The cheapest new car in Britain is now a Chinese electric — and that says everything about today's market

Chinese EV undercuts every petrol city car in Britain — even the Dacia Spring — as Stellantis-backed Leapmotor goes its own way around the government grant.

Author: Nikita Novikov

13:35 01-07-2026

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The Leapmotor T03 has unexpectedly become the cheapest new car on the UK market. After Leapmotor doubled its in-house Leap-Grant from £1,500 to £3,000, the compact electric hatchback now starts at £12,995 — roughly $17,150 at the current rate.

For Britain this is a milestone: the most affordable new car on sale is no longer a petrol hatch but an electric model from a Chinese brand now operating under the Stellantis umbrella. The £3,000 discount — about $3,960 — turns the T03 into a direct challenger to the Dacia Spring and other bare-bones city cars.

The T03 is a small electric car with up to 265 km of range on a single charge. It sits close to the Dacia Spring in size, but the kit list looks generous for the money: a 10.1-inch infotainment screen, panoramic roof, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, blind-spot warning and other driver aids all come as standard.

Leapmotor launched its own Leap-Grant scheme before the UK government rolled out the official Electric Car Grant. Leapmotor UK Managing Director Damien Dally explained that the brand wanted to give buyers a straightforward, no-strings discount while the state scheme remained a moving target. The T03, he said, is now «not just the most affordable new EV in the UK, but the most affordable new car full stop».

The state grant in Britain can knock up to £3,750 off a new EV, but a model has to meet strict conditions to qualify: place of manufacture, shipping method and efficiency all count. Leapmotor took the more direct route — cutting the price out of its own pocket rather than asking the customer to wade through the paperwork.

The trade-off for the buyer is obvious. The T03 will not replace a family crossover and is no companion for long-distance driving. But as a city car with a fully electric drivetrain, a low entry price and a decent options list, it lands on a sore spot in the market: new cars keep getting more expensive, and the budget segment has all but disappeared.