I’m shopping for a 2024 Kia EV6 in Massachusetts that will qualify for the state’s MOR-EV $3,500 tax credit, which has a MSRP cap of $55,000 and requires leases to be 36+ months. I’m looking at the Wind AWD (no tech package) and a 36 month 10k miles lease.
One local dealer has EV6 models listed on their web site at $1,500 off MSRP, so I wrote a detailed email trying to convey I’m a serious buyer and asking 10% off MSRP and zero drive-off as a starting point. They responded they could do $0 down (I know that’s not the same thing) and needed to know my monthly payment. I know that’s a tactic, but trying to play along, I used the LeaseHackr calculator, rounded up from $342 and offered $350/month for $0 down. I did not tell them I was using LeaseHackr. Here’s the calculation I was working from.
They responded that they could do $350/month and $0 down but only if applying the tax credit at point of sale. That’s effectively $3,500 higher than what I was offering, so I asked if they could offer $350 without the tax credit and they said the best they could do was “$440 or a few dollars less”. Assuming they could do, say $435, the calculator says that would mean an MSRP discount of just $2,350, which is only $850 below the price published on their web site.
My questions for the hackers:
Am I being too aggressive with my initial offer? I’ve read a lot about dealers refusing to deal with internet buyers, so I was careful to be polite in every exchange, and this one was willing to work with me but would not go further on pricing.
Does Kia corporate offer less money to dealers on the back end for vehicles that qualify for state tax credits? I’ve seen better EV6 deals in the Signed section here, so I’m curious if my offer was actually below the dealer’s cost, or if they’re just confident they can sell to someone else at the price they quoted me.
With an aggressive deal, most dealers will say no. You’re trying to get the deal than 9 out of 10 dealers won’t do. That means you’ll likely need to talk to more than one dealer.
Would you be able to tell me what a more reasonable deal is, or point me to the best resource for that? Paying the published price on the dealer’s web site or something close to that feels like overpaying, but I don’t want to be so low that 9 out of 10 dealers think I’m unreasonable. I think the Signed! postings and other info like on Reddit made me think my offer wasn’t as aggressive as it was.
Its not unusual for states with extra state tax credits (and registration laws that limit going out of state) for dealers to try to hold a higher line. It all comes down to how much time and energy you’re willing to put in to chasing the 1 out of 10 or if you just want to get things done and move on.
That makes sense. I’ve got time and energy but not 1 out of 10 energy, so I will try splitting the difference by offering 7% off and see if I get any bites. I appreciate your help today.
If you don’t care about how it looks or leather seats, I believe you’ll have a much better time getting an Ioniq 5 SEL if it must be an SUV. Hyundai cranked up the lease cash on that and dealers have literally hundreds of those rotting in the lots and want to get rid of them before the refreshed version comes around in a few months. And yes, try keeping the mor-ev for yourself and negotiate a bigger discount, I see many Hyundai dealers offering $2500-ish off online so maybe aim for at least $4k-4500 off or just throw your offer with all discounts, specify you’ll be pocketing mor-ev and state your terms, see who bites
Definitely doesn’t have to be an SUV. I’m not crazy about SUVs. My ideal car would be more like a non-luxury version of the BMW i4. I like the 5 door hatchback format–years back I had a Mazdaspeed3, which I loved–and the EV6 is a bit higher up than that but more low-slung than most other EV crossovers.
That said, I’m willing to check the Ioniq 5 out. Thanks for the tip on that! Are there any other EV models with have a glut of inventory that you’d suggest I look into?
No kidding. When I built one on their web site with the stuff I wanted it (xDrive40 w/some options) it came out to about $68K. Even with lease incentives and discounts, it comes out lot more expensive than the other cars I’ve been looking at.
I know BMW is big on customization and special orders, but it’s wild how many i4 models on dealer lots have basic non-adaptive cruise control.
