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Most Nissan Leaf drivers expected to lease rather than buy

Nissan Leaf Forum.net - Nissan North America Inc. expects the majority of its U.S.-market Leaf electric vehicles will be leased rather than bought, according to anecdotes from those placing reservations for the car.

“We know there’s a lot of interest in lease because consumers see the value receiving the tax credit up front,” NNA spokeswoman Katherine Zachary tells Ward’s. “But enough are expected to buy that we want to be able to offer both.”

The federal EV tax credit of $7,500 can be taken at the point of purchase if a customer leases the all-electric Leaf.

The credit already is factored into the car’s lease price of $349 a month over 36 months, after a $1,999 down-payment.

Should a customer decide to purchase the car, the government spiff only can be claimed on the following year’s income taxes, meaning the car will have to be financed at its retail price of $32,780.

While its lease-vs.-buy data is anecdotal, Nissan is culling significant detail on the demographics of the 16,064 people who have placed a $99 reservation for the Leaf. Some 90% of them are new to the brand and most already own hybrid-electric vehicles, Zachary says.

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