We all know electric cars are still quite expensive, but automakers believe there are people who will pay a premium to drive emissions free. Even so, Volvo’s $2,100-a-month lease for its C30 EV seems like an expensive pill to swallow.
Volvo, the perky Swedish brand which was recently sold by Ford to Chinese car company Geely, certainly falls under the “premium” category of automobiles. And not to be left in the dust of the electric car movement, Volvo has given us a few clever concept cars, from the ReCharge concept to the plug-inV60 diesel-electric hybrid that sounds very promising. Now they even have a road-ready EV concept that they’re ready to put into the hands of consumers…for 1,500 euros, or about $2,100 a month, for 36 months.
Got your calculators handy? I do, and if you go through the full 3-year lease, that’s about $75,600 you’re paying to not own the car. Umm…who thought this was a good idea?
Ok, first, let’s step back and analyze this. $2,100 a month to lease a car sounds like a lot, and it is. But is it any crazier than paying $599 a month to lease the Smart ForTwo EV (which you can soon rent), which seats half as many people and cargo? Or the $800+ people paid to lease the MINI E? I’d wager not. In fact, Volvo claims that even at these exorbinent rates, they are only breaking even. How, exactly, I don’t know (they still own the car…) but Green Car Advisor points out that perhaps Nissan has spoiled us with the comparatively-low entry price of the Leaf EV, which you can purchase for under $33,000. Volvo’s aren’t cheap to begin with, so adding tens of thousands of dollars in battery equipment and electric drive systems to the armored personal carriers that the Swedes call cars was never going to be cheap.
All told, The Big V plans to lease the C30 EV, with its 24 kWh battery, more to private and government test fleets than to individual customers. Which really doesn’t make me feel any better, knowing there’s some government jockey rolling around in a car that costs more to lease than most people pay for a mortgage, but Volvo is only bringing around 100 C30 EV’s to America.
What are your thoughts on this leasing scheme?
Source: Green Car Advisor
Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to HEMIs. You can read about his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout or follow his non-nonsensical ramblings on Twitter @harshcougar.