Cash for Clunkers - $24,000 Per Car

But, you say, I only got $4,500?? Yes, but the government bureaucracy added another $20,000 per car to the cost:

American taxpayers paid a lot of cash for those clunkers: $24,000 for each new car sold, according to a study released Wednesday.

That’s a lot of money, especially when the so-called “cash for clunker” stimulus program offered only a maximum $4,500 in cash for each person who traded in an old gas-guzzler and bought a new car.

The government could have done almost as well by just giving away cars for free, instead of creating an elaborate incentive program, according to an analysis by the automotive information firm Edmunds.com in Santa Monica, Calif.

And since the program ended the auto market has collapsed...as predicted. Shoving demand forward ensured that there would be little or no demand when the program ended.

Go visit a car dealership and take a look at the inventory on hand. In most cases, you won't find much. Not because they're selling so fast, but because the dealers can't afford the flooring costs of keeping cars around that aren't selling. If you want to buy a specific model, instead of having a dozen or more to choose from you might have one or two.

Take it or leave it.