New York Auto Giant: Long Island’s Cash for Clunkers Information Headquarters

LONG ISLAND, N.Y.--The Car Allowance Rebate System; CARS for short, is a government subsidy that pays the a car buyer up to $4500 to trade in an older less fuel efficient car and purchase a more fuel efficient vehicle. Also know as Cash For Clunkers, this federal program has strict parameters so New York Auto Giant is taking extra steps to inform its staff on how to guide their customers to get the maximum benefit. Even if a vehicle doesn’t qualify for the voucher, remember that the government has developed this program to assist the ailing automobile industry. All car manufacturers are seizing this opportunity of increased dealership traffic and are offering a wide variety of aggressive promotions. Dealerships are thrilled with this unprecedented amount of incentives.

New York Auto Giant’s Cash for Clunkers Checklist for Car Buyers

□ 1- The vehicle manufacturer date found on the driver’s door or door jamb shows that it was built after 1984.

□ 2- “Clear” your title by paying off all outstanding loans.

□ 3- The title has been in your name for more than a year.

□ 4- Proof of registration to the same owner for one year. The name on the registration must be the same as the name on the title and the same as the purchaser of the new vehicle.

□ 5- One year proof of insurance.

□ 6- Your clunker should get 18 or less mpg. How do you check that? http://www.fueleconomy.gov

□ 7- This program only benefits those car buyers whose car trade-in value is LESS THAN $4500. Ask your dealer what the current market value of your car is.

□ 8- The new vehicle’s cost can’t be over $45,000.

□ 9- Yes! You can lease the new vehicle as long as the term is for at least 5 years.

□ 10- Sorry, you can’t purchase a used vehicle.

Dealerships that have undergone government certification will do the rest!! They do all the paperwork and your “voucher” amount is immediately applied as a credit towards your new purchase or lease.

Maria Manning’s college-bound daughter narrowly escaped inheriting the family clunker. “We bought our 1991 Nissan Pathfinder the year Alex was born. It still ran and looked great, so we saw no need to sacrifice it for a measly trade-in value of $1500. We figured Alex could use it to get to and from classes and work.” Under Cash for Clunkers, Maria received the full $4500 benefit and purchased a new compact model for $216 a month. The Brentwood, NY mom admits “My husband and I definitely considered scenarios of Alex getting stuck on the Long Island Expressway with the Pathfinder, the new car is so worth our piece of mind.”