In a bizarre move, the US government may suspend the "cash for clunkers" program.
While details are limited, several sources have stated the Obama administration is planning to suspend the incentive program within the matter of days (possibly even today). When asked for comment, a White House official dodged the question and said the President was seeking additional funding for the program.
The sudden uncertainty spread quickly as consumers, dealerships and automakers were left scratching their heads. Last night Hyundai held an emergency marketing meeting to figure out which cash for clunker ads needed to be pulled, while Honda said they were going to do nothing until the government announced their plans.
While the automakers expressed reserved concern, dealers have acted far more pessimistically. In an interview with Automotive News, dealership owner Ed Bozarth said he stopped all cash for clunkers sales at his five GM dealerships. After hearing rumors of the possible suspension, Wisconsin dealer Russ Darrow decided to cancel $150,000 to $200,000 worth of cash for clunkers related television advertising.
According to Kia spokesman Alex Fedorek, the possible suspension could be related to software problems on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website which been overloaded with traffic and having errors processing reimbursement claims.
An official announcement may come early today, so stay tuned for details.
