Filed under: MPG, Legislation and Policy
32 more 2008 vehicles qualify for Canadian ecoAuto rebate, including Fit and HHR
The list of vehicles eligible for Canada's controversial ecoAuto program has been updated with thirty-two more 2008 models added. The program pays Canadian car-buyers rebates of $1,000-2,000 when they buy vehicles on the list. To qualify, the cars and trucks have to meet a minimum mileage threshold. Among the vehicles added to the list this year are the Honda Fit and the non-hybrid Civic models. Previously they fell just shy of the threshold but were modified for the new model year to be eligible. There are some dubious inclusions on the list however. Similar to US CAFE regulations where cars and trucks are counted separately, the same is true for the ecoAuto program. This leads to some creative decisions about qualifies as a truck. Few would argue about the Ford Escape or Toyota Highlander Hybrids being trucks. Most drivers of the Chevrolet HHR or Jeep Compass (are there actually any Compass drivers?) might be surprised to here the government considers them trucks. If the 36 mpg 2007 Honda Fit didn't qualify for a rebate, it seems odd now that the 29 mpg HHR or Compass do, based solely on their truck classifications. Compared to Tahoe or Commander they are certainly more fuel efficient, but the whole definition of cars and trucks need to be re-examined if we are going to keeps separate thresholds for each. Check out the full list here.
[Source: CTV.ca, Transport Canada]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dad 8:41PM (12/09/2007)
"There are some dubious inclusions on the list however."
Dubious? Why? Because you don't agree? But, the same wise folk who came up with the entire ecoAuto rebate scheme don't think their choices are "dubious".
When you rely on government agencies to make "good" decisions, you get some pretty awful ones at the same time. The solution is to get them out of making these kinds of decisions at all. Let the price of fuel dictate what folks drive, not some lame brain government officials idea of what should work.
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gsolman6 12:37AM (12/10/2007)
We need the ability to flag posts that are commercial in nature like craigslist.org does so we can keep people like Francis Bost out of these discussions.
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Snowdog 11:45AM (12/10/2007)
It seems pretty dubious that a Compass is classed as a truck and so it gets a rebate for it's lackluster fuel econ. It seems even more dubious that e85 vehicles get a rebate with craptacular mileage.
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why not the LS2LS7? 12:11PM (12/10/2007)
I like the HHR, but this is kinda scammy.
I don't see any reason a 29mpg vehicle couldn't get some kind of rebate, assuming it is in a different class than the ones that need 37mpg to qualify. But giving it a rebate just because it's in the truck category (when it isn't even an actual truck) is ridiculous.
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