GM hopes leases will boost Volt

[atlaw4u]

GM decided to offer low lease prices because it can retain and eventually reuse the expensive, lithium-ion battery packs. And the automaker can apply a $7,500 federal tax credit, per vehicle.

Robert Snell And David Shepardson - DETNEWS - July 27, 2010

General Motors Co. will offer a competitive lease price on its Chevrolet Volt that could soothe consumers hinky about buying a vehicle that relies on pricey battery technology.

The lease price will be unveiled today, along with the Volt's retail price tag of slightly less than $40,000, minus a $7,500 federal tax credit. The pricing is one of the last secrets surrounding a car that GM hopes will turn around its perception as the maker of gas-guzzling SUVs.

The Detroit News has learned that GM plans to set a lease price that will be far lower than monthly payments to buy the extended-range electric car, and competitive with Nissan's Leaf, whose monthly lease price starts at $349.

The Leaf will retail for $32,780 before the federal credit.

"No one has ever done this type of vehicle before. People might be very hesitant of buying something that's this new and different," said auto analyst Joe Phillippi of AutoTrends Consulting in Short Hills, N.J.

"To a lot of people, if the Volt doesn't work as advertised, by leasing it, GM takes all the uncertainty out."... [Read More]

[Butterfly Mage]

The last time an electric car was available for lease by GM, it didn't work out so well for the consumer. If I had a six-digit income and therefore qualified for the $7,500 "wealth welfare", I'd buy the Volt instead of leasing it so that I would know that it wouldn't suddenly end up as a crushed cube in the middle of a desolate wasteland.

[EVuser]

BM it didn't work out so well for the EV1 if you believe that cars are more than a bunch of parts but the lease worked out exactly as the consumer expected when they signed the papers. Most consumers loved the car and hence the passion that still lingers today.

But if I lease you a ocean view house for 3 years and you love it that doesn't mean that you get to buy it. And I may tear it down when I take it back.

Most car leases give you the option of buying at the end of the lease as the owner really doesn't want the thing when your done with it. So if you want a lease with the option to buy make sure it is in the papers when you sign them.

FWIW, a couple of folks I know in the development phase of a soon to be available EV plan to lease theirs. Because the only really valid test of time on a battery is time.

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Originally Posted by atlaw4u

Standard equipment includes a Bose sound system with six speakers, 30 GB of audio data storage and 17-inch, five-spoke painted aluminum wheels.

Don't need, don't need, 15-inch is fine thanks.

Bose?

They don't want me as a customer yet.

Edit: well, the sound system is a bespoke low power system but you can bit it's pricey.