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Update:  Thursday July 16th – Letters to dealers should be mailed out tomorrow, July 17th so dealers should have the letters by Monday.  The CARS program is still set to go live on Friday, July 24th.

When the NHTSA hot-line was called today and asked if dealer registration letters were put out in the mail, the answer was NO. 

We predict that the size of the mailing will be over 20,000 pieces; addressed to new car dealers across the country.   Time is running out for getting the program started by July 24, 2009. 

If the NHTSA registration letters were mailed tomorrow on July 15th, we project that a majority of dealers would get the letters on Friday July 17th. That would give every new car dealer in the United states four normal business days to register for the NHTSA Car Allowance Rebate Program if we are to go by the projected July 24th start date.

The scope of this massive registration effort makes us think that a starting date of July 24th seems impossible.  There is no publically confired date for when the letters will be mailed.

Questions on the implementation of the Cash for Clunkers bill remain unanswered.

Will the NHTSA be able to accommodate 20,000 dealer registrations in a short period of time?

The dealer registration process will require the NHTSA to validate the information that is submitted by car dealers. Common sense would also indicate that a number of applications will not be properly submitted the first time around.

This gigantic project, dropped on the NHTSA’s lap, had unrealistic implementation dates from the start.

CARS Final Ruling

The final rules for the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) will be ready for prime time by July 24, 2009.   The odds of the CARS program starting on July 24th with registered dealers are very unpredictable.

Will NHTSA allow dealers to participate as long as their application is pending? No one seems to know at this point.

We will wait for the official rules to be posted on the only official website for the CARS program: http://www.cars.gov.

In the meantime car dealers will have to deal with the uncertainty of the process and without clear facts until next week. Car dealers are also having to deal with the increasingly irritated consumer population who would like to purchase a car under this program and has been told to wait.

The Car Allowance Rebate Program (CARS), the NHTSA program to implement the ”Cash for Clunker” bill,  will be officially start on Friday July 24, 2009.  This was confirmed on July 16th from the NHTSA media relations department and will start regardless if all dealers have regsistered online by that date.

Car dealers across the nation and consumers alike have been following the progress of the bill  on www.CashforClunkersFacts.com.  Consumers were originally looking forward to a July 1^st start date, which would have made for a frenzied 4th of July holiday shopping weekend.   Now they will have to wait till July 24th to purchase their new car.

The only official Federal website for CARS is located at http://www.cars.gov.

Consumers can follow late breaking developments on the start of the new bill by signing up for email alerts on in the upper left corner of this page or following the live stream of information on Twitter.  The Twitter site is http://twitter.com/cashclunkers

The Cash for Clunkers bill cleared its first major hurdle after being approved in the House by a vote of 298 to 119.  The next step for the bill is to be added to the Supplemental Appropriations bill conference report, which must be approved by both the House and Senate. 

During the House floor debate, Mazda was called out as one of the automakers supporting the Cash for Clunkers bill in addition to the Detroit 3, Toyota, and Honda.  Toyota could stand to gain the most if the bill passes, as the CashforClunkersfacts.com website reports that Toyota car models lead consumer interest in fuel efficient cars.

The proposal is aimed at jumpstarting the sale of new cars and trucks, with a voucher of up to $4500 given to those who purchase new, more fuel efficient cars.   Environmentalists have their eye on the bill as well as the regulations put forth by the act could mean more environmentally friendly cars on the road, which in turn could reduce the carbon footprint and help position the US to be less dependent on foreign oil.  

Email Alerts

Consumers who would like an email notification when the bill is approved and signed into law, should use our Email Alert signup form in the upper corner of this website.

Cash For Guzzlers Participating Dealers

Consumers who want the best information on their trade and the car they want to purchase, should complete the form on the left.   Fill in the car you would be trading in and indicate the car that you want to purchase.

We’ll have a local Cash for  Guzzlers Participating Dealer contact you.   They will be able to assist you with your new car purchase once the bill is signed into law.

A Cash for Guzzlers Participating Dealer will qualify your trade and present you with a competitive price quote. There is no obligation or fee for the service. Please make sure you include your state and phone number or we can not match you to a local provider.  This way you will be prepared when the bill passes to take advantage of the limited time cash voucher.