There is plenty wrong with his math, but the gist is correct.
Sales tax and rebate taxes and all the rest of it will probably just about cancel themselves out. There is no FEDERAL income taxs. But increased sales values will raise sales taxes, maybe a few hundred dollars off your rebate. I have a feeling they will play with the law on this one, 2010 is an election year remember.
Still it was a ripoff, and here is why.
If you got the $3500 rebate, and then paid full price like the OP car, you came out $500 ahead. However, even if you only had a $1500 trade in value car, you are now out $1000. Certain states may hit you with state taxes, so you are out maybe another $500. So you lost $1500 on the deal, or if you live in certain states ‘only’ $1000 was lost.
If you traded in for the $4500 rebate, you are at basically break even.
In the end, you either broke even, or lost money. But remember that near the end alot of dealers were short inventory and people had to compromise on their cars. They may or may not have gotten what they really wanted, all to take advantage of a program that at best left them at 0. Yah!
