CARS program, can I buy another car?

[jsharpe]

Originally Posted by Actor with a Prius

... Oh....the NEW car also must be registered under the person who traded in their clunker for at least a year...

Although it has been pointed out in other posts in this thread that there are tax and titling implications separate from the CARS program, technically the language of the CARS law posted on the government site does not say that the new car must be titled in the same name as the trade in. Here is the relevant portion of section i-7b:

"has been continuously insured consistent with the
applicable State law and registered to the same owner for
a period of not less than 1 year immediately prior to such
trade-in;

Note that it places no restriction on who that owner is, only that it be a single owner for the one year period. Of course we won't know for sure how the program will actually work until after the final rule is issued on July 24th and as I mentioned at the top of this post there are also state laws and tax implications, although the latter would probably be minor given the low scrap value of the vehicle.

[Jabber]

True. But, as I mentioned above, you cannot legally trade in a car that doesn't belong to you. So, even though it doesn't specifically mention that you cannot trade in your parents car, legally, you can't anyway. So it is a moot point. In order for you to legally trade in the vehicle, you would have to assume title, which goes against the whole one year stipulation.

[jsharpe]

Originally Posted by Jabber

True. But, as I mentioned above, you cannot legally trade in a car that doesn't belong to you. So, even though it doesn't specifically mention that you cannot trade in your parents car, legally, you can't anyway. So it is a moot point. In order for you to legally trade in the vehicle, you would have to assume title, which goes against the whole one year stipulation.

We're probably getting a bit too narrow for the general interest in this forum, but I think there are exceptions even to this statement. For example what if I wanted to trade in a car that was titled under a company name (e.g S corp or sole proprietorship)? Assuming I was legally entitled to do so, I don't see any reason why I couldn't either trade in a personal car and title the new car in the company name or the other way around.

[Welshdog]

We just ordered a 2010 IV on Friday through the Costco program. The dealer gave us their "Cash for Clunkers: Purchaser and Acknowledgement Agreement" document to look over. It pretty much states what people have discussed in this thread. The one thing we should clarify is that you DO NOT get the scrap value of the car. Rather, as Actor said, the dealer has to tell you the scrap value of the car. The form they gave me has a line for this. I think the dealer gets the scrap value as an incentive for them to participate in the program.

I wonder how I can find out the scrap value of my 1992 Volvo 940 turbo independently of the dealer? In theory parting out the car could generate significant dollars over time. But who wants to do something like that? I guess I could put it on blocks in my front yard as I sell the parts. Probably the first time for a Volvo to be treated that way, usually it is a 70s Trans Am.

[rstark18]

Originally Posted by Welshdog

The one thing we should clarify is that you DO NOT get the scrap value of the car. Rather, as Actor said, the dealer has to tell you the scrap value of the car. The form they gave me has a line for this. I think the dealer gets the scrap value as an incentive for them to participate in the program.

Maybe that's what the dealer told you but that is not necessarily the case.
From cars dot gov:
"Therefore, the value you negotiate with the dealer for your trade-in vehicle is not likely to exceed its scrap value."
Therefore it's up to you to negotiate a price with the dealer for the scrap value. The dealer is entitled to keep at least $50. Where the dealer potentially can make some money is by selling the parts although I don't know if dealers are really setup to do this. The dealer is only mandated to scrap the engine block and the drive train. The rest is fair game for selling.

Originally Posted by Jabber

$50 bucks is all you will get.. and some dealers are already talking about the amount of money that we have to pay in income tax on the money you receive. So the discount on the car will be less if you use the cash for clunkers program.

Now if your talking discount then I guess you're correct but you can't charge a person more just because they are using the CARS program. It specifically says:
"require the dealer to use the voucher in addition to any
other rebate or discount advertised by the dealer or offered by
the manufacturer for the new fuel efficient automobile and
prohibit the dealer from using the voucher to offset any such
other rebate or discount"

[rstark18]

Originally Posted by Welshdog

We just ordered a 2010 IV on Friday through the Costco program.

How did you get the Costco price? When I put the 2010 in the Costco website it says they are still negotiating pricing with the dealers.

Originally Posted by Welshdog

I wonder how I can find out the scrap value of my 1992 Volvo 940 turbo independently of the dealer?

I was wondering this myself. You'd think there would be a website that could calculate scrap value from a database.

[Welshdog]

Originally Posted by rstark18

How did you get the Costco price? When I put the 2010 in the Costco website it says they are still negotiating pricing with the dealers.

I think it depends on your location. You put in a zip code on the Costco site yes? Maybe the dealers in your area are not interested. It doesn't amount to much - only $250 savings for us. However, the other perks are nice.

[TomInOregon]

Originally Posted by Welshdog

I think it depends on your location. You put in a zip code on the Costco site yes? Maybe the dealers in your area are not interested. It doesn't amount to much - only $250 savings for us. However, the other perks are nice.

What are the other perks? I also was able to run through the Costco program, but they referred me to a dealer who I don't particularly want to work with.

Tom