General Motors is working hard to establish itself as a leader in the market for high-tech eco-friendly vehicles, but its actions since coming out of bankruptcy raise doubts about the depth of the company’s environment commitment. When GM emerged from bankruptcy, it was freed of responsibility for rehabilitating dozens of toxic waste sites in 13
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They don’t call economics the dismal science for nothing. Despite the apparent early success of Cash For Clunkers in stimulating auto sales, academic papers studying the effects of government auto incentives on carbon emissions have cast doubt on the program. A just-released study fromr the University of California’s Center for the Study of Energy Markets
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The Cash for Clunkers program has exceeded the positive expectations of even its most ardent supporters. Not only did more consumers take advantage of the program than anyone anticipated, but the cars they chose to buy were far more fuel efficient than anticipated. The average fuel economy of a clunker was 15.8 mpg, compared to
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With nearly all gas-electric hybrid cars qualifying for the Cash for Clunkers vouchers, hybrid sales in July grew to 3.55 percent of the new car market—its largest market share ever. New car dealers sold 35,429 hybrids, with more than half of the sales coming from the Toyota Prius. Hybrid sales jumped by 35 percent in
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Less than one week after it launched, the Car Allowance Rebate System—or “Cash For Clunkers“—has almost run through its $1 billion in funding. Congressional leaders scrambled Friday to extend the program before the August recess—but Senate leaders like Dianne Feinstein of California may be reluctant to add further money to a program many felt had
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The long-awaited “Cash for Clunkers” program kicked off today, with most dealers reporting a strong early reaction from potential car buyers. Early this morning, the Department of Transportation website responsible for registering the trade-ins overloaded. “This is the first day for registration, and there were 30,000 dealers around the country trying to get into the
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President Barack Obama yesterday signed into law the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program (CARS), or “Cash for Clunkers.” Its detractors are labeling it a classic waste of government money—and many supporters are wondering what went wrong. When economist Alan Binder first proposed the scrappage program in a July 2008 New York Times Op-Ed
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After weeks of debate and legislative gamesmanship—several versions of this bill have been passed or voted on in both houses of Congress, with lawmakers eventually attaching it to an unrelated military funding bill—”Cash For Clunkers” is finally one step away from becoming law. Officially called the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program (CARS), the
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The House of Representatives today voted to approve the so-called “Cash for Clunkers” rebate, a program designed to replace old inefficient gas guzzlers with newer, more fuel efficient cars, and stimulate the struggling auto industry. Car owners would be given vouchers for up to $4,500 toward a new car in exchange for having their old
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Germany offers a government discount of $3,280 on a new car bought by owners who scrap their old polluting cars. The US Congress is considering a discount of $4,500 if drivers crush old gas-guzzlers and buy fuel-efficient new models. It’s an unlikely way to save the economy—and the environment—at the same time, but a simple
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