PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island car dealers had requested nearly $2.4 million in vouchers from the federal “cash for clunkers” program by the middle of this week, according to statistics released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The figure translates to roughly 569 clunkers traded in to buy a new vehicle statewide, based on the average national voucher value of $4,206. Rhode Island is home to about 60 car dealerships, according to the Rhode Island Automobile Dealers Association.
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The Car Allowance Rebate System, the official name of “cash for clunkers,” provides a rebate of $3,500 to $4,500 to consumers to put toward the purchase of a new vehicle when they trade in an old low-mileage car to be scrapped.
The state’s dealers had requested a total of $2.392 million in vouchers from the federal government by the close of business Wednesday, the most recent day for which figures are available, according to the highway agency.
In Massachusetts, dealers requested $13.84 million in vouchers through the end of the day Wednesday, representing roughly 3,292 vehicles purchased through the program.
A total of 184,304 dealer applications for $775.2 million in funds had been filed with the government by sellers nationwide at midweek. Michigan dealers had requested $44.4 million in rebates, the largest amount of any state, while Wyoming was smallest at $530,000.
The program’s popularity took policymakers by surprise. They expected the $1 billion in vouchers to generate about 250,000 vehicle sales and last until about Nov. 1.
The Senate voted 60-37 last night to add an additional $2 billion to the program over the objections of some Republicans, six days after the House did the same. President Barack Obama supports the extension.
Ford’s Explorer is the most common trade-in vehicle so far. The vehicles purchased have an average mileage of 25.3 miles-a-gallon, compared with an average of 15.8 miles-per-gallon for the trade-ins, according to the government.
Additional information is available at Cars.gov.
