Green Car Advisor has delved a bit further into the Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, revealing many of the numbers that were designed to jumpstart the product of hybrid and electric vehicles.
Conventional hybrid manufactuers will continue to enjoy a $3,400 tax-credit for their first 60,000 hybrids, followed by a %50 drop each of the following 6 months. Of course, companies like Toyota have already used up all of these tax-credits, while General Motors still has its full reserve available.
State sales taxes for the purchase of hybrid cars can be written off as federal income tax deductions. This provision applies to other fuel-efficent vehicles, and interestingly, includes purchases of Dodge Rams , Lincoln Navigators and Hummers (?).
Plug-in Vehicles enjoy the largest bounty of the Recovery Act, with tax credits going as high as $15,000 per vehicle. The deductions are tiered according to the capacity of the vehicles battery pack and the weight of the vehicle itself. Eligible vehicles must be powered by a battery pack with at least 4 kilowatt-hours to qualify for a $2,500 tax credit. Each extra kilowatt-hour of capacity qualifies for an extra $417 credit, with cars under 10,000 pounds topping out at $7,500. According to the article, “For vehicles weighing from 10,001 pounds to 14,000 pounds, the maximum credit is $10,000; it jumps to $12,500 for 14,001- to 26,000-pound vehicles; and tops out at $15,000 for vehicles in excess of 26,000 pounds.”
Interestingly, the growing popularity of aftermarket conversions of hybrid cars , such as the Toyota Prius, into plug-ins with all-electric range, can qualify the owner for a 10% (of conversion cost) tax savings — up to $4,000. Even electric motorcycles and low speed electric vehicles (EVs) qualify for a $2,500 credit.
There are also billions in the stimulus package dedicated to providing the sort of technology and infrastructure needed to convert America’s automobiles into less gas-dependent resources.
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