December offers great deals for electric vehicles as demand slows | Driving Into the Future

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — December may be the best time to buy a new electric vehicle, according to experts, as automakers work to entice buyers amid slowing sales and the end of tax incentives.

EV sales have struggled, leaving some models sitting on dealership lots for months.

Justin Fisher of CarEdge.com, a company that assists with car purchases, said those vehicles offer the most room for negotiation.

“It’s not hard to find one that’s been sitting for three, four months, sometimes longer. Those are gonna be the most negotiable,” Fisher said.

He recommends negotiating at least 10% off the manufacturer’s suggested retail price. Many dealerships are offering zero-percent financing and zero-down leases, but Fisher noted that direct-to-consumer brands don’t allow bargaining.

“You’re not able to negotiate Tesla, Rivian, or Lucid prices,” he said.

Fisher added that rapidly evolving technology means some EVs depreciate quickly. Auto analysts predict 2026 will be the “year of the used EV,” with buyers finding significant discounts.

“We’re talking 30, 40, sometimes 50% below MSRP,” Fisher said.

Automakers such as Ford and GM are scaling back EV production. While they once aimed for 10% of new sales to be electric, Fisher said the current figure is only 5%, leaving unsold inventory on lots.

“We can see that this is not gonna be a short-term problem for the automakers. It’s important for consumers to know that they can use that to their advantage,” Fisher said.

CarEdge offers a free tool to check how long an EV has been on a dealership lot.