Cash for clunkers question..........

[roadhawg]

This is just a hypothetical question I wanted to throw out and listen to your opinions on. It concerns the recent "Cash For Clunkers" program, that I was very much against anyway....but what do I know?

Anyway....according to the program, the vehicles traded in are to be crushed....not parted out or resold....CRUSHED.

Lets say Joe Grasscutter is cutting grass at a Toyota dealer. Ol' Joe has an '88 Ford pickup he tows his lawn mower with. Once, ol' Joe let his drunk brother-in-law borrow his '88 Ford pickup and he backed it into a pole...caving in the tailgate.

Ok...ol'Joe is cutting the grass here and notices an '88 Ford pickup that was traded in....in the Cash For Clunkers program. It has a PERFECT tailgate, and the same color as Joes. Joe figures its gonna get crushed anyway, so while no one is looking, he swaps his bent tailgate for the good one. Now, his truck is fixed for free, and the clunker thats getting crushed is STILL, technically, complete. All his friends pat him on the back, and say "way to go, Joe! Smart thinkin!"

Is what Joe did ok?

[B_rad88]

well, if i was joe, i would have done the samething! i know it might be wrong, but like what you said, each car is crushed and shreaded! whitch i think is a big stupid waste! but if i was in joe's shoes, i would have done it! i say scrap the broken/busted junk, and keep the good stuff!

[B_rad88]

moraly its wrong, but yeah!

and no car is a clunker unless it looks like this:

[shlajh02]

moraly its wrong, but yeah!

and no car is a clunker unless it looks like this:

Thats oozes with class!

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

I was at a junk yard recently and talked to the guy there. Man they are hostile about this program and I can't really say I disagree. If they do away with all the klunkers then if you have one, you'll not be able to get used parts for it and the parts that are available will cost you new part prices or more. They already charge 50% of new part costs now. What about ppl who can't afford to buy a new car or can't get financing.

I drive a 95 cadillac, but it gets 30 to 37 mpg. No way I'm gonna trade it in on a roller skate that only gets 28.

Edited September 6, 2009 by Gramps-xrds

[LDO]

It's only the engine that can't be resold. Anything else can be sold.

What Joe did is called theft. He took something without paying for it.

As far as junkyard owners getting upset, all they have to do is say No when a dealer calls and asks them to pick up a clunker. No one will make them take a car with the most valuable parts destroyed.

[Aaronw]

Did Joe put his whacked tail gate on the to be crushed pickup? If so what's the problem (assuming no trespassing etc laws were broken), kind of like dumpster diving to get a wheel off a busted stroller to fix your kids wagon. I'm assuming he had some kind of approval from the owner of the truck (Toyota dealer), at least a "what I don't see..." kind of deal, if not I'd agree with LDO, its no different than swapping tailgates with a used truck on the lot (not ok).

I'm not a fan of these cash for clunkers programs either. They have been tried a number of times and all have failed to work as imagined, although I believe this one was designed more to stimulate new car buisness rather than reduce fuel consumption / smog production. Personally I would be more open to the idea if the cars were recycled (parted out) rather than crushed. I don't really have a problem with a no resale clause, I just don't like top see a limited supply of parts go to waste if they are desirable to restorers.

I did not know the engine was the only part that had to go, I'm more ok with that.

Edited due to responses while I was posting

Edited September 6, 2009 by Aaronw

[Lyn]

here is a very good link about that. I was not aware of what they did with the cars either, I thought they totally crushed the. seems they only have 180 days to sell off the parts once they get them. So I can see why a pull and go junk yard would be ticked off.

Thank you for the Post. I learned something today!

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/...1914367,00.html

[Lyn]

here is a very good link about that. I was not aware of what they did with the cars either, I thought they totally crushed the. seems they only have 180 days to sell off the parts once they get them. So I can see why a pull and go junk yard would be ticked off.

Thank you for the Post. I learned something today!

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/...1914367,00.html

oh and Joe would be wrong. I would have felt his pain, but still wrong.

[Harry P.]

... I believe this one was designed more to stimulate new car buisness rather than reduce fuel consumption / smog production...

Yeah, it stimulated car sales alright... foreign car sales! Of the top 10 cars sold under the "Cash for Clunkers" program, eight were Asian makes, two were Ford. GM and Chrysler had none in the top ten. So much for helping out our auto industry. Our government just spent billions of our tax dollars fattening up the bottom line at Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai.

[Guest Mustang3.8]

It's only the engine that can't be resold. Anything else can be sold.

What Joe did is called theft. He took something without paying for it.

As far as junkyard owners getting upset, all they have to do is say No when a dealer calls and asks them to pick up a clunker. No one will make them take a car with the most valuable parts destroyed.

I highly disagree. The truck was on public property, it was gonna be destroyed anyway. No laws were broken.

[Lownslow]

what your friend did was commit a Federal Crime

[Lownslow]

Yeah, it stimulated car sales alright... foreign car sales! Of the top 10 cars sold under the "Cash for Clunkers" program, eight were Asian makes, two were Ford. GM and Chrysler had none in the top ten. So much for helping out our auto industry. Our government just spent billions of our tax dollars fattening up the bottom line at Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai.

i tried to clunker my car at a GM dealer all they did was give me the run around so i told them to F/O. Ford and Hyundai were more than willing to help but the payments were still out of my range.

[Guest Mustang3.8]

what your friend did was commit a Federal Crime

How is that a federal crime?

[roadhawg]

what your friend did was commit a Federal Crime

Lol.....Joe Grasscutter ain't my friend! If he was, he'd be over here cutting MY grass! Thanks for the replies. I did not know about the engine thing....the way I understood it, the whole car had to be destroyed.

I just wanted to see if I was off base on this. What brought this whole thing up was a discussion with a friend about getting a new bed for my pickup. He suggested I do something like that....I think that while it would make no difference in the general scheme of things, taking something that belongs to someone else is stealing, and wrong. I just couldn't do it.

[Lownslow]

How is that a federal crime?

its Government property

[Lyn]

I would go to the dealership and ask them about the truck bed. All they can do is say no. It would be worth a shot. I think they are allowed to part them out.

I agree.. I can't see why they would say no if that particular dealership was going to just crush the cars anyway.

I don't think the government owns the cars once they are traided in, maybe the engins. so would it really be a federal crime? a crime yes, moral and civil yes. but federal?

[Lyn]

Thats oozes with class!

hey now Brandon one of those guys may just be my future ex husband.. kinda diggen the truck

[my80malibu]

its Government property

Theoretically its not Government property, Until the paperwork is completed and the dealer has received its payment for it.

[Guest Mustang3.8]

moraly its wrong, but yeah!

and no car is a clunker unless it looks like this:

"And they loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly, Hills that is, swimmin' pools, movie stars." Where's Granny?

[my80malibu]

Yeah, it stimulated car sales alright... foreign car sales! Of the top 10 cars sold under the "Cash for Clunkers" program, eight were Asian makes, two were Ford. GM and Chrysler had none in the top ten. So much for helping out our auto industry. Our government just spent billions of our tax dollars fattening up the bottom line at Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai.

I Feel the Government should have stipulated Buy American. Now that may be wrong in a free market society. but the consumers chose the cars that they felt would do them the most Good.Personally I have owned both Domestic and foreign. and have had good luck with both and if I had needed a car at this point in time I would have bought a domestic model rather than foreign to stimulate the economy in my Country and to assist the American carmakers with needed funding to aid them in developing new technology and better ideas to overcome the stigma that Foreign car are superior. JMHO

[Harry P.]

I agree with you.

Now, I don't have any problem with foreign cars... in fact, I think it's a good thing when consumers have a wide choice, foreign and domestic. And I also like to let the free market work on its own, without government interference, which is why I opposed the bailouts to GM and Chrysler. But if the government is going to spend OUR tax dollars in the form of rebates to car buyers in an attempt to spur auto sales, shouldn't those rebates only have applied if you bought a domestic car??? Just seems like it would have been the right way to go about it...

[Rob Hall]

I agree with you.

Now, I don't have any problem with foreign cars... in fact, I think it's a good thing when consumers have a wide choice, foreign and domestic. And I also like to let the free market work on its own, without government interference, which is why I opposed the bailouts to GM and Chrysler. But if the government is going to spend OUR tax dollars in the form of rebates to car buyers in an attempt to spur auto sales, shouldn't those rebates only have applied if you bought a domestic car??? Just seems like it would have been the right way to go about it...

Politically, the bill would never have passed had it been limited to domestics...all the Reps/Senators from states w/ foreign plants would voted against it.

[Rob Hall]

Speaking of C4C, I received a number of solicitations in the mail from various auto dealers incl. the one I bought my Jeep from new inviting me to C4C my Jeep. A 2000 w/ over 100k miles, it was prime C4C material...but mine is in excellent condition and probably is worth more than $4500, and I still like it.. Going to keep it for winter use when I buy my next new car.

[B_rad88]

hey now Brandon one of those guys may just be my future ex husband.. kinda diggen the truck

LOL!!!!!