Friday, July 24, 2009

Cash for clunkers

The relevant website is www.cars.gov, which reportedly crashed today. Somewhat reminds one of some performance at www.uspto.gov . To participate, one needs a registered, working 1984 (or newer) vehicle with combined mileage figures of 18 mpg (or less).

****Also reminding one of the USPTO, it seems that the EPA altered miles per gallon figures for various cars AFTER the program began. See Clunker Confusion: MPG Figures:

Another car shopper emailed CNNMoney.com saying he went to the Environmental Protection Agency's fueleconomy.gov Web site on Saturday to double-check the fuel economy rating for his 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis. When he had visited previously, the car's combined city and highway fuel economy was rated at 18 miles per gallon, making it eligible for the program.

But on Saturday, he found something different: The fuel economy for his car had been raised to 19 mpg -- one mile per gallon over the maximum fuel-efficiency allowed under the Car Allowance Rebate System (aka Cash for Clunkers). As a result, he became ineligible for a trade-in credit worth up to $4,500.

Even though the program's basic requirements have been known since it was created by Congress earlier this year, Cash for Clunkers didn't become official until July 24. So as part of the official launch, the EPA conducted "quality assurance and quality control effort regarding fuel economy calculations on more than 30,000 vehicle model types spanning the past 25 years," according to an e-mail sent by EPA spokesman Dale Kemery.

As a result, eligibility for roughly 100 vehicles was affected, Kemery wrote. However, roughly equal numbers became newly eligible and newly ineligible.

(...)
Dealers who entered into agreements with customers before last Friday, based on a fuel economy figure listed at fueleconomy.gov, have only themselves to blame, said Tyson.

"We made it very clear that they would be holding themselves out to some risk if they consummate a deal before the program officially begins," Tyson said.


Of the USPTO-->

Internet Publishing: Online Today, But What About Tomorrow Or Where Have You Gone, 406,302?

cross-reference: Sikahema

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