How Much I Paid for My Bolt

Rather than say that high (or low) residuals are simply "good" or "bad," it makes more sense to specify that they are "better" or "worse" for people who do or don't want to buy the car. Again, EVs are the exception to the rule because of the Federal tax credit: people who don't qualify for that can use leasing to buy the car. That's assuming, of course, that the leasing company passes on enough of the credit...

LeftieBiker said:

Rather than say that high (or low) residuals are simply "good" or "bad," it makes more sense to specify that they are "better" or "worse" for people who do or don't want to buy the car. Again, EVs are the exception to the rule because of the Federal tax credit: people who don't qualify for that can use leasing to buy the car. That's assuming, of course, that the leasing company passes on enough of the credit...

Click to expand...

A lower residual is better than a higher residual. What the residual is determines whether or not it is "good" or "bad". If all other factors are the same a dealer who offers a lease with a $14000 residual is offering a better lease than a dealer offering a lease with a $12000 residual. But both residuals could be good or both could be bad or the lower could be bad and the higher could be good.

A residual that turns out to be higher than the value of the vehicle at the termination of the lease is good for the lessee.
A residual that turns out to be lower than the value of the vehicle at the termination of the lease is bad for the lessee.

In NC. The best lease deal I could get so far is 499 a month for 48 months with 15k miles per year. That is with nothing down and me being 1100 upside down on my trade. For an LT model. This seems like a terrible deal but wanted to confirm here.

The dealer said he had to purchase the bolts from GM to get them here which is why he had very little wiggle room.

I really want one but now am considering an BMW i3 because apparently their lease deals are more attractive.

Definitely a bad deal. I haven't done my research on LT's but if you go back a couple of pages myself and another posted our fully loaded premier deals and that should help you get an idea on where to start.

FYI you should be emailing several different dealers to get quotes. My first quote was at 470, the others were under 400 BEFORE I started haggling. So your prices will probably vary greatly depending on who wants your business.

Good luck.

sparkyps said:

LeftieBiker said:

Rather than say that high (or low) residuals are simply "good" or "bad," it makes more sense to specify that they are "better" or "worse" for people who do or don't want to buy the car.

Click to expand...

A lower residual is better than a higher residual. What the residual is determines whether or not it is "good" or "bad". If all other factors are the same...

Click to expand...

But the point is that "all other factors" are rarely the same. A lower residual essentially means you're "borrowing" more money, which means the monthly payments are going to be higher. In that sense, a lower residual is "worse" if you're not going to buy the car in the end to take advantage of that lower price.

I've been given a lease offer for a Bolt LT + gray + fast charge + Driver Confidence + Comfort packages as follows:

36 months
10,000 miles/year
0 down
$345/month after tax

Is this a good deal? Total cost over 3 years would be $345*36 = $12,434

madera said:

I've been given a lease offer for a Bolt LT + gray + fast charge + Driver Confidence + Comfort packages as follows:

36 months
10,000 miles/year
0 down
$345/month after tax

Is this a good deal? Total cost over 3 years would be $345*36 = $12,434

Click to expand...

Hello there,

I got a Chevy Bolt Premier , Fast Charging Tinted windows 595$

The Sale price of my car was 39,995

Same lease terms as yours 36 Months 10 Miles
2900 Down payment
316 a month after tax. 290 before tax.

14,276 for total payments + down payment.

SeanNelson said:

sparkyps said:

LeftieBiker said:

Rather than say that high (or low) residuals are simply "good" or "bad," it makes more sense to specify that they are "better" or "worse" for people who do or don't want to buy the car.

Click to expand...

A lower residual is better than a higher residual. What the residual is determines whether or not it is "good" or "bad". If all other factors are the same...

Click to expand...

But the point is that "all other factors" are rarely the same. A lower residual essentially means you're "borrowing" more money, which means the monthly payments are going to be higher. In that sense, a lower residual is "worse" if you're not going to buy the car in the end to take advantage of that lower price.

Click to expand...

My statement that a lower residual is better was in error, as shown by the sentence that followed where I said a $14,000 residual is better than a $12,000 residual as well as my other posts.

But it isn't exactly true that you borrow more money with a lower residual. The amount of money you borrow is determined by the capitalized cost and has zero to do with the residual. So you borrow exactly the same, regardless of the residual.

However, as you pay for the declining value of the vehicle (cap cost - residual)/months, the loan amount shrinks so it is true you will pay less in interest but usually more than offset by paying for the cost of paying off the difference between the cap cost and the residual.

On a $30k loan with a $20k value of the vehicle at the end of a 3 year lease and a 3% interest rate it would take an increase of the interest rate to almost 30% to make a $0 residual lease better than one with a $30k residual. Moral of that story is borrowing money at 30% is expensive, don't do it.

mleitner0 said:

madera said:

I've been given a lease offer for a Bolt LT + gray + fast charge + Driver Confidence + Comfort packages as follows:

36 months
10,000 miles/year
0 down
$345/month after tax

Is this a good deal? Total cost over 3 years would be $345*36 = $12,434

Click to expand...

Hello there,

I got a Chevy Bolt Premier , Fast Charging Tinted windows 595$

The Sale price of my car was 39,995

Same lease terms as yours 36 Months 10 Miles
2900 Down payment
316 a month after tax. 290 before tax.

14,276 for total payments + down payment.

Click to expand...

Just got quoted $415/mo + $0 down = $14,900

for a Premier, not sure of options, 15,000 miles/yr

Passed on the offer, liked the car during the test drive except for the seats. WIll take another look when the 2018's come out with, hopefully, better front seats.

Just got emailed a Memorial Day Weekend offer for $0 down (including taxes and fees) + $349/mo for 36mo, 12k/year, LT with heated seats/wheel + CCS QC.

I'm waiting until I can test drive one or two other 200+ mile BEVs. Maybe 6-9 months for the Leaf and 12-18 for the Model 3. If non-Tesla QC infrastructure grows significantly, I may not wait for the Tesla.

After reaching out to multiple dealerships the best offer I got was the following:

Orange Sunburst Metallic w/DCFC and nothing else
$354/m after tax
$0 down.
36 months
10K miles per year.

It seems like we're all receiving roughly the same mediocre deals. The lease terms do not appear nearly as generous as the discounts being offered on purchases. I also didn't really like how my interactions with the dealers went. It felt like the employees were trying to pull a fast one by withholding as much information as possible about how they came up with the numbers.

Frankly, I'm not a buyer at the current terms. Maybe later in the year we'll see something better, that is if I haven't ended up in another car first (which is a significant possibility).

I may try e-mailing them back saying I'll take $320/m after tax and see if they take it. That basically puts it at $250/m after rebate.

DTANGAS said:

I got a deal similar to yours with total end costs almost identical.

MSRP $43510 (has the fast charger)
$2500 Drive Off(including 1st month, taxes, registration etc.)
15000 miles/year
Payment $355 after taxes
36 month lease.

Click to expand...

DTANGAS, that's a great deal. Congrats. I'm talking with a couple of dealers and I'm not getting close to that yet. Do you mind saying which dealer you purchased from? You may have mentioned it somewhere else, but I didn't see it. Thanks.

My wife liked the Bolt, so we turned in our Spark EV a month early. Limited selection at this dealer, she had a choice of a black Premier or Red LT if she wanted the DCFC. Took the Cajun Red LT with DCFC and Comfort/Convenience package. Right at $300/mo including tax, $2500 down (out the door) with 15,000 miles/yr.

A very nice upgrade from the Spark EV, which we both loved for 43,000+ miles.

We have a Tesla 3 reservation, if it turns out to be a winner we'll replace our last gas car with it and be all electric.

Tim Gelling @ Greenwood Chevrolet in Hollister, CA sold me this car yesterday, May 28:

Bolt LT, MSRP $39,455, selling price $34,999 for a 36 month, 10,000 mile per year lease.
Residual of 61% = $25,067.55
Total cost w/ tax, $11,313.40 (+ $395 Disposition fee)
35 payments of $323.24 which includes 9.25% tax for Alameda County, CA
(base payment $295.87 + $27.37 tax)
Money Factor .0008, $0 down, $0 drive off (did spend $22 for Clean Air Vehicle (CAV) Decals - High Occupancy Vehicle HOV Lane Usage)

I get to subtract another $2,500 for CARB and $500 for PG&E when those rebate checks arrive.

Nightfall Gray Metallic
DC Fast Charging ($750 MSRP)
Comfort and Convenience Package ($555 MSRP)
Driver Confidence Package ($495 MSRP)
False Cargo Floor ($100 MSRP)
Wheel Locks ($60 MSRP)

Thanks to all of you on this board who have shared your purchase information!

Picked up my Bolt Premier over the weekend, I leased it.

Bolt Premier
Nightfall Grey Metallic
DC Charging

36 months
15,000 miles
3k down that includes all fees, taxes, 1st payment, etc
$324.62 monthly payment including taxes
Residual was like $24k and change


It's just been a couple days, but so far very happy with the car!

Photoflow said:

Picked up my Bolt Premier over the weekend, I leased it.

Bolt Premier
Nightfall Grey Metallic
DC Charging

36 months
15,000 miles
3k down that includes all fees, taxes, 1st payment, etc
$324.62 monthly payment including taxes
Residual was like $24k and change

It's just been a couple days, but so far very happy with the car!

Click to expand...

Are you in CA?

If so that will be a great deal on a Premier w/15k miles/year for only $325/mo and zero net down after you get the $2500 CA and $500 PGE rebates.

Congrats!

DeathBeforeDisco said:

Tim Gelling @ Greenwood Chevrolet in Hollister, CA sold me this car yesterday, May 28:

Bolt LT, MSRP $39,455, selling price $34,999 for a 36 month, 10,000 mile per year lease.
Residual of 61% = $25,067.55
Total cost w/ tax, $11,313.40 (+ $395 Disposition fee)
35 payments of $323.24 which includes 9.25% tax for Alameda County, CA
(base payment $295.87 + $27.37 tax)
Money Factor .0008, $0 down, $0 drive off (did spend $22 for Clean Air Vehicle (CAV) Decals - High Occupancy Vehicle HOV Lane Usage)

I get to subtract another $2,500 for CARB and $500 for PG&E when those rebate checks arrive.

Nightfall Gray Metallic
DC Fast Charging ($750 MSRP)
Comfort and Convenience Package ($555 MSRP)
Driver Confidence Package ($495 MSRP)
False Cargo Floor ($100 MSRP)
Wheel Locks ($60 MSRP)

Thanks to all of you on this board who have shared your purchase information!

Click to expand...

This is a very good deal. You are effectively paying $231 per month for three years (or $8,313 for three years). Zero drive-off is the best way to lease.

Math: $0 + 323.24 x 35 - 2,500 - 500 = 11,313 - 2,500 Calif. rebate - 500 PGE = 8,313 = $231 per month for 3 years.

sgt1372 said:

Photoflow said:

Picked up my Bolt Premier over the weekend, I leased it.

Bolt Premier
Nightfall Grey Metallic
DC Charging

36 months
15,000 miles
3k down that includes all fees, taxes, 1st payment, etc
$324.62 monthly payment including taxes
Residual was like $24k and change

It's just been a couple days, but so far very happy with the car!

Click to expand...

Are you in CA?

If so that will be a great deal on a Premier w/15k miles/year for only $325/mo and zero net down after you get the $2500 CA and $500 PGE rebates.

Congrats!

Click to expand...

Yep, I'm in CA so I will get the $2500 and $500 rebates.

Re: 8,313 total spend over 3 years, I think you subtracted 2500 and 500 twice. So I think it's more like 11,313 total spend over 3 years?

So I just leased a Bolt today. Leased at Mark Christoper Chevy
Kenetic Blue LT with
optional fast charger

$299/m including tax
$990 down to cover fees
0.0008 money factor
36 months
15K miles per year.

How did I do?