EV Tax Credit on a new, but used 2017?

**Edit: Tried to delete pos....answers found after a lot of forum searches. If it hasn't been titled before, is sold as new, and you have a copy of the MSO you can get the credit in this situation. reference: https://gm-volt.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-253298.html **

Hi all, trying to do some due diligence before hastily pulling the trigger in a few days on a 2017 e-golf SE and appreciate any insight as I know this a fine line. Has anyone seen anything like this before?

Found a 17 SE with 2500 miles, at a very reputable, high volume VW dealer in the US. Price is $22k. They are claiming that since it's 1) a VW corporate/fleet car and 2) never been titled/registered that I may qualify to receive the $7500 tax credit as I'd be the first titled owner. Key word here is may, for legality purposes I'm sure.
VIN: WVWKR7AU3HW950452

Sounds to good to be true so I did some digging and the Federal EV incentive law states:

The original use of the vehicle commences with the taxpayer—it must be a new vehicle.
The vehicle must be placed in service by the taxpayer during or after the 2010 calendar year.

After reviewing the Carfax AND calling VW Customer Support, I confirmed that is has in fact never been title or registered.

Edmunds site talks about this topic specifically, but again note it's calls out "registered" owners:

This question occasionally pops up: Who gets to claim the tax credit in the case of low-mileage electric cars that dealerships sell after having used them as demonstrators or loaner cars?

The answer is pretty simple: EV tax credits cannot be passed on. Only the original registered owner of an eligible vehicle can claim the federal tax credit. Even if the original registered owner didn't apply for the credit for some reason, it cannot be passed along to a subsequent buyer.

This is useful to know because it can be a bargaining point in a used-car purchase negotiation. It might turn out that a new model with the tax credit is a better deal than a used one if the federal tax credit program means the list price for the new model is reduced by up to $7,500.
https://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/the-ins-and-outs-of-electric-vehicle-tax-credits.html

Finally, I found a Chevy Bolt forum convo here on this very topic and again they are saying that if it's never been registered, I would be qualified to get the tax credit as the first titled owner.
https://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread.php?137026-How-to-tell-if-Federal-Tax-Credit-has-been-used#/topics/137026

Thoughts? Too good to be true? They have several '15s with under 2k miles they are selling with the same advertising.

Get it in writing, would it even matter? Any factual info or real world-experience with this appreciated! I've got a refundable deposit down on it for now so they can't sell till I make the call.

Good info Jaybird.

How did you find the car? I'm debating whether to buy out the lease on my 2016 SE in January, but for that price I would upgrade to a 2017.

cctop said:

Good info Jaybird.

How did you find the car? I'm debating whether to buy out the lease on my 2016 SE in January, but for that price I would upgrade to a 2017.

Click to expand...

Extremely easy. Use cars.com and search for extremely low mileage used vehicles. Those are the ones that are least likely to have been titled. In this case, the cars are located in MN and you'd have to pay to have it trucked across the country. You'd have to purchase sight unseen and trust that the dealer will issue the MSO with the car. If you don't want to take that risk, then fly to MN to inspect the vehicle and handle the transaction in person.

Thanks for the info. I guess it was too much to ask to have one in CA.

The above post is correct. Got it from Westside VW in Minneapolis. Dealt with Vince in sales, good guy, feel free to drop my name (Jason Plummer). He said they do this often and ship cars out of state.

I tried to get as much in writing as possible but at a certain point they said "look do you want the car or not?" I understand both sides. I have a copy of the MSO and got the dealer to label the deal as a new car sale, not used – this is key in the event the IRS decides to audit my claim. If it said used, I'd have no leg to stand on. Now the ownus is on the dealership not me. Shipping was $950 from MN to AZ, which sucks, but given the tax credit it's not a big deal.

If you're interested I'd suggest signing up for updates via email from CarGurus after setting up a search for 2017's. This is how I found this car the minute it was put up for sale.

Good luck!

cctop said:

Thanks for the info. I guess it was too much to ask to have one in CA.

Click to expand...

Are you kidding that's where most of em are There are 2 new ones on the lot at a VW Bay area dealer last I checked. The most they come down to was $30k, but with a total of $10k fed/state tax credits available to you as a CA resident, takes it down to around $20k. They're eager to move them this week too.

jaybird said:

cctop said:

Thanks for the info. I guess it was too much to ask to have one in CA.

Click to expand...

Are you kidding that's where most of em are There are 2 new ones on the lot at a VW Bay area dealer last I checked. The most they come down to was $30k, but with a total of $10k fed/state tax credits available to you as a CA resident, takes it down to around $20k. They're eager to move them this week too.

Click to expand...

Right but OP is getting it for $22k before rebates!

With rebates that's less than the lease buyout on my 2016 which has a smaller battery.

cctop said:

Right but OP is getting it for $22k before rebates!
With rebates that's less than the lease buyout on my 2016 which has a smaller battery.

Click to expand...

Not quite. Phoenix, AZ has a sales tax rate of 8.6%. You still have to pay your state taxes and local registration fees, so I'm estimating around $24.5K + $1K to ship the car. Take that $25.5K and then start subtracting rebates. Still a great deal nonetheless!