Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

[bpr]

Regular itulip readers heard about this new $4,500 rebate program here, but I hadn't heard the details of the program until I was listening to the radio today, and I had to check it out before asking other folks about this.

Can a dealer resell the traded-in vehicle?
The CARS Act requires that the trade-in vehicle be crushed or shredded so that it will not be resold for use in the United States or elsewhere as an automobile. The entity crushing or shredding the vehicles in this manner will be allowed to sell some parts of the vehicle prior to crushing or shredding it, but these parts cannot include the engine or the drive train.

Source: cars.gov (emphasis added)

Hmm. So, the Federal government is giving your tax dollars to people to destroy the supply of used cars?

With the disparity between classes widening, this law seems to make it harder for poor people to afford a usable car (or fix up a damaged one) without indebting themselves to the rentier class.

Whaddya think? Horrific? Diabolical? Ingenious?

[cindykimlisa]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

None of the above: Its a scam - at least by the name they gave it.

I read the details carefully and I just bought a new Honda in July and traded my 93 ford Taurus - it was worth $300 according to dealer. Does that sound like a "clunker" to you?

Well guess what - it did not "qualify" as a clunker for the "cash for clunkers' rebate because the combined milage was 20.5 mpg and that was over the max 18mpg allowed by c for c.

Perhaps you might think a little out of the box about your question. I am at the opposite end from the "poor" you are commenting on. My wife drives a 13 year old car and I drove a 16 year old car. Historically it has been my experience that "poor" people in my area are often seen driving cars ten years newer than mine.

Peace to you

[BiscayneSunrise]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

Historically it has been my experience that "poor" people in my area are often seen driving cars ten years newer than mine.

Peace to you

Which is why they are very likely poor. see the old thread on "How much financing one should use to buy a car."

The cash for clunkers was an attempt to clear dealer inventories and give the assembly lines some demand to bridge them until the quick economic recovery. problem is the recovery will be 15 years in the coming.

[flintlock]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

Supposedly the idea was to get gas hogs off the street. Hence the MPG requirements. Not a proper role of government in my opinion, but then very little they do in Washington would qualify as constitutionally proper anymore.

[don]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

Smiling Sam's Autos

Guaranteed To Meet All Federal Clunker Requirements!

You Will Get Your $4,500!

Everything in stock- $1200

cash only accepted

Don't worry about the title- Smiling Sam will take care of the details

smiling sam's is a licensed agent of the federal government's
backdoor stimulus plan

(We recommend Vinnie if you need help on that $1200)

[santafe2]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

Regular itulip readers heard about this new $4,500 rebate program here, but I hadn't heard the details of the program until I was listening to the radio today, and I had to check it out before asking other folks about this.

Whaddya think? Horrific? Diabolical? Ingenious?

The best part of the bill is that the auto dealer must carry out a death sentence on the car prescribed in detail below. Are the mechanics required to sit in a semi-circle? Is a curtain thrown open just before the lethal concoction is administered? Does the car get a last varoom?

THIS PROCEDURE IS NOT TO BE USED BY THE VEHICLE OWNER
Perform the following procedure to disable the vehicle engine.
Since the vehicle will not be drivable after this procedure is performed,
consider where the procedure will be performed and how the vehicle
will be moved after the procedure is complete.
1. Obtain solution of 40% sodium silicate/60% water. (The Sodium Silicate
(SiO2/Na2O) used in the solution must have a weight ratio of 3.0 or greater.)
2. Drain engine oil for environmentally appropriate disposal.
3. Install the oil drain plug.
4. Pour enough solution in the engine through the oil fill for the oil pump to
circulate the solution throughout the engine. Start by adding 2 quarts of the
solution, which should be sufficient in most cases.
CAUTION: Wear goggles and gloves. Appropriate protective clothing
should be worn to prevent silicate solution from coming into contact with the
skin.
5. Replace the oil fill cap.
6. Start the engine.
7. Run engine at approximately 2000 rpm (for safety reasons do not operate at
high rpm) until the engine stops. (Typically the engine will operate for 3 to 7
minutes. As the solution starts to affect engine operation, the operator will
have to apply more throttle to keep the engine at 2000 rpm.)
8. Allow the engine to cool for at least 1 hour.
9. With the battery at full charge or with auxiliary power to provide the power of
a fully charged battery, attempt to start the engine.
10. If the engine will not operate at idle, the procedure is complete.
11. If the engine will operate at idle, repeat steps 6 through 10 until the engine
will no longer idle.
12. Attach a label to the engine that legibly states the following:
This engine is from a vehicle that is part of the Car Allowance Rebate
System (CARS). It has significant internal damage caused by operating
the engine with a sodium silicate solution (liquid glass) instead of oil.

[santafe2]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

For those that care about these things, here are some metrics you can throw around at the office:

Cars for clunkers:

• Is a $1B program
• Will involve up to ~250,000 vehicles
• Ensures each vehicle will get a minimum of 4 mpg better mileage
• At an average of 12,000 miles per year that's 125 gallons of gas per year.
• or - 625M lbs. of CO2 per year.
• or - about $.16 cents per lb. if the car lasts 10 years.

So based on the above it seems clear this is not a program to green up the vehicle fleet. The cap and trade legislation will charge about 1/10th this amount per lb. of CO2. This appears to be a program aimed at boosting vehicle sales in the US by ~2%.

As they say, a billion here, a billion there and pretty soon you're talking about real money.

[grapejelly]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

This is the gubmint's policy to try to raise the prices of goods and services. the lapdog press seems to not understand that destroying something causes a financial loss. Just like they don't understand that government paying people for makework jobs destroys jobs.

[thunderdownunder]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

America's Capitalist system at work.

http://www.businessinsider.com/in-ka...n-ak-47-2009-7

This guy should be in the US Senate

contact details for those who will always be given free Gas

http://www.max71.com/

[GRG55]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

America's Capitalist system at work.

http://www.businessinsider.com/in-ka...n-ak-47-2009-7

This guy should be in the US Senate

contact details for those who will always be given free Gas

http://www.max71.com/

"...Muller calls the initial deal an overwhelming success. He also says it generates a lot of publicity and really angers "liberals."

Worry not "liberals," Muller cannot just send a driver off the lot with an AK-47 in the passenger seat. State law requires potential gunowners to obtain a license before carrying a concealed weapon on their person, though a license may not be necessary for a gun kept in the glove compartment..."

I know that a lot of our European cousins, like Mega, think that American pick-up trucks are too big...but I doubt that an AK-47 will fit in the glove compartment. And could someone please explain to me how to carry one as a "concealed weapon on their person"?

But then in present day America apparently even the "wardrobe challenged" feel they have a constitutional right to conceal a weapon...or at least claim they do...:rolleyes:

Cops: Bikini-clad carjacker held in robbery bid

Workers at RV dealership restrain woman who claimed to have gun

[charliebrown]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

for a good time google thunderwear.com

[charliebrown]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

another idiotic idea from our oh so smart leaders.

did anyone calculate how much energy it will take to create a new car? So we save a few MPG over the short life time of an old car.
The market will take care of this thing. I'm pretty sure the person doing the 60 mile one way commute to work is not driving a 1973 eldarado. those cars would be fine cars for city dwellers who have to park on the street and therefore dont want there 50k b'mer side swiped every 6 months, and who have a short few mile drive to work. My mother-in-law is that old lady who drives to town once a week to go to church, grocery and laundry. one of those cars would be perfect for her.

Can we arbitrage?? Lets say I can buy a clunker from someone who does not want a new car, for say $500.00. Then can I sell it to someone in the market for a new car to 2000.00, if they can get 4500.00 credit for it when they buy their new accord? Hmm???

[GRG55]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

another idiotic idea from our oh so smart leaders.

did anyone calculate how much energy it will take to create a new car? So we save a few MPG over the short life time of an old car.
The market will take care of this thing. I'm pretty sure the person doing the 60 mile one way commute to work is not driving a 1973 eldarado. those cars would be fine cars for city dwellers who have to park on the street and therefore dont want there 50k b'mer side swiped every 6 months, and who have a short few mile drive to work. My mother-in-law is that old lady who drives to town once a week to go to church, grocery and laundry. one of those cars would be perfect for her.

Can we arbitrage?? Lets say I can buy a clunker from someone who does not want a new car, for say $500.00. Then can I sell it to someone in the market for a new car to 2000.00, if they can get 4500.00 credit for it when they buy their new accord? Hmm???

One bad idea deserves another...

First use the taxpayer's money to bail out the allegedly too-big-to-fail auto assemblers [claiming all the while that the born-again companies will magically lead the promised "green car revolution"].

Then use the taxpayer's money to bribe the taxpayer to buy the same old product from the same old auto assemblers [claiming all the while that this will magically fulfil some of that green objective]. Question: If you trade in your '73 Eldorado for a lipstick red 6-cyl Mustang convertible, does that qualify for the subsidy?

[pwcmba]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

Nope! That car is too old. www.cars.gov

"Your vehicle must be less than 25 years old on the trade-in date"

[lurker]

Re: Cash for Clunkers: Destroying Used Car Supply

This is the gubmint's policy to try to raise the prices of goods and services. the lapdog press seems to not understand that destroying something causes a financial loss. Just like they don't understand that government paying people for makework jobs destroys jobs.

Exactly. It reminds me of the morons who thought that repairing the hurricane damage in the gulf would be positive for the economy.

If it were that easy we should just spend all our time bulldozing and rebuilding each others' houses. I suppose that's their next ruse!? They're going to want me to tear down my 1200sf 1912 house because it's not as energy efficient as the 2500sf particle board and vinyl replacements that have been added to the housing stock over the last 10 yrs.