2026 Leapmotor D19 review: International first drive

Leapmotor already has two SUVs in Australia, but the Chinese brand’s flagship model, the Leapmotor D19, with its luxurious interior and Range Rover-esque exterior, offers something new from the marque.

The D19, offered as a full battery-electric vehicle (BEV) or with a range-extender hybrid powertrain, is not yet confirmed for Australia. 

But speculation is mounting that it might be Leapmotor’s next vehicle in Australia – following on from the Leapmotor B05 electric hatchback confirmed to arrive locally later this year.

But as more and more reasonably priced luxury SUVs arrive in Australia from Chinese brands, will the D19 be able to stand out?

The D19 is a big vehicle, measuring 5252mm long, 1995mm wide, 1780mm tall, and with a 3110mm wheelbase. It's also heavy, with Chinese specifications listing its kerb weight from 2450–2750kg.

While the D19 looks like an SUV from the outside, on the inside, it closely resembles luxury Chinese people movers like the Zeekr 009 and Denza D9.

Its dimensions make it a little wider and longer than the Toyota Prado and LandCruiser, and almost the same dimensions as the Denza D9, but lower in height than all three.

It’s not uncommon to drive recent, reasonably priced, electric SUVs and find them equipped with surprising, and arguably ludicrous, amounts of power – unlike anything of a similar price in the internal combustion-engined world.

An example of these surprisingly powerful electric SUVs is the Tesla Model Y.

But the D19 is not one of these, it's actually surprisingly slow, or at least the REEV (Range-Extended Electric Vehicle) variant tested was. 

The REEV reports a 0–100km/h acceleration time of 6.0 seconds. But the model reviewed didn’t feel particularly spritely, and with four occupants and a battery at 45 per cent it achieved 0–100km/h in 9.1 seconds.

A REEV is similar to a PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) in that the vehicle has both a petrol engine and fuel tank, in addition to a large battery paired to an electric powertrain. These often provide impressive driving range, in the D19's case, a claimed 1300km.

The REEV's petrol motor works only to recharge the battery, rather than directly powering the vehicle's wheels as it would in a traditional car or a PHEV. 

The battery-electric versions of the D19 available in China with a 99.6kWh or 115kWh battery have a claimed range of 620km and 720km respectively.

However, real-world ranges are likely to fall short of all these figures, as they are based on typically more lenient Chinese testing standards.

The D19 has fast-charging, with the REEV able to charge from 30 per cent to 80 per cent in approximately 20 minutes via 800-volt fast charging. 

The BEV version steps it up to charging from 30 per cent to 80 per cent in 15 minutes via 1000V ultra-fast charging.

The fully electric versions of the D19 claim a 0–100km/h acceleration time of 4.9 seconds for the dual motor and 3.94 seconds for the tri-motor (faster than a Toyota GR Yaris).

Aside from the slower-than-claimed acceleration, the D19 is a comfortable vehicle to drive and an even more comfortable one to be a passenger in.

The back seats of this vehicle are almost absurdly well equipped, and those unfamiliar with Chinese luxury people movers will find a suite of surprises.

A touchscreen at the rear of the centre console allows rear passengers to reveal not only a small fridge that slides out from the back of the centre console, but also a large drop-down TV screen from the ceiling. 

It features a similar suite of features to the 2027 MG IM8, recently confirmed as locked in for Australia.

Rear passengers sit in large, comfortable ‘captain’s chair’-style seats. The second-row seats are freestanding, like a front passenger seat, rather than a single long rear bench seat as is typical in most vehicles. 

The seats can also fully recline. The D19 comes in both six and seven-seat configurations.

Rear passengers can fold down a tray table with a recessed cupholder from the back of the seat in front of them, rounding out an experience that one might imagine is more akin to a business-class airline seat than what would be expected in the back of an SUV.

Below that previously mentioned fridge is also a full-size power point, so combine that with the pull-up window shades and you could comfortably sit in the rear of this car with your laptop and get some work done.

From the driver's seat, the big 15.6-inch central screen is powered by Dual Qualcomm Snapdragon 8795 chips and feels smooth and snappy. 

It's got a great head-up display (HUD) that projects onto the windscreen, showing speed and other information when driving; something all the other Leapmotor SUVs in Australia lack.

Any driving impressions for this car have to be taken with a grain of salt, as there was only the opportunity to spend about five minutes actually behind the wheel of this car.

And that limited driving took place on a brand new and perfectly smooth road surface at a car testing facility a few hours out of Shanghai, China.

To compound these testing limitations, Leapmotor vehicles are extensively re-tuned for sale outside of China, so in all likelihood, if it arrives in Australia, the D19 will feel and handle completely differently from the Chinese version we drove. 

But with those caveats aside, the D19 offers a nice driving experience. Accelerating smoothly – but not quickly – and handling corners in a way that belies the 2.7 tonnes this REEV version weighs.

How this vehicle stacks up against competitors will largely come down to price. 

No pricing has yet been announced for the D19 internationally, but it is priced in China at the Australian equivalent of around AUD$45,000 to AUD$49,000 (CN¥219,800 – CN¥239,800). While the D19 BEV is priced at the equivalent of AUD$49,000 to AUD$55,150 (CN¥239,800 – CN¥269,800).

The B10 and C10 were priced in Australia roughly around AUD$20,000 more than their Chinese price, so if the D19 reflected this trend, a speculated price could place it around AUD$69,000 for the base model.

Any starting price under AUD$70,000 would drastically undercut existing rivals' base prices such as the Denza D9 ($85,990) and Zeekr 009 ($115,900).

If Leapmotor can bring the D19 to Australia at an attractive price, it could be a unique proposition for Australian buyers. 

This could be a vehicle with all the interior comforts of a luxury people mover, the exterior styling of an SUV, and yet cheaper than any of the aforementioned people movers.

Max is the News Publishing Coordinator for Drive. He enjoys creating engaging digital content, including videos, podcasts, interactive maps, and graphs. Prior to Drive, he studied at Monash University and gained experience working for various publications. He grew up playing Burnout 3: Takedown on the PS2 and was disappointed when real life car races didn’t have the same physics.

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