How Does 'Cash for Clunkers' Affect Your Shop?

Posted 10/12/2009

Results are now available for vehicles sold under the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), which ended Aug. 25, 2009. The program resulted in $2.87 billion in vehicle rebate applications, just under the $3 billion provided by Congress to run the program, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. A total of 690,114 cars were replaced by more fuel-efficient vehicles.

Key observations of the results include:

• All of the top 10 vehicle models traded in were manufactured by the Big 3 automakers, while eight of the top 10 vehicles purchased were foreign brands.

• The program provides good news for the environment. Eighty-four percent of consumer trade-ins were trucks, while more fuel-efficient passenger cars accounted for 59 percent of new purchases.

• The average fuel economy of the vehicles traded in was 15.8 miles per gallon compared to 24.9 mpg for the vehicles purchased - an improvement of 58 percent.

Based on the final results, the table below shows some key "top 10" lists to help repair shops discern how the program may impact them in their location: