If your clunker has been disqualified for a NHTSA Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) credit, let us suggest a few things you can do to get into a more fuel efficient car. 

There is no immediate relief  for car owners looking to change the rules associated with the Cash for Clunkers bill.  The NHTSA does not have the power to change the bill that was signed into law; they can only interpret the law and create operational rules.

Those who feel that the rules created by Congress are unfair can fight back.  You can also give up and sell your clunker and be a better car shopper.  You decide.

For NHTSA Disqualified Clunker Owners

1. Cash for Clunkers Petition – If additional funding is needed, which we predict, to operate the program until November 1st, consumers can join in a nationwide petition to change the rules that would apply to supplemental program funding. The online petition on this website is requesting that Congress update the rules for the Cash for Clunkers to accommodate real-life mpg ratings. If additional monies are approved, consumers want those new monies open to a NET-10 rule. Purchase a new car that is rated at 10 mpg better than your existing clunker, regardless of age and you get a $4,500 credit. See petition website for details.
2. Cash for Your Car - If your clunker won’t qualify for the NHTSA Cars credit there are car buying services that will pay cash for any clunker regardless of its condition, mpg rating or age. If your car is not in driveable condition, the cash for your car would be based on scrapyard prices. For consumers who have cars that are still in drive-able condition, car buying service may be a way to get fast cash for your clunker. You can use that cash towards a new or used car with better gas mileage. Sell Your Clunker today.
3. Shop for new car incentives- There are many car manufacturers that are offering significant cash incentives on 2008 and 2009 models. Car sales are down and dealers are sitting on aging inventory which puts you in a strong position to negotiate a great deal. Here are some starting point examples:

1. 2009 Hyundai Elantra – $2,000 factory incentive
2. 2009 Ford Focus – $2,500 factory incentives
3. 2008 Chevy Malibu – $2,750 factory incentives
4. 2009 Nissan Sentra – $2,000 factory incentives

Keep in mind that consumers should also ask for additional “dealer cash” to lower the price of the new car even more. Any leftover 2008 models will be priced to move, if they exist in your area.

Used Car Sales

Consumers who still can not qualify for a new car loan should consider the value and savings that used cars may offer. There are many late model used cars with considerably higher gas mileage available for purchase. Some critics of the bill had advocated that the CARS credit should be applied to qualifying used car sales. The reason was clear; the cars already were depreciated.

However, the Cash for Clunkers bill was also designed to stimulate new car sales so using the CARS credit for used cars was not approved.

Today GM emerged from bankruptcy with a new announcement that they will be testing a program to have car dealers in California list their cars on eBay.  Consumers could then go to eBay and shop for cars and compare prices. 

This is not a ground-breaking announcement.  For GM’s first day in business, is this their strongest new idea?  We hope not.

I’m note sure what will be different since car dealers can advertise on eBay now.  Will the program be any different from what www.autotrader.com or www.cars.com  is offering consumers? 

GM corporation and local dealers have  utilized car inventory listing and price comparison services from websites that include cars.com, autotrader.com and edmunds.com.  Today’s announcement is not great news for competing car advertising platforms.  I guess the “Buy It Now” feature on eBay seduced GM executives.  However, we predict that the “Buy it Now” feature will NOT be used very often on commodity cars; the bulk of car sales.

If you take the eBay patented “Buy It Now” feature off the table, I’m not sure why GM would single out one platform for their car sales.  Dealers like to have a competitive advantage when selling cars.  Putting all GM dealers on one platform will not sit well with California dealers if they are mandated to participate.

Requesting a New Car Price Quote

The jury will be out until we can see how the GM and eBay plan will be implemented.  In the meantime, if you would like a local dealer to call and compete for your business, complete the form on the left.  We’ll have a local dealer contact you with a personalized price quote based on your choice and trade-in.

Consumers who have been locked out of the Car Allowance Rebate System are urged to join a new online petition which will be sent to Congress.  Currently, consumers whose cars are rated as averaging 19 MPG or more, based on government estimates, are not eligible for a credit regardless of their actual miles per gallon experience. 

Consumers are disgruntled over the government’s standardized fuel ratings which are posted at www.fueleconomy.gov.  The fuel ratings do not take into consideration wear and tear to vehicles which prevents them from attaining the MPG numbers the vehicle was originally estimated to achieve. 

Add your name to the petition.

Most consumers understand that the NHTSA is only responsible for implementing the program and is not responsible for the restrictions of the bill.  Therefore, a new website was established as an outlet for consumers to be heard by the sponsors of the bill. 

This website, is taking comments from consumers who want their voices heard.  By joining the online petition, consumers will add their names to the petition list that will be sent to the original sponsors of the Cash for Clunkers legislation.  The goal is to make sure Congress hears their voices if additional funding is requested. 

The most common complaint from consumers is that the Federal website rates their “clunker” at 19, 20 or 21 combined mpg.  Consumers are adamant that their vehicle’s condition prevents it from getting anywhere near that mpg number.  For example, one reader wrote in to the site, “I have a 2001 Infiniti I-30 with 220,000 miles. The EPA MPG says I am getting 20 mpg. That is a joke. I have 220,000 miles on my car. I would be lucky to be operating at 18 mpg.”  These types of complaints are flooding the www.cashforclunkersfacts.com blog site in the SPEAK UP forum. 

Another consumer wrote, “Regarding the Car Allowance Rebate System. I currently drive a 1995 model car that I have owned for 12 years. According to the website fueleconomy.gov, it has a “new” mpg rating of 20 which means that I do not qualify for the CARS program. The MPG when the car was new was 22. This is disappointing as I do not understand how a change of ONLY 2 mpg is calculated on a 14 year old vehicle!”

NET-10 Cash for Clunkers Proposal

The ‘No Cash for Clunkers’ website suggests an alternative qualification model called:  NET-10.  If a consumer trades in their “clunker” for another new vehicle that gets at least 10 mpg  more than their current clunker, they would qualify for the $4,500 credit. 

This type of revision will accomplish the fuel conservation and environmental goals of the bill and will also remove the penalty from consumers who have a car that is operating at much less of a fuel efficiency than the government’s standardized estimates suggests. 

For more information on the No Cash for Clunkers petition, consumers are encouraged to visit http://www.nocashforclunkers.com/