Lease end options for 2019 Bolt

Ask the Hackrs
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Hi Hackrs,

Three years ago I found my lease here & learned how to negotiate it for the most advantageous pricing! (And forgot the password to the account I was using back then, so here’s a new one.)

Now it’s lease-end time and, like many people, I have equity. I’d love the Hackrs’ expert thoughts on what to do about it.

My car: 2019 Chevy Bolt EV, battery recall completed at the end of 2021. 28,600 miles on it (leased for 45,000 miles, then there was a pandemic and my commute went away).

Lease Buyout Price: $19,392.00

Equityhackr offer that I pulled just for comparison’s sake: $24,500.00

I like the Bolt and want to continue driving a small EV. I have a parking limitation at home that requires a short, hatchback type car, so the Bolt works well for me.

New Bolts are leasing for about $400/mo with $2000 down at the dealer where I leased this one, and inventory is limited; I might not be able to find the packages I want in a 2022 vehicle.

With all that in mind, which of the following do you think is most financially advantageous?

  1. Buy and keep my current Bolt. I can afford to buy it in cash, so I wouldn’t be taking on an interest-bearing loan.

  2. Return the lease to the dealer (they will credit me for the equity, but haven’t told me how much) and lease a 2022 Bolt now.

  3. Extend the lease at $400/month (which does not reduce the buyout price) for up to 6 months and lease a 2023 Bolt when they come out, in the hope that the reduced purchase price means a more advantageous lease & my equity lasts.

  4. Buy out the lease, sell privately, and lease a 2022 Bolt (or other small hatchback EV?) now.

I’m inclined to buy and keep the car, since no matter what I do I’ll need a car and I got it when the getting was good, price-wise—but we all know that leasing has its advantages, that’s why we’re on this forum.

Insights appreciated, thanks very much!

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  1. Your Choice
  2. Don’t mix the transactions together, Split this to 2A) Give Bolt and get $$$, 2B) Buy/lease new bolt. Otherwise they are going to make some $$$ by doing so shenanigans in the paperwork.
  3. Your Current bolt is $400/month? How.
  4. You have 10 days to get rid of it or you lose sales tax. So that could mean 2k lost. (BTW the Dealer in option 2 doesn’t have to pay Sales Tax)

Now is a new bolt really $400/month after 2k down? That’s surprising.

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3: Current Bolt is $400/month, I put $1K down and leased for 15,000 miles/year because I had a long commute pre-pandemic.

New Bolt: That’s the pricing I got from Trish who is on this board (found her here 3 years ago) and well-regarded; but just an estimate, she didn’t send me the full fact sheet yet, as I’m leaning towards buying probably being the most advantageous.

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Your current bolt is $400 a New bolt is $400 plus 2k. I honestly would go #2

If you got pricing from Trish, she would be a good source. Still think $400/m +2k is sorta bad. If you buy a bolt from her they take an additional 6k off.

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Yeah, with the price drop + incentives for buying, $400/mo + 2K seems bad to me too. Buying a new Bolt is potentially an option, although I’d be waiting a while for one with all the features I already have in my current lease. Only base models in stock in my area currently, and no ETA on the more fully loaded options.

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Buy a 2023 since the new pricing will drop the values of used ones.

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Has your battery been replaced on the 2019 yet? If so, you have a new 8 year/100k warranty on that battery (or eventually will) and can own the car for under 20k. A new 3 year lease will cost around $16,400. Heck, if you’re in California you could investigate the 10 day rule, buy and flip the car for the Equityhackr number and pursue the new Bolt lease (unless that number quoted requires grounding it) You have a few options to think about here. Personally in this market I’d rather own something for around that payment (given a similar term) than lease a Bolt for those numbers. I don’t believe it’s a 400/mo car but I guess depending on my charging circumstances I could be talked into it via gas savings if these prices continue long term.

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Yes battery has been replaced - that makes sense. The payment on the current Bolt of $400/mo is my current lease price, not the price to buy - I’d buy up-front in cash.

Basically buying it would cost the same as spending 4 more years leasing for $400/month, so I guess it makes sense if I expect to drive this car substantially more than 4 years?

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I’m in similar situation. Wondering, for the option #2 above, do all dealers offer to apply lease equity to the new car or outright give cash for it? Any recommendations in bay area for for dealers offering these options?
Thanks

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They can do both. The 2nd option can take up to a couple of weeks to get the check

Note for option 1, a dealer MIGHT try to confuse you and steal the equity back in all the paperwork.

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Thanks Forbs. That is why I’m trying to find a dealer with whom fellow leasehackrs are happy with doing this kind of transaction :slight_smile:

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If in CA, there are a few who can do chevys such as @ChevyPhil and @chevysalesgirl

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Also think @ChevyVick has helped out a few LH’rs. ah…that’s why link didnt work.
CaliZ06

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Try Link at Quality Chevrolet in Escondido. (951) 473-0646

His quote was the best I got recently

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