Tynan’s Nissan in Aurora, Colorado, and Xcel Energy are partners in a campaign to encourage people to buy an electric car. Through the end of this month, residents can purchase a new Nissan LEAF SV and get more than 50% off the sticker price. This article explains how the Electric Vehicle Group Buy program works.
A Nissan LEAF SV lists for $33,960. But available rebates and incentives can reduce that to just $16,360. The perks include:
- A $2,100 discount from Tynan’s Nissan Aurora though the end of this month.
- The $5,000 Colorado tax credit.
- A $3,000 Nissan-Xcel Energy “fleetail” cash rebate.
- The $7,500 federal tax credit.
That’s a total of $17,600 off the price of a new car. To qualify for all the special discounts and rebates, cars must be purchased at Tynan’s Nissan in Aurora.
OK, some of you math types may have a quibble or two. First of all, the federal EV tax credit is a bit of a bait and switch proposition. You only get the full amount if you actually owe the IRS $7,500 for tax year 2018. If you only owe half that, you get half the credit. If you have no federal tax liability, you get nothing. What ever benefit you get from the federal tax credit is only available for the year in which you purchase a car. There is no carryover provision that allows you to apply any of it to subsequent tax years.
Second, if you march into Tynan’s Nissan on December 1 prepared to buy a Nissan LEAF, does anyone really think that $2,100 discount will be no longer available? You can answer that question for yourself. But apparently the extra $3,000 off from Nissan and Xcel Energy expires at the end of November, so why wait?
Putting quibbles aside, Kerstin Claspell, a financial analyst for the city of Aurora, tells the Colorado Sentinel the Electric Vehicle Group Buy program has been successful in the past. In 2017, 85 buyers took advantage of the deal. In 2016, 74 people purchased a new LEAF while the program was in effect. The program costs the city or its taxpayers nothing, she adds.
However, the program has had a positive effect on the city of Aurora. After the 2008 fiscal calamity — a gift to all Americans from the Republican party — the city was forced to save money any way it could. After an analysis, it determined that an electric car cost $1 less to operate for every 25 miles it is driven than a conventional car. “For the city it made sense from an environmental and fiscal point of view to include more electric,” Claspell says. Today, Aurora has 21 electric cars in its municipal fleet and plans to add more.
Aurora has also been proactive about installing EV chargers. “Residents may want to know the city currently has 32 charging stations and there are 8 more in the works in the Central Recreational Center construction,” Claspell says. EV advocates know that access to public charging infrastructure is an important consideration for people considering the purchase of an electric car. Kudos to the city of Aurora for supporting the EV revolution with forward looking policies.
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