"cash for clunkers" program

[alwaysonthemove]

Yeah and who is gonna pay or benefit from this Program? Seems like all I do is work and pay taxes for bull goverment programs.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Whoever you are, you should stop posting under airjers name! He would never give Fords a plug

Crazy isn't it!

Every Manufacturer has issues. Of the Domestic ones I really think ford is on top as far as well built/dependability.

[Hafnutz]

Originally Posted By: 4wanderingeyes

Whoever you are, you should stop posting under airjers name! He would never give Fords a plug

Crazy isn't it!

Every Manufacturer has issues. Of the Domestic ones I really think ford is on top as far as well built/dependability.

Couldn't agree more. I like dealing with an American company and Ford was my only real choice. My last batch of GM cars were a real disappointment. That's coming from someone who worked in a GM service department. Same old problems year after year...Very profitable for the dealers but not a good thing for the consumers.

[crappieking54]

hey Ryan_V, if you have specific questions just write them in the forum and I will check through the day on Monday

[Ryan_V]

Hey crappie... what kind of dealer do you work for..GM, Ford.... does the program apply to super dutys??? I'm looking at a 3/4 ton diesel and wonder if that even fits into the program.

[MNice]

Well, My wife & I were Walser Subaru's first official cash for clunkers customers. We traded a 03 buick rendezvous AWD with 143,000 that has been by far the worst car we've owned. I have a 98 bonniville with 258,000 and a 01 silverado with 177,000 and we have stuck more money in the buick than the other 2 combined.

As far as the program itself, we only gained $500, we were offered $3000 on trade and got $3500 (went from 18 combined to 22 combined) on a 09 impreza outback sport. The dealer has heard this program will only last a couple of weeks due to the high demand, so that and with 0% on the subaru, we jumped.

[Shack]

My mother in-law who is a sales manger at a local Metro Ford dealer said this program is working out very well for those who take part/qualify (have the right car). I talked with her yesterday at a family GT and everyone started to talk about it. Sounds like a good deal.

[crappieking54]

Ryan_V, I work for a Chevy dealer. It all depends on what you are trading and what you are looking at buying..

[Huskie]

Question: We have been discussing this program for awhile and I wonder if it will help bring down the price on the used market at all? I've been looking at selling my 01 and buying a truck in the 06-08 range, but they have been tough to come by---too high priced for me. If the cars program is an incentive to buy new, will there be less demand for the used vehicles, thus bringing the price down? Any thoughts on that take? (my 01 is worth more than $4500, now at least)

[Bjjams]

Ryan_V, I work for a Chevy store just west of St. Cloud It all depends on what you are trading and what you are looking at buying..

I've got a question that maybe you could answer for me. How "striped out" can a car be before it's turned in? I know it has to be in running order and get there under it's own power. I'm thinking like the stereo, maybe headlights, taillights, that sort of thing.

[IFallsRon]

I'm giving up an 88 Silverado with 156,xxx miles. It's pretty hard to pass up $4,500 for the mpg I'm going to get with a new car. My dealer said I can take anything off the truck as long as it's driveable. And the dealer will see the truck for the first time when I drop it off on Thursday.

There's a murder's row of clunkers at the dealer I'm dealing with. Half look to be decent used vehicles but you don't know what's going on under the hood.

[MN Shutterbug]

Does anyone have any ideas when this program will expire?

I saw on the news that the govt. was alloting 1 billion dollars for this program and once it's gone, the program is finished. They think it's going to be eaten up very fast. I wish they would have had this program lat year. I ended up selling my '96 Explorer for just $1900, so I could buy my Saturn SUV. I gained 8 mpg.

[sparkyaber]

my math says 1,000,000,000 (that is a billion right) divided by 4500, is only 222,222 cars? does not sound like that will last to long. Is my math correct?

[LMITOUT]

Yes and no. Not all trades will get the $4500 credit. I might venture a guess that many will get less.

[IFallsRon]

My dealer said they will probably run out of eligible vehicles by the end of this week. They're getting calls from other dealers for cars.

[IFallsRon]

More than 10 percent of money in the $1 billion "Cash for Clunkers" pot was claimed in the first days of the incentive program.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that, as of Wednesday afternoon, dealers had submitted requests for reimbursement for vouchers of up to $4,500 on 22,782 vehicles, for a total of $96 million.

NHTSA says a total of 250,000 vehicles should be eligible for the so-called Car Allowance Rebate System. Administrative costs will total $50 million, leaving $950 million for vouchers.

[MIKE IN lINO III]

We are going out tonight to get a new car.

How much off MSRP should I expect to negociate or is the " Best " price the only price?

Thx,

Mike

[Dragonsm]

Cash for Clunker Destruction Video

I found this video after reading more into the program and how they render the vehicle useless by draining out all the oil and putting in a couple of quarts of sodium silicate.

[HarleyK50]

Cash for Clunker Destruction Video

I found this video after reading more into the program and how they render the vehicle useless by draining out all the oil and putting in a couple of quarts of sodium silicate.

Does that happen to every car int he program??

[Macgyver55]

It was just announced that the program is about to be suspended.....

"WASHINGTON — Congressional officials say the government plans to suspend the popular "cash for clunkers" program amid concerns it could quickly use up the $1 billion in rebates for new car purchases.

The Transportation Department called congressional offices late Thursday to alert them to the decision to halt the program, which offered owners of old cars and trucks $3,500 or $4,500 toward a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle"

I just read this on a large local newspaper HSOforum.

[croixflats]

Ok, I know this is out of character but WHAT DID THEY THINK THROWING A BILLION $ IN THE AIR WAS GOING TO HAPPEN.

Please refrain from snide partisan political comments. Its getting old and insulting.

[LMITOUT]

"WASHINGTON — Congressional officials say the government plans to suspend the popular "cash for clunkers" program amid concerns it could quickly use up the $1 billion in rebates for new car purchases.

[LMITOUT= sits in corner and snickers to self]

[LMITOUT]

I watched the video above and it puzzles me that a vehicle, in this case a Jeep that appears to be in pretty good condition, is destroyed with not a second thought. How many people would love to have a vehicle that nice? They might be able to afford something in a price range such as that Jeep but not a new vehicle, even with the clunker cash bait. Sad to see those good ones go.

[croixflats]

Great observance. I think we all were thinking the same thing and is well worth mentioning. What a waist.

Think of the alternative though. That many cars flooding the market at ounce would obviously hurt the guy selling his own for what he thought it was worth. Great for the guy looking but bad for the selling an over priced vehicle. Maybe thats a good thing. To be learned; dont expect what your willing to pay fr luxery is what people think its worth in resale.

[LMITOUT]

Another possible consequence of this could be the effect on repair shops. Off the road will be a couple hundred thousand used cars that need brakes, exhaust, tires, you name it, that aren't covered under the manufacturer warranty, replaced with new cars that if they need repair will most likely be going to the dealer for parts and labor covered by warranty. Not to mention, these new vehicles won't be needing the regular maintenance items such as tires, brake jobs, exhaust, etc for many years that used cars require any given day right now, and NOW is when these repair shops, parts stores, etc need the business. You could make an argument that people are holding onto older cars longer, which means they are putting more parts and service into keeping them going instead of putting down the cash (read: applying for more credit) for a new vehicle and that may be true as well, or some may be putting off some of those unneeded repairs for another day because they can't afford it right now too.

I understand that the streets and highways won't be filled with only shiny new cars and trucks due to this program, but it's still a couple hundred thousand that could have potentially brought money into all the big and little repair shops and tire stores across the country. In essence, about a quarter million less cars to work on.