Photo: GM
Following Tesla, General Motors is the second automaker in the United States with more than 200,000 electric vehicles sold to date. The threshold was hit in December 2018, meaning that customers of the Bolt EV will be eligible for a federal tax credit of $3,750 instead of $7,500 as it was the case until now.
The chance goes into effect on April 1st, 2019, and so far, Chevrolet hasn’t announced anything similar to the $2,000 price cut that Tesla applied to the Model 3, Model S, and Model X. Retailing at $37,495 from the get-go, the Bolt with the halved federal tax credit starts at $33,745.
It’s obvious that General Motors has lost its edge in this segment, more so if you consider that even Hyundai has a better proposition in the guise of the Kona Electric. There’s also the problem of production output, which Tesla has mastered to the detriment of quality control.
Worse still, the credit will fall to $1,875 in October 2018. Customers of the Bolt EV won’t enjoy this facility in April 2020, when the credit will be phased out completely. In other words, General Motors either adapts or gets left at the back of the pack as far as electric vehicles are concerned.
It’s been ages since the biggest of the Big Three in Detroit promised two new EVs based on the Bolt, one of them flaunting the Buick badge. But so far, this promise hasn’t materialized into a product on the showroom floor. There’s also the ongoing problem of Opel and Vauxhall Ampera-e availability in Europe and the United Kingdom, which is affecting overall sales.
As if that wasn’t enough, President Trump threatened to cut all “subsidies, including for electric cars” over the closure of plants in North America. Chief executive officer Mary Barra hasn’t come up with something to sweeten the deal, leading us to believe that GM is engaged in an uphill battle with the Trump administration.
At the present moment, the cheapest Model 3 available in the U.S. if the Mid Range with rear-wheel drive. The suggested retail price kicks off at $44,000, and with $3,750 in incentives plus $4,300 in gas savings, you’re looking at a starting price of $35,950. Can the Bolt even compete with such a deal?
It’s obvious that General Motors has lost its edge in this segment, more so if you consider that even Hyundai has a better proposition in the guise of the Kona Electric. There’s also the problem of production output, which Tesla has mastered to the detriment of quality control.
Worse still, the credit will fall to $1,875 in October 2018. Customers of the Bolt EV won’t enjoy this facility in April 2020, when the credit will be phased out completely. In other words, General Motors either adapts or gets left at the back of the pack as far as electric vehicles are concerned.
It’s been ages since the biggest of the Big Three in Detroit promised two new EVs based on the Bolt, one of them flaunting the Buick badge. But so far, this promise hasn’t materialized into a product on the showroom floor. There’s also the ongoing problem of Opel and Vauxhall Ampera-e availability in Europe and the United Kingdom, which is affecting overall sales.
As if that wasn’t enough, President Trump threatened to cut all “subsidies, including for electric cars” over the closure of plants in North America. Chief executive officer Mary Barra hasn’t come up with something to sweeten the deal, leading us to believe that GM is engaged in an uphill battle with the Trump administration.
At the present moment, the cheapest Model 3 available in the U.S. if the Mid Range with rear-wheel drive. The suggested retail price kicks off at $44,000, and with $3,750 in incentives plus $4,300 in gas savings, you’re looking at a starting price of $35,950. Can the Bolt even compete with such a deal?
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