America's Cheapest Lease: Pay Little, Go a Reasonable (but Not Exceptionally Long) Distance

There’s a new version of a rarely-seen car coming out for 2020, meaning if you’re living in the right place, and can find one, you may be able to get into a $109/month lease with nothing down. That’s currently the best lease offer in the country. So, what is this low-priced wonder car?

Well, it gets 124 miles to a charge, seats five, and hails from Ulsan, South Korea.

That vehicle is the electric variant of the Ioniq, a compact hatchback most often seen in hybrid or plug-in guise. If you’re living outside a ZEV state, perhaps you haven’t seen one at all. However, if you’re a person of modest means who loves the planet, your chariot may have just arrived.

As reported by CarsDirect, Hyundai aims to clear out a fairly spartan inventory of 2019 Ioniq Electrics before the updated, longer-range 2020 model appears. (It isn’t known how far a 2020 Ionq can go on a charge, but expect a range slightly exceeding that of a base Nissan Leaf).

If you can source an Ioniq Electric, the offer runs to the end of the month. Whereas previously, lessees would be on the hook for $219 a month, the new offer sees EV aficionados pay $109 a month with $2,500 due at signing. And if you’re in California and can get your hands on a Clean Vehicle Rebate, that one-time charge is (eventually) reduced to zero. Even with the Ioniq Electric’s less-than-stellar range, that’s a solid get for a car that starts north of $30k.

Thanks to a bump in factory lease cash, it isn’t just the base model that’s eligible for the lease offer in the Golden State. There’s a Limited to be had, too. Elsewhere, it’s all about that base.

In New York, the lease offer differs, but is no less appealing. For $79 a month and $999 down, residents of the Empire State can get into one of these little electrics for the equivalent of $107 a month. While you won’t make it to Albany on a charge, you can head from the Big Apple to the Hamptons with reasonable peace of mind.

Feeling very much like an Elantra GT with less cargo room, the Ioniq EV scoots around with surprising swiftness thanks to the 218 lb-ft of torque funneling to its low-drag front tires. Expect busloads of squeal if your right foot can’t help but mash the pedal.

[Images: Steph Willems/TTAC]