@Hal_Al A W-2 job is considered a trade or business, so Section 179 can offset that. If you want the reference, I can look for it.
Yes, it is over 5 years. Well, sort of 6 years because the first and last year count as a half year.
The 'default' is to use the 200%DB depreciation method. That shifts it to a larger depreciation deduction in the early years, and a smaller deduction in later years. You do have the option to depreciate it using "Straight-Line" deprecation, which would match your numbers you cited.
If you are both part of the business, it is either a Partnership (which is a completely separate tax return and may be more complicated) or a "Qualified Joint Venture" (in the event you run the business under an LLC, let us know that and let us know what State you live in). A Qualified Joint Venture would file TWO Schedule Cs, one for each of you.
Hypothetically, you would BOTH claim and depreciate 50% of the vehicle (or whatever your ownership percentage is), so 50% of it would be on BOTH Schedule Cs. However, for simplicity, you may decide to put 100% of it on ONE of the Schedule C's, and shift some of the other deductions to the other Schedule C to equalize them.
