Many more OEMs have lost eligibility, however. The Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV have both fallen off the list as General Motors has ended production of those models. Nissan is still building the Leaf—in Smyrna, Tennessee, in fact—but for 2025, it too loses tax credit eligibility. Volkswagen’s ID.4 similarly drops off the list, as do the Rivian R1S and R1T, which last year were eligible for half of the credit. Tesla also appears to have lost eligibility for the Model Y rear drive but not other Model Y variants.
And now, only one plug-in hybrid EV still qualifies—the Chrysler Pacifica PHEV minivan. Last year, the partial tax credit was available for the Ford Escape plug-in hybrid, the Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe and Jeep Wrangler 4xe, and the Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring; this year, none qualify.
Will the tax credit even exist in six months?
While those changes affect purchasing a new clean vehicle, due to a loophole, the restrictions do not apply to leased EVs. This means leasing is still probably the preferred route to go, especially for buyers who may plan on replacing their car in a few years.
Whether or not that option will exist by the end of the year remains to be seen. President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly made well-known his opposition to clean energy and EVs, and his close advisor Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, is also publicly in favor of ending the clean vehicle tax credit, going on record to state that the effect would be far more deleterious to rival companies than Tesla.
Killing off the tax credit will require the action of Congress, however—this cannot be done by executive action. But it is widely believed that Republicans in Congress will use the budget reconciliation process—which is immune to filibuster—to wipe out this part of the tax code.
