Actually - up until a year ago - If you were listed as a "doing business
as..."
[ aka small business] you could qualify for a $50,000 tax write off
on a commerical type vehicle you used for your business. They
qualified the vehicle by weight [ 5000lb I believe ]

This tax cedit was created in the 1980's[?] to help small businesses
and at the time - there really were not luxury SUVs - just giant
four door chevy suburbans. So you did not have alot of small
business people scrambling to cart their familes around in them.

Then the Navigators, Hummers, Escalades, Range Rovers[?]
Denali's, Excursions arrived..all weighing in just above the
qualification weight limit....... and Voila! Everyone is
listing themselves as a small business.

NPR had a great story reporting that the last week of the year
reports the fastest sales of these vehicles as people's accountants
send them down to the dealership to get the tax credit.

This has worked very well in the past couple of years to help sell
some very expensive american cars. Now the foreign car manufacturers
are jumping in... The new larger upcoming Mercedes SUV will weigh in
just over the qualification....in the meantime .Mercedes started importing
their G-wagons last year to grab some tax-credit customers.

The current administration just modifed the tax credit to $100,000[!]
this past year.  The [much much smaller] tax credit given
to hybrid cars is still set to expire this year[?] :O(

I guess Hummers will be 2 of 1 at the end of the month :O(

Tom

        ----------
        From:   Vanagon Mailing List on behalf of George Goff
        Reply To:       THX0001@AOL.COM
        Sent:   Friday, December 5, 2003 9:13 AM
        To:     vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
        Subject:        Re: Volkswagen, the dumbest auto company in the
world.. was: Re: T5 and camper

        In a message dated 12/5/03 8:19:01 AM, gnarlodious@EARTHLINK.NET
writes:

        << Don't forget the Bush
        administration has s a $10,000 tax writeoff  (AKA subsidy) to
corporations
        buying these vehicles. >>

        I'm not sure of all the details, but I believe the tax advantage
comes from
        being able to depreciate the vehicle at a higher rate.  The
intention was to
        help small businessmen, such as contractors, buy trucks over a
certain weight
        class, small dump trucks and such.  Whether on purpose or by happy
accident, if
        you mix one physician with one Hummer all the parameters of the tax
code are
        met.

        George