Stellantis, which owns a stake in Leapmotor and leads the joint venture to sell Leapmotor vehicles outside of China, have announced a new potential collaboration with the Chinese EV manufacturer, which will see a new C-segment electric SUV (sold under the Vauxhall and Opel brands) be produced directly alongside the C-segment Leapmotor B10 at Stellantis’ car plant in Zaragoza, Spain, from 2028.
As an electric SUV, this potential model would be entering one of the most competitive EV segments, making it a potentially large seller for the Vauxhall and Opel brands that it is proposed to be sold under.
The plans are still ‘under evaluation’, but this setup would see the yet-to-be-named Vauxhall/Opel SUV use a high proportion of Leapmotor-sourced components, such as its electric architecture and battery. Development input from the Vauxhall/Opel side would remain focused on areas such as design, chassis engineering, and on-board technology.
Leveraging Leapmotor’s expertise with this potential new model would have numerous benefits for Stellantis. First of all, with a proposed launch of 2028, just two years away, it highlights how western OEMs such as Stellantis can benefit from so-called ‘China speed’, with product launches historically taking much longer. In addition, we’ve already seen how Leapmotor EVs such as the B10 are priced extremely competitively, and this closely related Vauxhall/Opel product could be offered to the market at a much more competitive price than existing Stellantis EV offerings, without sacrificing range or performance.
Xavier Chéreau, Chairman of the Opel-Vauxhall supervisory board, commented:
“With this project, Opel-Vauxhall would bring together German engineering excellence with global technological innovation speed. This innovative spirit defines the next chapter of our global collaboration with Leapmotor and Opel-Vauxhall is taking on a pioneering role with this project.”
