Accessibility of the Electric Crossover
The Lotus Eletre may soon become a much more accessible offering in Canada thanks to a new trade deal with China, which could drastically reduce the inflated price of the electric crossover. What currently costs in the super-luxury segment could fall into a price category accessible to a significantly wider range of buyers.
As in the USA, 100% tariffs have caused the price of the Eletre in Canada to soar to incredible heights, starting at CA$313,500. This places it alongside mid-range Bentley Bentayga variants and makes it even more expensive than the Lamborghini Urus E. The situation in the USA is not much better, with a starting price from US$229,000.
Preferential Tariffs
With the new policy coming into effect, the first 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles imported into Canada annually will now be taxed at a reduced tariff of 6.1 percent. Lotus states that this will cause the price of the Eletre to “drop sharply by approximately 50 percent.”
However, it is worth noting that according to the terms of the deal, half of these 49,000 vehicles must cost less than CA$35,000, which certainly does not apply to the Eletre.
Lotus announced the changes on Chinese social media, although it did not confirm the new starting price for the Eletre. If it indeed drops by 50 percent, the model could start from around CA$156,000, which is significantly lower than the Urus and brings it closer to the Porsche Cayenne GTS, which starts from CA$134,800.
“Canada has always been an important market with great strategic significance for Lotus’s global sports car territory. Users here highly value high performance and driving pleasure. We warmly welcome the new tariff optimization policy, which has created a more open and fair market environment for international automotive brands,” wrote Lotus Group CEO Feng Qingfeng on social media.
Expansion Plans
Currently, Lotus has six dealerships across Canada and undoubtedly aims to increase Eletre sales. The flagship model is equipped with two electric motors with a combined output of 905 hp, allowing acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.95 seconds and reaching a top speed of 265 km/h. The claimed WLTP range is 280 miles.
Future Hybrid Version
Lotus is not stopping at the fully electric Eletre. Work is also underway on a hybrid version, which will offer an alternative path for buyers not yet ready to fully switch to electric. Official documents from China confirm that this variant, called the Eletre For-Me, retains the crossover’s shape and layout but adds a turbocharged four-cylinder engine to the setup.
This is Lotus’s first step back from its previous promise to go fully electric. While full specifications have not yet been revealed, preliminary reports indicate a combined output of 952 hp, slightly more than the current top Eletre R version.
Impressions and Prospects
We had the opportunity to test the fully electric Eletre last year and were pleasantly surprised. It is fast, feels well-built, and has a beautiful interior befitting its category. Will these qualities be enough to convince Canadians to buy it if the price is halved?
The potential price reduction could radically change the competitive landscape for premium SUVs in Canada. The Eletre, with its extreme performance, could become a real “knockout” in its new price range, offering what traditional German brands often hold back on—radical design and incredible dynamics. The success of this strategy will depend not only on the number on the price tag but also on how ready Lotus’s network of dealers and service centers is to provide support worthy of a premium brand for a potentially much broader customer base.