Cash-for-Clunkers Program Still Needs Work, According to Edmunds.com

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--Having reviewed the latest “Cash-for-Clunkers” details, Edmunds.com has some serious reservations.

“Because this program aims to achieve both environmental and industry goals, it falls short of both,” Edmunds.com CEO Jeremy Anwyl told AutoObserver.com. “If the administration is serious about boosting car sales in order to jump-start the economy, it can do much better.”

Anwyl asserts that the program must be focused on attracting qualified new car buyers to the marketplace. The current proposal is unlikely to be of interest to typical new car shoppers since it offers only up to $4,500 for a vehicle that must be scrapped. The proposed program targets older vehicles; usually owned by consumers who cannot afford a new car.

“At best, the program will encourage some people to stretch beyond their means – one of the very problems that caused our economy to collapse,” Anwyl noted.

Environmentalists also feel the program is not effective enough, and Edmunds.com’s automotive experts can understand why: the fuel efficiency gains are less dramatic than they might appear.

“The current system of measuring a vehicle's efficiency by miles per gallon creates an inaccurate perception about fuel consumption,” explains Paul Seredynski, Executive Editor of Edmunds.com. “In truth, as people’s mpg ratings rise, they do not do so proportionately.”

To get the $4,500 rebate, a driver can replace a car that gets 12 mpg for one that earns 22 mpg, which saves 3.8 gallons per 100 miles. However, another driver who improves fuel economy from 18 mpg to 28mpg also qualifies for the $4,500 rebate while only saving 2.1 gallons per 100 miles.

Consumers seeking to research the fuel consumption benefits of trade-ins can use the Edmunds.com True Fuel Consumption Calculator at http://www.edmunds.com/calculators/true_fuel.html.

More opinions on the program can be found in the online discussion entitled “A National ‘Clunker Plan’ - Good or Bad Idea?” within the established CarSpace.com Forums (at http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f1c306b).

Edmunds.com spokespeople are available for interviews in Edmunds.com’s television studio in its Santa Monica, Calif. headquarters, or nearby satellite offices.

About Edmunds Inc. (http://www.edmunds.com/help/about/)

Edmunds Inc. publishes four Web sites that empower, engage and educate automotive consumers, enthusiasts and insiders. Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive consumer information, launched in 1995 as the first automotive information Web site. Its most popular feature, the Edmunds.com True Market Value^®, is relied upon by millions of people seeking current transaction prices for new and used vehicles. Edmunds.com was named "Best Car Research Site" by Forbes ASAP, has been selected by consumers as the "Most Useful Web Site" according to every J.D. Power and Associates New Autoshopper.com Study(SM), was ranked first in the Survey of Car-Shopping Web Sites by The Wall Street Journal and was rated "#1" in Keynote's study of third-party automotive Web sites. Inside Line launched in 2005 and is the most-read automotive enthusiast Web site. CarSpace launched in 2006 and is an automotive social networking Web site and home to the oldest and most established automotive community. AutoObserver.com launched in 2007 and provides insightful automotive industry commentary and analysis. Edmunds Inc. is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and maintains a satellite office in suburban Detroit.