Why? Better margins on gas cars, I think industrial Michigan would love this because it means they won't be squeezed into electric car manufacturing. I get told by big 3 engineers that if it wasn't for the subsidies they wouldn't be electrifying their fleets. The consumer may not like it, unions may not like it, but the companies could give a damn.
Congress recently passed a tax bill, as proposed in President Bush's economic stimulus plan, that offers a $100,000 tax credit for business owners who purchase any vehicle weighing 6,000 pounds or more when fully loaded.
Because these rules didn't require a business to exist for a minimum length of time or post a profit, car dealerships would help buyers spin up small businesses on the spot in order to avail themselves of the credit. SUVs flooded the market and have been a load on the national car fleet ever since.
Now we're pivoting to electric vehicles in order to stay competitive globally, and (fossil fuel endorsed) business magazines have suddenly started poo-pooing the idea of vehicle subsidies as unnatural. Curious.
Yeah, that corporate tax credit is also why the Ford F-150 is the most commonly purchased vehicle by millionaires and billionaires. It’s the smallest vehicle able to be classified as a work truck, to qualify for tax credits. They can basically deduct the entire cost of the vehicle on their taxes, because they purchase it through a shell corporation (of which they’re the sole owner and operator.)