More powerful, better equipped and with more autonomy at almost the same price

The Dacia Spring is the cheapest electric car on the market, but a rival has just arrived that is going to make things very complicated for it: the Leap engine T03This Chinese model, manufactured in Europe, costs only 1,000 euros more than the Spring, but it is better in terms of power, autonomy and equipment.

Even more so to the urban Fiat 500e, since this T03 is 8,500 euros cheaperIt is the first Leapmotor car to be launched in the European market, which includes Spain. Deliveries are scheduled for early October.

With 265 km of autonomy, ZERO label and well equipped

Leapmotor International is the joint venture formed by Stellantis and the Chinese firm Leapmotor: it is 51/49 owned and led by Stellantis. The European group not only has the marketing rights to the electric models of this Asian brand, they are also manufactured in the plants of the company’s firms. As they are not imported from China, these electric cars will be free of the new tariffs.

The firm debuts in Europe with this Leap engine T03: a utilitarian vehicle that is somewhat urban in size, since it signs the 3.6 m long and 1.65 m high. Its wheelbase is 2.4 m, slightly more than the Fiat 500e and the same as the Dacia Spring. It can seat four occupants and boasts a headroom of 960 mm. In any case, its size is what it is, so rear habitability will not be one of its strong points as is the case with the Spring or the Fiat 500.

The Leapmotor T03 features a front electric motor that delivers 95 CV (70 kW) y 158 Nm torque: identical power to the cheapest Fiat 500e. It takes its energy from a 37.3 kWh battery with which it homologates 265 km of autonomyIn this respect it also beats the Fiat city car, which promises 190 km between charges.

As a good electric car, it has regenerative braking and although it does not offer a retention mode as such, it does have three driving modes: Standard, Eco and Sport. These automatically regulate the retention, being more or less conservative depending on whether you want to save battery or have all the features. In addition, we find ventilated rear and front disc brakes, which can be seen between the spokes of its 15-inch alloy wheels.

He T03 It is suitable for Type 2 and CCS2 charging connectors, its on-board charger is 6.6 kW and supports charges of up to 48 kW of power. At high-power charging points it promises fill your battery in 36 minuteswhile a domestic Wallbox goes from 30 to 80% in about 3.5 hours.

What’s in the Leapmotor T03? This Chinese electric car is offered in a single finish: Design. And its equipment is remarkable in relation to its price. As standard we find sunroofLED headlights front and rear, keyless entry and start, automatic climate control, rear camera, rear parking sensors, power windows in all rows, electric mirrors and multifunction synthetic leather steering wheel.

Inside, also without extra price, we find two screens: that of the small digital instrumentation of eight inches and that of 10.1 inches touchscreen infotainment system. This integrates a navigator, intelligent voice assistant, Bluetooth connection for mobile phones and 4G connection, as well as having OTA updates for possible equipment or technology improvements.

And as far as assistance systemsits package is very complete: in addition to mandatory systems such as the Intelligent Speed ​​Assistant (ISA) or automatic emergency braking, it includes adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and lane change assistant, blind spot detector, obstacle detector for door opening, fatigue alert or traffic sign recognition.

From the Leapmotor app, it offers remote functions such as controlling the climate control system, opening or closing the doors or the option to find the car.

For 11,900 euros, including MOVES III

He Leap motor T03 starts in the 18.900 euroswithout discounts. If you opt for the MOVES III plan (it is not indicated whether they advance it or not), with the maximum incentive of 7,000 euros it remains at 11,900 euros.

Thus, this electric urban car is 8,580 euros cheaper than the Fiat 500e entry-level model, starting at 27,483 euros with the discount applied. And all this taking into account that it is just as powerful (95 HP) but offers considerably more autonomy.

The Dacia Spring, which starts at 17,890 eurosis slightly more affordable. But we are talking about a much less powerful model (65 hp), with a lower autonomy (225 km) and less equipped in its base finish, which does without, for example, a multimedia screen or rear-seat windows.