Leapmotor revealed a hot version of its new B05 electric hatchback at the Beijing motor show – the standard car is set to go on sale in the UK imminently, but it’s not yet been decided whether the new ‘Ultra’ version of the car will make it to British shores. 

The sportier version of the B05 has been given a good going over to make it more enjoyable to drive (Leapmotor is overtly aiming the car at Chinese youngsters, claiming the car “turns wanting it all into a reality”). 

The B05 Ultra sits 10mm lower to the ground than the standard car, and comes with a perky 245hp and rear-wheel drive – it’ll get from 0–62mph in 5.9 seconds says Leapmotor. The car also offers perfect 50:50 weight distribution, and the exterior matches with the sporting intent with blacked out badging and a beefed up body kit. 

It also comes with massage seats as standard in its Chinese standard trim, which are presumably to help with the stress of being stuck in traffic when you could be out on the open road enjoying your youth. 

Other interior touches include suede-adjacent seats and a dark trim with contrasting bright seatbelts. The B05 Ultra will also be offered on sale with some bespoke paint shades that aren’t available on the rest of the range. 

Leapmotor says the car will offer a decent rapid charging capability – no precise numbers on that other than 30–80% in 18 minutes. Like the standard car, the B05 Ultra will be offered with 56.2kWh and 67.1kWh battery sizes, rated at 500km and 600km (311 and 373 miles respectively) on China’s CLTC test. 

Like most CLTC figures we should take those numbers with a pinch of salt, especially considering the B05’s hot hatch makeover only seems to take 5–10 miles off the headline range figure. 

We’re looking forward to the standard B05 hatchback going on sale in the UK, which should be mid-summer – Leapmotor isn’t expecting the car to be its biggest seller, but it’s nice to see a new carmaker offering something for sale that isn’t an SUV. 

The Astra-sized B05, which is known as the Lafa 5 in its home market, will aim to pick up any stray customers that the B10 small SUV will have missed. There's no official word on the price of the car yet, but it's expected to be cheaper than the £29,995 that you can get the B10 for with the Leapmotor grant taken off (it's not eligible for the UK's electric car grant). 

In keeping with Leapmotor's tradition, it will be offered in a single spec with everything thrown in, including heated electric front seats, a panoramic sunroof, digital phone key, cooled wireless phone charging and reclining rear seats. Just the bigger 67.1kWh battery will be available, with 300 miles (483km) of WLTP charging, 11kW AC as standard and a peak DC charging rate of 170kW for 30–80% charging in 17 minutes.