[BackNBlack]

Hi all.

About to buy a 2017 Volt, just getting the old cars sold and affairs in order before pulling the trigger. So wanted to say hi, as I've trolled the forums here for a bit learning about this amazing car and I'm sure to be on here quite a bit once I actually get the car.

One quick question I'm hoping you guys can finally confirm the answer for me is about the tax credit. As I understand it, as long as my tax responsibility for 2017 is $7500 or more, I will get the full credit. So please correct me if I'm wrong, but here is how I think it will work for me based on 2016. I payed $15,000 in federal taxes in '16 and owed $10,000 after all deductions, so I got a $5,000 "refund" this year(these are not actual figures, but nice round numbers that represent my actual situation and will allow me to understand how it will work). Assuming everything stays the same to '17 (I know it won't exactly), I would then get a "refund" next year of $12,500?

I've read several articles on this, including the IRS website, and I believe this is correct, but I just want to make sure I know what to expect.

Thanks in advance and look forward to talking to you about the actual Volt going forward.

 

[Kraven]

Yes, you are correct.

 

[jcanoe]

Leaving your tax refund out of this discussion, the program is a $7500 federal income tax credit for the year that you purchase a plug-in vehicle that meets the minimum battery capacity requirement (the Volt meets, exceeds this requirement.) You can receive up to $7500 credit for taxes owed in the year that you purchase a new, never previously titled, plug-in vehicle. If you owe more than $7500 then you will still owe the difference, say $2500 on $10,000 total federal income tax owed. If you owe less than $7500 in taxes then you will receive a tax credit up to the amount of your taxes owed, say $6000 on a $6000 tax bill. You do not receive the difference, in this example $1500, as any type of refund. You cannot carry over any unused portion of the $7500 tax credit to the next tax year. If you receive a refund it is because after taking into account the $7500 tax credit you still over withheld federal income taxes on your W-2 or made estimated tax payments.

Also, as I recently found out, while there is a related federal tax credit program called the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit where you can claim a credit on your federal income tax for installing a home charging station (the amount of this credit is limited to 30% of the cost of installing the home charging equipment) however the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit is limited by amount of the the tax credit you may have received for the Plug-In Vehicle tax credit in that tax year. Together these two tax credits cannot exceed $7500 for one year. If you decide to purchase a Volt or other plug-in vehicle and want to install a Level II EVSE at your home, to be able to take full advantage of both tax credits, you should wait until January of the following year to purchase and install the home charging station, then you can claim the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit. In the example above where the total tax owed was $6000 you would receive $6000 tax credit and then could still claim the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit in the same tax year. Note: even a relatively expensive install of a dedicated circuit and Level II EVSE for the Volt, say $2400, you could receive a credit of 30% or $800. Your total tax credit would be under $7500, in this case $6800. You would not receive the unused portion of the combined tax credit programs ($7500 - $6800 = $700) as a refund or be able to carry this over to the next tax year.

 

[Coppersnowboarder]

Buy a used Volt to reduce depreciation loss and enjoy the tax credit reduction in resale cost of a used vehicle.

 

[TheBlueFlash]

Buy a used Volt to reduce depreciation loss and enjoy the tax credit reduction in resale cost of a used vehicle.

This is a great idea btw. Both of my Volts were bought used for significant discounts under asking price.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Also, as I recently found out, while there is a related federal tax credit program called the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit where you can claim a credit on your federal income tax for installing a home charging station (the amount of this credit is limited to 30% of the cost of installing the home charging equipment) however the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit is limited by amount of the the tax credit you may have received for the Plug-In Vehicle tax credit in that tax year. Together these two tax credits cannot exceed $7500 for one year. If you decide to purchase a Volt or other plug-in vehicle and want to install a Level II EVSE at your home, to be able to take full advantage of both tax credits, you should wait until January of the following year to purchase and install the home charging station, then you can claim the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit. In the example above where the total tax owed was $6000 you would receive $6000 tax credit and then could still claim the Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit in the same tax year. Note: even a relatively expensive install of a dedicated circuit and Level II EVSE for the Volt, say $2400, you could receive a credit of 30% or $800. Your total tax credit would be under $7500, in this case $6800. You would not receive the unused portion of the combined tax credit programs ($7500 - $6800 = $700) as a refund or be able to carry this over to the next tax year.

The EVSE credit (Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit) has expired.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Hi all.

About to buy a 2017 Volt, just getting the old cars sold and affairs in order before pulling the trigger. So wanted to say hi, as I've trolled the forums here for a bit learning about this amazing car and I'm sure to be on here quite a bit once I actually get the car.

One quick question I'm hoping you guys can finally confirm the answer for me is about the tax credit. As I understand it, as long as my tax responsibility for 2017 is $7500 or more, I will get the full credit. So please correct me if I'm wrong, but here is how I think it will work for me based on 2016. I payed $15,000 in federal taxes in '16 and owed $10,000 after all deductions, so I got a $5,000 "refund" this year(these are not actual figures, but nice round numbers that represent my actual situation and will allow me to understand how it will work). Assuming everything stays the same to '17 (I know it won't exactly), I would then get a "refund" next year of $12,500?

I've read several articles on this, including the IRS website, and I believe this is correct, but I just want to make sure I know what to expect.

Thanks in advance and look forward to talking to you about the actual Volt going forward.

If you are filing taxes as a regular individual taxpayer and not any kind of business, yes, it's only* based on tax liability.

* IANACPA

 

[jcanoe]

The EVSE credit (Alternate Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit) has expired.

Thank you for this information. I wanted to take advantage of the Alternate Fuel etc. etc. tax credit on my 2016 taxes but learned that since I received the full amount of the Plug-In Vehicle tax credit ($7500) that I was ineligible to receive any tax credit for the EVSE.

 

[BAZINGA]

This is a great idea btw. Both of my Volts were bought used for significant discounts under asking price.

A co-worker found a pre-owned 2017 Volt for say that was certified. It turned out he wound up with a more warranty coverage than I got buying new (36 months vs his 42 months) and he bought a $41K 2017 for about $26K OTD. It was 8 months old and only had 4K miles on it.

 

[BackNBlack]

Thanks all for the responses. I'm pretty confident now that I will indeed be able to take advantage of the full credit.

In regards to buying a used model, that was our original plan, but the added EV range in the Gen2's just made too much sense, since my wife works 30 miles from home.

We should be getting the car in the next couple weeks. When we do I'll introduce her in the correct thread (since posting here, I saw the other thread that I should have used)

Anyways, thanks for the early advise and look forward to sharing the joy of the Volt with everyone.

 

[Kraven]

You'll like the Gen2 a lot. I'm sure the Gen1's are awesome as well, and the original, I can tell you from experience the commute in a Volt vs. an ICE is so much better. For me, ACC is a very welcome option and helps on my commute. Your wife's commute almost fits the Gen2 range perfectly, she will most likely need to flip over to hold mode for a portion (if their is 60+MPH segment, highway/freeway that would be when to do it) and save battery for slower speed portions. She will get about 90% of the entire commute on battery power if no side trips.