Autodecide

Incentives for Hybrid Vehicle Purchase (tax rebates, HOV lanes, etc)

Here is a list of incentives that are either in place or being considered in various States across the US:
Tax Incentives: (please make sure you consult your tax advisor – the information below is NOT a tax advice)

Federal Tax Credit: Per IRS, this tax credit is subtracted directly from the total amount of federal tax owed, and applies to vehicles purchased after January 1, 2006. The value of the tax credit varies by the type of vehicle purchased and ranges between $250 (for the not so efficient GMC trucks in 2007 model year) and $3000 for a Ford Escape 2WD 2008 model year for example. The popular Toyota Prius gets $1575 for the 2007 model year;

Colorado: Also offering tax credit in the range of $2000-$3000; Interestingly some of the less efficient hybrids (e.g. Chevy Silverado, Dodge Ram) do not appear to qualify for the tax credit. More detail here

Kansas: considering a $2500 for first 1000 people who apply for it. The state has already a $750 tax credit available but very few people have applied

Other states – like Arkansas for example – are considering removing the state sales tax on sale of hybrids that are at least twenty-five percent (25%) higher than the miles per gallon rating designated for a comparable model that does not have hybrid characteristics.

HOV Lanes — this is another benefit of owning a hybrid. In several states already, this incentive will give you faster transit times as you can use the usually less congested High Occupancy Vehicle lane on the local highways. States like Arizona, California, are either considering them or have them in place already.

BMW Series-1: Have you seen one of these?

Well folks, I ended up getting the news for a new Series-1 BMW actually from a Chinese Web site. NetEase at www.163.com, had the photos and a little blurb about the soon to be released Series-1 BMW. It looks like the 3-series one but smaller.
The vehicle photos that I saw were of a 120d model. Here are some images:

This car reminds me of the time when BMW tried to introduce hatchbacks in the US. The 318i (if I remember correctly) that lasted only one year…Now this seems to be the next push to extend market presence in the compact segment — I wonder how well they will compete with the Honda, Toyota, etc. compact cars. This car though could be very successful in the status sensitive China — the notion of being able to say “I drive a BMW” (no matter how small it is) is a selling point by itself.
What do you think?