A FReeper got a Leaf

self | ctdonath2

[ctdonath2]

I did it. I got an electric car. A Nissan Leaf.

Whatever the origins, the confluence of factors made it absurd not to. Buyers get a $7500 credit off federal taxes. Georgia offers $5000 off purchase or lease. Power usage costs about $25/mo (vs gas at $150-300). That, plus negotiating, makes a 2 year lease net cost $0, if not negative. That I was driving a '98 POS facing major repairs, plus legislative movements reconsidering the incentives, made it a must-do.

If you're in a state with similar incentives, and have any reason at all to get another car, do it.

Environmentalism? Reducing pollution et al is a good thing, but as I was otherwise looking at a Jeep Wrangler, not a major factor. Taxation/redistribution? Getting mine $$$ back is a good thing. If they're gonna legislate it, use it.

Just a happy new nifty car owner here, had to share. Get your free car now if you can.

[ctdonath2]

Uh...I paid for it. I’ve paid something like $400,000 in taxes, I’m just getting a tiny fraction of it back. Actually it’s coming out of my future tax payments, as I only get back what I owe in tax liability (excess rolled over).

Unless you want to get the same treatment you demand in light of whatever tax deductions you take. Mortgage deduction? how about I just move into an extra room for a while?

Seems a lot of people here don’t realize that it’s NOT paid for by other taxpayers. It’s a tax credit, only going 1:1 to what I owe. If I otherwise owe no GA taxes over the next 5 years (a la the 47%), I don’t get the incentive.

[ctdonath2]

It has an air conditioner.

[ctdonath2]

Huh?

[Black Agnes]

My 1979 Mercedes had an airconditioner too. When the air temp got above 85 it sort of worked. In the shade.

[ctdonath2]

I remember those days. A/C technology has improved in 35 years.

[Black Agnes]

Just ask around about the a/c in the electrics. And invest in those little battery fans to take with you this August. And big cups full of ice water.

I live 2 states over from you in the deep south. Friend of hubby’s had one of these in the summer. Swelter doesn’t come close to the temps in that car. If he ran the a/c to ‘comfortable’ his distance between charge dropped apocalyptically.

[ctdonath2]

When I first came down to GA for a week to check the area out in mid-summer, I made sure I did _not_ fix the broken A/C in the car first. If I couldn’t survive without it, not worth moving in.

Having moved here, I left it unfixed for a year while making 2- to 4-hour round-trip commutes.

So yeah, I can survive without A/C. Open the windows.
And for EVs, remember to start cooling the thing down (from my phone app) while it’s still plugged in. Yes, EVs aren’t perfect, but I can’t argue in light of a net cost of $0.

[ctdonath2]

That’s why I have a gas-guzzling SUV.

[Democrat_media]

what smog or pollution you liberal? what about if pollution or smog were such a real problem then why did you democrats have to fabricate the global warming hoax to demonize coal and oil don't you understand?

government is more of a problem than any smog or pollution .. your government already banned lightbulbs for this global warming hoax and obama’s EPA is oppressing businesses with ridiculous mileage requirements for trucks and cars

have fun when democrats put you on an obamacare waiting list or you face their obamacare death panel .you enabled that. it all started with the lament “we have to do something about pollution, or global warming, or the no-healthcare crisis, or xyz, any fake crisis” that something is more government laws (more government) and an oppressive EPA

but you don't agree that gov is more of a problem than pollution so you are a socialist/statist. socialism doesn't work stop shilling for it you socialist

[Black Agnes]

That was a very good idea. I lived down here w/o ac in my apt or car for several years when I was in my early 20’s. You won’t die from that if you have circulating air in your apartment/house.

My current car doesn’t have valid ac at the moment. Neither did any car my mother rode in prior to the late 1960’s. She didn’t die either LOL.

Some people, however, expire at the simple thought of deep south in the summer with no ac. Just wanted to prep you for that possibility with this car.

[ctdonath2]

“what smog or pollution you liberal?”

Haven’t been to Atlanta, have you? When you can see the air, and road signs are legitimately warning to wit “don’t breathe the air if you can avoid it”, you’ll appreciate people who drive something that dumps its pollutants somewhere else.

You’re obsessed with this “global warming” line. Nobody has mentioned it but you. We’re not “demonizing coal”, he11, I’m PROMOTING a car that RUNS ON COAL by proxy (burn it somewhere else, move the electricity to where I need it).

I use LED bulbs because I’m tired of replacing incandescents, and they’re cheaper in the long run.

I don’t care about mileage requirements. I drive an electric car because I think electric cars are cool, and the gov’t drops my state tax liability to $0 if I do (you’re feeding the monster more than I am!). As backup, I have (and relish driving) a gas-guzzling 16MPG SUV.

I don’t know where the he11 you’re pulling Obamacare from into this discussion. The thread is about reducing your tax payments by getting a sensible car. If you’re mentally unhinged enough to bring Obamacare into this, looks like you might actually need it; there’s no shame in seeing a psychiatrist, mental illness is real.

I AM doing something about the problem of government: I’m feeding the monster less than you are! What kind of socialistic pro-government leftist are YOU for minimizing your deductions and paying as much in taxes as the monster asks of you? why don’t you just send in your whole paycheck? /sarc

[ctdonath2]

Let me put it a different way which maybe you'll understand:

IT RUNS ON COAL, AND I WANT YOU TO BUY ONE BECAUSE YOU CAN* PAY ZERO TAXES** FOR YEARS IF YOU DO

* - if you live in GA
** - that means "starve the monster" in your parlance

[Democrat_media]

you are going to plug into their grid. you love being part of the collectivist hive don't you.

I'll continue to use gas guzzlers as long as they allow me to.i’ll also stock up on incandescent light bulbs since your government banned them. i bet that burns you up huh liberal that i”m such a “polluter” .what you want me thrown in prison or what?

i see an an intense push by the liberals/democrats for electric cars and other green crap. I see companies bow down to the liberals by pretending to be so green. so I wonder what other ulterior motives the liberals have with all the pushing of electric cars and green crap . i won't follow their wishes. you are and you attack me on ridiculous bs because i point that out. all we can do is protest peacefully now . and that is what I'm doing by not going along with their green crap. and plus i prefer incandescents and gas guzzlers. is that ok with you or do you want me thrown in prison, liberal?

[MD Expat in PA]

You won’t get any gruff from me. I hope you enjoy your new ride.

I don’t have an EV but I have a two door hatchback 5 speed manual transmission ’08 Toyota Yaris and I love it - 38+ MPG and very low maintenance and insurance costs and she zips along quite smartly (I had to slow down the other day on my way to work when I realized I was going 85 without even realizing it) and with the rear seats folded down, it has a surprising amount of cargo space - so what’s not to love. But she’s got 75k miles on her now, needs new breaks and I think she’s about ready for a new clutch. But I’ll probably put the $ into her and will likely get another 70k miles out of her. Looking at the Leaf, it’s about the same size as my Yaris.

OK part of me would love to get another AWD SUV particularly after this brutal winter here, but then again I don’t like paying a quarter of my paycheck every week at the gas station and having to take out a second mortgage just to buy new tires either. (I had a Subaru Tribecca for 4 years; nice vehicle and I am rather fond of Subaru’s but it was an expensive vehicle to run and maintain). Fortunately I have the sort of job that allows me to work from home when the weather and roads are bad so not having AWD isn’t that big of a deal. Of course if I ever won 500 mil in the lottery (yea, like that’s ever going to happen) or find out I have a rich oil barren Norwegian uncle who leaves me a big pile of cash, I might buy myself a Bugatti! But I’d also buy myself a really nice SUV for long trips, perhaps a BMW or Mercedes and a sturdy pickup truck for trips to the garden center and I might just buy a Leaf or Prius for tooling around locally in town. : ),

But I am “itching” to get something new lately….. however I live in an apartment currently so I don’t have access to a place to plug it in, nor does my work have any, otherwise I might consider it. And PA doesn’t offer the kind of incentives that GA does. : (

FWIW, when I bought a townhouse in 2004, I bought some new “energy star” appliances to replace the crappy builder grade ones that were only 5 years old and falling apart – the washer was completely not-working, the dryer was on its last leg and the dishwasher only “washed” dishes in the very barest sense of the word. I bought a front loading HE Euro style washer, a HE dryer and dishwasher and damned right I took the tax rebates on them. I also took a credit that my hard ball realtor negotiated from the seller at settlement. With the money I got from the seller and the tax rebates and a 12 month same as cash financing deal on the appliances (putting the cash I got at settlement and the amount of my tax rebate into a 12 month CD), I actually made a small amount of money. : ),

I also had BGE put on a “smart meter” on my heat pump/AC unit and I also installed a programmable thermostat (and that I also got an Energy Star tax rebate on) so that my heating and AC bills ended up being half of that of my neighbor’s and since I wasn’t at home but at work when my house was in “energy efficient mode”, I never noticed the difference except when it came time to pay my BGE bill. And yes, I have CFL light bulbs and am gradually replacing them with LED’s but that’s taken time, since from the time I moved into my current apartment four years ago, I’ve only had to replace two light bulbs and they were both incandesants.

I also took the mortgage interest tax deductions when I owned the house and I took and continue to take every tax deduction I am legally entitled to take, which being single with no kids and not currently a home owner, is pretty much zip…

As a lifelong conservative but also as a professional “bean counter” and someone who really likes saving money and not paying more taxes than I have to, I might have to consider it, if and when I move into my next place where I have a garage and a place to plug a Leaf or similar vehicle into. And I’m hoping to do that in the fall.

[ctdonath2]

“you are going to plug into their grid.”

So unplug your computer already. Please.

[Democrat_media]

pollution is a not a big problem

if it WERE then you liberals/democrats would not have had to fabricate the global warming hoax to demonize coal and oil

you repeated several times pollution is such a problem even in your original post. so you are an environmentalist (communist)

The EPA is a problem. your gov banning incandescent light bulbs for a hoax is a problem. gov mandating ridiculously high mileage requirements is a huge problem(what do you think that will do to the WHOLE economy?) you don’t see that but you see pollution as a huge problem

[ctdonath2]

Did I say it was a huge problem? No.

Your reading comprehension is atrocious. You find a couple words, ignore context, and spout off enraged about unrelated topics, imputing vileness where none lies. In the meantime, you make clear you don’t live up to the standard you demand of others.

You.
Need.
Psychological.
Help.

[Democrat_media]

you did say that pollution is a big problem. here is your quote:”Haven’t been to Atlanta, have you? When you can see the air, and road signs are legitimately warning to wit “don’t breathe the air if you can avoid it”, you’ll appreciate people who drive something that dumps its pollutants somewhere else.”

all you have is a litany of personal attacks against me. people behaving green and so bowing down to environmentalists gives credence to the environmentalist lies.again I'm no threat to anyone but the government and this environmentalist movement is. also i am not the topic here. you initiated this thread and you also made a comment about pollution also in your post opening the thread.

i made a lot of valid points that i see the liberals wanting us to behave in an environmental way they say, a green way. and many companies bow down to the liberals and try to act green. imo people shouldn't bow down to them and behave like they want us to but as a protest don't do any of the green things. that's what i’m doing. your post sounds almost like one of those government commercials urging us to act green .it's an attempt to control our behaviour . and i’m sick of seeing all this green crap that doesn't do anything.it's part of brainwashing. i’m sick of seeing companies and individuals bow down and behave like these environmentalists want people to behave all cause of a hoax called global warming . people bowing down to them gives credence to the environmentalist lies.

you seem to think banning lightbulbs , epa mileage raises etc. are no problem but that some how i am some problem. ridiculous .

[houeto]

I sense tension in the force on this thread. LOL. I picture hovering hands over warm keyboards. We root for happiness and success but ponder the means and methods that are sometimes at odds with our ethos. It’s like being sorry a colleague got laid off while secretly hoping you can get his office. This is fun in a diabolical sense.

You are a 'bad' person. You made me smile. Few do. My tense, diabolical, hovering hands want to type things that I will not allow myself to type.

Suffice it to say that after more than 40 years of driving past 'folks' sitting on their porches, waiting for the mailman, so that they can collect what is 'theirs', my outlook on life is changing.

p.s. Looks like I am the only response to your brilliant post T1.

[Red Badger]

Chevy Volt, Teslas and other electric cars seem to have this ‘spontaneous combustion’ problem....................