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Detroit, 3:52 AM
Mon Dec 7
12 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/05/09
The fact is avg MPG went up 9.2 mpg per transaction.
8200 F-150 "swaps" vs 700,000+ transactions.
100,000 more cars bought than trucks (which included light CUVs like Escape).
The AP should print a retraction and apologize for sensationalizing something that was mentioned from the earliest reporting of the program. #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
And people's fake concern about the pollution from all that manufacturing is unwarranted. 11 tons CO2 to manufacture a car vs. avoiding 19 lbs CO2 for every gallon not burned saves tons of CO2 overall. To increase the fuel economy of the US fleet you have to swap old cars for new, unless you're proposing engine swaps, EV conversions, and adding lightness. #cashforclunkers
11/06/09
Just because the average fuel economy went up doesn't mean that it's all good. I'm not just talking about saving the penguins and tree hugging. I'm talking about my money that went to other people and I got zero benefit because I own a car that wasn't "clunkery" enough.
We have no idea how these cars will be used. Daily drivers, secondary cars, bought it just to have? People could drag whatever they wanted in irregardless of whether they drove it. They could be driving a 30+MPG appliance (Corolla) daily, but traded in an old Cadillic Fleetwood that used to be their grandpa's for another 30+MPG appliance. The government just threw our money out the window.
In my father-in-law's case there is a net loss in CO2 emissions. He traded in a full size pickup that hadn't run in 2 years and was barely worth scrap metal cost. Now that he has a new shiny pickup, he drives it constantly and stopped driving his car, which gets 50% better MPG.
11/06/09
11/05/09
Largesse! Praise be to the Emperor for our slightly more fuel efficient vehicles! #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
So that, and an unnatural blip in car sales, is what your $3 billion bought you. #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
11/05/09
The Elantra is perfect for NYC. Don't care about the car, don't care about the dings. Still don't want. #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
The article says that 1.87 million tons of CO2 will be saved yearly (sounds more impressive than it is). Could someone find out approximately how much CO2 is released by building the 677,081 new vehicles involved? Then we'll find out if any possible reduction was worth $3 billion, or if they could have been better spent elsewhere. #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
11/05/09
Actually, I did. There's always some ruse to take my money and throw it at someone else. #cashforclunkers
11/05/09
11/05/09
11/05/09
And Godspeed, John R. Cash.
11/05/09
09/25/09
09/23/09
09/23/09
I refuse to believe that someone would happily trade in their 97 Continental R or 06 A4 Cabriolet for a max of $4500, i truly don't think anyone with those cars is that stupid.
So either someone took there severly mashed up Bentley (Which if it was worth less than $4500 probably wasn't drivable and therefore not eligible) and somehow got the dealership to agree to a trade or someone has entered something wrong on a computer and meant to type 2wd Explorer and failed miserably.
You would hope that someone somewhere looked at this list and went eh??? and will investigate what happened but i doubt it.........
09/23/09
I mean to say I lack faith in the intelligence of humanity is like saying the Pacific Ocean is damp, but even I'm doubtful anyone could be that monumentally stupid.
09/23/09
/I wish it was cold, I wish I could see the stars.
09/23/09
So what is happening with this list then? Fraud? Maybe, even probably. Just a cursory look at the list reveals that supposedly 2 2002 BMW (E39) 525i's were traded in under the program. It doesn't even qualify!!!!! Either that's the product of fraud, or the list is just dead wrong. Maybe it's denial, but I'm not going to buy that a GNX was put to death under C4C. The LaForza, Typhoon, 850i, and Excalibur are believable in high-mileage thrashed condition. Still very sad, though.
I hereby mourn these and all other Jalop-worthy cars put to death under C4C. This included a total in the hundreds of mid-90's B-bodies, BMW M's, Audi S series cars, Camaros, Vettes, Foxes, etc etc.
09/23/09
But, then again, there are idiots in the world, as is evidenced by this entire thread/article, assuming it's all true.
09/23/09
09/23/09
And yes, heartless idiots, I might add. The thought of a clunkerized Typhoon sickens me. Even if it does burn more oil than gasoline and has 200,000 miles.
09/23/09
09/23/09
I blame the owners less (who knows maybe these were cars that were dumped on them by deceased loved ones, or some other weird situation) but the dealers more. I mean think about it when they take a trade in that they cant sell (anything older than like 6 or 7 years old most dealers don't put on the lot) they send it to auction. If the dealer had half a brain they would say "sure we will give you $4500" and instead of CFCing the car they would send it out to auction where any of these rides would bring twice that minimum.
I can't even fathom the stupidity!