U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

2010

Instructions for Form 8910

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit

General Instructions

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code
unless otherwise noted.

What’s New

For qualified hybrid vehicles weighing more than 8,500
pounds, the credit has expired for vehicles purchased
after 2009. The credit has also expired for the following
vehicles purchased after 2010.
• Advanced lean burn technology vehicles.
• Qualified hybrid vehicles weighing 8,500 pounds or
less.
• Qualified alternative fuel vehicles.
Do not include these vehicles on this form unless the
credit is extended. If it is extended, the change will be
highlighted under Highlights of Recent Tax Changes at
www.irs.gov/formspubs.
For qualified hybrid vehicles weighing 8,500 pounds or
less and advanced lean burn technology vehicles:
• Ford and Mercury vehicles purchased before April
2010 qualify for a reduced credit.
• Ford and Mercury vehicles purchased after March
2010 no longer qualify for the credit.
• Volkswagen and Audi vehicles purchased after June
2010 and before January 2011 qualify for a reduced
credit.

Purpose of Form

Use Form 8910 to figure your credit for alternative motor
vehicles you placed in service during your tax year. The
credit attributable to depreciable property (vehicles used
for business or investment purposes) is treated as a
general business credit. Any credit not attributable to
depreciable property is treated as a personal credit.
Taxpayers that are not partnerships or S corporations,
and whose only source of this credit is from those
pass-through entities, are not required to complete or file
this form. Instead, they can report this credit directly on
Form 3800.

Alternative Motor Vehicle

An alternative motor vehicle is a vehicle with at least four
wheels that qualifies as one of the following types of
vehicles.
Advanced lean burn technology vehicle. This is a
new vehicle with an internal combustion engine that
incorporates direct injection, is designed to operate
primarily using more air than is necessary for complete
combustion of the fuel, and that meets certain additional
requirements.
Qualified hybrid vehicle. This is a new vehicle that
draws propulsion energy from onboard sources of stored
energy that are both an internal combustion or heat
engine using consumable fuel and a rechargeable energy
storage system, and that meets certain additional
requirements.
Qualified alternative fuel vehicle. This is a new or
converted vehicle fueled solely by compressed natural
gas, liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas,
hydrogen, any liquid that is at least 85 percent methanol,

or a mixture of one of these fuels and a petroleum-based
fuel, and that meets certain additional requirements.
Qualified fuel cell vehicle. This is a new vehicle
propelled by power derived from one or more cells that
convert chemical energy directly into electricity by
combining oxygen with hydrogen fuel, and that meets
certain additional requirements.
Qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicle. This is
a vehicle converted to be propelled to a significant extent
by an electric motor that draws electricity from certain
batteries capable of being recharged from an external
source of electricity, and that meets certain additional
requirements.
Certification and other requirements. Generally, you
can rely on the manufacturer’s (or, in the case of a
foreign manufacturer, its domestic distributor’s)
certification that a specific make, model, and model year
vehicle qualifies for the credit and the amount of the
credit for which it qualifies.
If, however, the IRS publishes an announcement that
the certification for any specific make, model, and model
year vehicle has been withdrawn, you cannot rely on the
certification for such a vehicle purchased after the date of
publication of the withdrawal announcement.
If you purchased a vehicle and its certification was
withdrawn on or after the date of purchase, you can rely
on such certification even if you had not placed the
vehicle in service or claimed the credit by the date the
withdrawal announcement was published by the IRS. The
IRS will not attempt to collect any understatement of tax
liability attributable to reliance on the certification as long
as you purchased the vehicle on or before the date the
IRS published the withdrawal announcement.
In addition to certification, the following requirements
must be met to qualify for the credit:
• You are the owner of the vehicle. If the vehicle is
leased, only the lessor and not the lessee, is entitled to
the credit;
• You placed the vehicle in service during your tax year;
• The original use of the vehicle began with you;
• You acquired the vehicle for use or to lease to others,
and not for resale; and
• You use the vehicle primarily in the United States.
Exception. If you are the seller of an alternative motor
vehicle to a tax-exempt organization, governmental unit,
or a foreign person or entity, and the use of that vehicle is
described in section 50(b)(3) or (4), you can claim the
credit, but only if you clearly disclose in writing to the
purchaser the amount of the tentative credit allowable for
the vehicle (from line 12 of Form 8910).
More information. For details, see the following.
• Section 30B.
• Notice 2006-9 (qualified hybrid vehicles weighing
8,500 pounds or less and advanced lean burn technology
vehicles), 2006-6 I.R.B. 413, available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2006-06_IRB/ar11.html.
• Notice 2006-54 (qualified alternative fuel vehicles),
2006-26 I.R.B 1180, available at www.irs.gov/irb/
2006-26_IRB/ar13.html.
• Notice 2007-46 (qualified hybrid vehicles weighing
more than 8,500 pounds), 2007-23 I.R.B. 1342, available
at www.irs.gov/irb/2007-23_IRB/ar08.html.

Cat. No. 20107S

• Notice 2008-33 (qualified fuel cell vehicles), 2008-12

Make

I.R.B. 642, available at www.irs.gov/irb/2008-12_IRB/
ar12.html.

Model

Credit Amount
Purchase Date

Volkswagen

Credit Phaseout

For qualified hybrid vehicles weighing 8,500 pounds or
less and advanced lean burn technology vehicles, the
credit is subject to a phaseout (reduction) once the
vehicle manufacturer (or, for a foreign manufacturer, its
U.S. distributor) sells 60,000 vehicles to retailers for use
in the United States after 2005. The phaseout begins in
the second calendar quarter after the quarter in which the
60,000th vehicle was sold. Then the phaseout allows
50% of the full credit for 2 quarters, 25% of the full credit
for 2 additional quarters, and no credit thereafter.

Jetta 2.0L TDI
Sedan

Volkswagen

Jetta 2.0L TDI
SportWagen

Volkswagen Touareg 3.0L TDI

If a vehicle qualifies for the qualified plug-in electric drive
motor vehicle credit on Form 8936, Qualified Plug-In
Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit, the vehicle does not
qualify for the alternative motor vehicle credit.

Make

Model

Audi

A3 2.0L TDI
Automatic

Line 3
Credit Allowable

Enter the credit allowable (after reduction under the
phaseout rules) for the year, make, and model of vehicle
you entered on line 1. You can generally rely on the
manufacturer’s (or domestic distributor’s) certification of
the credit allowable as explained on page 1.

Q7 3.0L TDI

$1,150

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$575

After 12/31/10

$0

$1,800

Mercedes

ML 320 BlueTEC

Mercedes

R 320 BlueTEC

Before 7/1/10

$1,150

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$575

After 12/31/10

$0

Before 7/1/10

$1,300

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$650

After 12/31/10

$0

Before 7/1/10

$1,150

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$575

After 12/31/10

$0

335d Sedan

$900

X5 xDrive35d

$1,800

BMW

Active Hybrid X6

$1,550

Mercedes

GL 350 BlueTEC

$1,800

Mercedes

ML 350 BlueTEC

$900

Mercedes

R 350 BlueTEC

$1,550

Volkswagen

Golf 2.0L TDI
Automatic

Volkswagen

Golf 2.0L TDI
Manual

Purchase Date

GL 320 BlueTEC

$0

Before 7/1/10

$1,700

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$850

After 12/31/10

$0

Before 7/1/10

$1,300

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$650

After 12/31/10

$0

Purchase Date

Before 7/1/10

Mercedes

After 12/31/10

BMW

Credit Amount

$1,800

$650

BMW

Model Year 2009

X5 xDrive35d

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

Purchase Date

Advanced Lean Burn Technology Vehicles

BMW

$1,300

Purchase Date

Credit allowable amounts acknowledged by the IRS
for model years 2009, 2010, and 2011 are listed below.
The information is current as of January 2011. To check
for updates, visit IRS.gov and search for “Alternative
Motor Vehicle Credit.”

$900

Before 7/1/10

Purchase Date
Audi

Specific Instructions

335d Sedan

$0

Purchase Date

If the vehicle no longer qualifies for the credit, you may
have to recapture part or all of the credit. For details, see
section 30B(h)(8).

BMW

After 12/31/10

Credit Amount

Recapture of Credit

Q7 3.0L TDI

$650

Model Year 2010

Coordination With Other Credits

Audi

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

Purchase Date

Unless you elect not to claim the credit, you may have to
reduce the basis of each vehicle by the sum of the
amounts entered on lines 12 and 16 for that vehicle.

Model

$1,300

Purchase Date

Basis Reduction

Make

Before 7/1/10

Volkswagen

Jetta 2.0L TDI
Sedan

Before 7/1/10

$1,300

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$650

After 12/31/10

$0

Purchase Date
Volkswagen

Jetta 2.0L TDI
SportWagen

Before 7/1/10

$1,300

$900

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$650

$1,550

After 12/31/10

$0

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2010 Instructions for Form 8910

Make

Model

Credit Amount

Make

Model

Purchase Date
Volkswagen Touareg 3.0L TDI

Purchase Date

Before 7/1/10

$1,150

7/1/10 - 12/31/10

$575

After 12/31/10

$0

Mercury

Model Year 2011
Make

Model

Credit Amount

BMW

335d Sedan

$900

BMW

X5 xDrive 35d Sedan

$1,800

Mercedes

E 350 BlueTEC

$1,550

Mercedes

GL 350 BlueTEC

Mercedes
Mercedes

$1,550

Saturn

Vue Hybrid

$1,550

Active Hybrid X6

$1,550

$1,800

Cadillac

$2,200

ML 350 BlueTEC

$900

Chevrolet

Malibu Hybrid

$1,550

R 350 BlueTEC

$1,550

Escalade 2WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Escalade AWD
Hybrid

$1,800

Malibu Hybrid

$2,200

Chevrolet Silverado K15 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe C1500 2WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe K1500 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Chrysler

Aspen Hybrid

$2,200

Dodge

Durango Hybrid

$2,200

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe C1500 2WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe K1500 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Ford

Escape 2WD Hybrid

After 3/31/10

$0

Before 4/1/10

$487.50

After 3/31/10

$0

Sierra K15 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon C1500 2WD
Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon K1500 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

Mazda

Tribute 2WD Hybrid

$3,000

Mazda

Tribute 4WD Hybrid

$1,950

Before 4/1/10

$750

After 3/31/10

$0

Escape 4WD Hybrid

Before 4/1/10

$650

After 3/31/10

$0

Purchase Date

$750

$2,200

Ford

Fusion Hybrid

Before 4/1/10

$850

GMC

Sierra C15 2WD
Hybrid

After 3/31/10

$0

$2,200

GMC

Sierra K15 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon C1500 2WD
Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon K1500 4WD
Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon Denali C1500
2WD Hybrid

$2,200

GMC

Yukon Denali K1500
4WD Hybrid

$2,200

Mercury

Mariner 2WD Hybrid

Purchase Date
Before 4/1/10

$750

After 3/31/10

$0

Purchase Date
Mercury

Mariner 4WD Hybrid

Before 4/1/10

$650

After 3/31/10

$0

Purchase Date

Purchase Date

2010 Instructions for Form 8910

Silverado K15 4WD
Hybrid

Ford

Before 4/1/10

Sierra C15 2WD
Hybrid

Mariner 2WD Hybrid

Chevrolet

Purchase Date

Purchase Date
Escape 4WD Hybrid

$2,200

Purchase Date

Purchase Date
Escape 2WD Hybrid

Silverado C15 2WD
Chevrolet
Hybrid

$1,550

Chevrolet Silverado C15 2WD
Hybrid

Mercury

$2,350

Aura Hybrid

Escalade (2WD &
4WD) Hybrid

Cadillac

GMC

Altima Hybrid

Saturn

BMW

Credit Amount

GMC

$0

Credit Amount

Model

Ford

$487.50

After 3/31/10

Model

Make

Ford

Before 4/1/10

Nissan

Make

Model Year 2009

Chevrolet

Mariner 4WD Hybrid

Model Year 2010

Qualified Hybrid Vehicles That Weigh
8,500 Pounds or Less

Cadillac

Credit Amount

Before 4/1/10

$750

After 3/31/10

$0

-3-

Mercury

Milan Hybrid

Before 4/1/10

$850

Mercedes

S 400 Hybrid

After 3/31/10
$1,150

$0

Mercedes

ML 450 Hybrid

$2,200

Nissan

Altima Hybrid

$2,350

Model Year 2011
Make

Model

Credit Amount

BMW

Active Hybrid 750i

$900

BMW

Active Hybrid Li

$900

BMW

Active Hybrid X6

$1,550

Cadillac

Escalade Hybrid
(2WD & 4WD)

$2,200

Chevrolet

Silverado Hybrid C15
2WD

$2,200

Chevrolet

Silverado Hybrid K15
4WD

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe Hybrid C1500
2WD

$2,200

Chevrolet

Tahoe Hybrid K1500
4WD

$2,200

GMC

Sierra Hybrid C15
2WD

$2,200

GMC

Sierra Hybrid K15
4WD

$2,200

GMC

Yukon Hybrid C1500
2WD

$2,200

GMC

Yukon Hybrid K1500
4WD

$2,200

GMC

Yukon Denali K1500
4WD Hybrid

$2,200

Mercedes

ML 450 Hybrid

$2,200

Nissan

Altima Hybrid

$2,350

Porsche

Cayenne S Hybrid

$1,800

mileage) by the total number of miles the vehicle is driven
for all purposes. Treat vehicles used by your employees
as being used 100% for business/investment purposes if
the value of personal use is included in the employees’
gross income, or the employees reimburse you for the
personal use. If you report the amount of personal use of
the vehicle in your employee’s gross income and
withhold the appropriate taxes, enter 100% for the
percentage of business/investment use.
If during the tax year you convert property used solely
for personal purposes to business/investment use (or
vice versa), figure the percentage of business/investment
use only for the number of months you use the property
in your business or for the production of income. Multiply
that percentage by the number of months you use the
property in your business or for the production of income
and divide the result by 12. For example, if you converted
a vehicle to 50% business use for the last 6 months of
the year, you would enter 25% on line 11 (50% multiplied
by 6 divided by 12).
For more information, see Pub. 463, Travel,
Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses.

Line 14

Enter total alternative motor vehicle credits from:
• Schedule K-1 (Form 1065), box 15 (code P)
• Schedule K-1 (Form 1120S), box 13 (code P)

Line 19

Enter the total, if any, credits from Form 1040, lines 47
through 50 (or Form 1040NR, lines 45 through 47); Form
5695, line 11; Form 8834, line 22; and Schedule R, line
22.

Line 21

If you cannot use part of the personal portion of the credit
because of the tax liability limit, the unused credit is lost.
The unused personal portion of the credit cannot be
carried back or forward to other tax years.

Qualified Hybrid Vehicles That Weigh
More Than 8,500 Pounds

For information on credit amounts for qualified hybrid
vehicles that weigh more than 8,500 pounds, visit
IRS.gov and search for “Alternative Motor Vehicle
Credit.” Also see What’s New on page 1 if the vehicle
was purchased after 2009.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the
information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue
laws of the United States. You are required to give us the
information. We need it to ensure that you are complying
with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the
right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the information
requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork
Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB
control number. Books or records relating to a form or its
instructions must be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal
Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return
information are confidential, as required by section 6103.
The time needed to complete and file this form will
vary depending on individual circumstances. The
estimated burden for individual taxpayers filing this form
is approved under OMB control number 1545-0074 and
is included in the estimates shown in the instructions for
their individual income tax return. The estimated burden
for all other taxpayers who file this form is shown below.

Qualified Alternative Fuel Vehicles

For information on credit amounts for qualified alternative
fuel vehicles (for example, $4,000 for the 2009, 2010,
and 2011 Honda Civic GX), visit IRS.gov and search for
“Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit.”

Qualified Fuel Cell Vehicles

For information on credit amounts for qualified fuel cell
vehicles (for example, $12,000 for the 2009 Honda FCX
Clarity), visit IRS.gov and search for “Alternative Motor
Vehicle Credit.”

Line 5

Enter any section 179 expense deduction you claimed for
the vehicle conversion from Part I of Form 4562,
Depreciation and Amortization.

Line 11

Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Learning about the law or the form . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing and sending the form to the IRS . . . .

Enter the percentage of business/investment use.
Enter 100% if the vehicle is used solely for business
purposes or you are claiming the credit as the seller of
the vehicle.
If the vehicle is used for both business purposes and
personal purposes, determine the percentage of
business use by dividing the number of miles the vehicle
is driven during the year for business purposes or for the
production of income (not to include any commuting

11 hr.
12 min.
22 min.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of
these time estimates or suggestions for making this form
simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. See the
instructions for the tax return with which this form is filed.

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2010 Instructions for Form 8910