[Lencapnc]

Greetings -

Apparently the new EV tax credits apply for cars delivered in 2023. I placed a deposit in late June and the dealer informed me yesterday that I’m going to be assigned a production spot soon. The issue is that the new $7500 tax credit won’t apply to my car. Starting next year buyers will effectively get the car far cheaper, hurting any resale/trade in value if I want faster charging or other model EV.

‘Because if this I have to decide by Tuesday whether to go ahead with the purchase or not. The dealer states that after my order is accepted by GM as code 2000 I can no longer get my deposit back. This seems like a risk since I’d expect other buyers to face the same issue I am and likely wait to get the tax credit in a few months. On the other hand GM may decide to raise the car prices to recoup some of their battery related fiasco and part of the $7500 tax benefit will be chewed up with a price increase. I think the car will suit my needs, but I’m also thinking that the Bolt is likely going to be the most affected car with this tax bill since most other cars still benefit from the original rebates, and the more expensive Tesla models exceed the pricing cap for the full rebate.

What would you do?

 

[mrcleop]

Ultimately it’s up to you if you’re willing to wait. I don’t see a scenario where you’ll end up paying more out of pocket in 2023 than you would in 2022. But it’s possible you don’t end up saving anything if there’s a price increase. Also if you’re planning to sell or trade in a car, those values are only going to decrease.

So if you don’t need a car soon and you don’t have a car you’re planning to sell, it’s probably best to wait. There just might be a lot of other Bolt buyers also trying to do the same thing. So a 8-12 week wait may turn into a 6+ month wait for your order.

All that being said, I’m keeping my order which is set to be produced Aug 8. I’m very excited to have my Bolt and don’t want to wait.

 

[Frajit]

Many of us are in a similar situation. Some additional questions to consider:

• You going to finance the purchase? Interest rates likely to continue to increase..
• Got a trade in? Used car values are dropping and expected to continue to drop.
• In addition to GM possibly increasing prices, will a growing demand for the Bolt due to tax credits increase market adjustments and mandatory add-ons by dealers?
• Can you wait 5+ months to purchase the Bolt so you qualify for the tax credit?

I don't think there is any way to know which option is the best to choose. Myself, I'm planning to buy now as we are living with one car - and not enjoying the experience.

 

[mrcleop]

Yeah we sold our 2019 Subaru Forester in July for more than we bought it for almost 4 years ago, and will still end up with $1300 in our pocket after buying our Bolt without the tax credit. So I’m already happy to end up with a brand new car without spending more money. And since we sold it the day after ordering the Bolt to lock in that value, we don’t want to wait longer than we need to with the car we have left, especially as it’s averaging 18 mpg.

 

[Lencapnc]

Good points - thanks. My current car is a Miata which will drop in price with cooler weather, but not $7500. The other issue is since I have to wait until 2023 maybe I’d consider a VW ID.4 or Hyundai/Kia. I’d expect others would too so GM may not have much room to raise prices. Hurting the resale of my car.

The other issue is the new rebates are going to be in place until 2032, lots of time to buy whatever you want.

 

[mrcleop]

The Bolt is ~$8500 cheaper than the next cheapest 200+ mile range EV, so there’s definitely room to raise prices and still be the cheapest EV.

Also important to note with the current way the bill is written, Hyundai/Kia won’t qualify for the tax credit anymore in 2023 because they’re assembled outside of North America.

 

[mrcleop]

I had considered waiting for the small battery ID.4 that will supposedly be $35k. But that car will be excruciatingly slow 0-60 (9 sec range according to the European version). The Bolt is already faster than the current ID.4. I want that feel of instant torque and EV acceleration.

 

[psm0]

I had put $1k deposit on a 23 EUV the day before the announcement about the possible deal for the EV credit. I spoke with my sales person today and he said they hadn't put in the order yet and he doubted i'd get it before 2023 anyways. I told him to hold off on placing the order for a week or two. I think ill tell him to go ahead and place it once we find out about the bill - or once its Aug 6.
The bill may not pass anyway. The Senate is in recess starting Aug 5 so nothing would get passed until they return in Sept. It might not happen and we might now know either way for a while.

 

[Lencapnc]

Seems to me the biggest issue is the Bolt pricing. If GM keeps it where it is resale/trade value on the car I expect to get in October will drop sharply. Also if the upcoming newer platform EVS are priced in the $35k range or so it could be even worse as those cars will have faster charge times and newer tech. its hard to know the best strategy, but it seems as if the Bolt line of cars has the greatest variability in future pricing/resale.

Maybe I should delay my order by a few months to get the credit, but I’d be risking a price rise as well as likely lower trade value on my car.

My car is confirmed code 1100 and the dealer told me to expect it to be moved to code 2000 Tuesday.

Thoughts?

 

[MichBolt]

Seems to me the biggest issue is the Bolt pricing. If GM keeps it where it is resale/trade value on the car I expect to get in October will drop sharply...

Cue angry demands from customers for a retroactive rebate from GM to compensate for the loss in resale value!

 

[mrcleop]

Cue angry demands from customers for a retroactive rebate from GM to compensate for the loss in resale value!

Which is why they’ll just raise the price by $7500. So all the 2022 purchasers don’t complain and ask for that retroactive rebate.

 

[MichBolt]

Which is why they’ll just raise the price by $7500. So all the 2022 purchasers don’t complain and ask for that retroactive rebate.

Nah, they'll raise it by $7499 in exchange for signing away all your legal rights in perpetuity.

 

[Lencapnc]

I'm reading through the bill and I must say that whoever drafted it was very skilled. They target lots of things that manufacturers must do to continue qualifying for the full tax credit. It gets harder every year with more stringent battery build requirements and the like. They also likely crafted the bill to begin reapplying tax credits as part of the deficit reduction package for the rest of this fiscal year. Still, it would bother me a lot to get a car in October only to find that it will be significantly lower in price in 3 months. I'm really struggling trying to decide on the best solution. Since my car has already been accepted as status 1100 with a firm allocation I don't think my dealer would be particularly happy to delay my order by 3 months or so, especially if other people have the same thought.

 

[mrcleop]

If Chevy decides to be nice and keep the price the same in 2023, I wonder if they’ll be equally nice and once the bill passes, provide a cash back offer of $7500 for the rest of 2022. This would be like what they’re doing for the 2022s right now following the price reduction. That would at least prevent people from delaying their orders.

 

[Lencapnc]

They probably cut the price to overcome the battery pack fiasco and to clear out inventory to make room for the newer designs. I don't see them offering anything further for the rest of this year. They may try to raise prices a bit into 2023, but I don't think they can raise them very much.

 

[mrcleop]

At this point, there are so many unknowns and variables that it just feels like trying to time the stock market. Which is why I’m just sticking with my original plan.

 

[Lencapnc]

I agree that it's difficult to know what makes the most sense, but there are several things to consider that weren't part of my initial decision. My immediate issue is that Congress begins their summer break on August 6, and my reservation moves to 2000 status (and therefore no deposit return) on August 2. My dealer is pretty certain that my car will arrive in late October if it gets confirmed to 2000 status next week, and certainly before yearend. If I delay purchase and delivery by just a few months I can potentially save $7500 - that's 25% of the purchase price. That's quite a difference.

 

[Charli]

The 2023 pricing is $6300 less than 2022, they just lowered the pricing and dropped the $6300 cash back. It would be a hard sell for Chevy to then up the price after a rebate is offered.

My deposit is refundable but even if it wasn’t I would still cancel and loose $500 to gain $7500.
I would still be 7k ahead, I tend not to step over a dollar to pick up a dime.

I’m keeping my order in and will decide when and if the time comes or just order an id4

 

[MikeH]

A Bolt in the hand is worth two in the bush. Just buy it. GM already lowered the price by nearly the amount of this proposed tax credit, and the proposal could very likely fail in the Senate.

 

[mrcleop]

If I didn’t need the car, I’d probably wait until January to make the decision. It would probably mean not getting the car until after July, but a lot more things would be certain. I’d know if the price will be raised. I’d know if the Bolt actually qualifies for the full $7500 or if it’s battery minerals come from unqualified countries.