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Cash for Clunkers Passed by Congress: Is there really anything to fear?
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A Cash for Clunkers Candidate- 1989 Lincoln Town Car (Photo: WikiCommons)
So I have written about Cash for Clunkers over the last couple of weeks as it pertains to the collector car industry and now I can report that it has passed Congress and is waiting to be signed by President Obama. I am really making a distinction here by not saying ‘classic’ car industry. The thing about saying the word ‘classic’ and ‘car’ in the same sentence is that people tend to thing about ‘50s or ‘60s era cars. What I have been talking about is really more in reference to cars that are collectible. This is where Cash for Clunkers can cause people some consternation.
The Cash for Clunkers program synopsis is that you have to have to have a vehicle that was made 1984 and later, that gets less than 18 mpg and you have to buy a vehicle that gets better than 22 mpg to get the full $4500 voucher (full details here). I know what you are thinking, ‘1984! Who is collecting anything from then or newer?’ The answer is that there is a younger generation that grew up with the Lincolns of the ‘80s and ‘90s, which incidentally took the lead away from Cadillac for the first time in Lincoln’s history. That is just one example, but you can see the idea here. Crushing cars is one of those things that car collectors look at as a last resort. This is especially true when comes to vehicles that are in good working order (another criteria of the Cash for Clunkers bill).
So back to my question: Is there really anything to fear? Even though I hate to see cars crushed, my honest opinion is no. As many of these cars will probably be wrecked on the roads, as will actually get traded in to a dealer and sent to the crusher. There have been debates about the used parts industry, but the bill has a provision that lets dealers strip the cars and sell them for parts. Whether a dealer will take the time to do that is another story. Another concern is what will happen to the vehicle donation market, but that is really a moot point due to the “good working order” clause I mentioned. So really, the biggest issues, in my opinion, are the actual environmental impacts (there is debate as to whether this will actually reduce production due to the pollution caused by the crushing and recycling process) and the impact on the ability to collect cars from the mid-1980s and on.
Final though: Cash for Clunkers is a plan to create new car sales that is wrapped in a vail of environmentalism and consumer assistance.
For a new car perspective check out my article on the subject at AllSmallCars.com. Also, check out my past news related articles under the News section. You can also find event information in the Events section.
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