Senate passes legislation including PHEV tax credits
Click above for high-res gallery of Chrysler's three new EVs
Legislation that includes tax credits for plug-in electric vehicles has passed the Senate. Now the House gets a chance to look things over and put it to a vote. The tax credits allow buyers of PHEVs to receive a credit as high as $7,500 and as low as $2,500 depending on the capacity of the vehicle's battery. Toyota had raised concerns that the bill focused solely on battery capacity, as its currently announced hybrid plans do not include anything that would approach the maximum credit. In fact, the Chevy Volt sits alone as the only product that has enough battery capacity for the top tier. Chrysler's recently shown electric vehicles would theoretically qualify if they ever see the light of day.
Once 250,000 qualifying PHEVs are sold, the credits begin to get smaller until they go away completely. At this point, the legislation -- and the vehicles -- have a long way to go before anybody could actually purchasing a qualifying car, but the framework is now in place.
Gallery: Dodge EV, Jeep EV and Chrysler EV
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
J M C 3 12:19PM (9/24/2008)
Hard to believe people still need tax incentives to buy these with the price of gas being what it is and the resale being so favorable.
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The Other Bob 8:29AM (9/24/2008)
I think the Tesla products would qualify.
If Toyota wants to qualify maybe they should build an actual electric-driven car.
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pmalik 8:28AM (9/24/2008)
Yeah that's called an incentive... make a viable pHEV and you'll get the tax credit.
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snakesausage 9:10AM (9/24/2008)
Idiots. Incentives should always be based on performance. They should have used X miles at X mph or something like that. That way the company can do what ever they want to make it most efficient. This just forces them to add bigger batteries.
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Justin 10:25AM (9/24/2008)
True, but natural market forces will still push them to create something decent. If it doesn't sell because it can't compete with competition it isn't good to anyone.
Rocketboy 12:17PM (9/24/2008)
Better yet, NO INCENTIVES that I'm paying for. You want an incentive? Because it's a car that you want to buy. How's that for incentive?
Free Market FTW!
snakesausage 12:43PM (9/24/2008)
Rocketboy... I agree but if you are going to do the wrong thing at least do it the right way.
Derek 10:33AM (9/24/2008)
Electric Jeep? Really?
Freaking-A, just give us a Wrangler with the CRD in it already!
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LMBVette 11:01AM (9/24/2008)
Great news...now the Volt will be in the low 30's...which is totally reasonable considering it's technology.
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CityWok 12:47PM (9/24/2008)
You're assuming the dealers are going to sell them at MSRP.... not likely.
Jei 12:04PM (9/24/2008)
The tax credits will work for manufacturers and consumers in different ways. If you're selling a PHEV, you know you're gonna get consumers who want to save gas and get the tax credits. The lure of tax credits will also get more people in the showrooms --- so if they can not afford a PHEV, they may just buy a small or midsizer instead.
If these vehicles become as popular as the Prius, more capacity may be dedicated to their production thus lowering the overall costs to manufacture and allow the respective companies to actually make a profit.
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Paul Welsh 4:19PM (9/24/2008)
I have always been a Mopar fan and I like what I see in the Dodge EV Sports Car. Unlike the Tesla which is overpriced and not available in Canada, this car is something that Chrysler needs. To Chrysler: Do not change a thing on the Dodge EV. On the movie presentation in Autoblog ,both outside and inside you have a winner. Good looks, Performance, and hopefully a affordable price, while being totally green, who could ask for more. If you would produce it, I would buy it. A loyal Mopar fan.
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Sam 4:45PM (9/24/2008)
This is basically a GM bailout by itself. Nothing else needed, thanks. Chevy will not be able to meet demand for years.
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