Chinese car brand's big expectations: Cut-price challenger believes Australians will buy more hybrids than electric cars with the 2025 Leapmotor C10 REEV to outsell the 2025 Leapmotor C10 EV

Hybrids, specifically plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), are selling stronger than they ever have in Australia, and China’s Leapmotor is expecting to cash in on this trend with its newest model.

The Leapmotor C10 REEV (range-extender electric vehicle) launched in Australia in March this year, around five months after the original C10 EV launched, but despite this the company expects the former will outsell the latter.

“We think the [C10] REEV, at the moment, is probably meeting more of what our customers of Australia [are] expecting,” said Head of Leapmotor Australia Andy Hoang.

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“Our sales forecast is probably 60:40, REEV over BEV.

“But you know, it’s early days, and over the next couple of months, we’ll probably have a better understanding of where those numbers fall.”

This follows sales for PHEVs being up an astronomical 117.6 per cent year-on-year in the first five months of 2025. A total of 19,393 examples were sold over this time.

Vehicles like the BYD Shark 6 and Sealion 6 have helped fuel this recent growth in PHEV sales, but others like the GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV and Ford Ranger PHEV will likely bring even more in the coming months.

2025 Leapmotor C10 REEV

In contrast, while there were 77,618 EVs sold in the first five months of 2025, this is only up by 10.4 per cent year-on-year.

Leapmotor is one of the few brands in Australia to offer the same car in both electric and hybrid forms. The only other notable examples include the Hyundai Kona and Kia Niro, though it’s understood electric versions of the latter are soon being axed locally.

While the C10 REEV can be plugged in and fueled up like a PHEV, the way the powertrain operates is very different.

2025 Leapmotor C10 REEV

This model is powered by an electric motor that produces 158kW and 320Nm that’s fed by a 28.4kWh lithium-ion battery pack.

While this battery pack is considerably smaller than the C10 EV (down from 69.9kWh), the C10 REEV also has a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that can be called upon.

Unlike regular PHEVs which can have the engine directly drive the wheels, the C10 REEV’s engine only acts as a generator to charge up the battery. It’s a similar concept to Nissan’s e-Power hybrids.

2025 Leapmotor C10 REEV

There have only been two REEVs on sale in Australia before the C10 REEV. These include the Holden Volt (2012-2015) and the BMW i3 REx (2014-2018).

Like the C10 EV, the C10 REEV is currently offered in two trim levels – Design and Style.

Thanks to an end-of-financial-year deal, the C10 REEV currently starts at $45,990 drive-away, and extends to $49,900 drive-away. This ends on June 30, 2025.