2024 Lotus Eletre electric car price slashed by up to $49,000 in Australia

The 2024 Lotus Eletre electric SUV has been handed a significant price cut of close to $50,000 – depending on the variant – approximately six weeks before the first customer deliveries take place.

Prices for the Eletre – the first electric Lotus sold in Australia, its first SUV, and first Chinese-made model – were announced in September last year with three model grades spanning $239,000 to $315,000 plus on-road costs.

Now the line-up has been slashed to span $189,990 to $279,990 before on-road costs – a significant reduction of $35,010 to $49,010, or 11 to 21 per cent.

The reduced prices apply to all Eletres sold in Australia, as local deliveries are not due to commence until late next month.

Lotus Cars Australia has not specified a reason for the price cut, but says it "reviewed" pricing, and the lower RRPs "increase the appeal and value proposition" of the Eletre range.

Two of the three models are now cheaper than a BMW iX M60 electric SUV ($233,400 plus on-roads) – rather than even the base Eletre costing $5600 more – and all models are now cheaper than a BMW XM ($302,200 plus on-roads).

Production of Model Year 2024 (MY24) Eletre S and R models for Australia commenced in April – comprised of 23 vehicles – and are due to board a ship from China this month, before deliveries commence locally in late June.

The next batch of vehicles to be built will be Model Year 2025 (MY25) examples, rolling off the line in July at the same reduced prices.

Only the Eletre S and R variants were in production for MY24, with the entry-level Eletre to commence assembly by the end of September as an MY25 vehicle – rather than sometime in calendar-year 2025, as previously planned.

Orders placed today for the Lotus Eletre range are estimated to see Australian delivery at the end of August – equating to about three and a half months.

Alongside the price cut, the Eletre S has gained a glass roof, five-seat 'comfort pack', and Akoya White paint as standard for model year 2025 production.

Lidar sensor hardware – to power future autonomous driving capabilities promised for overseas markets – has been deleted from the standard equipment list, and now forms part of a Highway Assist Pack option.

"Feedback from Australia[n] consumers placed little value in the upfront inclusion of the lidar hardware in the base build specification of the car," Lotus Cars Australia said in a statement.

"Most consumers doubt autonomous driving will be seen anytime soon in Australia and didn’t want to be paying for hardware they won’t be using."

Powering the Eletre range is the same 112kWh battery pack as before, running at 800 volts and capable of fast charging at a claimed 350kW on a compatible charging station – though testing in Europe has found the real-world figure is closer to 300kW.

The Eletre and Eletre S use dual electric motors developing 450kW and 710Nm – for a claimed 0-100km/h acceleration time of 4.5 seconds, and 258km/h top speed – while the Eletre R claims 675kW/985Nm from its dual motors, 0-100km/h in 2.95 seconds, and a 265km/h top speed.

Driving ranges based on European WLTP testing are rated as 600km for the Eletre and Eletre S – on 20-inch wheels standard on the former, and a no-cost option on the latter – or 490km for the Eletre R.

Lotus Cars Australia says it has no plans to adopt a 'direct-to-consumer' – or fixed-price – sales model.

Customers already in the queue will be contacted by their Lotus dealer, while new buyers can place a deposit online, or in showrooms in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

Note: All prices above exclude on-road costs.