General Motors has suddenly canceled a lease program it created just over a week ago that was meant to help customers who wanted to benefit from the now-dead $7,500 federal tax credit on electric vehicles. Its financial arm claimed credits on about 20,000 EVs in dealer stocks before the September 30 deadline, making them eligible for the $7,500 discount. From there, a customer could lease the car, and GM would pass the savings on to them through the end of the year.
Well, that’s dead now, but GM says it’s going to offer an equivalent discount itself. However, it’s only good through the end of October, according to Automotive News. What a massive bummer. Here’s what the automaker told Automotive News in a statement:
“GM worked on an extended offer for the benefit of our customers and dealers. After further consideration, we have decided not to claim the tax credit,” the company said in an Oct. 8 statement. “GM will fund the incentive lease terms through the end of October.”
I’ve got a feeling this isn’t the whole story.
Political meddling
And, would you look at that! I’m right!
This abrupt course reversal comes just after Republican Senator Bernie Moreno — a former Ohio car dealership owner and Trump loyalist — raised concerns about the program, according to Reuters. It’s not immediately clear what Moreno’s concerns were, other than it being too beneficial to people who wanted to own an EV, but Moreno has apparently long been active in auto policy. It’s also not clear what forum the Ohio Senator raised this stink in, considering the fact the Federal Government is currently shut down.
It should be noted that Ford rolled out an identical plan to General Motors, but we haven’t heard anything from the Blue Oval when it comes to canceling the scheme following Moreno’s remarks. We have reached out to a spokesperson at the automaker, and we’ll be sure to update this story when and if we get a response.
