Cash For Clunkers Restarted With $2 More Billion
Earlier today, the House approved an additional $2 billion for the Cash for Clunkers program. Don't celebrate yet, though. Consumer Reports Cars warns that it's best to wait a while before trying to trade in your inefficient car to make sure that the program stays in place, and that you really will get your rebate. (Photo: G Travels)
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I just bought a car this morning, and like Wombatish said, the credit comes in just like a trade-in, so the buyer isn't left trying to get paid -- the dealer is. FYI.
DO NOT WAIT. Also DO NOT sign any documents that make YOU liable if the dealer does not get the 3500-4500 from the government. It's entirely up to the DEALER to process your "clunker" and to apply for the rebate NOT YOU!
I can't stress this enough. Do not under any circumstances sign any documentation that makes you liable for that money. If the dealer insists find another dealer that will.
If you were on the fence about trading in your car do it before this cash runs out you won't have long.
I wish I could make $2 billion materialize out of thin air.
I would note, that just because the House has passed something, does not mean the Senate has.
To be honest, the issues this program is having makes me truly hope that they will stop rushing to handle health care.
@catskyfire: "The issues this program is having."? What issues? The program was designed to get people in and buy a car. The program is very successful! Now we may not like the government paying to help one industry, but there are no issues from a consumer point of view and like most others have said the remarks of Laura Northrup suggesting to wait reminds me of a saying "If you snooze, you lose"
@Linkdead: So right.
Dealers are screwed left and right by this program. They are left without used car inventory because the old cars can't be resold and they're still waiting to get paid for the first cars they processed through the program.
For consumers it's a win, go trade that car and get the credit knocked off the price. And do not sign any documentation that makes you liable for the program.
Nothing like more irresponsible deficit spending. No doubt if it was an individual irresponsibly racking up debt you would be chastising them.
@I Love New Jersey: But the government gets taxes on the cars made, bought, and then payroll taxes. It's actually more fiscally responsible and I would've approved of this WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYY more than any TARP crap that only lined the pockets of already rich Bankers.
This money goes to the people so we are paying ourselves a rebate of sorts. We pay the government so any benefit we receive is just icing on the cake. Not everything is doom and gloom buddy.
@I Love New Jersey: Actually I think that this could be some of the best deficit spending that they have done yet. This is one of the first times I have seen a government spending program that is very easy to see the benefit of. One of our country's problems is our oil consumption. This program is getting people to purchase cars that are mostly at least 25% more fuel efficient. Car manufacturers are in trouble because of the bad economy, in 4 days there were at least 222k new cars purchased that probably wouldn't have normally been purchased. Those purchases help dealers stay in business in addition to the manufacturers. The only downside I can see in this spending is that if someone purchases a new car even though they can't afford the payments.
@cmdrsass: The government didn't just make it 'materialize out of thin air'.
It stayed up all night printing a whole bunch of $100 bills.
@cmdrsass: Yeah, think about it. Even if you're not buying a new car, your money loses value so other people can get a discount.
How altruistic of you!
@rpm773: if you think that the government prints actual money for this sort of thing, you don't have a very god understanding of the economy.
this money only "exists" in computer databases.
To be honest, the issues this program is having makes me truly hope that they will stop rushing to handle health care.
What are you hoping to accomplish with a delay?
I don't know about the others experience, but local dealers in the Wichita KS market are selling the cars but deferring delivery until they get confirmation that the rebate went through. Can't say that I blame them - $4500 X 50 or more cars sold by a large dealership is a huge chunk of change to have at risk. As it is, they're stuck with carrying costs of the new inventory until the process uncorks. I bought a new vehicle last weekend, and as of Friday it was still showing in the CARS system at the dealer as "under review".
The one dealer I went to has done around 100 deals, and other than getting a little feedback over two mistyped VIN numbers, they haven't had anything come back. The system keeps going down for them, and it's really been a challenge for them. I tend to have some sympathy for dealers in the current situation even though I know they're in it for the money. Great program, lots of good groundwork by the government, but it was a lot to pull together in 30 days and it appears there's holes in the implementation.
Dang! And I sold my clunker dodge truck last year for less than $4500. Why doesn't President Obama keep us informed of these things? Dick Cheney would have.
@I Love New Jersey: better to give the stimuli money to car buyers than AIG. Might actually help the economy.
I think the dealers' distrust of the government's following through on the reimbursement, even if it means holding up sales during a soft economy, is healthy and refreshing.
Tread carefully and wisely, Crazy Bill of Crazy Bill's Chevy & Suzuki.
@elangomatt: Try 100% or more fuel efficient.
Many of the cars I am getting calls on are in the 13-14 MPG range, and that was new... Most cars loose signifigant mileage over the years due to neglect, wear & tear, and even the types of oil and gas used over it's life.
This program requires in most cases at lease 22 MPG and a lot of vehicles get well over that.
So every time I get someone calling about their old DeVille towards a Prius I can see the benifit immediately.
Plus the government gets back the money in so many ways. Registrations, sales tax, income tax (employees), the dealers are taxed on the credit itself, taxes collected from the finance companies, manufacuters, and even the recycling centers.
It's full of win all the way around. But beware, if you want to take advantage, do it this weekend. We've already been told that the money is gone, but we're taking them in regardless in hopes this latter addition passes the senate.
This program is idiotic. The last thing people need to be doing is taking on new car debt.
And what happens to the 'clunkers?' They are destroyed, instead of putting inexpensive, usable cars on the used market.
@Linkdead: Yes and no...
Please people, I stress that you not try and fraud the program by flipping junkers. If a dealer asks for PROOF of registration and at least the last years insurance give it to them. If you refuse, expect to sign this sort of document because at the end of the day these are businesses and if you lied to us about the insurance and registration we're on the hook for $15k.
But in regards to not waiting, this is absolutely right. The money is gone, my GM confirmed this last night when he called in a vehicle and was told the funds have been exhausted by the program itself. With the backlog of sales from this weekend, even if we get the extra $2bil, it's likely already spent as that still only allows for something like 36 vehicles per registered dealership in the country.
@dvdchris:
That's not the goal, the goal is to reduce oil consumption which this program has been a sucess at so far.
Plus the vehicles are recycled, so it all goes back into the market in some form.
@KingPsyz here for HappyFunKingPsyz©: You're more than nieve to take this program propaganda at face value. Reducing oil consumption in the short term by decreasing gas consumption through an increase in the number of manufactured vehicles is NOT an obvious net gain... it is very likely much worse on the environment than driving those already existing vehicles another 5 years.
The program might be a success at selling more new cars, but it is not necessarily a success at reducing OIL CONSUMPTION, only gas consumption. The manufacturing processes required to produce a modern car are not even remotely 'oil free'.
@lordmorgul: Think about how much gasoline is actually saved for the average driver over a year by an increase in fuel efficiency of several mpg. It is very little. In fact, using this money to promote more public transportation instead of junking perfectly usable but inefficient cars would have been a much wiser thing to do... if the point was to help the environment. The point of this program was not to do that, it was to sell cars.
@PunditGuy: Well, for one, it would give our elected officials a chance to read the damn bill and know what they are voting for. Any objection to that?
Spoken like a true republican....
" catskyfire
1:52 AM I would note, that just because the House has passed something, does not mean the Senate has.
To be honest, the issues this program is having makes me truly hope that they will stop rushing to handle health care."
@lordmorgul: [facepalm] Since your warblgarbl filter is on I'll see if I can spell this out for you.
Most of the people who qualify are not just getting into vehicles with slightly better mileage, but sometimes 200%+ better mileage, and that's not taking into account their actual current mileage which can dip sufficiantly baed off of wear & tear, maintnance, and even the oil and fuel used.
On top of the very real and very large savings in oil consumption, you have the added benifit of increased auto sales (we sold 25 yesterday, we haven't sold that many on a Friday in a year or two) which generates tons in fed and state tax income from registration, sales tax, income tax (manufacturer, dealer and sales assoc.), and even from the recycling plants.
So we've gotten gas guzzlers off the road, spured the car industry, saved people money, and injected much needed state income... I fail to see the problem[/facepalm]
@AhTrini: No, spoken like someone who wants the checks and balances built into our system to work as they should, and who wants our representatives to actually execute some due diligence over the laws they're proposing.
@dvdchris: the only cars that qualify must get less than 18 mpg. according to my husband (sales manager at our local dealership), they are taking the clunkers off the road completely. the goal of this program is to get the 'bad for the environment' cars off the roads.
people are also getting much more money for their clunkers than they would otherwise.
@Wombatish: with my husbands dealership, you walk in with your clunker, you walk out with your new car, done deal. the dealership is the one waiting for the rebate from the govn't.
@mike1731:
You have to destroy the car to get the rebate. If you don't get the rebate, what happens to the car you destroyed? How do you return it?
When my mother took advantage of the program, the "rebate" was in the form of trade-in value. She is not waiting on any check of any kind, other than the scrap value of the vehicle because they're waiting to get the money back from the scrap place.
If that's going to be the case for many people, then waiting is -not- a good idea. Waiting gives the program more time to run out of money yet again.
Now I'm not advocating going out and buying a car willy-nilly. Do research. Find the (qualifying) car you really want that's well rated, and then call your local dealership, and confirm whether the program is handled as a rebate or an initial concession at the time of purchase/and or after submitting paperwork to the CARS program.
If it's not a rebate, and you want the car, I would -not- wait.