Fiat 500e and Subaru Solterra now cost less than $300/month to lease
Fiat cut the cost of its 2024 500e lease deal by 35% compared to last month, while Subaru trimmed $50/month from its long-standing zero-down lease deal on the 2024 Solterra Premium. Both EVs now boast average monthly lease costs that undercut nearly every new vehicle lease on the US market, electric or otherwise.
Fiat is currently advertising a 36-month lease on the 500e that’s $199/month, $2999 due at signing, which calculates to an average monthly cost of just $277/month plus tax and license. Those are by far the best 500e lease terms we’ve seen since the pandemic. Back then, circa 2019, about $250/month was enough to lease the original 500e, a spartan 84-mile runabout incapable of fast charging. Today’s all-new 500e (MSRP $34,095) is much improved, with a 141-mile range, DC fast charging, a 10-inch center display that hosts a modern infotainment system, and a slightly roomier cabin. Aesthetically, the two-door front-drive four-seater pays proper homage to its ancestors with a beautifully retro-styled body and dashboard that seamlessly blends the old with what’s new. Shortcomings, besides its short range? Well, cargo space aft of the rear seats measures eight cubic feet. Small perhaps, but on par with its competition, namely the two-door MINI Cooper Hardtop SE.
Need something bigger? If you’ve got two more bucks to spare every month and are willing to forego freshly designed, artfully sculpted Italian coachwork, take a look at a Solterra. Subaru dropped the monthly on a 2024 Solterra Premium lease down to $279/month for 36 months. That’s with zero down, so its average monthly lease cost is – yeah, you guessed it – $279 per month. Compared to the 500e, those two bucks will net two more doors, room for one more passenger, and three times the cargo volume (23.8 cu ft) behind the rear seats. Capable of sprinting from zero to 60mph in 6.5 seconds and traveling 228 miles on a full charge, the $46,220 SUV also provides better straight-line performance and a longer range. Oh, and the Solterra lease comes with a 10K mi/year allowance, which is 2500 miles more than the 500e lease.
Playing for keeps? According to the fine print in Subaru’s ad, the Solterra Premium lease comes with an option to buy at the end of its three-year term for $20,390. So with the $279 initial payment at signing plus 35 monthly payments of $279 (subtotal $10,044) added to a buyout of $20,390, the Solterra can be owned for a total of $30,434 before tax and license. That’s $15,786 below MSRP! For many EVs, treating a lease as if it’s a loan with a balloon payment can save thousands versus paying cash or financing, thanks to huge lease incentives that pass the entire commercial clean vehicle Federal tax credit to the consumer.
Doing the same math on the Fiat 500e lease yields similar results. Adding its $1999 initial payment due at signing to 35 subsequent monthly payments of $199 equals a subtotal of $8964 after three years. According to the lease calculator on leasehackr.com, a 36-month lease on the 2024 500e with a 7500 mi/year allowance has a 52% residual. Multiplying that residual with a $34,095 MSRP calculates to a buyout of $17,729 at lease end. So all-in, the 500e can be owned for just $26,693 before tax and license, which is $7402 less than ponying up the cash up front.
The Fiat 500e and Subaru Solterra are now the second and third cheapest factory EV leases in the nation, bested only by the Vinfast VF8, which has been at the top of our list of Manufacturer lease offers since last month.
At $199/month for 36 months and $894 due at signing, the 264-mile VF8 in Eco trim has an average monthly lease cost of just $218/month. Will Fiat and Subaru eventually offer leases that approach an average monthly cost of $200/month? Perhaps, but for now, some Subaru dealers are stepping up with their own discounts $6000 or more that could result in eye-popping Solterra lease terms. There are a few Fiat dealers discounting the all-new 500e by up to $4100, but it’s unclear if these discounts are already applied to the factory lease deal since the fine print in Fiat’s ad does mention that the terms require “dealer participation”.
Need help finding a great deal in your area on these EVs? Use the links below:
As always, check our Electric Vehicle Price Guide and Electric Vehicle Lease Guide for the best deals on EVs in the US.
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First Solar just cut the ribbon on a huge new factory in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and it dwarfs the New Orleans Superdome. The company’s $1.1 billion, fully vertically integrated facility spans 2.4 million square feet, or about 11 times the size of the stadium’s main arena.
The factory began production quietly in July, a few months ahead of schedule, and employs more than 700 people. First Solar expects that number to hit 826 by the end of the year. Once it’s fully online, the site will add 3.5 GW of annual manufacturing capacity. That brings the company’s total US footprint to 14 GW in 2026 and 17.7 GW in 2027, when its newly announced South Carolina plant is anticipated to come online.
The Louisiana plant produces First Solar’s Series 7 modules using US-made materials — glass from Illinois and Ohio, and steel from Mississippi, which is fabricated into backrails in Louisiana.
The new factory leans heavily on AI, from computer vision that spots defects on the line to deep learning tools that help technicians make real‑time adjustments.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says the investment is already a win for the region, bringing in “hundreds of good-paying jobs and new opportunities for Louisiana workers and businesses.” A new economic impact analysis from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette projects that the factory will boost Iberia Parish’s GDP by 4.4% in its first full year at capacity. The average manufacturing compensation package comes in at around $90,000, more than triple the parish’s per capita income.
First Solar CEO Mark Widmar framed the new facility as a major step for US clean energy manufacturing: “By competitively producing energy technology in America with American materials, while creating American jobs, we’re demonstrating that US reindustrialization isn’t just a thesis, it’s an operating reality.”
This site joins what’s already the largest solar manufacturing and R&D footprint in the Western Hemisphere: three factories in Ohio, one in Alabama, and R&D centers in Ohio and California. Just last week, First Solar announced a new production line in Gaffney, South Carolina, to onshore more Series 6 module work. By the end of 2026, the company expects to directly employ more than 5,500 people across the US.
Read more: First Solar pours $330M into a new South Carolina solar factory
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No, it’s not the new Bolt. GM’s design team previewed a new high-riding “sporty Chevrolet EV” that should be brought to life.
Is Chevy launching a new sporty EV?
This is the all-electric vehicle Chevy should sell in the US. General Motors’ design team released a series of sketches previewing a sporty new Chevy EV.
Although it kinda looks like the new 2027 Chevy Bolt EV as a higher-sitting compact crossover SUV, the design offers a fresh take on what it should have looked like.
The new Bolt is essentially a modernized version of the outgoing EUV model with a similar compact crossover silhouette. Nissan adopted a similar style with the new 2026 LEAF as buyers continue shifting from smaller sedans and hatchbacks to crossovers and SUVs.
Will we see the sporty Chevy EV in real life? It’s not likely. For one, the “exploration sketch” is by GM China Advanced designer Charles Huang.
GM Design posted the sketches on its global social media page, but the caption read “Sporty Chevrolet EV for the China Market.”
It’s too bad. The Bolt could use a sporty sibling like an SS variant. Chevy introduced the Blazer EV SS (check out our review) for the 2026 model year, its fastest “SS” model yet. Packing up to 615 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, the Chevy Blazer SS can race from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds when using Wide Open Watts (WOW) mode.
Will the Bolt be next? I wouldn’t get my hopes up. And if GM does bring the sporty Chevy EV to life, it will likely only be sold in China. Like all the fun cars these days.
What do you think of the design? Would you buy one of these in the US? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
While deliveries of the 2027 Bolt are set to begin in early 2026, Chevy is offering some sweet deals on its current EV lineup, including up to $4,000 off in Customer Cash and 0% APR financing for 60 months.
Ready to test drive one? You can use our links below to find Chevy Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs at a dealership near you.
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Environment
Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss electricity becoming the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, the new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.
Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:
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