There are approx 20,000 dealers registered, not a “few” thousand. The govt handles Medicare, Medicaid, Vets Administration, and Federal Employees Health Benefits. NO ONE WILL BE REQUIRED TO SIGN UP FOR GOVT HEALTH CARE.

Had to renew registration for another year on the old car with our new car sitting on the lot collecting dust. BTW, like 4 out of 5 buyers, I bought a Toyota. Had Fords until now. Would never buy a union owned Chrysler or GM. Ford was clsoe but could not match Toyota. Japan must be happy with our bailout.

Now my dealer never provided me with the written statement like they are supposed to which communicates the salvage value. I was thinking I would wait a couple weeks and contact the dealer and ask the dealer to provide me with a receipt from the junk yard showing that they only got $50 for my clunker – which was a 2001 Ford Explorer – in pretty nice shape too I might add.

Would dealers rather NOT be selling all these cars?

Because you said they’re not getting ahead while the rebates are held up, but the reality is that they WILL get that money. So that PROFIT is on the way.

You also said they have to pay for things while they wait. Well, they’d be paying for those things without CARS but the PROFIT that they WILL GET wouldn’t be there.

So, I have to wonder: why are the dealers complaining so much and why are they holding people like OhioTim hostage while they wait for their profit?

Shouldn’t they be more grateful to people like OhioTim and all the others posting on here instead of holding them hostage?

My dealer managed to get registered the first day.

My deal (the first for my dealer) was submitted the early morning hours of the second day (Tuesday) of the program.

The dealer still hasn’t heard anything from the NHTSA! I still don’t have my car because the dealer will not finalize and deliver until Uncle Sam approves the deal. Arghhhhh!

Yes they get some money (deal – rebates) but that money goes to pay floor plan financing, employees, overhead, etc. The vouchers represent more than their profit per car in most cases, so dealers don’t make any profit while this is happening and have to pay the bills with their bank credit reserves.

So the increase in sales, increases their draw on reserves and bank line. Dealers are selling cars outside the CARS program which is yielding some profit but the balance is off right now so dealers are net-net not getting ahead while the NHTSA holds up their rebates.

Dealers ARE getting paid the REST of the cost of the cars they are selling, right?

So while they are “floating” the CARS money temporarily, they are CURRENTLY getting the REST of their money.

Right?

I have a serious question for you and for dealers:

Where would this “floating” money otherwise be if it weren’t for the CARS program?

Meaning, if there was no CARS program to stimulate the “nightmare” of new car sales for dealers, then presumably some percentage of the current sales (likely a large %, given the volume being done by dealers) would not exist. That means that the alternative to “floating” money THAT MUST BE PAID BACK BY LAW to the dealers for these transactions, would be NO MONEY at all. Correct?

So, in all seriousness and with understanding of the real burden that CARS puts on dealers to get their money, I ask this question of you and dealers:

Would the dealers rather NOT have sold all those cars?

“…the clunkers program has recorded 157,000 transactions worth $664 million.”

A few conclusions (and serious concerns) can be drawn from that statement…

1. AT THE CURRENT RATE, VOUCHER PROCESSING WILL NEVER “CATCH UP”
CARS has been operational for 7 days, and they have processed 157,000 voucher applications. That boils down to 22,000 vouchers per day. If 20,000 dealers are registered, the CARS website is averaging roughly ONE voucher per dealer per day. At this rate, sales are easily out-pacing the rate at which the CARS website can handle applications. In other words, the system will NEVER catch up until sales have been halted for several days (or weeks)!

2. THE NUMBER OF UNSUBMITTED VOUCHER REQUESTS COULD BE HUGE
157,000 voucher requests have been processed…but every dealer says they have only been able to enter a fraction of their actual deals into the CARS website. The number of unsubmitted voucher requests could be in the HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS right now.

3. CARS IS BURNING THROUGH CASH AT AN ALARMING RATE
CARS is processing voucher applications at a snail’s pace…and a large number of voucher requests aren’t even in the system. Yet CARS is still burned through $95M per day over the last 7 days. Not only is the original funding gone, they are easily well into the 2nd billion by now.