Been thinking about your indifference to the total cost.
The way I look at it…as already posted, intend to settle after 24 months, but even if I do not.
there is a strong argument that the car will be worth at least £18K in four years time.
Minus the the £38k I will have paid over 49 months (incl Balloon payment) , leaves me with actually leaving me having an asset fully paid for and with a small profit. Should I decide to sell, I would get around £20K back to the good. So I guess paying for a brand new EV for four years, I end up either with a car, or £20K in my pocket.
As we all know, no such thing as a free lunch (will still have lost £18K) but I think this deal suits me very well.