Comments on: Volt Birth Watch 51: Your Tax Money Hard at Work– for GM

By: argentla

argentla — Tue, 27 May 2008 18:08:52 +0000

Someone on this site said when the question of Toyota receiving Japanese government subsidies toward the development of the Synergy Drive system that if a U.S. government initiative had borne such fruit, the politicians involved would never stop crowing about it.

Politicians are fickle friends, though, and any company that relies on tax breaks to make their products price competitive is, as my grandfather used to say, “cruising for a bruising.”

By: CarShark

CarShark — Tue, 27 May 2008 18:05:28 +0000

There is also no way that the next gen plug-in Prius with a larger battery will sell for the same price as the Prius “Classic”.

And you have some special insider source or are you speaking completely ex rectum?

By: Rix

Rix — Tue, 27 May 2008 15:28:45 +0000

Let’s see… A Prius goes for about 22k, less 7k tax credit= 15k. Is that the math? Or is it just a deduction? Either way, I’m gonna be on that like a dog in heat.

By: menno

menno — Tue, 27 May 2008 14:03:58 +0000

The Washington people will skew it somehow to screw Toyota again.

That’s what happened with the prior (quite small in comparison) tax relief plans.

While I actually loathe socialism, I’m kind of like Ron Paul in that “well, if those are the rules of the game, I may as well take advantage of it if it is not illegal”.

Ron Paul will lobby for pork for his Texas constituency, and I took advantage of getting a legal $788 tax relief on my 2008 Prius (had a two week window of opportunity before Prius was ineligible for ANY tax relief) and obtained approximately a $400 tax relief on my 2005 Prius.

By: SkiD666

SkiD666 — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:54:41 +0000

Umm, if I am not mistaken, the next gen Prius with a larger battery would be eligible for the same tax credit as the Volt (as would any other vehicle satisfying the requirements).

So why are people complaining over preferencial treatment to GM?

There is also no way that the next gen plug-in Prius with a larger battery will sell for the same price as the Prius “Classic”.

By: Hank

Hank — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:23:38 +0000

No car deserves government subsidies of any kind (tax breaks, HOV exemptions, E85, nada).

(Don’t even get me started on rebates for flower shop owners’ Hummers.)

By: menno

menno — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:13:56 +0000

Hey, we already spent tons of taxpayer money on the Clinton Administration era “Supercar” “80 mile per gallon hybrid technology cars” supposedly designed by GM, Ford and Chrysler.

Why do they need more taxpayer money so they can p!ss it away too?

‘coz not one “supercar” was ever produced.

Instead, Toyota coughed up THEIR OWN MONEY (and they are still denying that the Japanese taxpayers assisted) and developed the Prius and other hybrids, and Honda coughed up THEIR OWN MONEY and developed the Insight and Civic Hybrids, too.

If we the taxpayers get to throw yet more money at GM in this fashion, why shouldn’t we the taxpayers get a choice on our tax return about it? Kind of like “would you put $2 towards the Presidential Election Fund” – instead it would read (if honest) “would you put $500 towards a gift to General Motors Corporation so they can try to compete with competent and profitable automobile companies in the hybrid field?”

(Answer to both: NO)

By: MattVA

MattVA — Tue, 27 May 2008 12:55:50 +0000

Considering the US government has already given away probably over a billion dollars in tax credits for the Prius, this doesn’t seem too out there.

By: MichaelJ (of GM)

MichaelJ (of GM) — Tue, 27 May 2008 12:50:43 +0000

Are we supposed to believe that the other car companies are NOT hoping for tax breaks on EREVs? With all the legitimate reasons to bash GM, this seems to be a stretch.

By: NICKNICK

NICKNICK — Tue, 27 May 2008 12:06:15 +0000

but but but but but the Prius was designed using money from the Japanese government!!!

the imports don’t play fair!