Traded my Clarity in for .....

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mattheo0118

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Hey All,

I traded my 2018 Clarity base with 7,107 miles on it for a new 2018 Clarity Touring on Saturday.

I was reading the "price paid trend" and noticed the insane pricing some people were getting from the $6,000k incentive from Honda in CA. I went to the dealership because I was curious. The 2019 did not have 0.9% interest so I crossed that off the list... Why did I trade in my Clarity for a new one?

1. My 8 month old Clarity was purchased for 29,800 in 7/18, $32,780 OTD - $9,000 tax incentive/rebates from the government. I paid $23,780. I drove the car for 8 months, put 7,100 miles, had a door ding and some interior scuffles. They gave me $21,500 for the trade in.

2. I paid 29,000 for the 2018 Touring, $31,900 OTD - $9,000 tax incentive/rebates from the government. I paid $22,900. After the trade, the difference in pricing was $1,400 for a higher trim and a brand new car. It was a no brainer for me. I got $8,490 off MSRP + 2 oil changes and a full interior/exterior detail.

If I bought another 2018 Clarity Base from the dealer, I actually would've came out $1,900 ahead financially with a new car. Insane right? too bad I sat in the Touring and was sold haha.

I bought another MSM, I wanted a White Touring but they only had that as a 2019. The White with Tan Interior with Full leather in the touring is really nice compared to the base model seats.

Thanks for Reading!
 

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jackertracker said:
Won't you need to return the first $1,500 CA rebate (on the base model) because you did not keep it for at least three years?
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Yes. You can also ask CVRP to transfer the ownership requirement to the new vehicle, but you will be ineligible to apply for the rebate on the new vehicle.
 
jackertracker said:
Won't you need to return the first $1,500 CA rebate (on the base model) because you did not keep it for at least three years?
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Wow, I was excited to upgrade to a Touring also until I read this!

Here's the text of the CAV rebate program's rules:
Rebated vehicles must be registered in California and stay in the possession of the applicant for 30 consecutive months from the original purchase or lease date. Resale of a vehicle or return to a dealer is allowed within this 30 month period if necessitated by unforeseen or unavoidable circumstances. Military duty exemptions may be approved by CARB on a case-by-case basis. If you are no longer in possession of your rebated vehicle, please give us a call at 866-984-2532 to discuss your available options.

CARB verifies vehicle ownership through periodic checks of Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) in the California DMV database. If a vehicle purchaser or lessee sells or returns the rebated vehicle to the dealer and does not receive prior approval, CARB or its designee reserves the right to recoup CVRP funds from the original vehicle purchaser identified on the rebate form and may pursue other remedies available under the law for unauthorized early termination of vehicle ownership.
 
Just pay attention to the state rebate requirements. If I recall correctly, the Texas rebate program specifies that you have to keep the car for a year. IDK if there is any such wording on the Federal tax credit end of the deal.
 
This is why I purchased the Touring right off. I did not want any regrets for the next three years. The other reason why I focused on the Touring is because I helped my brother in law get a killer deal on a Honda Ridgeline AWD fully loaded and when he drove it home his neighbor saw it and told him he was interested in trading his Volt for Clarity Touring. My brother in law called me and asked me to help his neighbor with getting a killer deal on Clarity Touring. Since I never seen or was familiar with Clarity I drove to local dealership and asked to drive one. The dealership pointed to white Touring and I drove. My first impression was the front grill and lights followed by the smoothness of the ride. Then noticed the interior trim (leather, wood trim, center console and comfort). When I got home I contacted my Honda contacts in SOCAL and told them to run some numbers (my brother in law's neighbor was going to buy not lease). I also went Clarity online web page to see trims, rebates and discounts. After I got some numbers and saw the deep discounts I contacted the neighbor and told him what I could get him into a new Clarity and what we can get for his Volt trade in. He said he'd get back to me since his wife was still apprehensive.
Further discussion about Clarity, he told me the size and quality difference between his Volt and his potential new Clarity.
A week went by and I was helping my friends at church get into a new Odyssey EXL. When I got the best deal in town I decided to go with my friends to the dealership to walk them through the signing and driving process. While I was there I asked my dealership contact if he had Claritys in stock. He directed me to the back of the lot (yep they were buried in the back) and I found Clarity's in Black and White. Liked the white buy when a salesman approached me he asked if I was getting the white for my wife (I decided I wasn't going to get white). I asked my Honda dealership contact if he had more colors or more coming in and he did not know (since the others were base and I did not like the seats where not electric). I asked him to run his best lease numbers and he came back with some very low numbers for a base but touring was over $50 more. When I went home I decided to see the difference between the two and my must haves were leather and Navi/traffic warning.
That night (Saturday) I contacted another Honda dealership in my town (San Diego) and asked my contact what colors he had in stock. He reported that his dealership is the largest in SOCAL and he had ever color. I told him to provide me his BEST lease numbers (zero down and zero drive offs) and he came in higher than the previous visited lot. I showed him all my quotes and he came back he would beat by 2-300 dollars.
The next day I decided to visit dealership (what I tell people never do until they had solid numbers and had the paperwork done) and walked straight to the lot to see the Clarity colors in stock. The only color they did not have was the dark green (dealer told me Clarity Touring did not come in that color).
I wanted a Clarity color that accentuated the roof, door panel lines and black external trim. My wife said the silver did just that. The salesman showed up and opened up the silver one (with black leather interior) and I told him to lower monthly payments by $30 bucks a month and I'll take it.
Long story longer, I had to go directly into the GM's office and tell him what I was willing to lease a month based on my research and competitive quotes (I want it lower then them all by at least $10 bucks a month). GM said he would so I told him to get the paperwork done, car prepped and I'll come back to sign and drive.
I then turned to the salesman and said he had 30 minutes to get all of it done. He asked for 45 and I told my wife lets go grab lunch. The salesman came back and told me not to leave in case he had questions and if I stayed he would give me free all weather mats and mud guards at dealership cost (I asked GM for them for free and he chuckled).
I'm glad I stuck around for the next 50 minutes, because in the middle of printing lease contract and DMV paperwork my wife asked to be placed on the title. So they had to modify the paperwork, run her credit and print.
 
maguzma said:
The only color they did not have was the dark green (dealer told me Clarity Touring did not come in that color)
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Did the dealer check Honda's website for that misinformation? Our Touring is Moonlit Forest Pearl. It requires washing more often than your silver Clarity.
 
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insightman said:
Did the dealer check Honda's website for that misinformation? Our Touring is Moonlit Forest Pearl. It requires washing more often than your silver Clarity.
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Ours often looks "dirty" again just hours after a washing. It's really a dust/dirt magnet!
 
In the dirty car contest, my red Clarity will crush the competition in a walk. What amazes me is how clean everyone's car looks in the pictures they post...and then there is mine.

These pictures were taken before mud season got under way. It's worse now.

20190311_161759.webp 20190311_161822.webp
 
insightman said:
Did the dealer check Honda's website for that misinformation? Our Touring is Moonlit Forest Pearl. It requires washing more often than your silver Clarity.
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Of course not. They just wanted to make the deal and get rid of their 2018 inventory on the lot. Funny, that night I visited the Honda website and build a Touring to ensure I got every accessory available. What I noticed was the Green was not available in 2018 and found door sills as standard equipment on Touring.
I guess the website had errors as well. I brought up the door sill to the dealership and they said for $450 they can order and install.
 
maguzma said:
I brought up the door sill to the dealership and they said for $450 they can order and install.
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I think our lighted door-sills are pretty classy. However, I laugh at myself every time I get out because I'm so careful not to step on the door sill! Instead of preventing scratches on the painted door sill, I've added an obstacle to an easy exit. I could have simply used the same contortions to avoid scratching the painted door sill.
 
Margo said:
Just pay attention to the state rebate requirements. If I recall correctly, the Texas rebate program specifies that you have to keep the car for a year. IDK if there is any such wording on the Federal tax credit end of the deal.
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It’s possible the Federal tax credit could be recapturable under some conditions, specifically “if the vehicle no longer qualifies for the credit” See IRC Sec 30D(f)(5) as referenced in the instructions for Form8936 https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i8936.pdf to see if they give any examples of how this would happen.

As a matter of course, it would be wise to read all the applicable IRS sections applicable to the credit and any State rebate program requirements before what might be described as engaging in multiple transactions (aka “churning”) just for generating tax credits. The authorities generally frown on this and might disallow multiple trips to the well. You might eventually overcome, but you might invite a lot of grief in the mean time. Be careful.
 
I was thinking of buying out my lease to trade in the car after reading this. However, I wont be getting another clarity. Dealer said car is worth about 21k. My buyout is 22.9. Guess I’m going to wait another 1/2-1 year to see where the numbers land.
 
MPower said:
In the dirty car contest, my red Clarity will crush the competition in a walk. What amazes me is how clean everyone's car looks in the pictures they post...and then there is mine.

These pictures were taken before mud season got under way. It's worse now.

View attachment 4265 View attachment 4264
Click to expand...
Funny thing. Our Clarity is 16 months old with 27,000 miles. The crimson color shows dirt and I've washed the car perhaps 8-10 times. But I've never gotten down on my knees to sponge off the hubcaps and wheels. They've never looked dirty. I spray them with the hose but nothing more.

Seeing your post prompted me to pull the car out of the garage and wash it. First sunny day in a while.
 
jdonalds said:
Funny thing. Our Clarity is 16 months old with 27,000 miles. The crimson color shows dirt and I've washed the car perhaps 8-10 times. But I've never gotten down on my knees to sponge off the hubcaps and wheels. They've never looked dirty. I spray them with the hose but nothing more.

Seeing your post prompted me to pull the car out of the garage and wash it. First sunny day in a while.
Click to expand...

From what I've seen wheels get dirty only on European and very high performance cars, they use brake pads that make a mess but I assume are better at resisting fade or at very high speed. My previous BMW 328's wheels could get quite ugly in an afternoon of back road driving.
 
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