New & Fresh Import Cars (Excl Some Mobility Vehicles & Used EV's) - Effective Price Increase July 1 (Typically $430 - $2800)

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scott on 04/05/2023 - 11:42 nzta.govt.nz (273 clicks)
Last edited 10/06/2023 - 05:54 by 1 other user

The government has announced changes to the Clean Car Discount scheme. Effectively unwinding an unintended $300m subsidy by making the policy less generous across the board (other than rebate eligible EV / Hybrid mobility vehicles & Used EV's which are better off). Non Rebate eligible EV ($80,000+) have no change.
So If you are in the market for a new / fresh import car (other than a mobility vehicle & Used EV), and are able to get it registered before July 1, you will be $1000 - $3000 better off. No good for anything with a long waitlist (i.e. New Rav4 Hybrid).

Data here:

https://www.transport.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/CCD-Schedule-Ca…

Some examples (I am trying to pick cars without long wait-lists, or with some inventory stock on hand. but this is a bit of a guess):

New Tesla Model Y (and Every other new rebate eligible Pure Electric Vehicle): +$1610
New Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV (and every other new rebate eligible PHEV): +$1725
New Suzuki Swift Hybrid: +$3161
New Mitsubishi Outlander (194g/km co2 version): +$2,645
New Diesel ute (most models, if you can find one in stock): +$2645

Used cars must be fresh imports (no number plate issued yet), for the below to apply

Used Toyota aqua (89g/km CO2): +$436
Used Mazda Demio (118g/km verson): +$1017
Used Mitsubishi out lander (206g Co2 version): +$1035
Used Suzuki Swift (136g version): +$633
Used Suzuki Swift Hybrid: +$1,224

With used pure electric vehicles, you are $58 better to wait.
With Electric or Hybrid mobility vehicles, you are thousands of dollars better to wait.

Appreciate this is a bit broader than most deals listed here, but for somebody car shopping, basically, every New / Fresh import car that you can get registered before July 1 is a deal compared to what it will cost after that.

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NZ Transport Agency

• 

  Avatar on 04/05/2023 - 12:39

  +6

  Government can't run numbers. Surprised by the uptake of the discount. I reakon my 10 year old could of told them it wouldn't work as a feebate system. Free money for the rich. I never thought I would buy a new car but with the government giving me a 10% discount off a new petrol (not hybrid) car the numbers made sense.

  • 

    scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:19

    +2

    With hindsight, they seriously got the modeling wrong, given the goal was for it to be cost natural, leading to the situation of an effective $300m subsidy to the car import industry… And now the need for a massive change to unwind that.

    I speculate that the following factors had an impact:
    - Underestimate of the impact that the discount / fee scheme would have on consumer behavior. (i.e. your case)
    - No allowance for global events like Russia invading Ukraine causing petrol prices to spike, and a giant run on electric and efficient cars.
    - Underestimate how much brands like Toyota would change their product offerings in face of both government policy and consumer demand. (i.e completely drop cars like the v6 highlander & non hybrid camry from their lineup)
    - Underestimate the impact that new product launches would have on the number of EV's & PHEV's sold. In particular the Telsa Model Y, Atto3 & MG ZS EV facelift.

    There is a small change that this was by design to make the original clean car discount introduction more politically palatable.

    But anyway it is good you made hay while the sun shined. Still, a bit of time for other cheapies to copy you if they can find the likes of a Suzuki Swift manual in stock where the government will pay for more than 10% of the car for you. ($22,990+ ORC less $2593.45 rebate).

    • 

      Neotk on 04/05/2023 - 14:01

      +1

      I agree with all your points, Scott.
      Also worth pointing out that even re-sale prices went up because of the rebate and the consumer demand as a result of that.

  • 

    Avantime on 04/05/2023 - 14:03

    Most Western countries now have very generous government incentives for new EVs. It's just that they come out of the taxpayers' pocket, not via feebates (which wouldn't have worked unless the 'fee' starts to cover many more less-polluting vehicles). They're all just free money for the rich.

    Unfortunately NZ's EV uptake will always be very slow without some major incentive programme, as we are heavily dependent on used imports from Japan, and the Japanese new car buyer have other pressing concerns (120v slow charging and lack of charging equipment in apartment buildings, high electricity prices with nuclear mostly knocked out after Fukushima, and very poor Japanese consumer sentiment towards buying Korean and Chinese cars, with both countries leading the way in EV tech). The only way to get more EVs is to introduce new NZ-market vehicles, and the potential massive influx of cheap Chinese EVs from MG, Ora, BYD etc. that meets the feebate threshold, as well as Tesla cutting prices hard to grab market share probably had a significant influence in government budget making decisions, especially as National is on the rise and the government needs to balance the books.

    Also we see a lot of money sloshing around with people making significant savings/investment returns during the pandemic, and wants to spend it large on an EV. Unlike inflation especially with petrol prices, EVs are actually getting cheaper much faster than people expected, and people with the dough doesn't want to miss out on the free govt money.

• 

  genesis on 04/05/2023 - 12:47

  I ordered a PHEV Outlander August 2022, was told it wouldn't arrive until May 2023, but has been further delayed until end of July 2023.

  So with this new scheme in place I'm going to be able to claim back $3000~ less?!?! ☹️☹️☹️

  • 

    scott on 04/05/2023 - 12:57

    +2

    $1725 less.

    On July 1 the rebate for PHEV's is dropping from $5750 to $4025.

    Mitsubishi has kinda (profanity) you with that delay. Could try have a Winge to them and see if they will share some of the change… Or perhaps if there is any cars from canceled orders that you could have sooner?

    • 

      genesis on 04/05/2023 - 13:01

      +1

      They did advise that it was delayed to end of July a lot earlier this year, but yes that have (profanity) me.

      Just gave them a call, yes you're right, decreased down to $4025. I initially ordered the Black diamond colour. They said there is a titanium coloured one that someone else cancelled and is scheduled for end of May. I think we're gonna go with the titanium one. But might ask them to share some of the change list you suggested.

      • 

        scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:10

        If you can get the other color in May, then you still can claim the $5750 rebate, which is great.

        Guess it depends on how important your preferred color is to you.

        I'm amused by how this website auto edits out my swear words…

        Should note that you are far from the only car buyer impacted by this change. Toyota has fully sold their entire year's worth or Rav4 hybrids, and everything delivered after 1 July is no longer going to get a $2387.24 rebate. They are going to have to call thousands of people and say, really sorry we are so slow getting your car to you, but the government's policy is changing, so no more rebate for you…. (unless they can somehow plead with Toyota global to send other countries allocations to NZ, so they can fill all those orders in the next month and a half)

        • 

          Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 13:28

          @scott: Does that mean you typed something other than "(profanity)" in, and the website changed it to that automatically?

          I am guessing you originally typed something that began with the sixth letter of the alphabet, and was six letters long?

          I had no idea even after all these years.

          • 

            scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:38

            @Alan6984: Yes, I indeed typed a word fitting your description.

        • 

          genesis on 04/05/2023 - 13:34

          @scott: Just gave my wife a call, and she says she still wants the Black colour…So I guess now I'll go back to Mitsubishi and see if they're willing to cover some of the lost rebate.

          I personally don't mind the titanium colour, our current Honda, and previous 2 cars were titanium coloured also haha

          I think if the dealer gave you an original ETA before 1st of July, and then it was further delayed to after 1st of July then you have an argument to go off. Otherwise the dealer will just say, well the ETA has always been after 1st July so tough luck.

          But in these tough times, I'm not optimistic Mitsubishi are going to do anything about it, just bad luck at the end of the day.

          • 

            Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 13:39

            +1

            @genesis: I would also make it clear to your wife that if she wants black, she is the one that has to clean it - I had a black car once, and it always appeared to be dirty, even ten mins after it was washed!

            It might not work per se, but at least it will make it harder for her to nag you about washing the car if she is the type inclined to be concerned about what other people think :-)

            • 

              Jaxson on 04/05/2023 - 14:11

              @Alan6984: And it will be hot in summer as well

          • 

            scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:44

            @genesis: Damb…

            Getting Mitsubishi to cover some of the cost is a long shot I think, but still worth a crack.

            And sometimes the noisy wheel gets the grease. Perhaps you will end up first in the queue for a black cancellation… Perhaps they will phone all their black order holders with near delivery dates and ask them if they still want the car, and offer them free cancellation (deposit refund) if they want…

            • 

              Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 13:47

              @scott: Not sure how it all works, but if a customer wanted to cancel, won't Mitsubishi just readily agree, import the car themselves, claim the higher rebate, then sell it subsequently at the (potentially) new, higher market rate, and pocket the additional profit?

              Maybe they can't claim it at all as a wholesaler / dealer?

              • 

                ace310 on 04/05/2023 - 13:58

                @Alan6984: They can't, you will have to register the car to claim rebate which means it won't be NZ new if they sell it later. Even though it has 0k's on it.

                To claim the rebate, you need to provide the invoice and registration. So technically Mitsubishi will have to pay ORC as well to claim the rebate.

                • 

                  Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 15:14

                  @ace310: Makes sense I guess.

              • 

                scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:59

                @Alan6984: Dealers have to declare that they do not intend to sell, or offer for sale the car within the next three months in order to claim the rebate.

                In the case of an out lander PHEV with a long queue of irritated buyers, they might as well just offer it to one of them.

                If they did have some models that they expect to have a lot of stock on hand at July 1, it would make sense to register a bunch of them as demo cars now, and then offer them for sale as already registered cars in three months' time.

            • 

              genesis on 04/05/2023 - 13:48

              @scott: Haha thanks @Alan6984 I will keep that in mind :)

              @scott yeah we'll see how it goes, hopefully some good luck comes my way :)

• 

  Jaxson on 04/05/2023 - 13:22

  Is the refund size connected to the date of registration?
  ie if you register near the end of the month and claim into next month will you be subjected to the old or new rebate?

  • 

    scott on 04/05/2023 - 13:27

    Unclear exactly what the trigger date is.

    I.e. date of registration, vs date of submission of online rebate claim form, vs date of processing of online claim form.

    Somebody on another forum has written to NZTA to ask, as they have a car due right at the end of June.

    Your example (register at the end of the month, submit claim next month) would be eligible for the current rebate, as the change date to the new rebate is not until July 1.

    • 

      Jaxson on 04/05/2023 - 14:19

      Yeah you'd hope that woudl be the case, but also wouldn't put it past them to say no this is the new structure so you're claiming against the new values now.

      Will keep an eye on it. Gives us like 3 weeks really to find a new car that might be eligible.

• 

  EthanY on 04/05/2023 - 13:56

  I put down the deposit for a Corolla hybrid and it will arrive around September or October 2023. The rebate was over $3000, but what’s the new rebate on a Corolla since I can’t register now.

  • 

    scott on 04/05/2023 - 14:07

    +5

    Corolla Hatch Hybrid (101 g /km CO2 WLTP3 conversion per toyota NZ website), is just a single gram over the new rebate threshold. Rebate drops from $3,418.28 to zero. One of the hardest hit models. (oddly NZTA have it at 98g. If this is the case, the rebate drops from $3573 to $1840)

    Corolla Wagon (88.28 g/km CO2 WLTP3 conversion per toyota website): $4088.45 to $2415

    (I think the corolla wagon does so well because they started with the japan economy numbers before the ran the conversion, vs the hatch which started with Euro 5 numbers).

    [edit] wonder if Toyota NZ will be able to do something with the corolla hybrid, which could mean the car could be re-rated, and just squeeze into the rebate band that is 1g away?

    Perhaps:
    - Have it rated under the japan system, then convert that?
    - Have the powertrain re tuned for a touch less power & a 1% gain in economy
    - Get a version that is optimized for 95RON fuel (toyota will already have done the work for the euro market where 95 RON is the lowest grade available), and squeeze out a touch more efficiency from running more aggressive timing or more compression.
    - Lightweight or Areo Wheels?
    - Bit of weight saving (make the spare tire an optional extra?)
    - Better low rolling resistance tires

• 

  KoolBananas on 04/05/2023 - 14:29

  +7

  got confused there for a sec, thought I was in a wrong group with all the great minds discussing here. Learning a lot. Meanwhile, I'm just here waiting for some good deals on pizza and nappies 😬

• 

  SmartEntity on 04/05/2023 - 16:18

  +1

  If you are going to buy one soon, then yea buy it now.
  If you can wait it out for another couple years then I'd say there is no rush.
  As time goes buy it is likely price will drop across the board despite inflation.
  I'm running a Nissan tiida 2008. 4 years ago I decided I was going to buy a model 3 as soon as the tiida breaks down. Now I've realised the tiida will never break down. So Tesla is prob going to wait a while

  • 

    Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 16:38

    I agree with this.

    The economics will be different for each person - currently you need to be doing a fair annual mileage to compensate for the up front cost (effectively the depreciation you incur over the holding period, plus the implicit interest cost of the higher investment).

    However, it seems very hard not to imagine that as production of EVs increases, the unit costs will fall significantly, and as more manufacturers bring out more models, competition will increase, and reduce prices substantially. Right now, there is a significant consumer surplus being captured by the manufacturers as people are making decisions that are only partly related to costs :-)

    It also sounds like batteries will get much better, and much cheaper over the near future, both of which will factor into the above cost, but also mitigate any range issues a given purchaser might have.

    • 

      kiwical on 05/05/2023 - 07:27

      Park the Tiida on the street, not in the garage. It'll be gone over the weekend. And find itself a prime parking spot in the middle of a 4 square or Michael Hill ;)

      • 

        Alan6984 on 05/05/2023 - 09:14

        Swanky!

  • 

    scott on 04/05/2023 - 16:49

    Absoutly. If you have your heart set on a new AWD cx-5, snapping up an in stock one will save you $2800.

    But rushing into to buy something just because of this, means you have to rule out all the cars desirable enough to have waitlists.

    And of course for me, if the current pricing for what I wanted to upgrade my current car to worked with my finances, I would have allready done it. The threar of an incoming price rise does not impact my decison to stick with my current car…

    Looking at the international picture, in the likes of the USA, waitlist are eroding and sweet lease deals are starting to be offered again. Essentially the pandemic shortage of cars is slowly resolving itself which will put downwards pressure on price.

    For NZ, the pending relase of models like the BYD Dolphin could shake up the cheaper end of the market.

    [Edit] on the tesla specifically, tesla moves prices around at the drop of a hat as demand / supply ability/ costs move around. Model 3 has had 3 price cuts and one increase so far this year.

  • 

    RockCartel on 04/05/2023 - 17:00

    Same here with a 2005 A3.
    But my replacement model keeps changing the longer the A3 keeps running.
    Audi RS5
    Audi S5
    Tesla S
    Tesla 3
    Nissan Leaf
    See how much money I've saved!

    • 

      Alan6984 on 04/05/2023 - 17:27

      If things keep going the same way much longer, you'll be getting paid to upgrade to whatever is your new preferred option!