Leapmotor controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
Back to profile9 entries
2026
Hard-to-spot emergency mechanical handle triggers recall of 371,200 C01 and C11 vehicles
In August 2026, Leapmotor recalled 48,625 C01 and 322,575 C11 vehicles, 371,200 in total. The reason was that the emergency mechanical handle was too close in color to the interior, making it hard to identify and operate, which could hinder escape through the door in an extreme power-loss situation; the fix adds warning labels and an OTA strategy to lower the windows after a crash.
2026
Leapmotor included in China recall over door-release concerns
Recall announced
Nine carmakers including Tesla, Xiaomi and Leapmotor said they would fix a combined 4.3 million vehicles in China due to concerns that emergency buttons or levers allowing occupants to manually open a door can be hard to find. The fix involves clearer labels on door-release mechanisms and over-the-air software updates that lower windows in an emergency.
Company response
Recall — Tesla
nine carmakers, including Tesla, Xiaomi and Leapmotor, said they would fix a combined 4.3 million vehicles due to concerns that emergency buttons or levers inside cars that allow occupants to manually open a door can be hard to find.
Source excerpt
carmakers will fix the issue by attaching clearer labels to the door-release mechanisms and deploying over-the-air software updates that will lower windows in an emergency.
nine carmakers, including Tesla, Xiaomi and Leapmotor, said they would fix a combined 4.3 million vehicles due to concerns that emergency buttons or levers inside cars that allow occupants to manually open a door can be hard to find.
2026
Leapmotor included in China's recall over hidden door handles
Recall announced
China's State Administration for Market Regulation announced the country's largest automotive recall, covering 4.3 million vehicles from nine brands, over hidden door handles that may be difficult to open in an emergency. The remedy is installation of high-visibility warning labels and software updates to automatically lower windows after a crash. Chinese-made Tesla vehicles accounted for 2.98 million of the recalled cars; other affected brands include Xpeng, Xiaomi, Geely (Zeekr and Lynk & Co), Leapmotor, Chery, BAIC, Dongfeng and FAW Group (Hongqi).
Company response
Recall — State Administration for Market Regulation
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced last week (August 21, 2026) the largest automotive recall in the country’s history over hidden door handles that may be difficult to open in an emergency.
Source excerpt
According to report by and Channel News Asia, 4.3 million vehicles from nine brands are involved in the recall, with the remedy being the installation of high-visibility warning labels as well as software updates to automatically lower windows after a crash.
“In extreme situations such as severe collisions causing the vehicle’s low-voltage system to fail, (the handles) may affect passengers’ ability to quickly open car doors for escape and rescue operations outside the vehicle,” SAMR said in a statement.
Chinese-made Tesla vehicles accounted for the majority of that combined total, with 2.98 million cars involved in the recall. Other brands with affected vehicles include Xpeng, Xiaomi, Geely (for Zeekr and Lynk & Co models), Leapmotor, Chery, BAIC, Dongfeng and FAW Group (for Hongqi models).
2026
Leapmotor included in China's largest-ever car recall campaign over emergency door handles
Recall announced
On Aug 21, 2026, eleven carmakers including Tesla and Xiaomi launched software updates and vehicle recalls in China in the country's largest-ever automotive recall campaign, addressing concerns that emergency mechanical door release handles may be difficult to locate or operate during emergencies. Leapmotor was among the carmakers involved in the campaign. Tesla will recall 2.98 million imported and China-made Model 3, Model Y, Model S and Model X vehicles from Sept 25, with a remedy of warning labels and an OTA update that automatically lowers vehicle windows after a collision.
Company response
Recall — Tesla
Remediation — Tesla
Tesla’s remedy includes warning labels and an OTA update that automatically lowers vehicle windows after a collision.
Recall — Xiaomi
Remediation — Tesla
Source excerpt
Eleven carmakers, including Tesla and Xiaomi, launched software updates and vehicle recalls on Friday (Aug 21), the companies said, in China’s largest-ever automotive recall campaign, as regulators tighten scrutiny of emergency door-release systems in electric vehicles (EVs).
At least six car brands, including Tesla, Xiaomi, Leapmotor, Xpeng, Zeekr and Lynk & Co, announced their largest recalls on record on Aug 21, according to their filings to SAMR.
eight other automakers filed recalls with China's market regulator on the same day for the identical interior-release problem, including Leapmotor, Chery, Dongfeng, BAIC BluePark and FAW
2023
Store manager's deposit figures spark sales-fraud doubts; company denies
In 2023, online remarks by a Leapmotor store staff member about orders and deposit figures sparked doubts over inflated sales. The company responded that the content was untrue and said it would hold the store manager accountable. This entry retains the company's clarification and does not treat unverified store remarks as accounting fraud by a listed company.
2022
Chongqing auto show protest over blank screens and buyback promise; company responds
In 2022, a Leapmotor owner complained at the Chongqing auto show that multiple screens went blank on the day of delivery and raised issues over repair and buyback promises; the company said the vehicle problems had been resolved and that it would keep communicating with the owner. This entry covers a specific owner's product and after-sales dispute and does not treat every model or complaint as confirmed by regulators.
2020
Over 200 S01 owners question faults and undelivered features in open letter
In May 2020, more than 200 early Leapmotor S01 owners published an open letter questioning battery, OTA and powertrain issues, and related quality and after-sales complaints continued to draw media attention. This entry covers collective action by owners of an early model and is separate from the 2022 Chongqing auto show blank-screen dispute involving a specific owner.
2020
Leapmotor responds to S01 owner complaints
Company response
After S01 owners publicly complained about vehicle quality and features, Leapmotor said the vehicles met national standards and characterized reported issues as occasional rather than safety-related. The company also said certain issues would be optimized through an OTA update and that it would repair or replace parts for individual vehicle faults.
Company response
Clarification — 零跑汽车
零跑汽车第一时间回应表示所购车型“符合整车国标”。
Remediation — 零跑汽车
这些问题将在近期OTA升级中逐步进行优化解决。
Remediation — 零跑汽车
针对个别车辆偶发的故障问题，零跑严格按照国家三包法规要求，对车辆进行换件或维修
Source excerpt
并且认为未开通的辅助驾驶功能等智能功能迟迟未能落实，控诉零跑存在虚假宣传。
零跑汽车第一时间回应表示所购车型“符合整车国标”。
近日，零跑汽车首批车主通过媒体发声，控诉购买的S01380、380Pro车型在使用中出现诸多产品质量问题以及功能配置方面的问题。
2020
Recall plan filed for 150 Leapmotor S01 vehicles
Recall announced
Contract manufacturer Hangzhou Changjiang Passenger Vehicle Co., Ltd. filed a recall plan for 150 2019-model-year Leapmotor S01 vehicles produced from June 27 to December 31, 2019. The instrument software resource-optimization bug could cause the 360-degree camera display to freeze or show a distorted image, potentially preventing drivers from seeing changing obstacles and creating a safety risk.
Source excerpt
零跑汽车的代工厂杭州长江乘用车有限公司宣布，根据《缺陷汽车产品召回管理条例》和《缺陷汽车产品召回管理条例实施办法》的要求，向国家市场监督管理总局备案了召回计划，决定在9月30日~11月30日，召回在2019年6月27日至2019年12月31日生产的共150辆2019款零跑S01。
对于召回的车辆，杭州长江乘用车有限公司将进行远程升级仪表软件的处理，修复仪表软件资源优化bug。
国家市场监督管理总局公布的信息显示，此次召回的零跑S01由于仪表软件资源优化bug的原因，可能会导致360全景影像卡滞花屏，在倒车或启动驾驶出车位时，通过360全景影像可能查看不到周围障碍物实时变化，会引起驾驶员判断不清周围环境状态的后果，极端情况下可能发生事故，存在安全隐患。