The Leapmotor C16 on the Leapmotor stand at the Paris Motor Show, photographed on 14 October 2024.
The Leapmotor C16 is a 4,915 mm electric SUV with up to six seats in a 2+2+2 layout. It runs on an 800-volt system that charges at up to 180 kW, which Stellantis says takes the battery from 30 to 80 per cent in about 15 minutes.
Paris 2024 was its first appearance at a European event, according to Stellantis, which holds 51 per cent of Leapmotor International. We filmed the purple C16 on the show days, 14 to 16 October 2024, and put the video online on 5 January 2025.
The Big One Above The C10
The Leapmotor stand at the Paris Motor Show 2024 also showed the C10 family SUV and the T03 city car, and the smaller B10 made its world premiere there, according to Stellantis. The C16 sits at the top of that range in size and in seating.
Vision Mobility gives it a 2,825 mm wheelbase, the same as the C10’s, with 17 cm more length. Those extra centimetres pay for a third row. With that row folded down, the boot holds 1,022 litres.
The high-voltage system uses silicon carbide, Stellantis says. That is the hardware behind the fast-charging figure, and it puts the C16 on an 800-volt footing.
A Cabin Built Around Screens
Rear passengers get an entertainment screen that drops from the roof. Vision Mobility lists it at 15.6 inches and InsideEVs Germany at 15.4 inches. Vision Mobility also lists 21 speakers with Dolby Atmos, Leapmotor OS 4.0 and a panoramic glass roof.
The AUTO TV video, a first-look review, points to the same cabin. It shows a large floating central display, tri-zone climate control, heated and ventilated front seats and a third row it calls usable.
On the stand the C16 wears a purple-to-black finish with a full-width light bar across the nose. Its front door stands open in the photograph, and the Leapmotor wall behind it shows a cutaway of the platform.
Still Not Sold In Europe
Two years after Paris, a C16 cannot be ordered in Switzerland, Belgium or France.
Our Take
The AUTO TV first look calls the C16 a properly sized family SUV, bigger than a Tesla Model Y and smaller than a Mercedes EQE SUV. It praises the premium cabin, the big central screen and the rear screen.
Its closing view is that if this is the standard of the new Chinese industry, the traditional makers have serious competition. The size, the six seats and the 800-volt hardware make that a fair read of the car we filmed.
Specs: Leapmotor C16 (Paris 2024 preview)
Size: 4,915 mm long, wheelbase 2,825 mm, up to six seats in 2+2+2 (Vision Mobility)
| Boot | 1,022 litres with the third row folded (Vision Mobility) Electrical system: 800 volts, silicon carbide; charging up to 180 kW, 30 to 80% in about 15 minutes (Stellantis release) Screens: rear entertainment screen, 15.6 inches (Vision Mobility) or 15.4 inches (InsideEVs Germany)Battery, power, WLTP range: not announced Price (Europe): not announced Sources: Stellantis release (Automotive World), Vision Mobility, InsideEVs Germany. |
Independent editorial. No brand or organiser paid for or reviewed this article.
