A Single 180,000 Yuan Price Cut Sparked Outrage Among Existing Owners—Lotus CEO Admits Mistake: Price Reduction Failed to Boost Sales, Original Pricing Was a Miscalculation

Last year, Lotus Cars (formerly Lotus) slashed prices on its two flagship models: the sports luxury SUV ELETRE dropped from 728,000 yuan to 548,000 yuan, and the sports luxury sedan EMEYA fell from 668,000 yuan to 528,000 yuan — cuts of 180,000 and 140,000 yuan respectively. The price shock ignited a public firestorm at the time, with existing owners outraged at what they saw as a betrayal.

In a recent media interview, Lotus CEO Feng Qingfeng addressed the controversy directly. He confirmed the price-cut decision was his own call, and frankly admitted: "There's no question that existing owners felt betrayed — the backlash online was pretty intense."

On the rationale behind the cuts, Feng offered two reasons: first, competitive market pressure made it necessary to adapt; second, costs had come down and he wanted new buyers to benefit. But he also acknowledged the misstep outright: "We didn't handle things well for existing owners — that's where we fell short. For a luxury brand, pricing is part of the brand image. The price drop hurt not just how existing customers felt, but also brand perception. That's a hard lesson learned."

As for whether the price cuts actually drove sales, Feng didn't dodge the question: "It's not that I won't admit it — but look at it this way: if we hadn't cut prices, we might not have sold a single unit."

He then pointed to a more fundamental issue: the initial pricing was off. "Looking back, the bigger problem was the launch pricing. We were too fixated on positioning the cars as ultra-luxury, hundred-thousand-dollar-plus products. If I could do it again, I'd set the right price point from the start and come in with much stronger competitive firepower."

That statement may be the most telling takeaway from the whole episode: price too high at launch, and any subsequent cut will hurt the brand; price it right from the start, and you have room to go on the offensive.