The B10 is the first model in Leapmotor’s B-series, which has two other models coming in 2025.
Leapmotor (HKG: 9863) made the domestic debut of the B10, after giving the new SUV (sport utility vehicle) its international debut at the Paris auto show a month ago.
The Stellantis NV (NYSE: STLA) backed Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker showed the B10 today on the first day of the 2024 Guangzhou auto show, saying the official launch will be in the first quarter of 2025.
The all-electric SUV is the first to be built on the Leap 3.5 architecture and is the first model in the company’s B-series, a diversified lineup that Leapmotor said targets the world’s largest market segment.
The B-series is Leapmotor’s globalized strategic platform that encompasses a wide range of products, including SUVs, sedans, and hatchbacks, with a total of three products set to be released within the next year, Leapmotor said.
The B10’s cockpit is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 chip. It uses a LiDAR for its intelligent driving system, and Leapmotor said the model is the only one in its class to use the part.
The model has a battery range of over 600 kilometers, the company said.
The B10 is a compact SUV, about the size of a BMW X1, and would compete with models including the Aito M5 and Nio (NYSE: NIO) Onvo L60, Leapmotor said previously.
The model will target the market with a price tag of RMB 100,000 ($13,840) to RMB 150,000, and will have a global launch next year, according to the company.
Founded in 2015, Leapmotor is one of the first new car-making forces in China, which initially offered only battery electric vehicle (BEV) models but unveiled plans to build an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) model in 2022.
The company currently sells the T03, C01, C10, C11, and C16 in China, with all but the T03 offered in both BEV and EREV variants.
Leapmotor’s full-year sales target for 2025 is 500,000 units, the company said on its November 11 third-quarter earnings call.
Deliveries of the company’s B-series models would be limited by capacity. The company’s two plants in Jinhua, Zhejiang province, are currently producing at full capacity, with a monthly capacity of 40,000 units, it said in the call.
Leapmotor is accelerating construction of a plant in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, and aims to start production in the first half of next year.
It is also considering building a third plant in Jinhua, which is expected to bring its total design capacity to 1 million units by the end of next year.
Leapmotor delivered 33,767 vehicles in October, up 109.7 percent year-on-year and 13.06 percent from September, according to data it released earlier this month.
From January through October, Leapmotor delivered 211,038 vehicles, according to data compiled by CnEVPost.
($1 = RMB 7.2271)
