As students celebrate the prospect of owning their own car, the first issue that comes to mind is money.  The government has issued a program called Cash for Clunkers that provides incentive for car owners to purchase cars that are better for the gas economy.  Students and faculty around Westminster consider this option as budgets get tighter.

Taylor Brandt, senior, participated in this program and got a new car.

“I traded in a car that was old and junky and got a Malibu,” said Taylor Brandt, senior.

Cash for Clunkers was designed to get rid of gas guzzlers and help the country’s overall fuel economy.  If a person owns a car that gets 18 mpg or less, then the car can be traded in for up to $4500 towards a new car. There are several other requirements and conditions for a car and its owner to participate, including the type of vehicle, mileage, and price. The new vehicle’s price can not exceed $45,000.

“I don’t think it’s the smartest program because it’s not helping the economy as a whole, only the individual,” said Abbie Clark, junior.

This program will be ending on Monday, August 24, 2009.  The $3 billion assigned for it is anticipated to run out very soon.  457,000 cars have been sold and rebates of $1.9 billion have been allocated according to cnn.com.

“The federal government did not anticipate this amount of success,” said Cort Howard, Elco Chevrolet sales manager.

Brandt thinks this program was a success as well.

“I think this program was a good idea because you can get money to buy a new car,” said Brandt.

So far, the program has increased car sales significantly, especially for General Motors.  The increase is proportional to the size of the company.  For example, Elco Chevrolet sold 70 units through Cash for Clunkers, while Volkswagen has only sold 100 in all of the stores in the area.

The program has not met with rave reviews everywhere however. “The program is a rip off for the American people.  The rest of America is paying for others to get a new car,” said Ken Boesch, history teacher who was considering trading in his car.

This view is shared by Elizabeth Miller, junior.

“It’s a good concept, but they didn’t execute it well and money was going to run out,” said Miller.

Boesch was going to get more money for his car than it was worth and would have been able to purchase a car that was for much less then it originally cost.

However many companies have failed to receive any of the money promised to them by the government for the cars including both Chevrolet and Volkswagen.

“No, we have not received any money from the government yet.  We are a big enough company that it won’t adversely hurt now, but it will hurt a lot of smaller companies,” said Howard.

Julie Sharp, senior, expands on this point.

“For the consumer it is a good program because it encourages them to buy cars that are better for the environment, but at the same time if the government isn’t keeping up their end of the deal to the companies, then they have no incentive to sell quality cars,” said Sharp.

Boesch agrees with Sharp’s criticism of the program.

“Dealerships made deals in good faith, but it is a typical government program.  It sounds nice but it usually ends up ripping people off,” said Boesch.

Elco Chevrolet has seen a broad age range of participants, but a local Volkswagen dealer has seen something different.

“There have been a lot of older people with older cars that wouldn’t have done anything without the stimulus money,” said Scott Roberts, Dean Team Ballwin Volkswagen sales manager.

Brandt encourages students to participate in this program.

“If you have an old car you should trade it in while you have the chance,” said Brandt.