Battery size: 37.3kWh
Range: 165 miles
Max charge rate: 45kW
Company car tax: 4%
Introduction and model history – Leapmotor T03
This is the first car that Chinese carmaker Leapmotor brought to the UK – an interesting way to introduce yourself to the world, but here it is.
It went on sale in the UK in 2025, but it’s been available in China since 2020. It’s fascinating to look at the T03 and then at Leapmotor’s other more recent offerings and see how greatly the brand has developed in just a short amount of time.
The T03 has actually gone off sale in China and isn’t going to be replaced directly, but Leapmotor’s international bosses have said that they’re developing a T03 replacement just for Europe, which is nice.
The main headline here is that the T03 is the cheapest car on sale in the UK thanks to Leapmotor’s ‘Leap Grant’ that knocks £3k off the £15,995 list price and knocks it down to an impressive £12,995.
Note that’s it's one of the cheapest cars on sale in the UK, not merely along the cheapest EVs – Leapmotor means business. It's currently undercut by the Dacia Spring, but the new version of that car is adding a lot to the list price, so the T03 will regain its crown.
It’s got a decent 165-mile range and all the safety kit you’d hope for in a new car, you don’t feel like you’re missing out there.
The price will be enough to persuade most buyers to go for it – some might be put off by the relatively small boot, but there’s actually decent space for four in the cabin if you’re giving lifts around town.
Bearing in mind the old saying that you get what you pay for, there’s actually a lot to recommend about the T03.
Range, battery and charging
The T03 has a 37.3kWh battery, which doesn’t sound huge but it’s bigger than a current Dacia Spring’s and it gives 165 miles of range in the official cycle, which is pretty usable and definitely beatable in mostly urban driving.
It means you won’t need to charge often, which is good news as it’s a little leisurely. Even on a home wall box it will only take 6.6kW rather than the usual 7.2kW and the maximum DC charging power is 45kW. That is more than the Spring’s 30kW though.
The charging port is on the nose of the car. I love that as it means you are always near the plug if you drive nose in. But I know some people hate it – including insurance companies who have to fix it after a bump.
Practicality and boot space
The first thing you notice about the T03 is that it’s tiny. At 3,620mm long and 1,577mm wide, it’s smaller than a Dacia Spring in everything but height.
The new Hyundai Inster and Renault 5 are both longer range, alternative small EVs (the Renault is a bit bigger at 4.0 metres long, while the Inster is similar in size to the T03) that you might consider, but both are quite a bit more expensive.
There’s a surprising amount of space for passengers inside the T03, even in the rear. Six footers won’t be brushing their hair on the roof and while the legroom will be tight it’s not impossible to get in.
In the front there’s a decent amount of storage space, including a phone slot and single cup holder.
The boot isn’t as practical though. The opening is really narrow and high, and it reveals a space of 210 litres – you get 50% more in a Spring. A used VW e-Up has 40 litres more too.
If you’re look at carrying more than a few small bags you’ll probably need to fold the seat back down, which is easy to do with one hand. There’s no split in the seat though, so you can’t carry people and luggage.
Interior, design/styling and technology
While the exterior looks are deliberately on the cute side, the interior is more conventional but it’s smart and remarkably well built for the price.
The driver is treated to a digital cluster behind the steering wheel and a 10.1in central touchscreen. The graphics are impressive but the central display is clunky to use and most of the buttons are either in a menu or on the steering wheel.
There’s only one trim level available, so the only choice you are given is the colour. But that single spec is packed with kit.
There’s a Bluetooth phone key and push button start, 15-inch alloy wheels alloy wheels, native satnav, four electric windows, and a strange but not unwelcome addition is a panoramic sunroof with electric power shade. The door mirrors are electrically adjustable and heated.
We’d gladly swap some of that for Apple CarPlay (the Leapmotor satnav isn’t brilliant), a reach adjustable steering wheel and a rear wiper though.
We’ve no complaints about the quality though. All the parts you touch often such as the steering wheel, stalks and handles would shame cars costing £10,000 more.
Only the ‘piano black’ passenger door handle lets it down. It looks good when new but is bound to become tarnished quickly when attacked with jewellery and sticky fingers.
Motors, performance and handling
Press the start button, select Drive on the Mercedes-alike stalk selector and the T03 moves away swiftly, once the electric parking brake has realised it needs to release (which it does with roughly the same level of noise as a commercial airliner dropping its landing gear).
In fact, the T03 makes all kinds of daft and irritating noises. Below 15mph it sounds like there is a tortured ghost trapped under the bonnet, so it’s best to turn up the radio.
You are offered a choice of three different modes for the steering feels and another three for the motor. Normally I’d just go for the Standard or Eco, but they can make the car feel a little dulled so I switched straight to Sport. While the steering will stay in this setting, the throttle defaults back to Eco.
You might also consider turning off the driving aids before departing too. The chimes and bongs soon become annoying, reminding you of every speed limit change while tugging at the wheel and suggesting you take a break if you yawn (my colleague Sam Burnett complained of five notifications that he was tired while singing along to a Tom Jones song).
Once past that, the T03 is a pleasant surprise. It has 94bhp – which is much more than the 63bhp of the Spring. It means it feels perky when accelerating and it will happily keep up with traffic on the motorway.
That’s not the car’s natural environment – the high sides mean it gets buffeted by air wash from trucks and side winds. There’s a mildly irritating amount of wind noise too.
It’s comfy enough, even on UK roads, but it does bounce and bob over bigger potholes – mostly you're just aware that it's a fairly narrow, lightweight car on skinny tyres, and that inevitably has it feeling a bit choppy over poor road surfaces.
Having said that, it's still wieldy and appropriate for winding through a city, which is where the T03 is designed to excel. It feels plenty perky and manoeuvrable about town. Brake regen in the T03 is quite mild, and there’s no one-pedal mode, which is a bit of a shame.
Safety is a bit of an unknown with the T03. It’s not been crash tested by Euro NCAP, but it does get six airbags, autonomous emergency braking at slow speeds, traffic sign recognition, blind spot warning and lane-keep assist.
Running costs and pricing
There’s only one trim level available, priced at £12,995 (including Leapmotor’s £3k discount to rival the electric car grant its cars aren’t eligible for because they’re Chinese-built).
If you opt for Leapmotor’s PCP finance, we looked at getting the T03 over 36 months/24,000 miles with a 10% deposit of £1,300 and the monthly payments came out at £192 a month.
The only choice you are given is the colour, and there are only three of those. Light White, Canopy Grey and Caribbean Blue, if you are interested – the latter is free, the other two are £400.
Real world economy can be very impressive. When I drove the car – admittedly at the ideal temperature of around 20ºC – it averaged an almost unbelievable 10.2 miles per kWh when driving through and between towns.
This dropped when on the motorway with the aircon on full, but it is still among the most efficient cars we've tested. We'll have to see how it performs in the chilly British winter.
Verdict
The T03 might look like an old Smart and sound as exciting as a car park level, but it’s a really usable small car with a surprising amount of performance, passenger space, range and equipment.
It drives well too, especially in town, and its small size and low weight make it much more efficient than other EVs on the market.
But really it’s that price that dominates your thinking – if you’re on a strict budget then you could do worse than the one of the cheapest cars on the market.
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