Bridging Technology in a Driving Report: Leapmotor C10 with Range Extender
The mid-size SUV Leapmotor C10 was previously available as an electric car. We had a brief drive of the new model with a range extender.
Bridging Technology Range Extender: Is it still needed?
(Image: Stellantis)
- Stefan Grundhoff
The Chinese brand Leapmotor is currently launching a product offensive within the Stellantis Group. The mid-size SUV Leapmotor C10 is offered by Stellantis as an electric car with the option of all-wheel drive. Now the model is also available as a series hybrid with a range extender.
The Leapmotor C10 is a mid-size crossover, about as long as a Tesla Model Y (test) at 4.74 meters, and offers 435 to 1410 liters of cargo space. This places it squarely in the sights of most electric car customers. However, its new powertrain option is exotic in this country and will likely remain so. A first test drive reveals strengths and weaknesses.
Range Extenders Will Remain Rare
Whether a range extender is still sensible compared to a modern battery-electric car today is debatable. Perhaps some customers will find use cases in niche areas. Range extenders were already rare for good reason about a decade ago. Today, the technology has to compete with the significantly increased range and much shorter charging times of battery-electric cars – and this with a notable increase in charging stations.
Stellantis can offer a car with a range extender in Europe because it is already produced for the mass market in China. There, it meets with great customer interest due to different conditions than in Europe. Leapmotor CEO Tianshu Xin considers the C10 to be an “optimal solution for frequent drivers who also want to drive electrically” even outside its home market. Xin assumes that “every second C10 sold in Europe will be one with a range extender.” This sounds extremely optimistic for a bridging technology, of which it is no longer clear what it is supposed to bridge in this country. The advantage over hybrid drives with the possibility of direct power transmission lies in its technical simplicity. This makes production significantly and the final price potentially cheaper.
Leapmotor C10 REEV Teil 1 (3 Bilder)
Stellantis
)In-house Competition in Sight
For 37,600 euros, the C10 REEV also offers good space and decent standard equipment. Ironically, Leapmotor itself provides the strongest argument for the dual powertrain: The charging performance of the similarly priced electric C10 (driving report) with 69.9 kWh, a range of 420 kilometers in WLTP, and 400-volt technology, is significantly below most competitor products with a maximum of 84 kW on DC and 6.6 kW on AC. While the faster charging model with an 800-volt architecture and all-wheel drive is still significantly pricier, it is foreseeable that the entry-level C10 will also benefit from the corresponding technology sooner or later under competitive pressure.
For the C10 with range extender, Leapmotor specifies a range of over 970 kilometers with a full battery and a full 50-liter tank. However, the charging performance for the 28.4 kWh is even lower than for the battery-electric version, at best 65 kW. According to the standard, the DC charging time from 30 (!) to 80 percent is 18 minutes. The C10 REEV achieves an electrical range of up to 145 kilometers, which is large compared to other plug-in hybrid models.
Smooth and Quiet
In normal operation, the 158 kW electric motor with 320 Nm of torque drives the rear wheels. Even on longer journeys during our test drive, there was never an urgent need for more power. The car, weighing 1960 kg, accelerates to 100 km/h in 8.5 seconds, with a top speed of 170 km/h possible. Normally, the generator kicks in at 20 percent battery charge. In “EV+” mode, it automatically engages at nine percent at the latest. The 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine then directly supplies the electric motor with electrical energy.
Leapmotor C10 REEV Teil 2 (5 Bilder)
Stellantis
)If you select “Performance +”, you drive with the generator running continuously. The switchover is smooth and largely silent, and the well-encapsulated combustion engine is barely audible while driving. However, driving performance noticeably decreases, as the combustion engine only produces 50 kW. The standard consumption according to WLTP is minimal at 0.4 liters of Super per 100 kilometers – the CO₂ emissions are tiny on paper at 10 g. With a discharged battery, the standard consumption is 6.4 l/100 km. As with any hybrid, such values always depend on the driver, whose sense of responsibility one can only hope for. With the C10 REEV, the better electric driving performance should motivate regular charging.
Lack of Attention to Detail in Tuning
The indirect steering provides little feel for the road. The chassis tuning lacks a bit of attention to detail, as the body oscillates particularly on long undulations, while road imperfections like tram tracks or poor road surfaces are more noticeable than necessary.
Videos by heise
Primarily Screen Operation
The interior of the Leapmotor C10 REEV is the same as that of the battery-electric versions. It offers a pleasantly spacious feel, solid build quality, and unfortunately, predominantly touchscreen operation. Following Tesla's example, the cockpit is greatly reduced, with almost all functions accessible exclusively via the central 15-inch screen. This does not always make it easy to hit the correct buttons and navigate through submenus to turn off warning tones or change settings.
The concept is not nearly as practical for everyday use as one with physical buttons and switches. Furthermore, the navigation system is sometimes too slow. The comfort of the faux leather seats on longer journeys is the other major criticism. Why a head-up display is missing, as are dimmable mirrors, despite the extensive equipment, remains a mystery.
(mho)