The Chronic Consumer

If you want to get in on the government’s Cash for Clunkers program, you better move fast. The $4,500 rebates for trading in your “clunker” will not be issued after 8pm on Monday, August 24.

The program has been a big hit with consumers, but has been a major headache for auto dealers and the government. The government severely underestimated how many people would participate, so they ran out of their initial $1 billion allotment in just the first week. The government then added another $2 billion to the plan.

But dealers have been complaining of not getting reimbursed for the rebates. There’s lots of complicated paperwork meant to discourage fraud, and apparently many of the dealers aren’t filling out the papers properly, causing the holdups.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering which cars are the best sellers as the result of the trade-in program, here are the top 5:

1. Toyota Corolla
2. Ford Focus
3. Hyundai Elantra
4. Chevrolet Cobalt
5. Honda Fit