Cash for Clunkers: I got in before the money ran out
Filed under: Transportation
It seems timing really is everything. If I had waited just one more day to join the thousands filing into car dealers across the country looking to cash in on the government's latest attempt to reboot the economy, the Cash for Clunkers program, I might not have scored my rebate."There are quite a few people who are qualifying for this program," said Steve Hansen, a car salesman in Watertown, NY where I went to trade in my own clunker on Thursday, at the time not realizing that the program was doomed. So many, in fact, that the government is considering a suspension of the program at midnight Friday to deal with the backlog. As of late Wednesday, nearly 23,000 cars had been purchased through the program, taking a $96 million dollar bite out of the allotted $1 billion in less than a week.
The rapidly disappearing "Clunker" funds have caught the attention of some in Congress. On Wednesday, Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., wrote a letter to House leaders requesting additional funding for the program. "The federal government must come up with more money, immediately, to keep this program going," she said on Thursday.
The clunky process
Sneaking in under the wire, I said good-bye to my gas-guzzling carbon-footprint-leaving 1997 Isuzu Rodeo (hey, it ain't pretty, but it was long paid for), opting for a fuel efficient Suzuki Sx4 crossover...and 48 months of car payments.
But the road to the rebate wasn't easy. And it certainly wasn't short.
I admit I was never fond of homework in high school. So it's no surprise I failed to brush up on what's expected of consumers eager to cash in at one of the nearly 16,000 participating car dealers in the U.S. If I had, I would have learned that in order to qualify, I needed more than a clunker. Consumers need to provide proof of insurance for one full year on the car they are turning in. And even though I've never gone a day without car insurance coverage, I couldn't prove it. So began my odyssey with the Car Allowance Rebate System (a.k.a. Cash for Clunkers).
A few calls to my insurance agent and a trip to his office to retrieve proof of coverage and I was back at my local Suzuki dealer.
The good news: I qualified for a $3500 rebate, more than Kelly Blue Book said my car is worth. The bad news: the salesman wasn't as apt to "deal" to put me behind the wheel of new car as he was a month ago. After all, I was already getting more than my clunker was worth. "There's a lot of paperwork we have to fill out," he said, further trying to justify his reticence to haggle. Oh yeah, and the money's quickly running out for the program, which softens my negotiating stance.
Once we agreed on (more like stopped arguing over) the price, the tide of paperwork came in. Granted, signing a mountain of papers is standard when purchasing a new car. But the clunker program definitely bogged down the already cumbersome purchasing process. "There are a lot of pre-qualifying steps needed to make sure all the documentation is in hand before we can proceed with the deal," Hansen explained as I robotically signed. Some of those forms are aimed at proving things like ownership and proof of insurance. Almost six hours later, my journey with the car dealer came to a close.
Their journey with the rebate process had only just begun.
Car dealers, once anxious to clear out inventory, are now worried about getting payment from the government. "We have to apply for the rebate voucher for you and then wait to get our money from the government. Who knows who long it will be before we see that," said Hansen. Who knows indeed. Hopefully, the money won't run out before the 25,000 deals that have yet to be approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to a survey of 2,000 dealers by the National Automobile Dealers Association, are completed.
All I know is, I got mine in time.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
7-31-2009 @ 10:21AM
Gerald Kauffman said...
Why are we subsidizing foreign car?
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 12:48PM
Gordon said...
Why not. We send funds over the pond to other banks from the FED and to oversea based companys by congress. It is "we have the money, they get to use it".
7-31-2009 @ 1:09PM
billy said...
right we are america and we should be only rebating american company cars ford ,gm,chrysler
7-31-2009 @ 3:07PM
sara said...
Because there are Toyota and Honda plants here in the US that keep AMERICAN workers WORKING!!! Why do you think they changed the bill from "American" cars only? GM and Ford also employ plenty of people in their foreign plants while they close plants here in the U.S. There is a fine line between what is an American car and what is not these days.
7-31-2009 @ 4:19PM
hellooscar said...
Life is so cool !!! a good place for us Seeking for the stimulation------Wealthyconnect --C O M ----i think u would like it,,,trust me u may find something make u excited.now join free
7-31-2009 @ 8:26PM
Lou said...
I agree we need to be helping American dealers not foreign!!
Lou @ http://EarningFreeMoney.com
7-31-2009 @ 10:21AM
Shari said...
The problem I see with this program are people who are driving the clunkers probably do not have the credit to finance a new vehicle and have no choice but to drive a clunker that is already paid for. Not to mention with the doubling of the VLF (vehicle licensing fee) who can afford a new vehicle.
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8-01-2009 @ 8:28PM
Red Oscar said...
Shari..............Not everyone who drives an old car is poor. We traded in a 19 year old Astro Van for a new Dodge Caliber under the CARS program. We had paid cash for the Astro when it was new, and we paid cash for the Dodge.
Personally, I would have continued to drive the Astro for at least another 5 years had we not gotten the new Dodge for half price. The CARS credit added to the factory and dealer discounts was just too good to pass up.
7-31-2009 @ 10:26AM
cchaneyjr said...
who is doing this math?
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7-31-2009 @ 11:21AM
E. NARDONE said...
This is so typical of the Obama new america leadership no body thinks things out they all have good intensions but come up short.After we gave away billions they relize that there is not enough money to fix the crumbiling infastructure. The unemployed got automatic extended benefits, months latter with benefits running out the unemployment rate climbs. The prez, keeps trying to ram his health package down our throats,the majority reject it.Americans are going to bed hungry , new taxes on everything, and everything is manfuctured in china.Rebats for your clunker ,did they think working Americans wouldent know a good deal when they see one. And the prez, has a beer with the guys after dissing the entire law enforcment community.
7-31-2009 @ 11:09AM
terree said...
I had pretty much the same experience. I qualified for and received $4500 for a 1999 Explorer that was my husband's daily driver. I know the dealer didn't give me as good of a price as he would have if I were not qualifying for the program though so it took a lot of my negotiation leverage out of the picture. I am really happy with my new car though, so the eternally long transaction and amount of paperwork was worth it!
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 12:32PM
brat judy said...
ya but my question to everyone is this~
you just traded in a car that you own out right~
that uses a lil more gas than a honda~
now you have 5 years of payments and full coverage insurance to pay!!!!!!!!!!
can you really afford it if you lose your job or your house???
sure go ahead trade it in!!!! you cant get it back!!! they just siezed your engine and crushed your car!!!!
ask the dealers if they have seen any of the cash back to them yet!
I know of three who have not!!!!!! That the used vehicles are just sitting on there lots!! Because the rules keep changing!!!
good Idea to get the automobile industry out of trouble???
hello they got themselves there!!!
if the pres. wants to help all us lil people~~~ then why not give us the money so we can choose who to pay, credit cards or house payments or car payments, Ya know maybe my house is more important than that car in the driveway~that oh now I have to make payments on for the next 5 years!!!!
Maybe if they let us decide what to spend the money on instead of them telling us~ we'd would start seeing alot of us get out of the hole!!!!
Easy way~ give the people who filed taxes~ a check~ let them decided how to spend it~ not the gov. tell us what vehicle we can spend it on!!!
I am sorry but this is all crap!!!!! And guess what~ I am a used car dealer~~~~ who by the way just lost my income source cause the gov. just said to crush all those used cars that normally I would buy and then sell back. It's ok though~ because the pres. said so!! Hu~~~ tell that to my kids!!!
This is just a big load of crap!
7-31-2009 @ 11:34AM
Corina said...
they gave you the car on the spot? they are not doing that here in NY i have to wait to be approved anyone have to go thru this yet? and how long did it take? i'm worried cause the paper work was submitted Tuesday and still no approval yet they said 1-3 days
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 12:20PM
Theresa said...
Corina,
I live in Pa and we signed all the papers Wed evening. The dealer told us we had to wait for them to receive their voucher from the gov't, then I could pick up my Ford focus.
Did this happen to you or they just didn't approve you for the program??
I am a little nervous because we signed a paper stating that we were taking delivery on the car that night. My 94' Jeep was being sent to the scrap yard the next day.
Theresa
7-31-2009 @ 2:11PM
eavbroweyes said...
We went to a Ford dealer and they told us we needed to wait 10 days.........so we left that dealership and went down the road to a Hyundai dealer and drove off that night with a 2009 Elantra......thankfully we didn't wait like the Ford dealer wanted us to..............
8-01-2009 @ 7:30AM
DMC said...
Yes our paperwork was submitted in Boston area on Wed. and NO the dealer will not release the car until they get confirmation. They are working around the clock and have no idea how long before getting an answer. They told me that the government is hiring extra people to help with all the pending deals.
7-31-2009 @ 12:08PM
Deb said...
We also participated in this, trading in my loved but nearly worthless (maybe $2K) 1997 Grand Voyager for a Dodge Avenger for our daughter. This was not in the long range budget plan, but our dealer offered to double the cash back, so we got $3500 C.A.R.S. money, $4500 incentive from the dealer, and as we have purchased 5 cars in 10 years from them, they gave us "friends and family price". How could we not pass up over $8000 in incentives to get her a new car? Now, please, let the dealer get their money, as you also have to sign a paper stating that if the govt. money runs out before the dealer gets it, YOU owe it to them!
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 11:58AM
Jeff said...
Here we go again. It all sounds really good just like the Real Estate boom or should I say bust. Wait until next year when all of the new car owners miss a few car payments. Let the repo business begin. There will be millions of car owners unable to make the car payments just like they could not make there mortgage payments. The market will be flooded with late model car inventory. Wait 1 year then buy a car that has been repo'd. Or better yet buy a used wrecker and start a repo business you just might get rich.
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 12:01PM
Paulinne said...
I will keep my clunker, thank you. Its paid for and the insurance is low. Makes up for the large new car payment and large new car insurance.
Reply
7-31-2009 @ 12:41PM
raul2 said...
It seems like a good program to get the automobile industry rolling again.
But if its our tax dollars being used why are people allowed to but a foriegn car? That money will be leaving our country not promoting our economy.
BUY AMERICAN PEOPLE WAKE UP!
Reply