Leapmotor B10 Hybrid review

Think of the Leapmotor B10 Hybrid as a smartphone with a built-in charger that quietly kicks in when you need it. Most of the time, you’re running purely on the main battery, but when things run low, a hidden power source steps in and keeps everything going without you needing to change plans.

In other words, the B10 Hybrid is what’s called a range-extender hybrid. It operates much like the fully electric Leapmotor B10, with the motor and battery as the primary source of power, but a petrol engine generator tops up the battery when it gets low on juice.

It’s similar to what you’ll find in the Nissan Qashqai e-Power, except in the B10 Hybrid you can also plug it in to charge it up, making it a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). This means it rivals both hybrids and PHEVs, including the Hyundai Tucson, MG HS and Volkswagen Tiguan. There’s also the fellow Chinese BYD Sealion 5 to contend with. 

So, does the B10 Hybrid redefine convenience in the same way a perfectly optimised smartphone does – or is it simply another contender trying to keep up in an already crowded market space?

What’s new?

- June 2026: Expected first deliveries of B10 Hybrids to UK customers
- March 2026: Leapmotor B10 Hybrid goes on sale in the UK
- September 2025: Official European launch of Leapmotor B10
- August 2025: First consignment of Leapmotor B10 models sets sail for Europe ahead of launch at Munich motor show
- April 2025: Leapmotor B10 SUV officially launched at Shanghai motor show

How fast is it and which engine is best?

The B10 Hybrid is only available with one power option. It consists of a 215bhp electric motor that drives the rear wheels, with a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol acting solely as a generator to charge the battery. The latter never drives the wheels directly.

While the motor responds instantaneously to your inputs, much like an electric car, it’s not particularly fast, delivering 0-62mph in 8.5sec. That’s slower than the PHEV versions of the BYD Sealion 5 (8.1sec), Hyundai Tucson (7.9sec), MG HS (6.8sec) and Volkswagen Tiguan (8.2sec). 

Nevertheless, when accelerating swiftly out of junctions, the rear motor can break traction. This happened a couple of times on our test drive in damp conditions. 

Is it agile and is the ride comfortable?

Agility is not a strong suit of the B10 Hybrid. There’s considerable body lean in corners, making it quite a cumbersome car to drive on a twisty rural road. There’s not a huge amount of grip on offer, either, which doesn’t help matters. 

The B10 Hybrid’s steering is super light, which makes manoeuvring in town incredibly easy. When driving at speed, however, it doesn’t have much weight, so you’ll find yourself making constant adjustments to place the car where you want it, particularly in Comfort and Standard modes. While you can set it to a heavier Sport mode, it still has a light, elastic feel to it.

Ride comfort isn’t great, either. While the suspension does a reasonable job of absorbing bumps at low speeds, it does fidget around at higher speeds. On the motorway, the suspension picks up even light imperfections, so you’ll feel yourself moving around in your seat as you drive along. Overall, the Tucson, HS and Tiguan are all more polished to drive. 

Is it quiet and how easy is it to drive smoothly?

The B10 Hybrid is really quiet to travel in. The petrol engine generator is super hushed when it’s running, so much so you can hardly hear it. It’s very smooth when it chimes in and out to charge the battery, too. While there is a bit of wind noise from the windscreen pillars when driving on the motorway, there’s hardly any tyre roar.

Along with the steering modes, there’s Comfort, Standard and Sport settings for the accelerator response. In Sport, it can be a bit jerky, but otherwise the B10 Hybrid is very smooth to drive.

With the regenerative braking, there are three levels to choose from, but even in the strongest setting it won’t bring you to a complete stop. A progressive brake pedal makes smooth stopping super easy, though.

What’s the range and efficiency like and how quickly can it charge?

The B10 Hybrid has an 18.8kWh (total capacity) battery that delivers an official electric-only range of 50 miles. That’s more than the Hyundai Tucson (44 miles) and similar to the BYD Sealion 5 (53 miles), but a lot less than the MG HS and Volkswagen Tiguan (both 75 miles).

Interestingly, you can tailor the energy consumption via four driving modes: EV+, EV, Fuel and Power+. In EV+, the hybrid system prioritises the electric motor, with the generator only kicking in when charge is below 9%. In EV, the electric motor is again prioritised, although the generator kicks in from 25%. In Fuel, the engine kicks in below 80%, while in Power+, the engine will always be on, delivering maximum power for the hybrid system.

The B10 Hybrid has a maximum DC charging speed of 46kW, which allows for a 30-80% charge in around 30 minutes from a public charger. That’s better than the HS, Sealion 5 and Tucson, which don’t have DC charging capability, but the Tiguan can do a 5-80% charge in a similar time. When charging from a 7kW AC home charger, the B10 can do a 30-80% charge in 1hr45mins. 

“While the level of adjustability with the hybrid system is impressive, it is quite complicated. Personally, I’d rather have just two modes: full EV or hybrid.” – George Hill, Used Cars Writer

What does the interior look like and is it well made?

The B10 Hybrid has an identical interior to the Leapmotor B10 electric SUV. This means it has a smart, minimalist design, while big windows and standard panoramic sunroof give it a light, airy feel. 

Interior quality is mostly very good. There’s a generous helping of faux-leather on the doors, steering wheel and centre console. It feels solidly put together, too, but some of the hard plastics low down the dashboard feel harsh and cheap. 

Is the driving position comfortable and is it easy to see out?

The driving position in the B10 Hybrid is pretty comfortable. The driver’s seat gets six-way electric adjustment as standard, but it does miss out on adjustable lumbar support, which comes as standard on the Hyundai Tucson and Volkswagen Tiguan. What’s more, taller drivers might find the steering wheel doesn’t adjust for reach or rake as much as they would like. 

For the front passenger, the seat gets four-way electric adjustment, although some may find the lack of height adjustment means they’re perched quite high up.

Forward visibility is good, thanks to a low dashboard and raised seating position. The front pillars aren’t very chunky, either. Rear visibility is mostly hampered by thick rear pillars and a lack of a rear wiper.

To help when parking, the B10 Hybrid comes with rear parking sensors and a 360-degree reversing camera as standard. Automatic LED headlights with automatic high beam also help maximise visibility at night.

Is the dashboard and infotainment system easy to use?

The minimalist design of the B10 Hybrid’s interior means that most of the controls, including the side mirror adjustment, are housed within the 14.6in central touchscreen. It has sharp graphics, a quick response and a simple menu layout, with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring offered as standard.

While the system is fine to use while stationary, it’s very fiddly to operate while driving. This is because most of the icons – including the bar of shortcut buttons on the lower half of the screen – are tiny and difficult to tap on the move.

Unfortunately, you have to tap one of these icons to bring up the full climate menu. This is more distracting to use than the setup in the Tucson, which has a touch-sensitive panel below the touchscreen on permanent display with physical dials for the fan speed and temperature. 

As a solution, Leapmotor has created a physical dial and button accessory for the B10 Hybrid that sticks onto the dashboard. It connects to the infotainment system wirelessly via Bluetooth and you can make it control certain functions, such as the volume or climate controls. It’s expected to be available to buy later in 2026, so we’ll report back once we’ve tried it. 

Behind the steering wheel, there’s an 8.8in digital instrument display that shows your speed on the left, driver assistance information in the middle and trip info on the right. It’s nice and easy to use, with trip data and a map you can scroll through on the right-hand side, but we’d prefer it if the speed was located in the centre in your direct line of sight. 

“The button and dial accessory is a clever solution, but I wish the car had physical controls from the factory. They would make the interior so much easier to use.” – George Hill, Used Cars Writer

How much space does it have for people?

Passenger space is really impressive in the B10 Hybrid. There’s a generous amount of leg and elbow room up front, while six-footers will have no trouble with head room – even with the panoramic sunroof. 

In the back seats, leg room is generous when sitting behind someone of equal size. While you can’t stretch out as much as you can in a Hyundai Tucson and Volkswagen Tiguan, it’s still very good. There’s plenty of head room on offer, too.

For middle seat passengers, the flat floor means there’s space for their feet and enough clearance between their head and the panoramic sunroof. It’s a little bit tight when sitting three abreast, though.

How much room does it have for luggage?

The B10 Hybrid’s interior has plenty of storage space for your various odds and ends, including a deep centre cubby under the armrest and a tray for two phones (one has wireless charging). The door bins are deep and long and there’s a lower storage tray below the air vents with two fold-down cupholders. 

At 330 litres, the B10 Hybrid’s boot is disappointingly small. While it has enough room for a weekly shop or a weekend’s worth of holiday luggage, it’s well short of the PHEV versions of the Tucson (558 litres), MG HS (507 litres) and Tiguan (490 litres) on paper. 

If you need to carry long items, the seats split in a 60/40 configuration. That’s fairly standard for the class, but the Tiguan and Tucson have more flexible 40/20/40 seating. All cars come with a powered tailgate as standard.

“As a six-footer, I was really impressed by the amount of space in the back of the B10 Hybrid, but the seating position isn’t the most comfortable. With the battery located under the floor, I did find my knees perched up quite high.” – George Hill, Used Cars Writer

How much does it cost and what equipment do you get?

The B10 Hybrid is very competitively priced against PHEV rivals. It’s a touch more than the BYD Sealion 5 Comfort, but less than the MG HS, Hyundai Tucson and Volkswagen Tiguan. 

To keep things simple, every B10 Hybrid comes with 18in alloy wheels, automatic air conditioning, a panoramic sunroof, heated and ventilated front seats, front and rear parking sensors, rear privacy glass and adaptive cruise control as standard. It’s really well equipped. 

Is it reliable, and how long is the warranty?

Leapmotor is a new brand to the UK, so it’s yet to feature in the What Car? Reliability Survey. To give some peace of mind, the B10 Hybrid comes with a four-year, 60,000 mile warranty, while the battery has its own eight year, 100,000 mile cover. The brand is also backed by Stellantis so you’ll have easy access to servicing and parts.

How safe is it?

The B10 earned a top five-star rating when safety tested by Euro NCAP. It achieved an impressive 93% score for both adult and child occupant protection, along with 84% for safeguarding vulnerable road users in the event of a collision.

Equipped with 17 active driver assistance systems as standard, the B10 also performed strongly in the safety assist category. These features include adaptive cruise control, lane centering, lane-keeping assistance, and both front and rear collision warnings. Additionally, the vehicle can automatically apply the brakes when reversing if it detects an approaching vehicle, helping to prevent minor accidents in car parks.

From our experience, we did find some of the safety systems to be very sensitive. For instance, the driver drowsiness and attention warning system flashed up several times on our test drive, with the first showing up only a few minutes into the journey.

“I like how there’s only one trim level available, but three interior and six exterior colours to choose from. It makes the buying process simple, but with a good level of customisation.” – George Hill, Used Cars Writer

Buy it if

-You want a quiet and refined plug-in hybrid

-You regularly carry people in the back

-You want a lot of standard equipment for not a lot of cash

Don’t buy it if

-You want a car with a comfortable ride 

-You prefer physical controls inside

-You need a big boot

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