24-04-2025
The Lotus Eletre SUV's $230,000 Price Tag Is a Marketing Strategy
Ask 10 different automakers how they're dealing with President Trump's automotive tariffs and you'll get 10 different answers. Audi and Jaguar Land Rover have paused shipments to the US. Porsche AG preemptively increased inventory in the US. Ferrari NV will raise prices 10%; Mercedes-Benz Group AG has committed to keeping pricing stable for the calendar year but is considering withdrawing some of its entry-level vehicles altogether.
Lotus in particular is pinched. Founded by British inventor and engineer Colin Chapman in 1952, the brand has undergone myriad reinventions in the decades since, including multiple Formula One Championships, near bankruptcy, and ownership by General Motors before China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. bought a controlling stake in 2017. (Geely's owner, Li Shufu, also controls Volvo Car and owns portions of Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings.)
