First Consumer to get Cash For Clunkers in New York

New York, NY - The first consumer to get "Cash for their clunker” in New York bought a new Honda from www.ParagonCars.com, one of a handful of dealers who are helping consumers take advantage of the government program before the official rules have been announced. The federal stimulus program, which provides up to $4,500 to car-owners who trade in their old "clunker" for a new, more fuel efficient alternative, was signed into law by president Obama last week. The law states that consumers qualify for the program from July 1st through November 1st , but the rules of the program are still being hashed out by the NHTSA and will be announced July 23rd. The U.S. Department of Transportation issued a warning to tell dealers not to sell cars before the 23rd because “dealers structuring transactions before the final rule is issued will bear the risks associated with later demonstrating that the transaction meets all of the specifications of the final rule.”

Despite this warning, Hyundai Motor Company and a handful of other dealers in the US, announced that they will help qualified consumers take advantage of the "cash for clunkers" program immediately. “We will offer a minimum gaurantee trade in value of up to $4500 for qualified vehicles until the federal government announces its rules for the program on July 23rd and begins paying our dealership,” said, Brian Benstock, one of the partners of www.ParagonCars.com. “When new Yorkers learn that a program is supposed to start on July 1st, they want it now and dont want to hear excuses about why they have to wait. We have initiated this program to help consumers in New York take advantage of incentives now."

The first consumer in New York to benefit from this new stimulus advance program traded in their clunker to get a new Honda with the help of a $4500 trade in value provided by www.ParagonCars.com. "This is our first customer on the program but we can't be 100% sure that we sold the first customer in the city, but we have not heard of anyone else," said Benstock. Consumers appreciate the opportunity to act now because they know the funds won't last forever. The program ends when the $1 billion dollar budget expires, which is after approximately 250,000 rebates are issued. Paragons program gives consumers the confidence that they will get their government funded rebate before the money runs out, which could be only a matter of weeks since good months in the car business have led to 1 million car sales in only one month. “We help customers find the best car that meets their needs and we complete all the paperwork, collect proof of ownership, registration and insurance for a minimum of one year (as is required) and we make arrangements with the salvage company to dispose of the clunker. This process takes time but our customers will have a big head start by having their purchase agreement signed and most of their required paperwork completed ahead of time.” said Brian Benstock.


The government has set up a website to give consumers access to the legislation (http://www.cars.gov/index.php/official-information) but dealers have the job of making it simple for consumers who must work with a participating dealer to retrieve their government funded rebates. www.ParagonCars.com is taking that job very seriously. Paragon has been leading the efforts to educate consumers in New York about how the program works before the bill was made law. Paragon educates New York consumers about the program through the website it sponsors called www.CashForClunkersNY.com, which helps consumers determine how much funding they may qualify for within a few clicks of a mouse. One of the most popular tools on the site is the Clunker Calculator, or MPG calculator, which helps consumers quickly determine if their current vehicle meets the 18mpg or less requirement to qualify for the $4,500 voucher. The site includes all of the vehicles that are ideal candidates for the $3500 and $4500 vouchers and helps consumers get product and pricing information directly from the dealer.

New York Dealer Dealer Offers Aggressive Incentives beyond government funded program:
The largest dealers in the country have a lot to gain but more to lose if this program does not work. Paragon Honda and Acura is the largest certified dealer in the world and has one of the largest inventories in the world. For this reason they are offering very aggressive incentives to reduce their inventory to be in line with the new economies slower demand for vehicles. "This program comes at the right time and we decided that we would offer very significant incentives above and beyond the governments program to ensure we reduce our inventory during the summer," said Brian Benstock from Paragon Honda and Acura. “With the government rebate as a down payment, consumers can drive a new Honda for less than $5 a day, which is alot less than the $100 dollars a day a rental company may charge. It is unprecidented."


Program Overview:
www.CashForClunkersNY.com provides detailed information about the program. In short, consumers can turn a $500 trade-in car into a $4,500 trade-in by turning in an older, less fuel efficient vehicle for a government funded voucher worth up to $4,500 toward the purchase or lease of a new car with improved gas mileage of 1 to 10 miles per gallon, depending on the vehicle purchased. The vehicle they are trading must be operable, cannot be more than 25 years old and must have been owned, registered, and insured in consumers name for a minimum of one year to qualify. The good news is that if you don’t qualify for the governments program, there are a few dealers out there, including www.ParagonCars.com, that are providing as much or more savings as part of their own dealership incentive program.

The official name of the bill is called C.A.R.S. – “Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program” (www.ConsumerAssistanceToRecycleAndSaveProgram.org) and is Title XIII of Bill H.R. 2346. The program will receive an initial allocation of $1B funded by the US government as a part of a War appropriations bill. The program time length is 7/1--11/1 and it will be implemented by the NHTSA, which will announce the final rules on July 23rd on www.cars.gov, the only government website with information about the CARS program. According to their website, “You may want to contact your local dealer in mid-July." However, a lot of consumers realize that the money could run out before they apply through a dealer, so they are trying to get a head start with dealerships like www.ParagonCars.com who are offering to complete the purchase agreement now and allow consumers to buy the vehicle before the rules are announced. Below is a summary of the top 10 program rules that are on www.CashForClunkersNY.com:

Summary of the Top 10 Rules and Regulations
1.In the case of a passenger automobile, category 1 truck, and category 2 truck, as those terms are defined in the Act, the vehicle must have a combined fuel economy value of 18 miles per gallon or less.

2.The trade-in vehicle must be in drivable condition

3.The trade-in vehicle must have been continuously insured, in accordance with State law, and registered in the same owner’s name for the one-year period prior to the trade in

4.The trade-in vehicle must have been manufactured not earlier than 25 years before the date of trade in and, in the case of a category 3 vehicle, must also have been manufactured not later than model year 2001

5.Owners who purchase a new passenger car that gets at least 4 mpg higher than their old "clunker" get a $3,500 voucher. If the mileage difference is more than 10 mpg, the consumer gets the full $4,500

6.Buyers of small trucks and SUV's need less of an improvement to get the same amounts. If the new vehicle gets at least 2 mpg more than the "clunker," a $3,500 voucher is issued; for new trucks or SUV's getting 5 mpg, the new car owner gets $4,500

7.Work trucks received $3500 towards purchase of another category 2 or 3 truck that is of a similar size of smaller if they were manufactured not later than 2001 and not earlier than 25 years before the trade in date

8.You cannot get credit for a vehicle that costs over $45,000

9.Trade in vehicle would be disposed of (i.e., crushed or shredded) in a manner that
ensures it would never be used again.

10.Any lease under the program must be for a period of at least five years

To view the legislation, vehicles that qualify and to use the clunker calculator, visit CashForClunkersInformation.org or www.DineroPorSuCarcacha.com
for Spanish speakers. To get online price quotes on vehicles that qualify, visit www.CashForClunkersNY.com

Relevant Websites:
www.CashForClunkersHeadquarters.com
www.DineroPorSuCarcacha.com

Other Dealer Sponsored Sites:
www.CashForClunkersAmerica.com
www.CashForClunkersDC.com
www.ClunkersAZ.com
www.Clunkerz.com
www.CashForClunkersOhio.com
www.CashForClunkersNewYork.com


Erin Miller HL Group, LLC
Phone: 212.529.5533 x257
Cell: 646-742-7035
Emiller@hlgrp.com

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