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Remember when “built in China” meant budget tech and fast fashion? Lincoln hopes to rebrand that label. The automaker’s 2025 Nautilus got stamped with a “Made-in-China”—right before its price shot up to $51,890. But hey, at least you can lease a Lincoln in L.A. for the low, low cost of $4,857 down.

Every Lincoln Nautilus now crosses an ocean

Ford shut down its Ontario plant to retool it for EV production. That left Lincoln scrambling for a place to build the Nautilus. They were already making Chinese-market versions in China, so they just upped production and threw the extras on a boat.

Now, the American luxury SUV gets shipped across the Pacific before rolling into your local dealership—yet it’s more expensive than ever.

The 2025 Premier trim is $1,375 more than last year. The Reserve jumped $6,160. The hybrid drivetrain will cost you an extra $2,000. The result? An entry-level Premier trim now starts at $53,385. Want the Black Label? That’ll be $85,000 if you skip the options.

Even the spare tire isn’t standard anymore. It costs an extra $250. But it’s not all bad: All-wheel drive is now standard across the lineup.

Lincoln lease push comes as prices rise

Ford Motor Company offered employee pricing and lease offers on many models in winter, 2025. In June, Ford Authority reported Lincoln lease deals were continuing “in select markets” across the country. The automaker must be hoping that instead of building equity in a Ford Explorer ($39,755), we’d rather rent a Lincoln badge from them. It may be treating us all like “employees,” but certainly isn’t looking out for us like family.

In Miami, you can lease a 2025 Nautilus Premiere for $679 a month with $3,521 down. In L.A., that’s $622 a month and $4,857 due at signing. Lincoln is extending its employee leasing program at least “into July.”

Lincoln’s banking on the idea that most customers won’t care where the SUV is built—or whether they can keep it. Just as long as it still rides smooth and smells expensive. But with rising MSRPs, fewer standard features, and international shipping built into the mix, the 2025 Nautilus feels more like a luxury experiment than a sure bet. And Lincoln extending its winter lease deals on this crossover might mean the experiment isn’t going as planned.