RSS RSS Twitter Twitter
Leftlane - news, reviews, and info for the auto-industry
 
 

Governments introduce programs to help retire old, polluting cars

07/01/2008, 8:50 AM

By paulee

With today’s gas prices at record-high levels and a weak economy, it comes as no surprise drivers are keeping their vehicles longer. But yesterday’s reports have the government in some U.S. states and Canadian provinces offering incentives for buyers to get into new cars and get their aging vehicles off the road.

In Texas, for example, a program introduced in January offers as much as $3,500 toward a new or 1-year-old vehicle to individuals in Austin, Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth area with lower incomes and a vehicle they are willing to trade in that is at least 10 years old, failed an emissions test and was driven to the dealer under its own power. The money can be used to purchase vehicles that cost no more than $25,000 and is on a state-approved list. The $45 million annual “Drive a Clean Machine” undertaking has retired more than 11,000 vehicles this year, according to Detroit News reports.

In environment-conscious California, the state’s Bureau of Automotive Repair has a $50 million a year program although individual subsidies are smaller. Lower-income residents can get up to $1,500 to retire vehicles that fail emissions tests or $500 to have them repaired. The latter has no income requirements, and the program accounted to getting 16,000 over-polluting vehicles off the roads in 2007.

In Canada, the government is a lot less generous. Starting in January, the federal government will begin a $92 million dollar program over three years in an attempt to get 50,000 older vehicles off the roads. In exchange for their older vehicle that is in running condition, drivers will be offered either $300 cash or a discount on a bicycle or a public transit pass. While the high cost of gas prices may eventually lead some to this option, at least it’s better than burning one’s own BMW in a desperate act of protest.

According to an R.L. Polk report released earlier this year, the median age of cars in the U.S. is a record-high 9.2 years in 2007 and 2006. Light trucks are at 7.1 years, which is the same high as it was in 1998. The same report found that last year, Americans sent 13 million vehicles to scrap yards, an increase of 0.2 percent from 2006 numbers.

New car price quote

Zero obligation price quote from a trusted local dealer.
 
 

07/01, 9:00 AM

posted by:

HemiRoadRunner

More government BS. You’re not going to get “Leroy”, “Cedrick”, or “Tyrone” from the hood to give up their 1985 Caprice Classic, 1984 Oldsmobile Regency 98, or 1987 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham all on 22’s and blinged out for a Chevy Aveo.

07/01, 9:13 AM

posted by:

corvette

so if i find a used 1985 Mercedes with 130k on it for 1.5k and Texas gives me 3.5k for a new car i could do this 3 times and get 6k for a new car.

07/01, 9:17 AM

posted by:

Seriously

Thoes blinged out donks have more money in them than your salary, redneck.

07/01, 9:22 AM

posted by:

HemiRoadRunner

^^^^ Sure they do, a whopping 10 G’s huh. I guess it’s easy to put money in something when you steal and sell drugs for a living for a living you dumb@$$.

07/01, 9:23 AM

posted by:

HemiRoadRunner

Oh, and this REDNECK would kick your little n**ger loving @$$ any day of the week B!TCH

07/01, 9:28 AM

posted by:

Seriously

i know your type hemi. it’s pathetic.

07/01, 9:37 AM

posted by:

kloa

Try checking out the Drive $marter Challenge (www.drivesmarterchallenge.org). You can enter your specific vehicle data and figure out how much money you can save my taking six fuel-efficiency steps. They also provide other fuel-efficiency tips to help you save on gas costs.

07/01, 10:13 AM

posted by:

olds307

In Soviet Russia, Government introduce programs to retire YOU!!

07/01, 10:21 AM

posted by:

tripleonefive

blinged out ????

07/01, 10:26 AM

posted by:

shaver

An aging wife replacment program would be more useful. It would take more then $1500-$3500 to buy your way out of that mess though.

07/01, 10:40 AM

posted by:

jumpoffit

“aint nuthin’ but a G-thang baaaa-by – 2 loc’ed out G’s goin’ craaaa-zy”

sorry i just had to :)

07/01, 10:46 AM

posted by:

johnnycanuck

How about a program to retire old, polluting government employees?

By the way, happy Canada Day to everyone in the great overpriced North. Things, however, are not so happy here in B.C. where we started our morning with gas going up an additional 2.5 cents/litre as our provincial government’s ‘carbon tax’ kicked in. $1.50/l for the dishwater 87 octane. Needless to say this group of useless bureaucrats won’t be getting Johnny’s vote next election. Talk about political suicide, even our Prime Minister denounced carbon tax legislation when it was proposed by the opposition.

07/01, 10:47 AM

posted by:

howsmydriving

No need to subsidize to achieve the goal of getting old cars off the road. Registration fees need only increase after cars get to be a certain age. It’s disproportionately unfair on poorer folks, but so what else is new.

They do something like this in Japan, and it’s nice not to see old **** cars all over the road like in America.

07/01, 11:23 AM

posted by:

jumpoffit

making people switch seems fine and all, but what about the low income families barely getting by month to month- i doubt they could spend what little money they have on a car payment, atleast these old cars they have are paid off and all most of these families have to worry about is food/rent/clothes/utilities – just giving them 3k or 4k OFF a new car isn’t enough- plus you need to consider if this is a family of 3 or 4, what are they going to drive? a little yaris VS a roomy ‘86 Sedan DeVille? come on

07/01, 11:44 AM

posted by:

global_lightning

So what happens to the clunkers? are they then resold at auction???

07/01, 11:52 AM

posted by:

Bimmer

Happy Canada Day, Johnny!
Just read that Canada exclusively will get 2009 Escape XLT with standard tranny, I guess Ford heard your complaints. ;)

07/01, 12:03 PM

posted by:

johnnycanuck

Same to you, Bimmer. I know several people who drive an Escape and love them. I foresee a test drive in my future!

07/01, 12:03 PM

posted by:

ktulu

Old cars R GR8

07/01, 12:16 PM

posted by:

RaineMan

Aww… but I like my 89 Daytona with no catalytic converter. Gets 20+MPG, and it only cost me $1500 to buy in the first place. Plus, with a car like that… you don’t have to worry about someone door-dinging it or breaking in to steal the radio. I leave the doors unlocked most of the time b/c nobody wants the thing. If they steal it… hey, good… there’s nothing in it worth having anyways. And to top it all off the insurance is only $30 a month.

07/01, 1:56 PM

posted by:

theo

You know, LLN would be such a better place if Hemi and all of the other noxiously repugnant racists rants were policed in the slightest.

Moreover, it’s as if these people strive to prove how backwards and illiterate they are. You’re racist and you’re proud of your ignorance! Yeehaw!

This program isn’t an incentive for poor folk to dump their old cars. It’s for people who are driving an older car out of convenience and who need a little financial incentive to trade in their older cars for newer.

07/01, 2:00 PM

posted by:

HemiRoadRunner

^^^^^ Yeah, lets police everything people say and choke out freedom of speech! I’ll show you a racist. My backwards @$$ can buy and sell you all day long. Go pick another bandwagon to jump on, one that actually makes a difference.

07/01, 2:06 PM

posted by:

brassmonkey

The gub’ment ain’t comin’ to get my 1985 Merkur XR4Ti. That whip cost me $200 and a crack rock, and the shizzit gets 29 mpg. You also ain’t getting my 1988 Sterling 800, my 1989 Merkur Scorpio, my 1984 Renault Fuego, or my 1977 Datsun B210 Honey Bee.

07/01, 2:09 PM

posted by:

global_lightning

1977 Datsun B210 Honey Bee? STFU! My first car was a 76 B210. That car got 30+ MPG and could outrun most of the cars on the street. No way I’d trade that one in (sometime I wish I still owned it…)

07/01, 2:30 PM

posted by:

jayjc08

Yeah, more places to spend our tax money, pretty ridiculous. Do they mean another reason for more people to get on the welfare treadmill?

07/01, 3:52 PM

posted by:

theo

“I’ll show you a racist”

We get it. Your proud of your stupidity. You don’t have to keep reminding us how stupid you are.

Trust me, we know.

“My backwards @$$ can buy and sell you all day long.”

Based on your sub par grammar and rhetorical skills, I think not.

07/01, 3:58 PM

posted by:

Random Jerk

“i know your type hemi”

So do I – a foul mouth racist ignorant 13 year old child who pretends to be a grown-up know-it-all on the internet. IF he is an adult you are correct – simply pathetic.

07/01, 4:29 PM

posted by:

DialM4Speed

There go the classics!

07/01, 11:45 PM

posted by:

Rafa LL

If something is not needed in this world (and particularly in the US) is racists.
HemiRR: Just as some others (that actually think before talking, I guess) that waste their time trying to shut you up I’m just going to tell you that as a Dominican boy I know that are people like you that damages US people’s image all around the globe. You should be raped in jail or something like that just to see how much you are going to think before talking.
No matter if you’re 13 or 31, you’re pretty pathetic.

 
 
You need to log in with your user name and password before you can leave comments.

    

Forgot your Password?


Don't have a user name yet? Simply fill in the form below and click the link provided in the
confirmation email. You must supply a valid email address to complete the registration process.

  
 
 
 
 
  • Login
  • About
  • Contact
Please note that you need to log in with your user name and password before you can leave comments.
  

login
cancel
Forgot your Password?
Don't have a user name yet? Click here to register now.

Simply fill in the form below and click the link provided in the confirmation email. You must supply a valid email address to complete the registration process.

  
submit
cancel
Leftlane is the leading source for automotive industry and vehicle news, new car research, future vehicle information, and reviews. Read by car shoppers, driving enthusiasts, autoworkers, executives, and investors, the website is updated throughout the day with the very latest auto news - as it happens.

Leftlane also provides consumers with accurate and media-rich information on every car currently on the market. In-market shoppers can review specs, read overviews, view high-resolution images, watch videos, and estimate pricing. No other automotive publication brings together the same degree of timeliness, thoroughness and accuracy as Leftlane.
 
submit
cancel