Stellantis allies itself with China, aiming to offer electric and accessible cars

Stellantis teams up with the Chinese Leapmotor on electric cars and announces a new vehicle every year in three years, starting with the T03, an urban car under 18 thousand euros.

The group Stellantis he presses the accelerator on the electric car and teams up with the Chinese one Leapmotor. Waiting to understand what the consequences of the confrontation of the last few days will be Carlos Tavares, CEO of the European group of which they are part 14 brands including Fiat, Jeep, DS, Peugeot, Citroen, and the parliamentarians during the hearing in the Industry Commission (on the table drop in volumes productive in Italy, the use of redundancy fund, the decline in registrations and doubts about future commitments of the group in our country), Stellantis' strategy on low-cost electric cars continues apace.And with the debut of two electric models, the C10 e SUV the T03 city car, the joint venture with Leapmotor promises to accelerate the electric transition of cars in Europe.

Leapmotor-Stellantis:when allying with the enemy is worthwhile...

Before going into the details of the car, a word on the partnership which a note defines as a "strategic alliance, in shares 51/49 led by Stellantis, which aims to accelerate and expand sales of Leapmotor's high-tech products at affordable prices throughout the world - with the exception of "Greater China" – leveraging Stellantis' resources and commercial know-how around the world."The premises seem good, we will see the results.

But who is Leapmotor? Born as a technology company, founded in 2015 by Jiangming Zhu, is one of the fastest growing Chinese companies in the electric vehicle sector which, thanks to the agreements with Stellantis, intends to compete with the Chinese brands already present in Europe (DR, Dfsk, MG, BYD, Omoda…), with the opening of 350 sales points by the end of 2024 (taking advantage of the Stellantis network) and the launch, over the next three years, of at least one new electric vehicle every year, with some productions carried out in Europe.

Agile and flexible (more than the companies of the Stellantis group...), focused since its birth on accessible electric cars, Leapmotor is known for its speed of implementation, which in the case of a new car model can from initial idea to production in just 18-24 months.

Autonomy, power, dimensions:the T03 electric city car in short

For now the most interesting proposal is certainly the T03, an electric car designed for the city, launched at prices below 18 thousand euros, an alternative to the electric Dacia Spring to understand each other.A compact car (it's long 3 meters and 60) but with the practicality of 5 doors, with internal space suitable for 4 people with (little) luggage, a declared electric range of 265 kilometers (which goes up up to 395 if you only drive in the city).In short, the electric Panda never born…

Charging can take 30 minutes

Just one “full optional” setup, 3 colors (white, silver or blue) and standard equipment that even includes some "luxuries":panoramic roof, rear camera with parking sensors and air conditioning. On design we leave the T03 to you, as always.We'll see the rest soon.The T03 has an electric motor with a power of 70 kW (95 horsepower) powered by a 37.3 kWh lithium battery.On the recharge, the T03 is aligned with the European standards with Type 2 and CCS2 connectors, an on-board charger from 6.6 kW and a maximum direct current charging power of 48 kW.

Charging time?From the house outlet approx 3 and a half hours to go from 30 to 80 percent of autonomy, while from fast charging stations just over 30 minutes.Among the advantages of the alliance with Stellantis, the possibility of accessing the network of Free2move charging stations present in 29 countries with over 800 thousand charging points.

A camera detects if you are tired

Simple, easy, accessible.Even comfortable even on the roughness of city asphalt.Bingo!The T03 is the answer to those looking for an electric city car.It's easy to drive, with the 3 "usual" driving modes (Echo to make the most of regenerative braking, Sport for those in a hurry, Standard the right middle ground with the possibility of varying the steering sensitivity).

The equipment in terms of safety includes the main ones Adas driver assistance systems:lane and road control, speed adaptive cruise control, collision warning with automatic braking, traffic sign recognition;Facial recognition cameras are also very useful monitor the state of fatigue and the system that warns of the presence of vehicles in blind spots and the door opening warning in the event of approaching cyclists or other vehicles.

No Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on the T03, at least for now...

We remain on board the T03.The finishes are acceptable, from the infotainment system manageable from the central display 10.1 inches all on-board functions are managed, albeit with logic that is not always intuitive. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are missing (which could arrive in the next few months), at the time of the test drive the radio did not show the channels Dab nor the name of the FM stations, but there are USB sockets, i.e voice commands, with which you can adjust the screen brightness, radio, navigation and other functions. Remotely, Thanks to the dedicated app, you can open and close the doors, manage the climate control and preheat the battery.