Leapmotor to introduce AWD C10 variant
Leapmotor has unveiled the most powerful version yet of its C10 compact SUV with all-wheel drive. Two electric motors, one on each drive axle, provide a combined system output of 430 kW. This should enable the C10, which is expected to weigh over two tonnes, to accelerate to 100 kph in just four seconds. The top speed has not been officially revealed.
However, the most important innovation does not concern the drive train or performance: while the previous versions of the C10 offered in Europe were based on a 400-volt architecture, the all-wheel-drive version available from next autumn will have an 800-volt electrical system. In China, the manufacturer had already unveiled a revised version of the C10 featuring 800-volt technology in May.
In Europe, the all-wheel drive version will only be available in combination with the upmarket ‘Design’ trim level. Its power storage system is a model-specific 81.4 kWh LFP battery. Previously, the manufacturer equipped the European electric version of the C10 with a 69.9 kWh LFP battery, which enables a range of up to 425 kilometres according to WLTP.
Leapmotor has not yet commented on the range of the upcoming performance variant. Although the battery is larger, the additional motor results in higher consumption. The factory specification for the C10 AWD is estimated to be around the 400-kilometre mark.
The car manufacturer has also not yet specified the maximum charging capacity. However, at suitable fast-charging stations, the battery charge level should be able to be increased from 30 to 80 per cent in 22 minutes. And that’s without preconditioning, as Leapmotor emphasises. With the normal C10 with 400-volt technology and the smaller battery, the process takes eight minutes longer. However, this is still not excessively fast for a vehicle with 800-volt technology; the comparably large battery of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N charges from 10 to 80 per cent in just 18 minutes thanks to a charging capacity of 260 kW.
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