I have yet to find any dealership where the EV specialist knows anything about EVs and isn’t an asshole. I’ve been browsing cars for over a month now, and 99% of car dealers have one of two things:
- A guy that knows nothing about EVs, but thinks he does.
- A guy that knows things about EVs, but will outright lie to you.
Sometimes this applies to the car itself - sure, it’s got the preheat. Oh you want it in writing? Okay it doesn’t have the preheat, I admit it.
More often this applies to the tax rebates. Hyundai dealers in Connecticut were illegally applying the state and federal EV credit to cars above 50k MSRP, and when called out on it are just like “c’mon, you’ll get it.” Like dude, you’re ASKING me to defraud the IRS?
Today, I dealt with these assclowns: 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E Select (autohausinc.com)
“Qualifies for up to $7500 in tax credits.”
No, it doesn’t. The used EV credit is for 25k and below. This is 27.5. It will not get a dollar. I talked to them about this… and got willful denial every step of the way, to the point that I showed them the IRS policy, pointed out the exact wording, and told them no one on earth would be eligible for it, to which they kept telling me “not all buyers are qualified.” I’m like, no one can get a dollar back from the government for that car. Take that off your website.
The response? " Without an application we cannot answer if you will personally qualify, but we know for a fact there are credits available for our car. I apologize if you feel mislead."
I’m just so frustrated. It shouldn’t be this hard to find a worthwhile used EV under 25k or a new EV under 50k, but everywhere in Connecticut it seems the dealerships play it up and mark the new MSRPs over 50k and the used EVs around 28-33k, and almost all of them then still act like you’d still get the rebates. I’m happy to be smarter than that, but I feel sorry for all the people in Connecticut who will fall prey to the assholes at Hyundai dealerships and used car dealerships in this state.
I can see how you would think that, but not really. It’s more about the manufacturer goal. High performance engines are almost always going to be tuned for the highest octane available. This is so they can have the most aggressive timings. Forced induction engines most often require high octane fuel or will make significantly more power on higher octane fuel (assuming they have the appropriate tune).
Best example is the VW 2.0T EA888 engine. It is rated for 87 on VW cars but 91 on Audis and Porsches. Same engine, different tunes to meet the expectations of different customers.
Thank you for the detailed explanation.
My VW 2.0t is rated for 91 octane (2012 German-made CC), and I thought all of the 2.0t engines were tuned for premium fuel. A turbo that isn’t tuned for 91 octane seems like a wasted opportunity. (and you don’t really save money by running cheaper lower octane fuel, as you get lower mpg when the engine timing has to compensate for the lower octane)
I agree. They switched the minimum rating to 87 on the 4 cylinder TSFI’s a few years ago. For the GLI/GTI, I’ve heard they put a note in the manual with an asterisk that says “advertised power number achieved on 93 Octane”. The Golf R I believe still says 91 minimum (thank god).