The US Treasury Department has released its annual list of electric vehicles that are eligible for the federal government’s $7,500 tax credit. To the surprise of many potential customers, two highly regarded models were excluded from the aid: the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the Tesla Model Y.
That’s because neither is considered an SUV, but rather a regular car (while SUVs and pickup trucks have a price cap of $80,000 to qualify for the tax credit, conventional cars remain at $55,000). It is possible that this is due to the fact that, more than SUVs, they are crossovers.
It is not very clear what criteria were followed to make this classification (everything indicates that weight is a key factor), since the Volkswagen ID.4 Yes, it falls into that category. Even the seven-seat variant of the Model Y is considered an SUV, which is not the case with its versions approved for five passengers.
Many users consider this approach to be a mistake, as they believe that authorities should encourage the purchase of efficient vehicles; i.e. lighter and more aerodynamic than an SUV. This is the case with the Mustang Mach-E and the Model Y, which have a profile closer to that of a fastback compared to that of a classic SUV.
The Volkswagen ID.4 is considered an SUV
Due to the number of complaints received, criteria may change in the future. In any case, one thing is certain, and that is that at the moment the United States does not seem to have much interest in ending inefficient SUVs and trucks, which contrasts with the attitude that other regions are starting to adopt.
And it is that some European countries are studying the possibility of taxing the weight of cars, to the benefit of those lighter models. Taking that into account electric ones are usually considerably heavier than an equivalent internal combustion vehiclethis could serve as an incentive for manufacturers to improve on this issue in their upcoming launches, as well as for drivers to consider buying more fuel-efficient cars.
