Orange County resident Michael Buday has one eye on the calendar as he makes plans to purchase a used Tesla. He has two months left to take advantage of a federal tax credit that could save him thousands of dollars if he buys an electric vehicle.
The federal government will stop paying a $7,500 incentive for new electric vehicles and a $4,000 credit for used ones on Sept. 30. Its an abrupt reversal by the Trump administration of Biden-era efforts to address climate change emissions from gasoline cars. The details are laid out in the Big Beautiful Bill that passed this month.
The tax credits have been available for cars that plug in but also have a gas tank, such as the Toyota Rav4 Prime and the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid.
Transportation is the largest contributor to climate change both in California and nationally, and experts say it must get much cleaner to preserve a recognizable climate. About 1 in 4 cars sold in California is fully electric or plug-in hybrid, according to the California Energy Commission.
The elimination of the credits is expected to further stunt EV sales that have already slowed amid plateauing interest in California and steep auto tariffs. Industry analysts and auto dealers predict theyll see a spike in interest in electric vehicles while people can still get the credits.
Buday, who is looking to buy his second Tesla after purchasing a Model 3 two years ago, said he wants to stay ahead of the curve.
People tend to not pay attention until its getting close to a deadline, Buday said. Theres hundreds and hundreds of Teslas even within 60 miles for sale, but I think once people catch on to the fact that these credits are going away, there may be a rush to snap them up.
The tax credits can be applied to most electric vehicles for sale, including the SUVs and trucks on display at Camino Real Chevrolet in Monterey Park. Dealership president Robb Hernandez said he hasnt yet seen a significant jump in EV sales yet. Manufacturers are estimating an increase over the coming weeks, he said.
About 20% of the dealerships total sales come from its electric offerings, Hernandez said, including the popular Chevy Blazer and Equinox. Competition in the electric vehicle space has become increasingly fierce as major auto makers release lines of electric vehicles alongside their gas-powered cars, including Ford and Porsche. Electric-only companies including Rivian and Lucid further crowd the field of competitors.
Hernandez is bracing for a drop-off in sales at his dealership with the expiration of the tax credits but said hes confident in Chevrolets foothold in California.
Were kind of anticipating there will be a surge, and then possibly after the expiration of the EV credits, there might be a lull, Hernandez said. Hopefully it will all even out.
Tesla is using the credits expiration to try to motivate potential customers, with marketing emails that say, Order soon to get your $7,500.
Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk said in an earnings call this month that the elimination of the credits could hurt his companys sales and lead to a few rough quarters.
The electric vehicle leader has been turning its attention to robotics and autonomous driving technology as vehicle sales falter . Tesla reported a 16% year-over-year decline in automotive sales last quarter.
The news that the credits are expiring may also be drowned out by the overall price volatility consumers are dealing with.
Most people in this economy are reading the news and struggling to make purchase decisions based on all these moving targets, said Dominick Miserandino, a consumer behavior expert and chief executive of Retail Tech Media Nexus.
The average person is just trying to make sense of it all, he said.
橙县居民迈克尔·布代（Michael Buday）一边盘算着购买一辆二手特斯拉，一边密切关注着日历上的时间。如果他购买电动车，还能享受最后两个月的联邦税收抵免优惠，这将为他节省数千美元。
联邦政府将于9月30日起停止为新车提供7500美元、二手车提供4000美元的电动汽车补贴。这是特朗普政府对拜登时代应对汽油车碳排放政策的突然逆转。相关细则已在本月通过的《宏伟法案》中列明。
税收抵免政策适用于可插电但同时配备油箱的汽车，例如丰田RAV4 Prime和克莱斯勒Pacifica Hybrid。
无论是在加利福尼亚州还是全美范围内，交通运输都是导致气候变化的最大因素。专家指出，必须大幅提升交通清洁度，才能维持可识别的气候状态。根据加州能源委员会数据，该州每售出四辆汽车中就有一辆为纯电动或插电式混合动力车型。
随着加州市场对电动汽车的兴趣趋于平缓以及高昂的汽车关税导致销量下滑，税收抵免政策的取消预计将进一步抑制电动汽车销售。行业分析师和汽车经销商预测，在人们仍能享受抵免优惠期间，电动汽车的关注度将出现激增。
布达伊（Buday）两年前购入一辆Model 3后，现计划购买第二辆特斯拉。他表示希望保持领先优势。
布达伊表示："人们往往要到截止日期临近时才会开始关注。""即便在60英里范围内，也有成百上千辆特斯拉待售。但我认为，一旦人们意识到这些税收抵免即将取消，可能会出现抢购热潮。"
税收抵免政策适用于市面上大多数电动车型，包括蒙特雷公园市Camino Real雪佛兰经销商展出的SUV和卡车。该经销商总裁罗布·埃尔南德斯表示，目前尚未看到电动车销量出现显著增长。但他提到，制造商预计未来几周内销量将会上升。
埃尔南德斯表示，该经销商约20%的总销售额来自其电动车型，包括热销的雪佛兰开拓者和探界者。随着福特、保时捷等主流车企在燃油车之外纷纷推出电动车型，电动汽车领域的竞争日趋激烈。而Rivian和Lucid等纯电动车企的加入，使得这一赛道的角逐更加拥挤。
随着税收抵免政策的到期，埃尔南德斯（Hernandez）正为其经销店的销量下滑做准备，但他表示对雪佛兰在加利福尼亚州的市场地位充满信心。
埃尔南德斯表示："我们预计会出现一波激增，而在电动汽车税收抵免政策到期后，市场可能会陷入一段低迷期。希望最终能实现平衡。"
特斯拉正利用税收抵免政策即将到期的契机，通过营销邮件敦促潜在客户尽快下单，邮件中写道：“立即订购即可获得7500美元优惠。”
特斯拉首席执行官埃隆·马斯克在本月的财报电话会议上表示，取消税收抵免可能会影响公司销量，并导致“几个季度的艰难时期”。
随着汽车销量下滑，这家电动汽车行业的领军企业已将注意力转向机器人技术和自动驾驶领域。特斯拉报告称，其上季度汽车销售额同比下降了16%。
积分即将到期的消息，也可能被消费者正面临的整体价格波动所掩盖。
消费行为专家兼零售科技媒体联盟首席执行官多米尼克·米塞兰迪诺表示：“在当前经济形势下，大多数人都在关注新闻动态，却因各种变化因素而难以做出购买决策。”
他表示：“普通人只是试图理解这一切。”
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