No tax credit for this BugE

If I could have registered the BugE in 2009, it might have qualified.

Link to the 2009 rules are HERE.

So for my BugE, here's how it might have worked....

Is the BugE a qualified vehicle? Yes! It is a three wheel vehicle propelled exclusively by electricity. It has 4-12V optima blue top batteries rated at 55A each. So, total rated battery pack capacity is 2.64KWH. That is just over the ARRA requirement of 2.5KWH.

Would I qualify for the tax credit based on time of purchase? Perhaps. Several kit components were purchased in 2008. However, the pile of parts I bought is not officially a "vehicle" until it gets a VIN. So, I would "buy" the VIN when I pay the sales tax on all the parts. At this time, the parts then magically turn into an official vehicle. If I get the VIN in 2009, I would qualify.

Now, the question is, how much would I have gotten back? The credit is 10% of the cost of the vehicle, up to $2500. The amount of course depends on the final total of the car components I claim. For NYS, I'm only obligated to value the car based on "major components". So, I'll only be counting components that actually went in the car rather than duplicated or upgraded components that were purchased, with intent to use, but were not not installed in the vehicle.

Now for the bad news. Thanks to the NY DMV delay, the BugE really existed as a vehicle only since it was registered (which unfortunately finally happened in 2010 rather than 2009). Meanwhile, the battery pack size requirement for 2010 increased to 5kwh. So, staying with the Lead-Acid pack put the BugE is under the 2010 kwh limit. Later purchasing an lithium upgrade, even if over 5kwh, isn't rewarded either since it's now a part for an existing car rather than a new car.  So, now you know how to avoid every single tax incentive for getting an electric vehicle!