Saturday, August 15, 2009

Slow Saturday Special: Clunking Away From the Car Lot

You hear a rattling, honey?

"Car dealers say they are waiting for their cash" by Associated Press | August 15, 2009

WASHINGTON - Auto dealers say they still haven’t been repaid for the majority of Cash for Clunkers deals they have made, creating cash crunches for many as they wait for the government to reimburse them under the popular $3 billion vehicle trade-in program.

But they FUND the BANKS to the TUNE of TRILLIONS right away!

Related: Government Puts Brakes on Auto Sales, Acclerates on War Spending

How's that breakfast bowl of s***, AmeriKa?

Some dealers report they have hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of rebates they have submitted to the federal government for repayment that are still outstanding, including deals that were made in the first days of the program nearly three weeks ago.

And YOU want THESE GUYS to RUN NATIONAL HEALTH CARE?

No thanks!!!!

Duane Paddock, who owns a Chevrolet dealership near Buffalo, N.Y., said dealers may stop selling autos under the program because of the funding lags. “I’ve got dealers who are reporting to me that they’ve got over $3 million that they’ve fronted and they haven’t been paid anything,’’ said Paddock, who serves as cochair of GM’s northeast region dealer council.

Hey, they ain't a looting bank.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the federal agency overseeing the program, said yesterday that dealers have submitted requests for rebates that total $1.5 billion through the online system set up to process and pay the claims. But NHTSA did not provide a dollar figure for the amount that has actually been paid.

You are PAYING for THIS GOVERNMENT, AmeriKan sucker?

--more--"

FLASHBACK:

"....

From the onset, there were problems.

The program was supposed to start on July 1 but got delayed until July 24. The rules were complicated, and the list of qualifying vehicles and other requirements changed repeatedly, several dealers said. The program involved mountains of paperwork, and the government website that collected the submissions kept crashing, creating a backlog, they said....

his salespeople struggled to enter deals until midnight on a system that kept crashing.

Ernie Boch Jr., head of Boch Automotive in Norwood, said he continues to offer the incentive but is making customers sign a contract saying they’ll pay up if the government can’t.

Aaaah, screw it.

Whirrrr, whirrrrrrr, whirrrrrrr, VROOM!!!!!

See ya!

He estimates that his dealerships have sold roughly 700 vehicles under cash for clunkers.

“You’ve got hundreds of people looking to do a deal. What are you going to say? ‘Oh, I’m sorry, the government is so [messed] up that I can’t do a deal with you,’ ’’ Boch said. “Being in the auto industry, if somebody wants to buy something, you want to sell it, especially in these hard economic times.’’

I shouldn't be laughing, but....

Boch’s contingency contract, however, put off at least a few customers, he said.

One of those was Ron MacPhee....

--more--""

Related: Obama's Car Law a Lemon

A Clunker of an Insult

Americans Take a Clunk to the Head

Cash For Clunkers in the Breakdown Lane

Yeah, yeah, gimme the phone.

I'll call AAA.