The numbers have been tallied and it looks like the Cash for Clunkers program aided not only the sale of small economy cars, but also helped bump truck sales and even moved a few Hummers! As an example, Ford sold 22,338 examples of its Focus and more than 16,000 F-150s. Curious.
Other suprise sales numbers included the 15 Hummer HT3s that were sold, and 1,152 Smart cars that were moved off lots. To show just how steep the battle is for truck sales, the Toyota Tundra sold only slightly more than 2,000 units during the program. The Prius, more than 15,000.Chevy sold 16,300 Silverado trucks.
Despite the fact that so many trucks were sold the government is still calling the program a success and the Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood proudly proclaimed that Clunkers, “helped consumers ditch costly gas-guzzlers for safer, more fuel-efficient vehicles that are much better for the environment.” He forgot to add, “and can tow more.”
Meanwhile, some dealers are still not paid, and new-car sales sank like the Titanic when the program ended. No one is reporting how many people really went back to work due to Clunkers or how much that cost us per job. Some scrapyards are so overwhelmed that they are crushing cars without ever parting them out, and others are suffering from reduced scrap prices.
