Lepas reveals Aura wagon concept

Lepas has revealed its first concept car in Wuhu, China, and to our delight it’s a wagon.

The Aura was unveiled at the Chery export brand’s Global Elegance Night in Luolan Town, which we attended. Lepas calls it multi-platform, so expect petrol, battery electric and range-extender versions. It hasn’t released dimensions or other technical details, or said whether the car will go into production.

Lepas has confirmed it is coming to New Zealand with the L6 electric SUV, though timing and pricing are still to be announced. So far every Lepas model has been an SUV, which makes a wagon concept a welcome surprise.

The Aura is a low-slung shooting brake with a long wheelbase, short overhangs and a wide stance. Its roof runs almost flat to the tail before dropping away into a steeply raked hatch.

Ivan Dulanović, Lepas’s global chief designer, told the audience the brand’s leopard theme drove the shape. “Elegance is not a matter of decoration, but of composure. Every proportion is balanced, every surface is calm, and every line carries intent, because it is the stillness of an animal that knows exactly what it is capable of.”

The nose previews the face of future Lepas models. The rounded grille and side intakes on the current cars have been combined into a single black panel, which Dulanović says gives the designers more freedom.

“It is a completely new canvas, because it allows us to put all kinds of technologies behind it, from internal combustion to fully electric. Whatever moves beneath this face, the face will stay coherent.”

That front panel doubles as a light screen that can display graphics and animations chosen by the owner. There’s a similar elliptical screen at the rear for the tail-lights, and the brake light is animated across the back glass. The slim headlights keep the leopard-eye daytime running light signature used on the L8 and L6.

The body has a glossy porcelain-style finish, and air channels running along the flanks are designed to add downforce. The 22-inch wheels wear five-spoke aero covers picked out in red, wrapped in Pirelli P Zero tyres.

Lepas also showed three new paint colours: Dawn Pearl, a soft pink; Bacalar Blue, named after a lagoon in Mexico; and Provence Twilight, a blue-violet based on lavender fields at sunset.

Dulanović says the Aura’s styling will feed into future models. “This concept is not the end of anything. Every idea explored here, from the new face to the porcelain finish, the light signatures and the colours, will continue to inspire how the brand evolves.”