New Chevy Bolt EVs Still Costing Buyers Around $20K Despite Tax Credit Reduction

The Chevy Bolt remains a remarkable bargain in select EV markets, despite its EV Tax credit having been reduced.

The Chevy Bolt has retained its amazingly low new vehicle cost to consumers. This even though its federal electric vehicle tax credit has been reduced from $7,500 to just $1,875. We located a new Chevy Bolt on sale in Braintree, Mass. which can cost a consumer just $20,120 after incentives and discounts.

Drive Green Pricing
In EV-target markets like Massachusetts and Rhode Island, the Drive Green Program from the Green Energy Consumers' Alliance is working with car dealers to promote electric vehicles at their very lowest cost to the consumer. The site shows the dealers' discounted pricing, the fine print, and then it displays the federal and local incentives to show the buyer what the actual cost to them will be.

Prices Can Vary Even In the Same Region
The pricing can vary widely. For example, because of the difference in state rebates and dealer pricing, we found a Chevy Bolt LT can vary in price from $20,120 to $27,513. And thee two dealers ae just a 20-minute drive from one another. One happens to be over the Rhode Island border. Presently, RI does not have a state EV rebate. The dealer's discounts also play a role. One offers a discount of $13,000 (Quirk in Braintree, Mass.) and the other offers a discount of $10,797 (Paul Masse in East Providence, RI).

Tax Credit Impact On EV Prices
We have been reporting for years that electric vehicle buyers in select markets where the local government supports EV adoption can be purchased at roughly half their sticker prices. The biggest driver of that amazingly low cost to the consumer was the federal $7,500 tax credit. However, as automakers meet certain levels of EV production, the credit is reduced, and then goes away. Tesla vehicles, for example, no longer has any federal tax credit. What has amazed us as watchers of EV pricing is how dealers (and the manufacturers behind them) have stepped up to discount the vehicles to keep the costs so low.

Related Story: New 2018 Chevy Volt EVs Sit Unsold On Dealer Lots - Even As GM Promotes 2020 Bolt

Promotion and Sales Support Grows
Dealers in New England also promote EVs with TV advertisements, which is how we first found out about the Drivegreen program. In addition, they employ EV sales associates with the training and motivation to sell these vehicles to interested buyers. Quirk, for example, has four dedicated knowledgeable EV specialists on staff to help shoppers with their EV shopping experience.

John Goreham is a life-long car nut and recovering engineer. John's focus areas are technology, safety, and green vehicles. In the 1990s, he was part of a team that built a solar-electric vehicle from scratch. His was the role of battery thermal control designer. For 20 years he applied his engineering and sales talents in the high tech world and published numerous articles in technical journals such as Chemical Processing Magazine. In 2008 he retired from that career and dedicated himself to chasing his dream of being an auto writer. In addition to Torque News, John's work has appeared in print in dozens of American newspapers and he provides reviews to many vehicle shopping sites. You can follow John on Twitter, and connect with him at Linkedin.