s its overall sound chassisdon’t get bogged down in corners. Role input is relatively controlled. Still, it’s better to choose a leisurely pace..
These particularly flexible suspensions have a good counterpart, comfort. This one hates criticism. Even large deformations of the road are relatively well absorbed and do not disturb passengers too much. And how sound insulation is quite good on a vehicle designed to be economical with some rolling noise or noise at high speeds, the overall result is convincing. Soft seats take care of the rest, although we would like a little more support especially in the seat area. Be careful though, you can easily get sick on the winding roads.
The power of the engine is fully felt
Another good point about driving, 218 hp and 240 Nm of torque are very present. This Leapmotor B10 (2025) is lively and almost seems more powerful than it really is (218 hp and 240 Nm of torque for the only version in the catalog). Price rather controlled weight in the category. At 1,845 kg, we are in the low category average, closer to the Scenic (between 1.8 and 1.9 t) than the Peugeot e-3008 (minimum 2.1 t). The problem is that this good health will be soon they undermine the traction of single-wheel-drive SUVsalthough this only occurs in certain situations, such as on gravel or soft ground. This is due to the low-quality tires of the Linglong series. So the problem can be solved quite easily…
Some work needs to be done on the brakes
Finally the last point if this B10 doesn’t pull its weight under accelerationyou can feel it when braking. If it is not equipped with a single pedal function, you cannot stop this vehicle in its tracks by simply releasing the gas pedal. You must use a brake that clearly lacks engagement. Pressing hard will be the key to stopping it. As for regenerative braking on three levels, it also lacks performance. Fortunately, the update will allow customers to use single pedal mode by the end of the yearthat should improve things.
