Leapmotor B10 vs Hyundai I30

What's the difference?

I’ll be a shame if the B10 doesn’t sell well, because it doesn’t suffer from many of the downfalls of its compatriots and its price is extremely competitive for what you get.

As a comfortable smallish SUV, it meets par, and it’s on the better side of tech when it comes to cars from China, and it doesn’t have any major on-road red flags.

You really wouldn’t be disappointed with this having paid $40K, just skip the base model and go for the Design.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

The updated Hyundai i30 N Line doesn’t look like or perform like a base model.

You really do get bang for your buck here with its features. It’s a good-looking hatch that’s fun to drive in the city or open road and while the multimedia system is basic and occupants will be squished in the rear row, everything else is a big plus.

Right after we praise the B10 for its value, we need to talk about its looks. A slight drop in tone as the second Leapmotor to land in Australia looks an awful lot like the first, and it’s relatively bland.

It’s not ugly, but it’s not particularly inspiring and there’s not much character to this little electric SUV.

It’s got a very upright silhouette at the front with a slightly sloping roofline at the rear, so the overall shape is appealing, but the lack of distinct features makes the B10 an anonymous commuter for now, especially with its similarities to the C10.

You can tell them apart by the C10’s slightly larger size if they’re near each other, or the B10’s more in-line headlight bar, where the C10’s have a ‘droop’ at the sides.

The large section of black at the lower half of the front is also unappealing, though darker colours like the optional 'Starry Night Blue' or 'Dawn Purple' (both $990) blend into it better than standard 'Light White'.

To its credit, at least the B10 doesn’t fall victim to the design crutch of adding trim and plastic for no reason.

In terms of the specifics, the B10 is 4515mm long, 1885mm wide and 1665mm tall with a 2735mm wheelbase, making it quite the large small SUV.

Inside, the cabin looks and feels roomy thanks to the test car’s light interior, decent windows and the light from the sunroof, as well as the fact the EV powertrains are compact and generally don’t interfere with cabin space.

Materials aren’t all scratchy hard plastic, though it is dotted around, and the general look of the B10 inside feels more premium than its price would have you thinking, despite the simplicity of the layout and design.

The design memo seems to be to make the i30 N Line look sportier and more purposeful.

They've nailed the design. The i30 is a good-looking hatch that looks like it has European styling.

The reshaped grille features new air intake vents, and stylish V-shaped daytime running lights. The rest of the body looks sharply dressed with new side skirts, reshaped bumper, black side mirrors, dual exhausts and 18-inch alloy wheels.

The cabin has been refreshed with a black headliner, upgraded leather and suede upholstery with contrasting red stitching and an N Line steering wheel and leather gear shifter.

The dashboard features new materials and additional soft touchpoints that make the interior feel like it's not a base model at all.

Getting into the B10 requires a minor annoyance - unlocking and locking the car requires a keycard to be tapped on the drivers’ side mirror like you're scanning to access your floor in a hotel elevator.

There’s an app that adds a fair bit of functionality, but having to whip your phone out ahead of jumping in the car is also irritating.

Once you’re in, though, the space inside the B10 is well laid-out, even if much of its functionality is crammed into the big central touchscreen - it’s always ‘points off’ for a lack of physical buttons in this section of a review.

Once you’re used to it and have sorted out your personal settings on the multimedia software, it becomes more natural and less distracting, though Apple CarPlay and Android Auto would occasionally lag in the car on test.

The good news is they now exist for the brand in the B10, with the Leapmotor C10 still lacking the vital in-car mirroring tech.

The ergonomics and interior space work well, generally, with comfortable pews and good vision, plus decent spaces to keep things out of the way. The phone charger being in a very visible and accessible position might tempt some naughty screen-keen drivers, and being in the sun without a vent for cooling while charging means your phone will get proper hot.

The second row is extremely spacious, belying the fact this car is classified as a small SUV. Oodles of legroom and enough headroom for a tall adult means the B10 outguns rivals in terms of good options for parents (note the B10’s extremely strong 95 per cent child safety score from ANCAP, too) or anyone who needs to cart humans around regularly.

Behind the second row is a 490L boot, which becomes 1475L when the second row is folded down.

There’s space under the floor for cables and messy bits, but unfortunately no spare wheel, just a tyre repair kit, so more points off for that.

Like most hatches, the front row of the i30 benefits the most when it comes to leg- and headroom. Taller passengers will be most comfortable up front as the rear row doesn't offer all that much legroom. It's squishy behind my driving position and I'm only 168cm tall!

Access however is decent for both rows because of the wide door apertures, but it's a low car to get in and out of because of the 140mm ground clearance. Expect a couple of grunts after a gym session.

The seats in both rows are fairly well-padded and offer the most comfort on shorter journeys. Even with the new powered lumbar support on the drivers seat, fatigue can set in quickly on a longer trip.

Individual storage is excellent throughout the car with a large glovebox that can hold a thick manual, middle console, phone tray, four cupholders, a drink bottle holder in each door, two net map pockets and even a sunglasses holder!

Other than the Kia Cerato, the i30 has one of the largest boots compared to its rivals, at 395L, and it’s enough for road trips and a decent grocery haul. The taller boot lip means you can stack items too but you don’t get a spare wheel in this model, just a tyre mobility kit. The base model also doesn’t get a powered tailgate, but the lid is not heavy at all to operate.

The new digital instrument cluster looks great but the multimedia system is basic and there’s no satellite navigation, so you're reliant on the phone mirroring apps but these maintain a strong connection. The radio is a hit or miss but that’s typical for the grade level.

Charging options are great for a base model with a single USB-A port, three USB-C ports and 12-volt sockets, and a wireless charging pad to choose from.

There are two models for the 'regular' i30 and we’re testing the base model, the N Line. Its new price point of $36,000, plus on-road costs, means it's $8940 more expensive than the most affordable rival, the Kia Cerato hatch.

The Mazda 3 Pure hatch is the next at $30,470 and then comes the Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport at $32,110.

However, the base models differ greatly in terms of standard features and the updated i30 N Line delivers upgraded leather and suede upholstery as opposed to the standard cloth. There are now two-USB-C ports in the rear, and a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster that comes standard.

The driver also gets extendable under-thigh and powered lumbar supports to increase comfort.

Key features include wired/wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, keyless entry and start, rain-sensing wipers and dusk-sensing LED headlights. Anyone familiar with base models might know that a lot of those items are not standard features and it’s nice that you don’t have to go up a grade level or two to get them in the new i30 N Line, although you are paying more in the first place.

Other standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system, dual-zone climate control, a USB-A port, three USB-C ports, three 12-volt sockets, a wireless charging pad, digital radio and a six-speaker sound system.

There’s only one powertrain option for the Leapmotor B10, a single, rear-mounted electric motor that produces 160kW and 240Nm, which makes the electric SUV good for a claimed 0-100km/h time of 8.0 seconds in both variants.

Top speed is a claimed 170km/h, also regardless of the variant.

The updated i30 N Line has a new mild-hybrid powertrain that features a 1.5-litre 7 four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and combines to produce 117kW and 253Nm of torque. This new combo means it has higher outputs than its nearest rivals and you get three drive modes, including Sport which makes those outputs feel even more prevalent.

Like its rivals, the i30 N Line is a front-wheel-drive, but it has a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission which can sometimes feel like it's confused in stop/start traffic.

Leapmotor claims the B10 will, from its LFP battery of either 56.2kWh for the Style or 67.1kWh for the Design LR, draw 17.2kWh/100km or 17.3kWh/100km, respectively under WLTP testing.

The result is the Style offering up a 361km WLTP-tested driving range, and the Design LR a more useful 434km.

While we were unable to properly confirm this claim on the launch, the trip computer after a mix of highway driving and more spirited back-road testing displayed a figure of 13.5kWh/100km, while the previous 1447km of driving had reportedly measured in at 14.7kWh.

Charging from 30 to 80 per cent takes approximately 20 minutes regardless of spec and battery size. The smaller battery can be charged via DC fast-charging at a maximum 140kW, and the larger at 168kW. Both max out at 11kW under AC charging.

The new engine coasts in neutral when you’re not accelerating to improve efficiency and it works for that purpose as my real-world usage of 6.3L/100km isn't too far off the official combined fuel cycle figure of 5.6L.

Based on the official combined fuel cycle and 50L fuel tank, you should see a theoretical driving range of up to 893km, which is downright respectable.

The Leapmotor B10 was developed with testing at Stellantis’ European proving ground in Italy. This is because despite Leapmotor being its own brand within China, its international operations are a joint-venture between itself and Stellantis.

There are some on-paper shreds of evidence for this, a rear-wheel drive layout and a claimed 50/50 weight distribution help, but get the B10 on the road and it’s clear this isn’t a car that’s relying entirely on price, a long list of features and some showroom shine to sell.

After the initial familiarisation that comes with many new electric cars, particularly from China, the Leapmotor B10 becomes easy to settle into a rhythm with, especially if you turn off some of its more intrusive ADAS features like lane-keep, driver monitoring and speed limit warning. The latter can sometimes get a limit wrong, and though the B10’s chimes aren’t audibly overbearing, they are persistent.

While the B10 doesn’t excel in any areas on the road, it doesn’t fall down significantly in any either.

Its suspension soaks up bumps relatively well, and despite some vibrations on rougher roads the B10 is pretty comfortable. The tyres it rides on as standard, however, are rather noisy, so if there’s an opportunity to swap out the Linglong defaults to something better, we’d advise it.

The tyres also squeal rather quickly when cornering, not necessarily because the B10 is about to let go, but just because the weight of the car appears to be pushing on the front outside tyre in cornering.

The B10 holds up better than\ a family car really needs to in dynamic driving, but we wouldn’t be doing mountain runs or track days in one. 

There’s a little body roll in corners, but not nearly as much as has been in other models riding on the apparently soft suspension preferred in China.

The steering, braking and acceleration all have a mild vagueness to them, but once you’re honed in they’re all predictable. The steering can be adjusted for weight, and its lightest setting is too light, while the acceleration feels lethargic in its lowest setting and too aggressive in its highest.

There’s not a lot of regenerative braking strength, but it’s enough to help regulate speed once you’re used to how mildly it comes in - again, depending on your preferences and settings.

The good news here is that the B10 is easy to drive, and only very serious road bumps on fast corners unsettled it on test - the kind you’d expect to upset any car.

The new powertrain is impressively punchy and you almost feel like you’re driving a hot hatch when you hit the open road because it’s effortless to keep up and overtake when necessary. 

The steering is firmer than what you’d expect and that makes the car feel heavier than what it is. Cornering is great – barely any roll – but the suspension is not finely tuned, especially for regional roads. But the overall feel is sporty, so it’s forgivable. 

At lower speeds, the cabin is delightfully quiet and although the exhausts are thrumming with noise, you don’t really hear it! It’s only once you get on the open road that the road noise creeps up but you can hold a convo without raising your voice, so that’s still good.

The i30 is pretty low to the ground and that makes it easy to scrape the bottom of it, especially when you have a full car load, so take ramps and bumps at a slight angle.

Hatches are always the best for parking because you can park ‘em anywhere! The i30 N Line has front and rear parking sensors and a decent reversing camera, so it’s extra easy.

The i30 has a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating from testing done in 2017 and features seven airbags but, like its rivals, it doesn’t have a front centre airbag yet. 

Safety features includes items which are often at cost extras for a base model, like blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert.

Other standard items include driver attention warning, safe exit warning, rear occupant alert, tyre pressure monitoring, DRLs, lane departure alert, lane-keeping aid, traffic sign recognition, intelligent seatbelt warning, adaptive cruise control, a reversing camera system as well as front and rear sensors.

The lane keeping aid and traffic sign recognition tech are a bit intrusive for daily driving but easy enough to adjust if need be.

The i30 model has two ISOFIX child seat mounts and three top tethers but two seats will fit best.

AEB with forward collision warning is standard but ANCAP does not stipulate it's operational km/h range.

The B10’s post-purchase prospects are generally solid, though Leapmotor’s six-year, 160,000km warranty is an area where it falls short of rivals which are offering longer, unlimited kilometre warranties.

The battery is covered for eight years or 180,000km, whichever comes first, which is pretty par for an EV.

Servicing is capped-price for the first eight years, with each service costing $370 on average. The eight-year span makes it pretty appealing, per 12-month interval or every 20,000km.

There are currently 20 dealers across the country, though more are coming, while Leapmotor also offers eight years of roadside service.

Hyundai offers the i30 with a five-year/unlimited km warranty, which is a normal term for the class and you can pre-purchase three-, four- or five-years worth for servicing and the five-year option cost $1795, which is competitive. 

Servicing intervals are okay at every 12 months or 10,000km, whichever occurs first.