Shoppers who are still looking to trade in their old gas guzzlers under the Cash for Clunkers program will have a few more weeks to do it.
The program’s funding has been up in the air after burning through the $1 billion allotted for it in a little over a week. Cash for Clunkers will continue through Labor Day after the U.S. Senate approved another $2 billion on Thursday.
The program is meant to spur new car sales while taking older, less fuel-efficient cars off the road. Shoppers can get up to $4,500 toward a new car for qualified trade-ins.
The popularity of the program has surprised many, and although dealers say Cash for Clunkers is good for consumers and has spurred sales on their lots, it’s also an endless administrative headache.
“It’s a great program for the consumers,” said Jeff Longbine of Longbine Autoplaza, “but there’s a lot of hoops that the dealers have to jump through.”
The main problem Longbine and other dealers have had is in submitting the required documentation on the clunkers that get traded in.
“With all the documentation required, evidently their computer systems aren’t large enough to handle the volume,” Longbine said.
Halfway into the 45-minute process of submitting the forms, Longbine says, the system often locks up and the user gets kicked off the system.
The sheer volume of interest in the program has caught many off guard. The original $1 billion allotted by Congress was intended to last until November, but after a little over a week, most of that money was gone. Through late Tuesday, according to a report from the Associated Press, more than $775 million had been spent, accounting for the sale of nearly 185,000 new cars. Officials estimate the additional funds could spur another 500,000 vehicle sales.
“It’s a great program,” said Ron Carlson of John North Ford. “It’s really worked well except for the funding.”
Carlson said that as of Tuesday morning no vehicles in the state of Kansas had been approved under the program. The government’s approval backlog is slowing down the approvals and reimbursements.
Longbine said his dealership has seen the same problems with the delays. He said government approvals were supposed to come within three or four days.
“We just got our first one today, and this is Day 15,” Longbine said.
Despite the headaches, sales at the dealerships are up because of the interest the Cash for Clunkers program has generated.
“It’s a great program, not only spurring car sales but also getting some borderline unsafe cars off the road,” Carlson said. “It’s an awesome deal, and the cars are also more fuel-efficient. It’s a win-win to me all the way around.”
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
the senate is considering 2 billion more for the cash for clunkers refill. i agree with tom harkin who said, as the bill stands, microsoft founder bill gates can get $4500 hundred dollars to buy a new car, is this the way to spend limited amounts of money?
August 8, 2009 at 12:52 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
Do you think Bill Gates owns a clunker? Or would even buy a car that cost less than 45k? Pretty poor example.
August 8, 2009 at 1:14 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justthefacts (anonymous) says...
Let's see, when Henry Ford started his business, a guy could buy a new car for around $500. There were only one style and color. Then people started screaming for improvements and pretty soon our government started demanding EPA regulations and unions demanded salaries and unrealistic benefits or they would strike. Nobody listened to W Edwards Demming except the Japanese and now they kick our butts.
So whose fault is it really that our car industry is screwed up?
August 8, 2009 at 1:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
neighbor (anonymous) says...
"Do you think the government stimulus programs are helping the economic recovery?"
Poll of the week question over there on the right side of the page.
Heck no it's not helping the economy, it's putting us further in debt. The economy is improving because fuel prices are about half of last year's prices and working class people have more money to spend at stores and restaurants etc rather than spending it on gasoline. Crude is creeping back up, before long foreign investors will jump on the buying train, and we'll do it all over again.
August 8, 2009 at 1:45 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
justthefacts,
Our tech industry is about to learn the very same lesson in the coming years. Perhaps the better way to phrase your statement should have been:
If people had listened to Denning EPA regulations and unions would have never come to pass.
August 8, 2009 at 1:52 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
Cash for clunkers as a stimulus is working, as for the 787 billion dollar package, too early to tell, not even a quarter of it has made its way into the economy.
But I agree, high fuel prices will simply crush everything all over again.
August 8, 2009 at 1:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
i think we need to put an income limit on those benefiting from the vouchers and i wish someone would go to utube glen beck cash for clunkers video and air your comments. thank you.
August 8, 2009 at 2:33 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
Congress tried when they refunded the program, it was shot down by Dems and Repubs in a deciding fashion.
Don't rot your brain with Glen Beck, the guy is unstable, and as loony as the loons to the far left.
August 8, 2009 at 2:38 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
jimwhenry808 (anonymous) says...
People say it is a good idea to negotiate the new car price before you tell the dealer that you have a clunker!
Henry
Blogger
www.cashforclunkersfacts.info
http://www.cashforclunkersfacts.info
August 8, 2009 at 3:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
according to the glen beck video, the cash for clunkers is a scam to access your computer and track you for ever. i do not believe it is a scam but, i believe that a lot of these folks will default on their loan and the government wants to track the information. this is not new stuff, cell phone users are already being tracked. in a couple of years, we will have the clunker bubble. what will the people in the beltway think up next? we dont need a wall on the border, we need one around the beltway. some of these people who buy these cars are going to be turned down for that starter home because when you quailfy for a loan your total payments can not exceed 30 to 40 per cent of gross income and it will lower your credit score. do not just take my word for this but investigate before you buy. concerning glen becks statements i will check this out with the consumer division of the kansas attorney generals office and the federal trade commission along with my friend ralph nader.
August 8, 2009 at 4:02 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
Glen Beck should be committed!
August 8, 2009 at 4:05 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
If I am ever convinced that anybody.....government or private....is controlling my computer to track me foreever.....the next place they would track me would be the landfill. Problem solved.
I feel the same way about telephones. Now when the government...or anyone else...starts wanting to implant a microchip under my skin...then you can save me a seat on the paranoia express!
August 8, 2009 at 4:58 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
I agree with goodoleboy......income limits for this program are kind of a moot point since people with high incomes generally don't drive clunkers...nor would they be particularly enticed by the incentives offered.
There are of course exceptions to the first part of my statement. Old Sam Walton did drive a decades old pickup around Bemtonville,Ark. for years when he was being listed as the world's richest man. But it certainly was not his only vehicle...and I always thought he drove it just for show. And i really doubt he would have traded it in in the Cash fo Clunkers program.
August 8, 2009 at 5:24 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
robynroberts (anonymous) says...
I read that one dealer is "fronting" the money until he receives it from the Government.
I did some research and made a list of Pros and Cons to the Cash for Clunkers program. So far, it’s 6-Pro, 12-Con.
http://www.CashForClunkersInstruction...
(And I added a video - Jon Stewart on Cash for Clunkers, just for a laugh)
August 9, 2009 at 8:57 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
seriouslyfolks (anonymous) says...
That video wasn't funny and that wasn't Jon Stewart but whoever it was he sure is pretty and he talks real real good.
August 9, 2009 at 9:21 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
neighbor (anonymous) says...
"If I am ever convinced that anybody.....government or private....is controlling my computer to track me"
Ever heard of tracking cookies biscuitboy? If not, and don't take steps to remove all cookies often, I guarantee you that you're being tracked as you browse the internet right now.
So what happens when the dealerships submit the necessary paperwork, finish the deal counting on the approval to happen, smash the clunker car as the new car drives out the lot, and then get the notice that the application has been denied?
August 10, 2009 at 9:26 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
Yes I have heard of tracking cookies neighbor but that is totally removed from the context of the statement I was responding to...Ok?
As to your hypothetical.....if the dealership goes that far down the road before getting final approval then that is their fault. To do otherwise would be like writing a bid on a job.....then starting and finishing the work ....before the bid is accepted and approved
August 10, 2009 at 12:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
Clunker bubble? Gimme a break, the loans your talking about on average are going to equate to the 400-500 range, based on the sticker prices of the top 10 vehicles sold. Factor in savings in fuel economy over a year alone and that payment gets smaller. Car loans are not going to bankrupt people, the people you are worried about are not even going to be able to get the finanacing needed for the clunker program, credit is still tight right now.
August 10, 2009 at 12:59 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
open_eyes (anonymous) says...
Many a person has went bankrupt based on exactly the thinking above. Problem is, they get to thinking that way about everything....... and it adds up. Not belittling your point, just that..... I'm not all that convinced the American consumer is that smart with their finances these days.
August 10, 2009 at 3:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goodoleboy (anonymous) says...
I would wager that they are more cautious now then they have been in a long, long time. Watching ones retirement or jobs vanish tends to have that effect. Credit markets are also very tight, and I believe they will continue to be for some time. I would also wager that those who were fiscally irresponsible are not going to be able to find financing for a car anyways. Gas prices are going to rise again, buying a fuel efficient vehicle offers substantial savings in the money saved on fuel alone, if gas hits 4$ again these cars will pay for themselves.
August 10, 2009 at 4:30 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
open_eyes (anonymous) says...
Yeah, I would have wagered people weren't that stupid back when they were buying houses they couldn't afford, too. But I was wrong. And I hope you are right.
August 10, 2009 at 4:38 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
jimhenry1108 (anonymous) says...
so if you have two or more clunkers at your house you cannot trade both of them for one car. The program is for one per
person.
Jimhenry
Blogger
www.cashforclunkersfacts.info
http://www.cashforclunkersfacts.info
August 10, 2009 at 11:17 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )