Michigan EV vehicle registration costs

[HiVolts]

No tax at the gas pump equals higher vehicle registration cost.
2024 Mach-E $420.00
2016 Ford Edge $178.00
Do Other states have higher electric vehicle registration cost?

Sponsored

 

[Sikkun]

Yes

 

[zooka]

Yes, They do this in Illinois as well, reasoning is that you don't pay gas tax so we will recoup that money this way.

 

[Jerrytball]

No tax at the gas pump equals higher vehicle registration cost.
2024 Mach-E $420.00
2016 Ford Edge $178.00
Do Other states have higher electric vehicle registration cost?

‘23 Mach e gt $836 Mississippi

 

[Thunderbuck]

If this flat rate is enough to cover what would be recovered from gas tax, why not just drop the gas tax completely and just assess it to all drivers?

 

[Vulnox]

Yeah, this started in MI about 8 years ago. We had to pay the higher price when we had our CMax Energi PHEV since it was just over the battery minimum.

I know people like to get all huffy about it, but EVs use the roads too and definitely do their share of wear and tear. I have no issue with ensuring I am paying our share of it.

I have my issues with how the money is collected overall, as I think we should have a better system for ICE and BEVs. But I think someone ran the numbers and the MI registration cost for EV works out to 8,000 miles or something to that effect equivalent gas tax. It was pretty reasonable. I could be a bit off as it's been a while since I saw the numbers, but we aren't significantly overpaying compared to most ICE gas vehicle usage.

 

[Thunderbuck]

Yeah, this started in MI about 8 years ago. We had to pay the higher price when we had our CMax Energi PHEV since it was just over the battery minimum.

I know people like to get all huffy about it, but EVs use the roads too and definitely do their share of wear and tear. I have no issue with ensuring I am paying our share of it.

I have my issues with how the money is collected overall, as I think we should have a better system for ICE and BEVs. But I think someone ran the numbers and the MI registration cost for EV works out to 8,000 miles or something to that effect equivalent gas tax. It was pretty reasonable. I could be a bit off as it's been a while since I saw the numbers, but we aren't significantly overpaying compared to most ICE gas vehicle usage.

In concept, I don't object to the idea of EV drivers paying road taxes. My problem arises when you look at the fact that no jurisdictions actually use gas tax for road repairs/construction anymore, it all just goes in general revenue.

 

[Vulnox]

If this flat rate is enough to cover what would be recovered from gas tax, why not just drop the gas tax completely and just assess it to all drivers?

Yeah this is my thought, especially since the gas tax side is getting awfully complex when considering "paying your fair share".

If someone buys a hybrid Prius, they wouldn't pay the registration cost but if they got 40-50 MPG city, they are paying significantly less gas tax than someone that buys a Honda Civic ICE over equivalent mileage. A quick search it looks like the Prius is a couple hundred pounds heavier than the Civic. So even if minor, the Prius does more road damage by weight with less tax paid to cover it.

Similar with my F-150, it's a hybrid and quite heavy, but city driving I can hit 24-30 MPG depending on route. That beats a number of even mid-size SUVs in similar driving. My F-150 weighs waaaay more than those vehicles, but I will pay less equivalent fuel tax.

Can find tons of other examples, but consumption tax to cover road wear has always been an odd one. Just pay a tax based on vehicle class at registration.

 

[Vulnox]

In concept, I don't object to the idea of EV drivers paying road taxes. My problem arises when you look at the fact that no jurisdictions actually use gas tax for road repairs/construction anymore, it all just goes in general revenue.

I hear that a lot, but it seems like one of those things that people hear mentioned and it falls in line with their feelings on government budgets so they just accept it. While it will absolutely vary by state, it seems at least in Michigan the michigan road improvement fund is primarily funded by Fuel Tax, Registration Fees, and License Plate Fees. With other funding coming from federal and state grants. I agree it doesn't ALL go there, but I don't imagine it just goes to general revenue for most. I haven't studied all the states though to be fair.

Michigan does seem to be weighing a usage based system though. As long as I won't need a GPS tracker on my vehicle I would be down for that.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/-/med...7b51be4&hash=1C00BF8EECBFD3DBCE678EBB1C59A18C

 

[Space_Pony]

This was just discussed.
https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/license-plate-tag-renewal.38912/

 

[Thunderbuck]

Yeah this is my thought, especially since the gas tax side is getting awfully complex when considering "paying your fair share".

If someone buys a hybrid Prius, they wouldn't pay the registration cost but if they got 40-50 MPG city, they are paying significantly less gas tax than someone that buys a Honda Civic ICE over equivalent mileage. A quick search it looks like the Prius is a couple hundred pounds heavier than the Civic. So even if minor, the Prius does more road damage by weight with less tax paid to cover it.

Similar with my F-150, it's a hybrid and quite heavy, but city driving I can hit 24-30 MPG depending on route. That beats a number of even mid-size SUVs in similar driving. My F-150 weighs waaaay more than those vehicles, but I will pay less equivalent fuel tax.

Can find tons of other examples, but consumption tax to cover road wear has always been an odd one. Just pay a tax based on vehicle class at registration.

Just an aside, but we really have to get away from this notion that a couple hundred pounds of weight—or even a couple thousand—makes any significant difference in road wear. If the road were so fragile it would crumble to dust the first time a loaded semi rolled over it.

Also, the notion that EVs have significantly higher tire wear is wrong as well. Sort of.

Engineers found in testing that EV tire wear was significantly LOWER than expected. When they looked into why, they found that with regen braking tires lost traction WAY less often and the lower friction meant less tire dust. And WAY less brake dust. The “sort of” comes in because of the addicting quality of EV torque, which can lead the less mature among us to indulge inappropriately ?

 

[ah38k]

In Ohio we have an 'alternative fuel' fee added to our registration based off the type of car. $200-BEV, $150-PHEV, and $100-hybrid

 

[Vulnox]

Just an aside, but we really have to get away from this notion that a couple hundred pounds of weight—or even a couple thousand—makes any significant difference in road wear. If the road were so fragile it would crumble to dust the first time a loaded semi rolled over it.

Also, the notion that EVs have significantly higher tire wear is wrong as well. Sort of.

Engineers found in testing that EV tire wear was significantly LOWER than expected. When they looked into why, they found that with regen braking tires lost traction WAY less often and the lower friction meant less tire dust. And WAY less brake dust. The “sort of” comes in because of the addicting quality of EV torque, which can lead the less mature among us to indulge inappropriately ?

I am with you on the second part, but a couple thousand pounds does have a significant impact on road wear. Per axle weight increases have an increase on road wear to the fourth power.

Now, to be clear, this is more significant when comparing a passenger vehicle to a semi, but it still holds true even if at lower ranges of difference when talking about a 3k lb vehicle to a 4k lb one. In that case it can take two days of trips in a smaller sedan to equal the weight of one trip in a small SUV.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_power_law

"The fourth power rule in traffic engineering is a principle used to describe the relationship between axle load and damage to the road surface.

It states that the damage caused to pavement by a vehicle's axle load is proportional to the fourth power of the axle load. This means that even small increases in axle load can result in significantly greater damage to the road surface."

It is NOT a perfect rule, as weather and road thickness and other attributes have an impact on a particular roads rate of degradation, which is usually brought up when using that rule. But that doesn't dismiss the impact of two vehicles on the same day in the same conditions on the same road.

Again, you can say the focus is more on Semis which isn't wrong, but there will be many more F-150s passing over most side streets in suburbia each day than there will be semis. So it's still important for cumulative effect.

I never said they would crumble, but just like tire wear, it's not a discussion on if tires just one day go from good to bald, but a discussion on what impacts the rate at which the tread degrades. Heavier vehicles have a large impact on that rate when it comes to roads, even if the impact is measured over years and not seconds.

 

[CameraCarl]

No tax at the gas pump equals higher vehicle registration cost.
2024 Mach-E $420.00
2016 Ford Edge $178.00
Do Other states have higher electric vehicle registration cost?

And how much of this is due to one car being eight years older than the other and having depreciated significantly?

 

[HiVolts]

Current Michigan fuel tax is $0.30/Gal.
$420.00/12 months= $35/month/$0.30=166.66 gallons of gas/month.

Sponsored