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By FREDA LEWIS-STEMPEL, MOTORING REPORTER
Updated: 08:34 EDT, 17 March 2026
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Leapmotor is taking on Volkswagen's smallest electric car in the latest battle of Chinese and European brands unravelling on our doorstep.
The Hangzhou auto firm's new A05 electric hatchback will go up against VW's ID.3 battery-powered family motor as Leapmotor looks to cement itself among mainstream brands in Europe.
First pictures of the A05, published by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), show that it follows quite closely the manufacturer's larger B03X crossover - an EV that also goes on sale this year.
The smaller hatchback will likely start from around £25,000 when it arrives later in 2026.
With Leapmotor already having a strong footprint of undercutting European competition - as do many Chinese brands - the A05 looks set to follow in these tyre tracks.
It should be priced around £5,000 below the entry Volkswagen ID.3, which starts from £30,860 inclusive of the government's £1,500 Electric Car Grant discount.
While the VW ID.3 (pictured) currently costs from £30k, its new Chinese rival will be around £5k cheaper. As you can see, the Leapmotor's styling has Volkswagen's hatch in mind...
Based on the same MIIT filing, the A05 will be powered by a single front-mounted motor and produced either 94bhp or 121bhp.
There will be two sizes of lithium-iron-phosphate batteries, but size and further information hasn't been revealed.
The A05 will be a small car, measuring 4.2 metres long, 1.8 metres wide and 1.6 metres tall, but it will still be able to fit into family life as it will be around the same size as a Renault Megane or MG4 EV.
The A05 will also battle Chinese competitor BYD as the world's largest EV maker has its Dolphin EV model on the market for just over £30k.
VW will next month unveil its replacement for the ID.3, which will carry a new 'Neo' nameplate
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