Clunker waste

Unusable engines beginning to pile up in junkyards

Excerpts:

Though it might seem as though the CARS program -- which requires trade-in vehicles to be crushed or shredded so they can't be resold -- would benefit junkyards, some owners are reporting just the opposite effect.

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Ms. Leshow wouldn't be surprised if it takes weeks or months for Blazczak Salvage to begin getting trade-ins.

Her frustration was echoed by Dave Norris, owner of Millerstown Pic-A-Part in Tarentum, which processes and crushes cars.

His junkyard has gotten around 75 clunkers since the program began two weeks ago, but that's not a significant increase for a recycling plant that typically processes 150 to 200 cars per day, he said.

"It seems to be a really cumbersome process for dealers. They have to scan paperwork to get the government's acceptance of their deals," he said. "There's a real bottleneck to the whole program."

In addition to stimulating car sales, one of the goals of the government program is to get gas-guzzling vehicles off the roads in exchange for those that get better mileage.

"A substantial opportunity exists for fraudulent diversion of the trade-in vehicle, largely because its still-functioning engine makes it attractive to return the vehicle to the road rather than relegate it to the scrap yard," said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's final rule for the CARS Program.

However, it is those parts that account for 60 percent of recyclers' revenue, according to the Automotive Recyclers Association.

"The most valuable part is the engine," said Mr. Norris, adding that each could fetch between $500 to $1,000. "It takes the real profit out of the picture."

Without the engine, he estimates he will get around $75 for the scrap metal for each car.

Comment: I saw an example of a cash for clunker trade in. It was a 1990 Izuzu Trooper. The body was clean with no rust. Getting trashed for no good reason. A lot of nice used cars are being destroyed for no good reason.