GM Kills EV Credit Hack, New Bolt is $29K, Nissan Dealers Go Top Gear

Episode #1167: GM kills its creative EV tax credit plan while Ford plays coy, the Chevy Bolt returns faster and cheaper than ever, and three Nissan dealers take their high-mileage heroes on a 1,500-mile proving ground through the American West.

• General Motors has scrapped a short-lived plan that would have allowed dealers to keep offering a $7,500 federal EV lease credit after the subsidy expired on September 30. The move follows political pushback and dealer uncertainty around compliance.
  • GM’s plan involved having GM Financial buy EVs from dealer inventory, claim the federal credit, and pass the savings into leases through the end of 2024.
  • GM had already begun funding incentives on about 20,000 EVs, with 5% down payments made on those vehicles prior to September 30.
  • The program was meant to help dealers avoid being stuck with higher-priced EVs post-credit, but Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH), a former dealer, objected to the move, calling it an overreach beyond the law’s expiration. GM ended the plan shortly after.
  • Ford rolled out a similar workaround ahead of the credit’s expiration but has declined to confirm whether it plans to continue offering the lease incentives.

• At a “Bolt Block Party” at Universal Studios Hollywood, GM has officially reintroduced the Chevy Bolt, its beloved affordable EV.
  • The new Bolt gains GM’s Ultium 65kWh LFP battery for faster charging, improved range, and bidirectional home power support.
  • Charging now jumps to 150kW (10–80% in 26 minutes) — triple the previous speed — with 255 miles of range and Tesla’s NACS port for Supercharger access.
  • The interior gets a bigger screen, refreshed materials and GM’s SuperCruise driver assist with lane-changing “route following.”
  • Pricing starts at just under $29K, making it the cheapest announced EV in the U.S., with production starting in early 2026.
  • The only controversy? No more Apple CarPlay or Android Auto — GM is betting on its new in-house infotainment instead.

• Three Nissan dealers traded in their desks for desert dust, road-tripping 1,500 miles across the American West in three used Nissans — all over 100K miles and under $10K — to prove the brand’s reliability and shake up customer perceptions.
  • The “Tour Detour” YouTube series follows the group’s off-road trek through salt flats, canyons, dunes, and mountain passes in two Muranos and a Juke.
  • Dealers Tim Pohanka, Chris Lenckosz, and Jason Cole financed and drove the cars themselves, documenting every gritty mile.
  • The goal: to challenge Nissan’s reputation around “continuously variable transmissions” durability and show that even high-mileage models can take a beating.
  • “We bought the cars ourselves and pushed them through the toughest roads in the West,” said Pohanka. “We wanted them to earn our trust — and our custome

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