Electric cars: Leapmotor T03, the Chinese city car that challenges the European ones

Luca Frigerio

January 28th

– Milano

Most car manufacturers are working to strengthen the zero-emission range which, however, has not yet managed to win over the general public due to high purchase costs and not completely absorbed by the aid of the incentives. In fact, more and more high-end models are appearing on the market, with prices exceeding the threshold of 40,000 euros. Although, to date, electric mobility could gain great popularity in the metropolis, only a few brands have invested in the development of city cars with a “green” soul. The Fiat 500e and the Smart ForTwo dominate the sales charts in Italy, but the most interesting electric alternatives in segment A are only the Dacia Spring and the Renault Twingo. The market of the future calls for compact models and, if the European brands seem not to respond, a very interesting novelty arrives from China both in terms of content and price: the Leapmotor T03.

Leapmotor T03: style and size

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3.62 meters long, 1.65 m wide and 1.57 m high, this Chinese novelty is characterized by a functional look: in fact, the square shapes and rounded ribs, which recall a stylistic fusion between the 500e and the Smart ForFour, they favor comfort on board rather than design. In support of such a traditional aesthetic, the technicians of the Chinese brand did not want to give up more refined details such as the LED headlights, two-tone colors and a five-door bodywork to facilitate the entry of second row passengers.

Leapmotor T03: the cockpit

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The lively and colorful interiors leave room for a rich technological sector, starting from the dashboard where there is an 8″ screen for the driver and a second 10.1″ touchscreen display for infotainment management. Although it is a city car, the Chinese brand has thought first of all about safety which uses the latest driver assistance systems such as adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane maintenance and driver fatigue detection. driver. Top-level Adas hardly available on many European city cars: in addition, a dedicated App has been developed that allows you to remotely manage the car, both to monitor its status but also to take advantage of some comforts such as activating the air conditioning or vehicle location.

Leapmotor T03: performance and autonomy

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As anticipated, the T03 is 100% electric: the heart of this Asian city car is a zero-emission engine with approximately 109 HP and 158 Nm of torque mounted on the front axle and powered by a 41.3 kWh which acts as a floor. The result translates into quite interesting numbers: in fact, the declared range according to the Wltp cycle is just under 300 km, a more than comforting value when compared to the 190 km of the Twingo E-Tech and the electric 500 with the 70 kWh battery. .

Leapmotor T03: how much does it cost?

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We now come to the figures that matter most: those of the price. This small Chinese city car has already made its debut in Europe, but not in Italy. The price list referring to the French market starts at 25,990 euros, a value in line with its European rivals, but we must also consider that the T03 offers almost segment B content. We still don’t know if and when it will enter the Italian peninsula and how much it will cost with us, but both this model and the Leapmotor are to be kept an eye on because the Chinese brand already has a sedan, an SUV and a coupé in its range with tantalizing technical and technological characteristics.