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They problem with 25% is that it sure is harder to get a car that gets 40mpg to get to 60 vs one that gets 20 to get 30.
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25% improvement in mileage is 40 to 50, 20 to 25. I know the Civic may not get as much credit as the other, even though its absolute mileage is very good, because the ICE-only civic is already so efficient (around 30/40 currently, don't know 2002 figures).
Having the payouts be based on differential mileage makes sense, as it rewards "strong" hybrid systems like the Prius more than more "mild" systems like the Silverado. However, the payouts could be inflated merely because the "similar" ICE cars are not nearly as optimized as they could be (compare GM sedans from 2002 with Honda sedans on that note)