Range Rover Evoque 4 times more expensive in China

Land Rover dealerships continued marking up prices choosing to ignore the ban issued from the manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover Trading Company on Aug 1, China Youth Daily reported.

Even though a wide range of illegal mark ups continue to happen, the highly-equipped Evoqu e still sells out in many markets.

The real prices in other markets are listed on the auto's official website, but some models in China remain two to three times higher than what is found in other markets, with some Evoque autos going four times higher than what is found in Europe and US markets.

The top Evoque 5.0T model, for example, is priced 2,798 thousand yuan in China, but dealers mark up to 3,200 thousand yuan. However, the same price of the same model in other market is equivalent to 833 thousand yuan in the US, 835 thousand yuan in the UK, 1,036 thousand yuan in Germany, and 1,052 thousand yuan in Japan.

Tariff, consumption tax and added-value tax are added to the imported cars when they enter the Chinese market. Based on the related current laws in China and the original price of the Evoque 5.0T, the car's price should not exceed 3,000 thousand yuan, but 1,200 thousand yuan as the profit gap within the China market.

In Europe and US markets, the Range Rover is a luxury off-road vehicle but not a luxury brand. Zhong Shi, the well-known car critic, said Chinese consumers are spendthrifts, and choose to drive the Range Rover to represent a superior status.

The company, which was on the verge of bankruptcy five years ago, has enjoyed success in China. 73,347 units were sold in 2012 in China, making up one-fifth of the company's global sales volume. Last year, Range Rover's profit climbed to $2.42 billion, surpassing the purchasing price made by the Indian Tata Group in 2008.