Our new hybrid - update #2

As I mentioned in my June post, Arlington County passed a tax break for residents who own hybrid vehicles.  I am pleased to report that we have received our personal property tax bill for this year and--just as hoped for--our bill was reduced by $750 because of the break.  What would have been a $898 tax bill is only $148.

I must admit that this is an unexpected windfall.  At the time we bought the car we were not aware that the county was considering this idea.  We are, of course, happy about it.

EPA has now updated their www.fueleconomy.gov website to include the new MPG ratings, which are more representative of real-world driving.  It shows our Camry as 34 MPG combined, which is much closer to our experience, instead of the official 39.

Here are the revised fuel efficiency ratings for the cars that qualify for the tax break.

And here are some of the highest mileage 2007 model year cars for comparison (2008 data are not all available yet).  Hybrids that qualify are bolded.

=================================================
Steve Offutt, Arlington resident and Director - Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE), Transportation Projects

Comments

[Joe]

I think the "not quite fairness" is pretty much inevitable with government incentives. As Steve mentions, there's no incentive to buy non-hybrid cars with the same or better fuel economy. And no matter how many mpg a car gets, drivers can still pollute just as much by driving more miles. A raging gas-guzzler that remains parked is more environmentally friendly than a hybrid that makes a long commute every day.