I’ve been trying to find a way to lease an EV in Rochester, NY on my current budget (I currently have a 2007 Prius that I pay $220 a month on). So far I’ve looked into the Bolt and the Leaf. I’ve gotten two quotes on the Leaf. One was around $400-500 a month (depending on the down payment which ranged from $2000-6000). The second one I got tonight was $369 with $1600 down. I haven’t been able to get an exact quote on the Bolt yet, but one dealer estimated $500-600. A few of the Chevy dealerships told me there are better deals on Volts right now (their plug in hybrid car), but my preference is a fully electric vehicle unless it ends up being entirely prohibitive. I didn’t find a dealership in New Rochelle that claims to be able to give me a $199 lease, but I’m not sure if that the out of door cost or what kind of down payment it might require. Would anyone have any advice for me? Am I just getting to the market at a bad time? Or should I branch out to other locations (such as New Rochelle)? Are there other EVS I should consuder? Or should I compromise and go with a plug in hybrid?
Thanks in advance!
Sam
$220/mo is unrealistic for the Bolt and Leaf.
That’s what I was worried about. But I had seen posts on here from people who have gotten them for plus or minus $200 in the last year, so I wanted to explore it to see what was possible. What would you say is a fair lease on such a thing?
Monthly average is the effective monthly payments. It takes into account the due at signing amount.
Thank you! That’s kind of what I was thinking, but I wasn’t positive. If you chose not to make a down payment, can the monthly average become your actual monthly payment?
I’ve seen really good leases on BMW i3 loaners. You should look for a good broker in your area. Several of them are on this forum
With that Rochester winter coming are you sure that you will be OK in terms of range and charging opportunities (and operability when it’s REAL cold) in a full on EV? Regardless I’m imagining that a set of winter tires would be a must, those low resistance tires the EVs and PHEVs get would probably be a nightmare on some of those roads.
@KD6-3.7 Yeah I’ve read on here about the $54 a month lease on the i3. I didn’t know if deals like that could still be had.
@ElectricEliminator I considered that as well, especially battery range in the colder temperatures. All the ones I’ve see here are advertised as having all season tires, I suppose I could look into winter tires too. I did test drive a Leaf in mild winter conditions and it went fine. Most of my driving is just commuting on well plowed streets. I’ve seen several EVs and PHEVs around town in the snow including one of my coworkers.
BMW loaners are new cars that were given to the service department to give to service customers as a loaner car. They have just a few thousand miles on them and can be sold/leased with a really good discount vs new. I’ve seen payments in the low $200s including tax with a small amount of cash due at signing. Some or all of that cash can be recovered with rebates from your state or utility. Having a BMW qualifies for a loyalty rebate.
Please search for brokers, I think @nyclife is one of them. Look in Marketplace and Dealer/Broker reviews.
Keep in mind, Rochester dealers don’t have to be nearly as aggressive as dealers in larger metro areas. That’s not going to help your cause. You’ll need to travel for a good deal in all likelihood.
I see 1 BMW dealer in Rochester, 1 in Buffalo + 1 in Syracuse. That’s not a lot of competition. You’ll do better in NYC Metro or DC Metro.
@KD6-3.7 thanks for the information on loaners. I’ll definitely look into that. And thank you for explaining how to find brokers on here. I’m new here, so I don’t quite know how everything works.
@mp11477 yeah I’m finding that in general. Like I said, locally I can hardly touch anything for under $400 a month. But I may have found a Leaf in New Rochelle, NY near NYC for $200 a month and a Bolt in Braintree, MA near Boston for $165 a month.
Are you sure it’s a Bolt and not a Volt? That sounds a bit too good to be true. And Braintree, MA sounds like Quirk Chevrolet. Quirk dealerships do not have the best reputation around here. They are known for bait and switch tactics. Keep in mind that you qualify for an additional 2000 dollar rebate in NYS for purchasing or leasing an EV with more than 120 miles of electric range. But you can only get that at participating New York State dealers. Just like any incentives from other states likely require residency in that state.
I think the cheapest leasing EV (phev) is the Honda clarity right now. You should be able to get it for $200 per month $0 das or lower.
@ElectricEliminator I called them about it and they said it’s only good in MA. With NY taxes and what not it would be around $400 again. It was indeed Quirk. Good to know they’re sketchy.
So I got a quote from the dealer in New Rochelle. With $3500 down I could get a 24 month lease for $276 a month (or $288 for 36 months). However they weren’t taking my trade in into consideration which should have $400-500 equity. Nor were they factoring in a $1000 college grad rebate. So I think I can get away with a $2000 down payment. Whereas the cheapest quote I got locally was $1600 down for 36 months at $369 a month. Does the New Rochelle one seem better? Are either fair deals?