Such a shame

[suprbst]

One of my buddies @ work sent me this email:

CASH FOR CLUNKERS: TRADE IN AMERICAN; BUY FOREIGN
Published on DickMorris.com on August 10, 2009
The only part of the stimulus program that is working, the cash-for-clunkers program is, in reality, a subsidy to foreign car companies, proving that Barack Obama is the best president Japan ever had.
The Department of Transportation reports that the ten leading trade-ins are all American branded cars while six of the top ten new cars purchased - and four of the top five - are foreign. So the United States Senate is about to pass additional funds to subsidize the trade-in of American cars and the purchase of foreign cars.
DOT reports that the following are the ten top trade-ins, all American:
Ten Top Trade-Ins Under Cash for Clunkers
1. Ford Explorer
2. Ford F150 Pickup 2WD
3. Jeep Grand Cherokee 4 WD
4. Jeep Cherokee 4 WD
5. Dodge Caravan/Grand Caravan
6. Chevrolet Blazer 4 WD
7. Ford Explorer 2 WD
8. Ford F150 Pickup 4 WD
9. Chevrolet C1500 Pickup 2 WD
10. Ford Windstar FWD Van
And the top ten new car purchases, subsidized by the American taxpayer, are mainly foreign vehicles:
Top Ten New Car Purchases: Cash for Clunkers
1. Toyota Corolla
2. Ford Focus FWD
3. Honda Civic
4. Toyota Prius
5. Toyota Camry
6. Ford Escape FWD
7. Hyndai 2Elantra
8. Dodge Caliber
9. Honda Fit
10. Chevrolet Cobalt
It is a violation of the World Trade Organization rules to enact a public subsidy program and skew it toward only domestically produced products, so the Congress has no choice but to extend the program to all comers. No choice, that is, but to not spend the money in the first place.
Cash for Clunkers will do wonders for the Japanese economy, but its impact on the US job situation is problematic. This unintended consequence is a great illustration of what happens when the blunt tool of government subsidy is applied to the fine tuning of a free market economy. Government planners keep getting it wrong. That's why socialism is such a bad idea.
So Obama can boast of a great success in taking American cars off the road and replacing them with foreign cars. Great going!

I haven't verified the numbers, but if it's true, it really sucks that one of the top traded-in vehicles is a Cherokee. First, Chrysler decides to axe the model, then they're getting traded in on this program that requires them to be destroyed. I hope we'll at least get to see most or all of these end up in our local JY's so we can salvage parts off them that we need for our own rigs. Leave it to the government to come up with these great ideas... :bawl:

 

[JeepFreak21]

Billy

 

[basalt51]

You're not going to see them in the junkyard. They will get ground up and melted down.

 

[crazymoose1990]

They are able to salvage some of the parts not all of them. The engines are toast though they have to run them at like 3000 rpms with silicone in the engines total destruction. Somebody on here posted all the facts about this it might have been in the Northwest chapter. There were like 3 million cherokees made so they cant get them all but it still sucks for sure.



:tears::tears::tears::tears::tears::tears::tears::tears::bawl::bawl::bawl::bawl::bawl::bawl::bawl:

 

[DanNJeep]

Looks to me like the list basically follows the most popular sellers for the last two decades. Just goes to figure they would be the most popular trade ins.

Don't worry fellas, do you honestly think we arn't going to see those parts? Come on, the "recycle industry" isn't known for it's ethics. Besides, play the scenario out in your heads. Car comes in to the yard, they piece out the body, engine and drivetrain and scrap what's left. Who exactly is going to be policing them? What agency? And just how many "field agents" do you think this so-called agency has? The odds of getting caught are astronomical.

The XJ will last forever!

 

[suprbst]

Well, at least if we remain committed to ours, then our XJ's will last forever. I'll be handing mine down to my daughter when she's old enough to drive, as long as she continues to help with the build & maintenance of it. As long as I can convince her of the necessity of "keeping the XJ faith" the tradition will continue.

I just keep comparing the vehicles that could get dismantled: I've got my wife's 1999 Chevy Tahoe that could be turned in for more than I'm probably going to get on a sale or trade-in, and then there's people who, unlike me, see no difference in turning in the Cherokee, which is no longer manufactured and which has a certain intrinsic value in continuing to live for a slightly modified purpose. Really, the '99 Tahoe doesn't hold that same value, as there were so many of them made & they aren't especially maneuverable and modifiable for the purposes for which we use our XJ's.

Just disappointing to know that there may be many XJ's destroyed by people who don't know what they've got.

 

[Slonopotam]

How much of the money goes to US/CA:

Toyota Corolla 75%
Ford Focus 60%
Toyota Camry 80%
Ford Escape 90%
Dodge Caliber 70%
Chevrolet Cobalt 75%

http://www.automotiveaddicts.com/inthenews/07-10-06.html

 

[AIbandit]

It would be nice if they cited where they got those numbers.

 

[Fastdemise]

I know for a fact that my local junkyard 5 miles away is suddenly filling with cars all marked with the 'Cash for Clunkers' tags and ruined engines. Also nice that they keep a large supply of Jeeps. Just a shame I don't have a good trained eye to spot axles and other parts while they are in the lot.

 

[Skwerly]

This program was created for idiots, which means, of course, that it will thrive. Sad.

 

[AIbandit]

I know for a fact that my local junkyard 5 miles away is suddenly filling with cars all marked with the 'Cash for Clunkers' tags and ruined engines. Also nice that they keep a large supply of Jeeps. Just a shame I don't have a good trained eye to spot axles and other parts while they are in the lot.

The JY near me went from having a huge empty lot to having atleast 50 cars waiting to go in.

 

[Slonopotam]

...and ruined engines. ...a large supply of Jeeps.

Does it mean engines are destroyed on purpose ?

 

[REVROK]

Does it mean engines are destroyed on purpose ?

In a word... yes

 

[AIbandit]

"Dealers must replace the oil in the “clunker” with two quarts of sodium silicate solution and run the engine for up to seven minutes, permanently disabling it, according to rules released today by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in Washington."

 

[bics90xj]

Was at PnP in rocklin and they are getting these car. Motor inside is trashed but the ones I saw are awsome for parts. 95 grand cherokee in better shape than any I've owned!

 

[5-90]

This program was created for idiots, which means, of course, that it will thrive. Sad.

"For" idiots, or "by" idiots? Or both?