Car prices are going up. The cost of building cars is on the rise thanks to worldwide supply chain problems and the increasing cost of transporting everything. So the cost of buying a new car is rising. Except for these two.
The 2023 Chevy Bolt EV and Bolt EUV are getting a jaw-dropping price cut in an attempt to stay competitive.
$6,000 price drop
The smaller Bolt EV will start at $25,600 – a nearly $6,000 decrease over 2022’s price.
The larger EUV – essentially a stretched Bolt with added back seat room and behind-the-seats cargo space – will start at $27,200 – a discount of $6,300 over the 2022 model’s sticker price.
Chevrolet also charges a $995 destination fee on both Bolts. Though GM GM, -4.47% has increased destination fees on many vehicles in recent months, it so far plans to keep the Bolt delivery fee steady.
Also see: The pros and cons of electric cars
The smaller Bolt EV will start at $25,600.
Chevrolet
Increasing competition, recent recalls
There are good reasons for the move.
One is simple competition. GM’s two smallest electric vehicles, the Bolt brothers do battle with an ever-growing number of electric cars from nearly every automaker. Most are priced well above the Bolts’ asking price. But most qualify for a $7,500 federal tax incentive that brings their effective price down.
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GM has sold so many electric cars that the tax rebate no longer applies to the Bolts. Since the automaker can’t count on a federal incentive to make its prices look competitive, it’s doing that itself.
The other reason is that the Bolts have suffered from a year of bad publicity and could use some good PR. Chevrolet was forced to issue an escalating series of recalls last year over battery fires in both Bolts. It appears to have the problem under control now – we’ve seen no new reports of battery fires, the recall campaign has replaced nearly every Bolt battery with one of a safer design, and the factory is once again churning out Bolts.
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It’s worth noting, however, that most of GM’s EVs – like the Cadillac Lyriq, GMC Hummer, and upcoming Chevy Blazer EV – use entirely different battery chemistry than the Bolts do.
The move technically makes the Bolt EV the least-expensive new electric car on the market. The 2022 Nissan NSANY, -1.90% Leaf starts at $27,400. The Leaf, however, qualifies for that federal tax rebate, bringing its effective price lower than either Chevy.
This story originally ran on KBB.com.