2026 Leapmotor B05 review: Promising, but with some significant drawbacks

There is a sweet little car trapped inside the Leapmotor B05. It is a genuinely good drive, and not just for a Chinese EV, with rear-wheel drive and great poise in corners thanks to chassis tuning from Italy.

Yes, you read that right, Leapmotor has tapped its Stellantis connection for engineering expertise straight out of Balocco, the historic proving ground used by Alfa Romeo for many generations and also by Maserati and even Ferrari.

So the B05 has a good start in life, and is solid value from $35,888 on the road, with a range promise as high as 482 kilometres.

And yet . . . the mechanical package is overlaid with an over-supply of bells and whistles that massively dilute the appeal of a new arrival in one of the country’s most over-crowded showroom spaces.

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The styling is ‘meh’ – as the millennials say – the driver-assistance package is intrusive and counter-intuitive, and it is also a hatchback when almost everyone craves an SUV.

Just ask Ford, which killed its great little Focus and Fiesta hatches to pivot into SUV country. The B05 is also part of the under-performing Stellantis family, there is only a tiny dealer network – although Leapmotor promises many more in future – and the car’s Chinese roots are clear. Even the price-tags end in the lucky number of 888, which means ‘Fortune, fortune, fortune’ in Chinese culture.

The B05 is the second model in Leapmotor’s expansion plan in Australia, after the B10 which failed to deliver on basic quality promises and didn’t even come with Apple CarPlay. It, too, was bland in design and over-filled with frippery, although the rear-seat space deserves praise.

This time around, local management is promising a direct pipeline to China for over-the-air updates and improvements. It’s also relying on a growing range through into 2027, when it promises to have six local Leapmotor contenders to generate more buzz.

So far in 2026 the numbers are not great, with about 1200 sales in 10 months, but local chief Andy Hoang is ambitious. “Compared to last year, we’ve doubled the number. For us, that’s reasonable growth.

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“We think there is a lot of opportunity for growth with our cars. This year we only have two cars and next year we will have four cars – at a minimum.”

It’s important to give context to Leapmotor, which is a technology company that’s been building cars for less than 10 years. So it’s big on electronics and screens and stuff, even making its own batteries.

“This is Leapmotor’s first foray into a sporty electric car. And its first coupe,” said technical chief, Rick Crichton.

Getting into the technology, the B05 has what is called a ’new generation’ EV system, including oil cooling for the rear-mounted motor. It has 160 kiloWatts and 240 Newton-metres, a claimed 100km/h sprint time of 6.7 seconds, three levels of battery regenerative braking, and three steering modes. DC charging from 30-80 per cent takes 18 minutes and AC charging is claimed at three hours from 30-80 per cent.

The design work includes 19-inch alloys and frameless doors, what is called ‘upper-segment roominess’, a rear seat that reclines 27 degrees, a cooled wireless phone charger, 25 cabin storage spaces and a rear tissue dispenser. There is even a setting to make the coloured cabin lighting ‘dance’ to your music.

There are two trim levels, Style and Design, with the upper model adding a glass sunroof, electric front seats with faux leather, folding mirrors and 12-speaker sound. It all sounds good, and beyond the blandoid design which makes it hard to spot in a field of compact SUVs, there is plenty of promise.

And then comes the driving, on winding roads near the Sunshine Coast, where the chassis is a stand-out. It’s eager and responsive, as well balanced as you’d expect with a 50:50 weight distribution, with compliance over lumps and bumps, and very low cabin noise levels.It’s sporty but short of a hot hatch rating, with a 6.7-second sprint to 100km/h using launch control.

It’s definitely brisk enough for everyday use. But … And here they come. Starting at the start, the speedometer display is off to the left-hand side of the driver’s screen – ADAS gets star billing – instead of straight ahead. It’s near-impossible to read the labelling on the steering wheel controls.

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And then it gets really annoying, with too many minor controls hidden in the big centre screen – including the outside mirrors. It’s also missing a wiper on the rear hatch.

“It’s very much a smartphone experience,” said Hoang, ignoring the potential for distracting the driver.

The car is nicely wide across the front seats, which are nicely comfortable, and visibility is good in all directions. It also has a built-in dashcam.Then we get to the ADAS systems, which constantly jerk the wheel away from the driver, sound annoying noises and flash distracting lights. It’s among the worst from China, especially when the settings are mostly set at ‘off’, yet re-activate if you get anywhere near a white line. And those are common on narrow Queensland roads.

Crichton eventually shows how to turn it all off, properly. But it’s complicated and owners will struggle, even if they can get help from a dealer.

Surely it’s better to have an ADAS system that works in the background, instead of annoying the driver so much they crave the off button?

“The ADAS is tuned out of China. We are working on it. We do want to get the car right,” said Hoang.

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Leapmotor is aiming for a 5-star score from ANCAP and will probably hit the target with seven airbags and all the tick-box ADAS stuff. But …another ‘but’ while searching for the button to open the rear hatch. It’s hidden up near the right-rear taillight and the only question is ‘Why?’.

Why, then, should someone look at Leapmotor and take a test drive in the B05?

“I don’t think all the Chinese brands will survive. I think we will survive. We’ve got one of the fastest growing brands in China and Europe,” Hoang said. “The product stacks up. We want customers to compare every brand on its merit. When customers do that, we know Leapmotor will come out well.

“That gives us confidence. So in this plethora of brands, once customers go down that road, Leapmotor will come out on top.”

It’s a bold prediction and, based on the B05, it’s also very, very ambitious.

Specs