Leapmotor has unveiled two major technologies that will underpin its next generation of electric vehicles, beginning with models scheduled to launch from 2027.
The Chinese EV manufacturer introduced the LEAP 5.0 New Mobile Space Architecture and its latest Cell-to-Chassis (CTC) 3.0 High-Low Fusion Battery at the 2026 Leapmotor Tech Day, held at the company’s Hu Zhou Battery facility in Hangzhou on September 16.
Both technologies are designed to fundamentally change how Leapmotor vehicles use interior space and manage electrical power. The company describes the development as a major shift comparable to the transition from traditional feature phones to smartphones.
LEAP 5.0 Architecture Focuses on Interior Space
The LEAP 5.0 New Mobile Space Architecture has been developed specifically for Leapmotor’s next-generation vehicles, with the first models using the platform expected to be revealed in 2027.
According to Leapmotor, the architecture achieves 100% space efficiency compared with its previous vehicle architectures while integrating vehicle control systems into a centralized configuration designed to support modern electric and increasingly automated vehicles.
One of the biggest changes comes from combining the air-conditioning system with a rear-mounted powertrain. Previously separate components are integrated into a more compact arrangement, increasing available cabin length by 19%. The design also reduces the number of components by 18% and cuts the amount of required piping by 30%.
The front suspension layout has also been redesigned. A new vertical shock absorber arrangement with an aluminum tower reduces the amount of hardware intruding into the passenger compartment while increasing front-row lateral legroom by 37.5%.
A Taller, More Open EV Interior
Leapmotor is also using the architecture to rethink the traditional EV cabin.
A new skateboard-style platform allows the company to combine a higher roof with a completely flat floor. Leapmotor says this increases interior height by 63.7%, creating a more open, loft-style cabin with enough space for full standing height.
The approach could give future Leapmotor EVs significantly more usable interior space without requiring a corresponding increase in the vehicle’s exterior dimensions.
The LEAP 5.0 architecture is intended to serve as the foundation for the company’s next generation of vehicles, with the first production models arriving from 2027.
Leapmotor CTC 3.0 Battery Eliminates the Traditional 12-Volt Battery
The second major technology unveiled at Tech Day is the Cell-to-Chassis 3.0 High-Low Fusion Battery.
It represents the latest development of Leapmotor’s package-less battery and power supply technology, integrating battery components directly into the vehicle chassis.
More significantly, CTC 3.0 can supply both high- and low-voltage electrical functions. Leapmotor says the system has achieved a seven-fold increase in low-voltage capacity and functionality compared with its previous generation.
That capability allows future vehicles using the technology to eliminate the conventional 12-volt lead-acid auxiliary battery.
The 12-volt battery has traditionally supplied power to many of a vehicle’s electrical systems, including lighting, windshield wipers, infotainment, HVAC controls, security systems and other functions. In conventional vehicles, it has remained a separate part of the electrical architecture even as high-voltage battery systems have become increasingly sophisticated.
Leapmotor’s CTC 3.0 technology instead integrates these functions into a unified battery and power distribution system.
High- and Low-Voltage Systems Share the Same Battery Hardware
The CTC 3.0 system removes the need for separate battery modules by integrating the cells and modules directly into the chassis.
High- and low-voltage functions use the same battery cells and modules, while also sharing thermal management and energy distribution systems. This creates a more integrated electrical architecture and reduces the number of separate components required.
Leapmotor says the technology can deliver the equivalent low-voltage power traditionally supplied by a 12-volt battery while removing the auxiliary battery itself.
The company claims that its next-generation vehicles will therefore be the first road-going vehicles in more than 70 years to operate without a conventional lead-acid auxiliary battery.
Potential Environmental and Ownership Benefits
Removing the traditional 12-volt battery could have benefits beyond vehicle packaging.
Lead-acid batteries require periodic replacement during the lifetime of many vehicles. Leapmotor says its CTC 3.0 system is designed for lifetime maintenance-free operation, potentially eliminating the need for owners to replace an auxiliary battery every few years.
At large scale, Leapmotor believes the technology could also reduce the number of lead-acid batteries entering the waste stream. The company estimates that widespread adoption could eventually eliminate the need for tens of millions of such batteries each year.
The technology also demonstrates how EV manufacturers are increasingly looking beyond range and charging speed to improve the underlying architecture of electric vehicles.
Leapmotor’s Next Generation Starts in 2027
The LEAP 5.0 architecture and CTC 3.0 High-Low Fusion Battery are designed to work together as the foundation for Leapmotor’s next-generation EVs.
Rather than simply increasing battery capacity or adding new software features, the technologies target the physical architecture of the vehicle itself. More compact components, greater interior space and a simplified electrical system could allow Leapmotor to develop EVs with different packaging possibilities from today’s conventional designs.
The first production vehicles based on the new architecture are expected to be unveiled in 2027, marking the next major stage in Leapmotor’s EV development.
