My 2016 Volt lease was up next May, so I was in a similar position. I leased my 2016 from Tonkin Chevrolet in Portland and we loved the car, so we were thinking about buying it when the lease ended. But Tonkin called me a couple of weeks ago and wanted to buy out my lease and lease me a new 2018. Our 2016 was red with the black/brandy interior, but my wife always loved the Kinetic Blue, so now we're driving a new 2018 loaded blue Premier. This was almost a no-brainer since it didn't cost us a dime and the dealer gave us an extra grand in our pocket. Here's the deal:
You'll likely find that the dealer wholesale value on a low mileage 2016 Volt Premier is around $22K. You can verify this on kbb.com and do an Instant Cash Offer. You'll also likely find that your remaining payments plus the residual value of your lease (the price you would pay GM for the car) is around $20-21K. So that's why the dealers want to pay off your lease and take the car. They turn around and Certify them and sell them for $25-27K.
With the dealer and GM lease incentives, including the electric rebates, you can lease a brand new 2018 for the same as your existing lease on your 2016. Plus GM makes the first payment, pays for the license and title, so we were out the door with a new Volt for nothing out of pocket plus a check for another grand.
We were going to wait for the 2019's but we didn't like the new blue and especially didn't like the new two tone porcelain blue interior. The faster charging doesn't help me a bit since we charge plenty fast at home anyway. So we got exactly the car we wanted with a new warrantee and less monthly payments.
It was interesting to note that when I did the Kelly Blue Book Instant Cash deal, I started getting dealers calling me wanting me to sell my 2016 Volt to them and they were basically bidding on the car above the Instant Cash Value. They know it's a good deal for them, so you'll likely find you could sell your car for even more if you want to take the time to do it. This only works for leases that are almost paid up, because the buyout cost is lower than the wholesale value.
Here's our old and new Volts:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Qa3Nm4rEeRQrQ5hd9
We loved the old one, and we love the new one even more. Our son in Portland did the same deal with his black 2016. He's now driving a black 2018 as well.
Check out the kbb Instant Cash Value and compare it to your lease residual plus your remaining payments.
Good luck,
Ray
