The expiration of a $7,500 federal credit for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles on Tuesday turned into an EV buying frenzy at Bay Area auto dealerships.

For car buyers and sellers alike, the final day of the federal EV tax credit was a busy one. At the Audi dealership in Oakland, general manager Daniel Kosset has spent decades in the business and thought he'd seen every kind of promotion.

"There's always the 'end of the month, best deal' kind of thing," said Kosset. "But in 20 years of being in this business, I have never seen a run like this."

The federal credit introduced in 2022 under the Inflation Reduction Act, the incentive gave buyers $7,500 off new EVs and plug-in hybrids and $4,000 off used ones.

But earlier this year, the Trump administration's "Big Beautiful Bill" set in

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