The Cash for Clunkers Government program is no longer an incentive to purchase new energy efficient cars as the money for the program has been used up prior to this writing which was published in October, 2009.  The information following this update and notification is useful information about the Cash for Clunkers Government Program when it was being implemented and how the car industry was effected during the beginning of the incentive program and the replenishment which did not take the new car program to October of 2009 as the published date of this update.

What is the Cash for Clunkers government program? The Transportation Department allotted $1 billion of the Cash for Clunkers program. The program has since been replenished by $2 billion because of its overall popularity.

The Cash for Clunkers program offers owners of qualifying cars $3,500 to $4,500 toward the price of a new car. The program is basically a car allowance rebate system and the trade in car has to meet certain requirements. The new car or truck must be priced under $45,000. The traded in old clunker must be registered and insured the year preceding the trade in. The cash for clunker car must be driveable and be less than 25 years old. Cars older than 25 years old are considered antiques. One other stipulation about the cash for clunker program is that the car or truck must have a combined EPA city/highway fuel economy of 18 mpg or less.

The cash for clunkers program according to wire reports is that the popular trade in incentive program fund of $1 billion seems to have been exhausted in one week. The program could have been suspended effective July 31, 2009. Word from the White House is that the Cash for Clunkers program has not been suspended. The situation is being assessed by the White House as of publication of this article. Obama’s press secretary, Robert Gibbs said that all qualified car transactions that have taken place to date will be honored. Now as more money has been alloted to the Cash for Clunkers Program, there will be more car transactions of this type.

The official name for the Cash for Clunkers program is the Car Allowance Rebate System program. The purpose of the Cash for Clunkers program is to boost automobile sales and to remove inefficient cars from the highways. The Cash for Clunkers has been in operation for a few weeks and is to be prolonged because of the additional $2 billion dollar allotment..

Car sales have been surging since the Cash for Clunkers program began with car dealerships saying that they are having to search to replenish their stock of cars where ever they can find inventory across the country. The Cash for Clunkers program has depleted car inventories because of its popularity with savings of $3,500 to $4,500 towards the purchase price of a new car.

Because of the Cash for Clunkers program almost 23,000 cars have been purchased nationwide through the program at a cost of about $96 million. The purchase has to be processed through the government system, however, and may cause a huge backlog in processing car deals. According to the National Automobile Dealers Association about 25,000 deals have yet to be accounted fo, processed or approved. The billion dollar cash for clunkers program had allowed for the purchase of about 250,000 car sales.

Car sales are being doubled across the country because of the Cash for Clunkers Program. The government program is putting dealership in an economic state that was prevalent before the economic recession that began in December of 2007. Dealerships are reporting that certain brands of their new cars are selling out because of the Cash for Clunkers Program. In addition, dealerships are adding their own incentive discounts doubling the $4,500 discount on brand new cars for the cash for clunker trade in to $9,000.

The cash for clunkers trade in cars will head for salvage after closing the car sale. Car hobbyists have reservations about the cash for clunkers program as the cash for clunkers trade in cars will be shredded with the possibility of whole cars being destroyed. Car collectors are not happy with the cash for clunkers programs because some of these trade in cars were with them in their formative years of growing up.

Car enthusiasts would like to restore and collect the cars eligible for the Cash to Clunkers program. They admit, however, that although they respect what the government is trying to do to protect the environment and to boost car industry sales after the shortfall of Chrysler and GM , they are not supportive from a collector or restoration point of view. Other car collections see the value in the cash for clunkers program. These car collectors are saying that a few cash for clunkers may have value more than $4,500 of which the car dealership would not dispose of but would attempt to sell on the car lot at face value. Also the cash for clunkers engine may be saved while the other parts can be recycled.

Salvage yards have six months in which to dispose of the clunkers as a part of the Cash for Clunkers program. During that time they are paid between $150 to $200 to dispose of the vehicle. Vehicles that are running as part of the cash for clunkers program has the engine oil removed and refill with a sodium solution that will stop the car from running. The salvage company, a business that has not felt the effects of the recession has seen business sales soar as a result of the cash for clunkers program.

The cash for clunkers program is a boost for the car industry, the environment,salvage businesses and the consumer in getting the cars that are not fuel efficient and environmentally friendly safely off of the road.

For full details on the Cash for Clunkers government stimulus plan sign in to Cars.gov or your nearest automobile dealer website of the car of your interest.