Leapmotor C10 Hybrid review

Plug-in hybrid family SUV aims to offer the best electric car driving characteristics but with the range of a petrol car

RRP £36,495

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Best price from £30,895

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Available now from: £30,895

RRP from: £36,495

Available now

From £30,895

Leasing deals

From £198

About our price indicator

What Car? indicative Personal lease example (subject to status)

Leapmotor C10 Hybrid

Expected annual mileage 5000 Term months 24 Deposit months 12 Monthly payment £198.16 Initial payment £2,377.92

Step-by-step

Leasing works a bit like a long-term rental. You drive it, but you don’t own it.

• Choose your car, pick your terms and apply for lease credit online
• Pay monthly rental payments for your chosen term length
• Drive it, enjoy it, then give it back at the end

What you get

When you lease with Autotrader you get all of this:

• Full manufacturer’s warranty
• Road tax and roadside assistance included
• No admin fees
• Free returns within 30 days*

In partnership with

£2,378 initial payment, 24 month contract, 5000 miles p/a. Subject to status and conditions.

• Lower total monthly cost than PCP/HP
• No balloon payments
• Road tax included

Power

214 bhp

0-62 mph

7.5 s

Range

261 miles

Figures for 69.9kWh Auto 5dr

Family SUV

Plug-in hybrid

Jump to:

Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Buying & owning

Claire Evans

Published 18 December 2025

How we test cars

Long-distance runners find that a boost from an energy gel or a protein bar goes a long way in helping them reach the finish line. And similarly, the petrol engine generator of the otherwise electric Leapmotor C10 Hybrid tops up the battery to keep it going.

In short, the C10 Hybrid is what’s called a range-extender hybrid and is similar to the system in a Mazda MX-30 R-EV. This means the engine never drives the wheels directly and solely charges up a battery. However, like that car, the C10 Hybrid is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), so you can also charge it via a socket if you want to maximise fuel efficiency.

New car deals

Best price from £30,895

What is What Car? best price?

The What Car? best price shows you the cheapest way to buy your new car, whether it's by choosing an in-stock car through our partner Autotrader or placing a factory order.

Available now from: £30,895

RRP from: £36,495

Available now

From £30,895

Leasing deals

From £198

About our price indicator

What Car? indicative Personal lease example (subject to status)

Leapmotor C10 Hybrid

Expected annual mileage 5000 Term months 24 Deposit months 12 Monthly payment £198.16 Initial payment £2,377.92

Step-by-step

Leasing works a bit like a long-term rental. You drive it, but you don’t own it.

• Choose your car, pick your terms and apply for lease credit online
• Pay monthly rental payments for your chosen term length
• Drive it, enjoy it, then give it back at the end

What you get

When you lease with Autotrader you get all of this:

• Full manufacturer’s warranty
• Road tax and roadside assistance included
• No admin fees
• Free returns within 30 days*

In partnership with

£2,378 initial payment, 24 month contract, 5000 miles p/a. Subject to status and conditions.

• Lower total monthly cost than PCP/HP
• No balloon payments
• Road tax included

So how does it fare against fellow Chinese rival, the MG HS PHEV, and established athletes, such as the Audi Q3 and Volkswagen Tiguan?

What’s new?

January 2026 – on sale date for the C10 Hybrid in the UK

Verdict

The C10 REEV is smooth and quiet to drive, plus it has some strong official figures to worry some of its plug-in hybrid rivals, including the MG HS and VW Tiguan. However, it suffers from the same fidgety high-speed ride and small boot as the electric version, while the car’s tech and general usability could be improved.

Best buy

69.9kWh SUV 5dr Electric Auto (217 ps) review

RRP £36,500

Pros

• Generous standard equipment
• Good electric-only range
• Spacious interior

Cons

• Poor ride at higher speeds
• Small boot
• No physical climate controls

Best buy

69.9kWh SUV 5dr Electric Auto (217 ps) review

RRP £36,500

New car deals

Available now

Leasing deals

Performance & drive

What it's like to drive, and how quiet it is

Strengths

• Longer pure electric range than rivals
• Customisable acceleration and steering
• Engine remains quiet at all times

Weaknesses

• Fidgety ride at speed
• Light, unnatural steering feel

How fast is it and which engine is best?

The C10 Hybrid is based on the C10 electric SUV, but it combines a 158kW electric motor with a 1.5-litre petrol engine to produce 212bhp.

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With a linear (albeit leisurely) delivery of power from the electric motor, the C10 Hybrid completes the 0-62mph dash in 8.5sec, which is more than two seconds slower than the MG HS PHEV and a little behind the Kia Sportage 1.6 GDi AWD.

There are three driving modes: Eco, Standard and Sport. In Standard and Eco modes, acceleration feels pretty sluggish both from a standstill and for overtaking, but things improve in Sport.

There are also separate customisation settings for the acceleration and steering, which on the face of it sound useful, but do feel rather like overkill for everyday use. We found the best combination for making swift progress to be Robust acceleration and Sports steering.

On top of all this, there are four hybrid settings that can be selected via the touchscreen (EV+, EV, Fuel and Power+). These alter the charge rate at which the engine fires up to charge the battery, ranging from sticking with pure electric power only until it’s all used up (EV+), to sticking with petrol assistance all the time (Power+). We found the car more responsive when it was in Fuel and Power+ modes.

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Is it agile and is the ride comfortable?

Dynamically, the C10 Hybrid is very similar to the Leapmotor C10 electric SUV. This means it’s generally comfortable around town, but the ride is fidgety at speed.

Driving over potholes and other road imperfections sends a thud through to the interior and makes the car feel unbalanced. There’s also a fair amount of vibration through the steering wheel on all but the smoothest surfaces.

The C10 Hybrid's handling is only average. The firm ride helps to keep the body upright through corners, but front-end grip is poor on tighter bends. On top of this, the steering is light, which is useful for driving around town but provides very little feedback, making it harder to know what the front wheels are doing. Switching to Sport steering mode does help matters, though.

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

The C10 Hybrid is smooth and refined, with the petrol engine remaining super quiet when it chimes in. It suffers from little road and wind noise regardless of whether you’re driving slowly around town or at motorway speeds.

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The brakes can be grabby though, and that makes it more difficult to slow the car down smoothly.

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

With a 28.4kWh (total capacity) battery, the C10 Hybrid can officially travel up to 90 miles on electric power alone before the engine kicks in, which is farther than the MG HS and VW Tiguan PHEVs.

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You can also charge it at speeds of up to 65kW, which means a 30-80% charge takes around 18 minutes from a suitably powerful public charger.

Like a lot of PHEVs, the official fuel economy numbers are a bit misleading. On our test route of mixed driving, we managed an average of 44.8mpg, which isn’t bad but it’s a long way off the official 706.2mpg figure.

"The C10 Hybrid's steering is light and uncommunicative in Standard and Sport driving modes, which is useful for city driving and getting into small parking spaces, but not helpful for suburban and rural driving. Switching to Sport mode adds more feel." – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

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Tips & Advice

How to test drive a car

There’s no substitute for a test drive in a new car. Take it on a variety of roads and surfaces to ensure it measures up.

Interior

The interior layout, fit and finish

Strengths

• Good all-round visibility
• Elevated driving position
• Interior screens are really clear

Weaknesses

• Inoftainment has lots of sub-menus to navigate
• Not many physical controls

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

The C10 Hybrid's interior is the same as that of the pure electric Leapmotor C10. That’s good because that car is heavily influenced by Tesla interiors, so all the materials have a quality feel to them, with the few pieces of hard plastic and untextured trim kept out of sight. Build quality seems pretty good, too.

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

The driver’s seat is high up, and it’s easy to find a good driving position because there’s plenty of electrical adjustment on the seat as standard. There is no height adjustment for the front seatbelts, though, so taller or shorter drivers may find they sit too low or high for comfort.

Forward visibility is good because the front window pillars are narrow and the front windows are large, providing a good view out at junctions and over the car's bonnet. The view over your shoulder is impressive too, with large rear windows and big cut-outs in the rear pillars giving a wide view to the rear.

To make parking easier, rear parking sensors and a 360-degree camera come as standard. You also get standard-fit automatic LED headlights to help out when it gets dark.

Are the dashboard and infotainment system easy to use?

Every C10 Hybrid comes with a high resolution 10.25in digital driver's display that shows all the info the driver should need. The text on it is larger than the screen on the smaller Leapmotor B10, making it easier to read.

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There are hardly any physical buttons inside the C10 Hybrid. In fact, the only ones are four buttons on the steering wheel and two scroll wheels, which are strongly reminiscent of those on Tesla models.

While the 14.6in touchscreen is crisp and fairly quick to respond, you have to dive into it to adjust almost everything. What’s more, there are a lot of sub-menus and small icons to tap, which makes it very distracting to use while driving. It’s not that different from the systems in the MG HS or Volkswagen Tiguan, though.

The earliest examples of the electric C10 didn’t come with Android Auto or Apple CarPlay smartphone connectivity, but this is standard on the C10 Hybrid, and should be retrofitted to older cars via an over-the-air update.

"While the infotainment screen is pretty large and high resolution, it’s complicated and it’s a shame there aren’t any physical controls for frequently used systems underneath it, making it harder to change settings on the move." – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

Passenger & boot space

How it copes with people and clutter

Strengths

• Lots of front and rear space
• Flat floor in the rear
• Impressive storage up front

Weaknesses

• Smaller boot than rivals
• Rear seats aren’t very versatile

How much space does it have for people?

Space for the driver and front seat passenger are excellent, with plenty of room for a pair of six-footers to spread out. Rear seat passengers are just as well catered for, with enough head and leg room even if they’re sitting behind tall adults.

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There’s no transmission tunnel running down the middle of the car, so a third adult can also sit comfortably in the middle pew.

There are lots of useful storage solutions, too, including a deep cubby under the central arm rest, a large compartment under the centre console and a pair of cupholders and a wireless phone charging pad up front. Only the front door bins let the side down a bit because they only have enough room for a standard water bottle rather than anything bigger.

How much room is there for luggage?

The boot opening is large and wide and there’s no load lip to negotiate to get heavier items into the boot, but the boot floor is fairly high up.

At 400 litres, the C10 Hybrid's boot is on the small side for such a roomy family SUV. Its capacity is around 100 litres less than the MG HS PHEV (507 litres) and VW Tiguan (490 litres).

The rear seats don’t do anything particularly clever, with only the ability to split 60/40 and fold down flat but not slide back and forth. That is the same as those on the MG HS PHEV, but not as versatile as the 40/20/40 seats you get in the VW Tiguan.

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"Given the length of the C10 Hybrid, it’s disappointing that the boot is significantly smaller than those of its rivals." – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

Tips & Advice

Will the car fit your needs?

As part of the test drive, fill the car with regularly-carried luggage, and make sure the family can get comfy before you buy

Buying & owning

Everyday costs, plus how reliable and safe it is

Strengths

• Lots of standard kit
• Well priced
• Plenty of safety kit as standard

Weaknesses

• No reliability data yet
• Rivals charge faster

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

The C10 Hybrid costs £36,500, the same as the pure electric Leapmotor C10. That pitches it around £6000 below a comparable VW Tiguan, but £1800 more than the higher spec Trophy version of the MG HS PHEV.

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That said, the C10 only comes in one trim level and that has an impressive tally of standard kit, including a heated steering wheel and heated and ventilated front seats with electric adjustment and a memory function, dual-zone climate control, LED front and rear lights, an electric tailgate and a panoramic sunroof. In fact, the only optional extra you can add is a special paint hue.

Ways to buy

Cash from £30,895 Own the car outright. No monthly payments.

Lease from £198pm Drive a new car every few years. Lower upfront costs.

£2,378 initial payment , 24 month contract , 5000 miles p/a . Subject to status and conditions.

Available Now from £30,895 Choose a car from stock. Drive away today!

The C10 Hybrid's CO2 output of 38g/km places it in a low BIK bracket, making it a good option for company car drivers. However, the pure electric C10 costs even less.

Is it reliable and how long is the warranty?

Being such a new brand, Leapmotor wasn’t included in the 2025 What Car? Reliability Survey.

However, the brand offers a four-year/60,000-mile standard warranty on all models and eight years/100,000 miles on the battery pack.

The brand is partly owned by Stellantis, and many of its existing dealers will sell and service Leapmotor vehicles, so buyers should have the benefit of easy access to servicing and parts.

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How safe is it and is it easy to steal?

One area worth mentioning is the safety systems. While the car has a full five-star Euro NCAP safety rating and loads of standard safety kit, the lane-keep assist and driver monitoring systems are not very intuitive in real-world driving. In fact, they’re sensitive to the point where they are a hindrance rather than a help, with too many bongs, warnings and tugs from the wheel.

You can, of course, switch off the lane-keeping assist, but this requires diving into the infotainment touchscreen when stationary in order to do so, including the extra emergency lane-keep system. You can’t turn off the driver monitoring system, though. Leapmotor has already implemented over-the-air (OTA) software updates to help improve these systems and it says there will be more to come in future.

"Although Leapmotor doesn't have a proven reliability record in the UK or Europe, it is backed by Stellantis, which should ensure a good supply of parts when needed and lots of dealers on hand should anything go wrong." – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

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Buy it if…

-You want a PHEV with a long electric-only range

-You like cars with lots of tech

-You want a car with lots of standard equipment

Don’t buy it if…

-You value ride comfort

-You want an SUV that handles well

-You want a car with a user-friendly interior

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If you're interested in finding a Leapmotor C10, or any of the other family suv cars mentioned here, head over to our Cars available now pages to find new cars listed for sale at great prices.

Leapmotor C10 specifications

Best buy

69.9kWh SUV 5dr Electric Auto (217 ps) review

RRP £36,500

RRP price range

£36,495 - £36,500

MPG range across all versions

40

Available fuel types (which is best for you? )

Electric

Available colours

Number of engines (see all)

2

Number of trims (see all)

2

Warranty

4 years / 100,000 miles

Company car tax at 20% (min/max)

£291 - £509

Company car tax at 40% (min/max)

£583 - £1,017

FAQs

What is the range of the Leapmotor C10 REEV?

The Leapmotor C10 REEV can officially cover 90 miles on electric power alone. That’s more than either the plug-in hybrid versions of the MG HS and Volkswagen Tiguan can manage.

How much does the Leapmotor C10 cost?

Both the fully-electric Leapmotor C10 and the range-extender Leapmotor C10 REEV cost £6000. That makes the C10 REEV considerably cheaper than an equivalent Volkswagen Tiguan PHEV, but £1800 more expensive than an MG HS PHEV.

What is the fuel consumption of the Leapmotor C10 REEV?

While the C10 REEV can officially manage 706.2mpg, we managed 44.8mpg during our time behind the wheel on mixed roads.

New car deals

Best price from £30,895

What is What Car? best price?

The What Car? best price shows you the cheapest way to buy your new car, whether it's by choosing an in-stock car through our partner Autotrader or placing a factory order.

Available now from: £30,895

RRP from: £36,495

Available now

From £30,895

Leasing deals

From £198

About our price indicator

What Car? indicative Personal lease example (subject to status)

Leapmotor C10 Hybrid

Expected annual mileage 5000 Term months 24 Deposit months 12 Monthly payment £198.16 Initial payment £2,377.92

Step-by-step

Leasing works a bit like a long-term rental. You drive it, but you don’t own it.

• Choose your car, pick your terms and apply for lease credit online
• Pay monthly rental payments for your chosen term length
• Drive it, enjoy it, then give it back at the end

What you get

When you lease with Autotrader you get all of this:

• Full manufacturer’s warranty
• Road tax and roadside assistance included
• No admin fees
• Free returns within 30 days*

In partnership with

£2,378 initial payment, 24 month contract, 5000 miles p/a. Subject to status and conditions.

• Lower total monthly cost than PCP/HP
• No balloon payments
• Road tax included

Leapmotor C10s available to buy

In partnership with

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £37,200

£30,895

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £36,500

£30,995

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £37,200

£30,995

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £36,500

£31,400

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £36,500

£31,500

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

£31,590

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £36,500

£31,750

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

RRP £36,500

£31,950

Leapmotor C10

69.9kWh Auto 5dr

£31,990

See all available cars

About the writer

Name: Claire Evans

Title: Consumer editor

Follow Claire Evans on

Claire Evans is a motoring journalist with more than 30 years’ experience, and has been consumer editor of What Car? since 2016.

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Fri Oct 2 2026

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