New hybrid tax credits only for plug-in hybrids?

No new tax credits for regular hybrids?

I have to hand it to Congress. Only Congress can create a lot of buzz while actually doing nothing, such as is with the proposed tax credits for plug-in hybrid vehicles (more).

Now, I'm as big a fan as any regarding plug-in hybrid vehicles, but America can't get enough buyers into conventional hybrid cars. So, how can tax credits for plug-in conversions accomplish anything?

The biggest seller of hybrids, Toyota, is facing the end of any tax incentives for buyers of Toyota hybrids, including the best selling Toyota Prius. With better tax incentives, imagine how many more Prii, Camry hybrids and Highlander hybrids would be selling.

Moreover, if there are not enough hybrids on the road already, how is converting a small percentage of them into plug-ins going to accomplish anything other than buzz among politicians, celebrity-advocates and a handful of rich treehuggers?

I say extend Toyota's tax credits first. If the Prius becomes the best selling car in America because of tax credits, so be it. Millions and millions of 45 mpg hybrids on the road is a good start and it is probably the fastest way to more hybrid competition amongst automakers, as well as the fastest path to mass-produced plug-in hybrids.

I mean, c'mon. How many Americans can really afford to buy a Prius and spend another $10,000 to convert it into a plug-in hybrid that voids the battery warranty? Move forward with the plug-in tax incentive, but not without extending Toyota's tax credits or making larger tax incentives for all hybrid buyers.