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CARS On Hold, White House Denies Cancellation

It's going to be a very long day for all those taking interest in the Car Allowance Rebate System, as conflicting reports on the subject keep surfacing. In the latest news, the White House has denied it plans on canceling the program because of the lack of funds, but admitted the problem still remains: there's no more money.

"We are working to assess the situation facing what is obviously an incredibly popular program," a White House official was quoted as saying by Autnews. "Auto dealers and consumers should have confidence that all valid CARS transactions that have taken place to date will be honored."

This statement was made late last night, yet earlier today ads promoting the program were cancelled by manufacturers, while some dealers have went as far as stopping sales. They are all now waiting to see how this will play out.

Since Monday, 22,782 trades were certified by federal officials, Freep reports, yet the lack of coordination made those involved lose count of the deals made by the roughly 16,000 dealers taking part in the program. According to some reports, as much as 250,000 rebate requests have been submitted, swamping the CARS program.

According to Senator Debbie Stabenow, quoted by Bloomberg, the program is now now suspended, as new funding is being sought. The White House however is yet to make an official statement.

Bottom line? "The consensus is that this program has worked and we damn well ought to figure out how to continue it," as Republican Fred Upton told Autonews.

"We hope there's a will and a way to keep the program going a bit longer," GM added. “More than 200,000 cleaner, more fuel-efficient cars are on the road and a vital industry gets a needed boost."
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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