The problem is that people see this and think they get the trade in value of their car AND another $4500 on top.

That isn't the case.

They will give you $4500 for your car, and that's it. There is no trade in value because they are taking the car and crushing it. It will not be sold.

The point of this is to get you to buy a new car AND to take poor fuel economy vehicles off the street.

The issue of paying for someone else's car aside, my problem with this is that the taxpayer is REWARDING asshats who made poor decisions (horrible fuel economy vehicle purchase).

If we HAD to do something, I'd suggest raising taxes on fuel, that way anyone with inefficient vehicles will have incentive to move on.

 

^ lol then the 8 wouldnt exist!!!!! we would all have to move on lol jk but i totally get ur point i have the 8 coz i can afford the gas but yeah why should we pay for ppls mistakes plus i dont think it will work anyway coz we will end up with a billion repos coz ppl couldnt afford what they got

 

Speaking of cash for clunkers.... saw this online.... how sad

 

Lol, clunkers in big bins are so hack. Every dealer in my area had one, but that is the damn best looking clunker I've seen thus far!

Cash for Refrigerators is next. When will it end?!?!

 

No joke all these cars people are getting are going to be repo's and then we will have the give money to the people who have no car.

 

WOW, that is an FC...what a shame, it looks really clean from here, they even did the tires!!

 

The automotive loan process isn't quite as regulated as the housing loan process is so I wouldn't make the claim that these people are not going to be able to afford the car they bought. The point is that these were all potential customers at some point within the next 2 to 5 years for sure. Now the automotive companies have exhausted their major source of customers for that period of time.

It's kind of like winning the lottery and deciding whether or not to take smaller payments over the course of your life or one huge payout right now but you lose a sizable portion of the overall amount you would have gotten.

The auto industry took a huge loss in potential sales for a quick buck right now. The problem is they have not seen the profit from those sales cause the government isn't dishing out all the cash. If the paperwork gets rejected I imagine the dealers will have to eat the cost because the car is technically paid for.

Plants which might have kept a few people working for a long period of time might have to close completely because of the pending fall in demand.

The sad thing is if they really wanted to stimulate the economy all they had to do was find a way to get money into the hands of people who spend it which are consumers. This came close but the money mostly went to foreign car companies.

 

with toyota topping everyone... my biggest complaint about the whole ordeal (other than the billions now added to the national deficit). they should have forced to buy american automaker's vehicles as the only option. just another huge debt to american society to help overseas distributors... more national debt to help foreigners, the american way...

of course im kind of hypocritical being I own an 8 and a tribute... but i also didnt get 4500 in rebates from our government.

 

^If it makes you feel better, Ford probably owned Mazda when your cars were built, so some $ stayed here :p

*edit... ok, so they owned the controlling share of Mazda, not all of it

 

Uhh....Ford never owned Mazda. They owned Mazda shares, enough for them to have a seat on the board and share alot of stuff, but Mazda was never owned by anyone but Mazda.

 

What technically is a "american car" now a days. Most of your Ford and GM cars are built in other countries (Canada and Mexico while plants in the US keep getting closed). While Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Nissan etc..., have a ton of plants here in the US. You could make the argument that their are more "american" or "overseas" cars made in the US than actual american cars. Hell I'm driving a rental Nissan Maxima for work while out of town, that was built in Tennessee.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2...-plants-4.html

 

I just saw an article saying that the $4,500 rebate is being considered as earned income by the IRS. So when people are going to register their new vehicles they are having to pay the taxes on that rebate!

Whoops!

 

It figures. Why would the government ever be expected to do anything properly. Especially the current one?

 

The repo man will be busy as hell for a good while from this program.

 

Exactly.

All this talk of interest rates, equity markets, housing sales, cash for clunkers, blah blah blah...in the meantime, we keep losing more jobs, people are getting paid less in both real and nominal terms in many industries, people are losing health insurance and benefits...you have ******** on CNBC saying we "lost less jobs this month than last..." - first, even if that's true, we've lost millions of jobs, and second, what's to keep the number of jobs cut from not ticking upward again, maybe starting in a few months or next year?

Jobs. Wages. Benefits & health insurance. True patriots would make this America's number one mission.

Anytime the talking heads get one distracted from this with talk of flattening yield curves, interest rates, stimulus, blah blah....remember....JOBS.

Jobless people don't spend money. People fearing they'll lose their jobs don't spend any money they don't HAVE TO.

Their are a lot of jobless people and people fearing they'll lose their jobs right now.